AN OFFICIAL of the Davao City Human Resource and Management Officer (HRMO) said that he is willing to appear in the Senate in case an inquiry about Jerry Trocio, an alleged Davao City employee and one of the persons of interest in the killing of radio broadcaster Jun Pala, will be set.
"(If) I will be invited there, of course I have to abide and comply with the order of the Senate because legally they can also file contempt if you won't go there after official investigation," HRMO head Erwin Alparaque said in a media interview Monday, March 6.
Alparaque, however, was quick to say that he does not know if a Jerry Trocio is indeed in the city payroll.
"I cannot remember that name," Alparaque said.
He said the city has 2,459 regular employees and 7,450 plus job orders and contract of service personnel.
Alparaque said employees have personal capacity to do anything outside their mandated task so the offense allegedly painted on Trucio is not necessarily connected with his job in the city.
"An employee outside their work assignments can do anything di 'ba (right?), in the same manner other employees do things outside of their mandated functions and not during office hours. They can do anything they want in their personal capacity, not in relation to their assigned work or functions," he added.
He said an employee can be liable for a criminal case regardless if they are in the government or not.
"Regardless if they are in the government, it will depend on how the court will decide," he said.
Alparaque added that they will have to wait on how the Senate will resolve the case and should there be cases filed before the court, they will just let the case proceed and will wait for the decision of the judicial body.
The Senate Inquiry led by Senator Panfilo Lacson on Monday questioned Senior Police Officer 3 Arthur Lascañas who said that then Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte paid P4 million to kill broadcaster Jun Pala.
Lascañas, in his statement issued before the Senate said Trocio, who helped them kill Pala, is currently working at Davao City Hall.
He said that Trocio is a former New People's Army cadre and was a part-time security/bodyguard of Pala.