Several deputy special prosecutors on Friday urged Special
Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio to resign as they said he has "lost the
moral ascendancy" to lead his office.
"With all the problems he has caused now, the better part
of prudence is that he must resign," Deputy Special Prosecutor John
Turalba said at a press conference attended by at least nine members of
the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
Turalba’s statement was supported by deputy special prosecutors Jesus Micael and Wendell Barrera-Sulit.
Other deputy special prosecutors present at the press
conference said they will not directly call for Villa-Ignacio’s
resignation as it would be rude to ask a boss to vacate his post.
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"I’m not in the position to [ask for his resignation]. He
has a fixed term. What he should do is work vigorously for the good of
the office and [don’t] destroy the institution," Deputy Special
Prosecutor Danilo Lopez told reporters.
Not resigning
Villa-Ignacio, meanwhile, declared over ANC television that he will not resign.
"There is no basis. I will not because after all, they are already in the Office of the Ombudsman," he said.
Villa-Ignacio, earlier, said that the prosecutors who
appeared at the press conference have been transferred from his office
to the office of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez.
The special prosecutor said the coming out of the prosecutors is part of a special project for his ouster.
"There would seem to be a common denominator of the people
attacking me," he said, adding that all of his attackers work for
Gutierrez.
Villa-Ignacio insisted that there is "a silent majority"
who supports his cause. He said these people have been harassed by the
Office of the Ombudsman for being independent.
Deputy Special Prosecutor John Turalba
Friends’ quarrel started the fire
Turalba earlier said the OSP is "burning down" because of
a quarrel between Villa-Ignacio's daughter and her former best friend,
Elvira Chua.
"These troubles started with the rift between the daughter
of Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio’s daughter, Atty. Monica
Villa-Ignacio and Prosecutor Elvira Chua," Turalba said.
Torralba added: "They have been good friends. Unfortunately, for reasons we do not know, they had troubles and parted ways."
Chua was the prosecutor who filed an estafa case against "the father."
Villa-Ignacio confirmed that his daughter, who serves as his executive secretary, was Chua’s best friend.
Villa-Ignacio said the friendship ended when his daughter realized that Chua had "other intentions… on the special prosecutor."
‘Daughter has bad temper’
Sulit said the real problem in the OSP is Villa-Ignacio and, especially, his daughter who allegedly has a temper.
"His daughter shouts at almost everyone if she is
displeased. She orders everybody as if she owns the office, as if we
were her minions," Sulit said.
She said she had an encounter with the daughter in March
2006 when she recommended her for a National Defense College
scholarship.
Sulit said the daughter got mad after learning of her
recommendation. She said the daughter shouted at her during a phone
conversation.
"I am an elder, anak are you shouting at me?" she recalled
telling the daughter. She said the reply was, "Walang anak, anak dito.
Ang tanda mo na you cannot follow instructions!"
Sulit said she informed Villa-Ignacio about the encounter and the special prosecutor promised to order his daughter to apologize.
She said she went on leave because she was upset. While
she was on leave, she said Villa-Ignacio gathered all OSP employees and
informed them that she wanted his daughter to apologize, "even if Sulit
is the source of all evil."
Turalba told reporters that he was also a victim of the daughter’s temper.
He said the daughter learned about his complaint letter to Villa-Ignacio about undelivered computer units.
"The daughter got mad. She went to my room and berated us for what we did," he said.
Almost everybody in the OSP had encounters with the
daughter and several employees had resigned or were dismissed because
of this, Torralba said.
Expensive venue
Asked to comment on the press conference, Villa-Ignacio
said he was surprised to learn that the deputy special prosecutors were
holding the media briefing at the posh Club Filipino in Greenhills, San
Juan City.
"I did not know that the prosecutors are members of Club
Filipino, that is very surprising," he said, adding that he was
wondering who was "footing the bill" for the event.
Villa-Ignacio said the officials at the press conference
may be acting on the behest of Ombudsman Gutierrez as they "can be
removed anytime" by her "even without reason."
Villa-Ignacio came out as he suspects that his position is being
eyed by Malacañang. He said some quarters in government want him out
before his term ends in 2010.