• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The provincial government of Negros Occidental is filing a motion for reconsideration on the decision of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) clearing former Assistant Provincial Administrator Ma. Mina Pellejo of grave misconduct and gross neglect of duty, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Monday, Feb. 23.
While it did not find substantial evidence to support the charges, the CSC modified the penalty of dismissal imposed upon her to only three months of suspension.
Pellejo, who was then the concurrent officer-in-charge of the Negros Occidental Comprehensive Health Program (NOCHP), was dismissed from service in February 2022 by Lacson after she was found guilty of gross neglect of duty and grave misconduct.
Pellejo was charged for supposedly incurring a total expenditure of P86.4 million for the NOCHP in 2019, causing it to suffer an excess of P1.6 million from its annual budget for that year.
Lacson said it was very clear in the CSC decision that there was a misconduct on the part of the respondent.
In a 15-page decision promulgated on Jan. 12, 2026, the CSC stated that “(t)he evidence on record fails to demonstrate that Pellejo exercised direct control or discretion over the determination of the eligibility of NOCHP beneficiaries or that she signed the consolidated voucher for replenishment without any supporting documents”.
It added: “There is no evidence presented to support the allegations of malversation or that she has benefitted personally from the alleged grant or approval of the release of NOCHP benefits to questionable or unverified members.”
“Our stand remains to be that NOCHP did not incur any budget deficit. This stand is supported by the records of the case,” Pellejo maintained, as she confirmed that she is also filing a motion for partial reconsideration of the CSC decision.
As to Pellejo’s possible reinstatement as a Capitol employee, Lacson said he will not decide on it alone, as he wants to know first the effect, if she will be reinstated.
“But I think it is too early to tell since there will still be a motion for reconsideration. We will exhaust all legal remedies,” he added. | GB
