TACLOBAN CITY — The Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Lapu-Lapu City has acquitted Tanauan, Leyte Mayor Ma. Gina Merilo of an anti-graft charge over the hiring of two defeated candidates following the 2022 elections, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish her criminal liability beyond reasonable doubt.

In a 25-page decision dated Aug. 11, 2026, RTC Branch 27 Presiding Judge Nelson Leyco found Merilo not guilty of violating Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

The case, filed on September 30,2024, stemmed from Merilo’s approval of the engagement of Quintin Octa Jr. as project engineer and Reynalda Almaden as mobile nurse, effective July 1, 2022, despite both having lost in the May 9, 2022 elections.

The prosecution alleged that the appointments gave the two individuals unwarranted benefits, advantage, or preference in violation of the constitutional and statutory prohibition against appointing defeated candidates to government positions within one year after an election.

The court acknowledged that Octa and Almaden were losing candidates, that they were engaged by the municipality of Tanauan within the prohibited one-year period, and that Merilo participated in approving their appointments in the performance of her official duties.

However, Judge Leyco ruled that these circumstances, by themselves, were not enough to establish a violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

The prosecution, the court said, still had to prove that Merilo’s actions were attended by manifest partiality, evident bad faith, or gross inexcusable negligence, together with the giving of an unwarranted benefit, advantage, or preference.

The court found that the prosecution failed to meet this burden.

According to the decision, there was insufficient evidence to establish that Merilo deliberately hired the two individuals as a reward for their political participation or electoral support, or that the appointments were motivated by corrupt intent, personal enrichment, a fraudulent arrangement, or a deliberate effort to confer unwarranted benefits.

“At most, the evidence establishes that accused Merilo approved the engagement of two losing candidates despite the constitutional and statutory prohibition,” the court said.
It stressed that an alleged violation of the prohibition on appointing defeated candidates does not automatically constitute a violation of Section 3(e) of R.A. No. 3019.

The court further explained that while the appointments may have contravened the constitutional and statutory prohibition, a criminal conviction under the anti-graft law requires proof beyond reasonable doubt of all the essential elements of the offense.
Judge Leyco emphasized that any reasonable doubt must be resolved in favor of the accused and that the prosecution failed to establish every element necessary to sustain Merilo’s conviction.

The court also clarified that her acquittal should not be interpreted as a finding that the appointments were lawful.

“This conclusion should not be understood as a declaration that the subject engagements were lawful. They were not,” the decision stated, while noting that the evidence presented did not meet the higher evidentiary threshold required for a criminal conviction under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

The RTC thus acquitted Merilo of the criminal charge, ruling that her guilt had not been proven beyond reasonable doubt.

The case was filed following allegations that Merilo violated the prohibition against appointing candidates who had lost in the 2022 elections by engaging Octa and Almaden within one year from election day.

(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)

TACLOBAN CITY – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has released P3.6 million in livelihood assistance to 120 parents of child laborers in Southern Leyte, aiming to provide sustainable sources of income and help keep children out of the workforce.
The assistance was distributed under the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP) during a ceremonial turnover on Aug. 5 at the Sogod Municipal Gymnasium in Sogod, Southern Leyte.

Implemented by the DOLE Regional Office 8 through its Southern Leyte Field Office in partnership with the Sogod local government, the program seeks to help beneficiaries establish or expand small businesses that can provide long-term income for their families.
The livelihood packages included tools, equipment, and materials for a wide range of enterprises, including barbershop services, bread and cake vending, carpentry, dressmaking and tailoring, snack vending, fish vending, fishing, ginger farming, ice cream making, meat vending, painting services, peanut butter production, Piso WiFi, poultry raising, rag making, tilapia farming, tuba vending, vegetable farming, vulcanizing, and welding.

Each beneficiary received a package based on the livelihood project he or she had chosen.
DOLE Southern Leyte Field Office head Eden Ligaya Y. Golong said the program addresses one of the root causes of child labor by helping vulnerable families earn a stable income.
“By empowering parents of child laborers with viable sources of income, we are not only helping improve their economic condition but also strengthening our collective efforts to ensure that every child remains in school and is protected from child labor,” Golong said.
She added that the livelihood assistance supports the government’s efforts to improve the welfare of disadvantaged families by creating sustainable employment opportunities.
Sogod Mayor Sheffered Lino S. Tan thanked DOLE for extending livelihood assistance to residents and assured beneficiaries of the municipal government’s continued support to ensure the success of their livelihood projects.

One of the beneficiaries, Lalaine Baigan, who received a snack vending package, said the assistance would provide her family with a steady source of income and help meet their daily needs.

DOLE said the livelihood assistance is part of its continuing campaign to eliminate child labor by reducing the economic pressures that compel children to work and by helping families become more self-reliant.

(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

TACLOBAN CITY — Students in colleges and universities could gain wider and more equitable access to digital learning resources and high-speed internet under a measure approved by the House of Representatives on third and final reading.

The House on Wednesday, August 12, approved House Bill No. 9532, or the proposed “Universal Access to Digital Academic Learning Resources Act,” principally authored and sponsored by Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre, chairperson of the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education.

Acidre said the measure seeks to address persistent barriers faced by students, particularly the high cost of textbooks and mobile data, limited access to academic materials, and unreliable internet connectivity.

“We already know how important digital access is to learning. If books are lacking, mobile data is expensive, or the internet connection is poor, that immediately puts a student at a disadvantage. We want to remove as many of those barriers as we can,” Acidre said.
Under the bill, a National Academic Content Repository will be established under the supervision and management of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), in partnership with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and higher education institutions.

The repository will serve as a nationwide platform where students and faculty can freely access digital textbooks, lecture videos, syllabi, research papers and other open educational resources.

The measure requires materials uploaded to the platform to undergo quality assurance and be accessible, inclusive and culturally relevant.

The bill also seeks to address internet connectivity by directing the DICT, in partnership with higher education institutions, to provide free and secure campus-wide high-speed Wi-Fi to enrolled students and faculty.

Rural and under-resourced campuses will be prioritized during the initial implementation of the program.

The measure further provides grants to higher education institutions and faculty members for the development and digitization of locally produced academic materials. It also directs CHED to work with publishers to secure affordable or open-access arrangements for educational resources.

Acidre said the proposed policy is intended to ensure that digital learning becomes a tool for reducing, rather than widening, inequality among students.

“Getting a student into college is only the first step. We also have to make sure that once they are there, they have the books, materials, connectivity, and academic support they need to keep learning and to succeed,” he said.

“For digital learning to expand opportunity, access cannot depend on a student’s income, location, or ability to pay for data. We have to make sure that technology helps close the gaps in higher education instead of reinforcing them,” Acidre added.

The measure will now be transmitted to the Senate for consideration.

(JOEY A. GABIETA, LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)