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554 Phil. 112
THIRD DIVISION
[ G.R. NOS. 167335 & 167337, July 10, 2007 ]
DR. ULYSSES A. BRITO, (IN HIS CAPACITY AS OIC-REGIONAL
DIRECTOR OF THE NCIP REGION IV), PETITIONER, VS. OFFICE
OF THE DEPUTY OMBUDSMAN FOR LUZON, SANDY P. PADILLA
AND MONICO A. DINGAL, JR., RESPONDENTS.
[G.R. NO. 173152]
DR. ULYSSES A. BRITO, (IN HIS CAPACITY AS OIC-REGIONAL
DIRECTOR OF THE NCIP REGION IV), PETITIONER, VS. COURT
OF APPEALS, OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY OMBUDSMAN FOR LUZON,
SANDY P. PADILLA AND MONICO A. DINGAL, JR., RESPONDENTS.
DECISION
CHICO-NAZARIO, J.:
For the Court's consideration are two consolidated petitions: (1) G.R. Nos. 167335 &
167337, a Petition for Certiorari under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court, seeking to
nullify and set aside the Joint Order[1] dated 7 December 2004 of the Deputy
Ombudsman for Luzon which resolved the criminal aspect of the charges against
private respondents Sandy P. Padilla and Monico A. Dingal, Jr. in their favor; and (2)
G.R. No. 173152, a Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of
Court, seeking the reversal of the Court of Appeals' Resolution[2] dated 18 October
2005 denying petitioner's Motion for Reconsideration of the Court of Appeals'
Resolution dated 27 April 2005 which dismissed the special civil action for certiorari
filed by petitioner against the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon on the ground that it
was not the proper remedy to assail the joint order of the Ombudsman. Said special
civil action questioned the Joint Order of the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon dated 7
December 2004 insofar as it disposed of the administrative aspect of the charges
against private respondents by finding them not guilty of Gross Dishonesty, Grave
Misconduct and Conduct Prejudicial to the Public Interest. It merely found them
liable under Section 4(a) of Republic Act No. 6713[3] and imposed upon them the
penalty of reprimand.
These are the facts of the instant consolidated petitions.
Private respondents Sandy Padilla, Engineer II, and Monico Dingal, Jr., Community
Affairs Officer II, are employees of the National Commission on Indigenous PeoplesRegion IV (NCIP-Region IV). NCIP is the primary agency of the government tasked
to implement Republic Act No. 8371,[4] otherwise known as "The Indigenous Peoples
Rights Act of 1997." It is the agency authorized by the said law to issue a
Certification Precondition in favor of any entity which desires to undertake
operations within the ancestral domains of the indigenous peoples or whose
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