MANILA — The Office of the Ombudsman announced on Monday, October 19, that a municipal treasurer in Laguna has been suspended for one month and one day after being found administratively liable for simple neglect of duty regarding unsecured ballot boxes during the 2022 elections.
Ma. Theresa Lagonoy Lontok, the municipal treasurer of Santa Maria, faced penalties that were mitigated by the anti-graft body due to what it described as 30 years of unblemished public service, previous awards, and “the fact that this was her first administrative offense.”
The disciplinary proceeding originated from a complaint filed by 4th District Representative Maria Jamina Katherine Baltazar Agarao, who alleged that Lontok conspired with Santa Maria Mayor Ma. Rocelle Valdecantos Carolino to manipulate ballots after the 2022 polls.
However, all administrative charges against Mayor Carolino were dismissed due to insufficient evidence, as the Ombudsman determined that the chief executive lacked statutory or legal accountability for securing and storing election materials.
The controversy arose from an election protest lodged with the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) by Antonio M. Carolino, the husband of Mayor Carolino and a former congressional contender. Inspection records from the HRET indicated that multiple ballot boxes recovered from the town were missing necessary plastic and metal security seals or were held together solely by packaging tape.
Although digital ballot images verified Agarao’s electoral win, the physical ballots across 16 clustered precincts were judged to have questionable integrity because of compromised seals and physical irregularities.
The Ombudsman noted a lack of concrete proof showing that Lontok deliberately tampered with the ballots, acted corruptly, or harbored bad faith. Nevertheless, the anti-graft agency stressed that Lontok’s admissions demonstrated that unauthorized personnel had ample opportunity to enter the storage facility, reflecting her failure to properly execute her legal obligation to protect the ballot boxes.
Furthermore, the Ombudsman underlined that conspiracy cannot be proven through mere assumptions or guesswork, pointing out that Agarao failed to provide substantial evidence showing Mayor Carolino actively participated or interfered with the management of the ballot boxes.