By Donald Sevilla
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has disallowed the top
elected official of Bohol from going to China due to questions of ethics and expenses
involved in the travel.
Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Cabagnot Aumentado had requested permission to
travel to the People’s Republic of China from April 16 to 21, 2023 but the DILG
disapproved his trip.
The purpose of the trip was allegedly to promote the tourism industry in Zhejiang and it
was allegedly sponsored by the South Asia General Foundation International, Inc.,
according to his letter request to DILG.
Debbie T. Torres, CESO V, Director IV of the Bureau of Local Government Supervision,
in a letter informed Aumentado that “his request has raised concerns due to a provision
under an OP Memo dated October 21, 1997.”
“The provision states that local government officials and employees should refrain from
accepting invitations to travel abroad if they are funded by any contractor or supplier of
goods, equipment and services,” Torres said in the letter memo.
“This is in line with the policy to promote a high standard of ethics in public service,”
Torres’ memo said.
As this develops, Gov. Aumentado has designated Vice Governor Dionisio Victor Balite
as Acting Governor of Bohol this week.
n a letter memo to Balite, Aumentado revealed he will be out of the country from April
29, 2023 to May 6, 2023.
Aumentado allegedly will attend the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai, a popular city in
the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Earlier, Aumentado had also travelled to Israel.
The governor flew to Israel last February 27, 2023 allegedly to attract more investors to
the province.
The trip was allegedly upon the invitation of Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Ilan
Fluss to “showcase Israel’s technology and innovation on water, agriculture, health,
airport management, and cybersecurity, among others.”
In October 2022, Aumentado went to Malaysia as revealed in his memo to Balite.
A Capitol news release said Aumentado was invited by MEC Clearwaste to “personally
check its Restoring Nature Facility in Malaysia.”
“The waste management facility demonstrated the reliability of its technology that uses
a unique process combining and arranging different technological processes and
technologies to thermally decompose and treat solid waste generated from
environments, and process the waste from solid to liquid, from liquid to gas and finally
from gas to plasma,” the press statement said.
Gov. Aris “found this technology helpful in solving our problems with solid waste
especially in hospitals in the province through effective and efficient waste
management,” the news release said.
A week later after returning from Malaysia, the Bohol governor flew to South Korea,
again designating Balite as acting governor.
In a separate news release from the Capitol, Aumentado’s travel to South Korea “aims
to enhance the chief executive’s’ knowledge in addressing agricultural issue locally and
provide significant advantages to the local government unit in the long run, keeping in
mind that agriculture and food security have been identified as primary priorities of the
Marcos administration.”
TRAVEL BUDDY
Meanwhile, Leoncio B. Evasco Jr., chairman of the Office of Governance Accountability
and Review (OGAR) in the Province of Bohol, had received an invitation from the South
Asia General Foundation Int’l Inc. to promote the tourism industry in Zhejiang, China.
The South Asia General Foundation Int’l Inc. has been actively committed to
strengthening friendly relations with China for many years, according to the letter
addressed to Evasco and was obtained by The Bohol Tribune.
The main purpose of participating in this forum and visiting Zhejiang is “to strengthen
cooperation with Chinese local governments and enterprises and promote the economic
development of Philippine cooperatives,” the letter said.
According to the website of the company (foundation) that invited Aumentado and
Evasco, it “conducts environmental conservation projects such as dioxin
countermeasures and soil improvement projects.”
“We also invest in companies and projects from outside the prefecture, and provide
management support to companies. In addition, we also develop businesses such as
developing and manufacturing products for lithium-ion batteries,” South Asia General
Foundation Int’l Inc. said in its website.