Administrative Order No. 51




MALACAÑAN PALACE MANILA BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES [ Administrative Order No. 51, February 25, 1963 ] CONSIDERING MR. EDMUNDO M. RUADO RESIGNED AND SEPARATED AS ASSISTANT PROVINCIAL FISCAL OF ROMBLON. This is an administrative case against Assistant Provincial Fiscal Edmundo M. Ruado of Romblon for immorality, serious misconduct, unfitness, and incompetence, initiated in separate complaints by Martina M. Montaña and her father, Jose Montaña. As both complaints substantially refer to the same matter, they were consolidated and formally heard by a special prosecutor of the Department of Justice who .found respondent guilty of immorality. The facts are undisputed. Complainant Martina Montaña, single, then 28 years of age and an employee in the office of the Provincial Governor of Romblon, met and came to know respondent early in 1955 when he was a public defender of said province. He courted her and they became engaged in the latter part of 1956. They continued their relationship up to January 1959 when respondent was occupying his present position. He told her that his parents did not want him to marry her; so they broke their engagement. Thereafter Martina transferred, to the Bureau of Public Highways in Manila. Before her departure respondent proposed to marry her secretly which she did not accept. While she was in Manila, respondent used to visit her, and their love relations were renewed. On one occasion he invited her to take a ride on Dewey Boulevard, and they eventually ended in a hotel where he succeeded in having intimate relations with her upon a promise of marriage. Subsequently they had two more carnal communications, with the result that she gave birth to a child.1aшphi1 Respondent admitted his relations with Miss Montaña, as well as the paternity of the child whom he promised to support. His defense is that when he courted her and had carnal knowledge of her, he was sincere in his intentions but was prevented from fulfilling his promise by what he called an insuperable force; which was the opposition of his parents. It is pointed out that the offense complained of did not happen in Romblon but in Manila where the affair was conducted discreetly; that it had no connection with his official duties and neither did he take advantage of his official position; and that all the blame could not be laid on him, as Miss Montaña was a mature age (32 years at the time), educated, and intelligent. The above circumstances alluded to by respondent may be true, but the naked fact remains that immorality was committed with him as instigator resulting in the birth of an illegitimate child. When a man has carnal knowledge of a woman hot his wife he commits immorality, aggravated in this case by the patent scandal arising from the birth of a child out of wedlock and by respondents failure to keep his promise to marry her. A public servants private life should be as impeccable as his public service; should be dedicated. This administration, committed as it is to the policy of moral regeneration not only in the private sector but more so in the public service, cannot view such serious moral lapses as that committed by the respondent with tolerance, benignity, and indifference.1aшphi1 High standards of morality are required and expected of every one in the government service. WHEREFORE, and consistently with the moral tone of the .administration and in order to serve as a warning to others who may be similarly inclined, Assistant Provincial Fiscal Edmundo M. Ruado of Romblon is hereby considered resigned and separated from the service effective upon receipt of a copy of this order. Done in the City of Manila, this 25th day of February, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and sixty-three. (Sgd.) DIOSDADO MACAPAGAL President of the Philippines By the President: (Sgd.) SALVADOR L. MARIÑO Executive Secretary The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation