Disobeying the Civil Service Commission

Disobeying the Civil Service Commission "My sister was an employee of a local government unit and she was unjustly dismissed because of her political affiliation. She filed a complaint before the Civil Service Commission (CSC) against the agency concerned and a decision was rendered reinstating her to her former position. The agency, however, refused to obey the decision despite her several attempts to go back to her work. My relative working with the government said the agency may be ordered to pay a fine in its refusal to obey the decision. Is this true?Darvin Dear Darvin,Yes, your relative is correct. The refusal of the agency concerned to implement a decision which attained its finality may be considered as contempt. This is in consonance with Section 76, Rule 15 of the 2011 Revised Rules in Administrative Cases in the Civil Service, which provides that: “If the respondent is adjudged guilty of indirect contempt committed against the Commission, he/she may be punished by a fine of One Thousand Pesos (P1,000) per day for every act of indirect contempt. Each day of defiance of, or disobedience to, or non-enforcement of a final order, resolution, decision, ruling, injunction or processes, shall constitute an indirect contempt of the Commission. If the contempt consists in the violation of an injunction or omission to do an act which is still within the power of the respondent to perform, the respondent shall, in addition, be made liable for all damages as a consequence thereof. The damages shall be measured by the extent of the loss or injury sustained by the aggrieved party by reason of the misconduct, disobedience to, defiance of a lawful order, and/or such other contumacious acts or omissions of which the contempt is being prosecuted, and the costs of the proceedings, including payment of interest on damages.”The above-cited provision of the rule was applied by the court in the case of Eusebio vs Civil Service Commission (GR 223623, Jan. 29, 2020), where the Supreme Court, speaking through Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier, stated that: “Under Section 434 of the CSC Revised Rules on Contempt, a fine of P1,000 may be imposed on the contemnor for each day of defiance of, disobedience to, or non-enforcement of, a final ruling of the CSC. Further, if the contempt consists in the violation of an injunction or omission to do an act which is within the power of respondent to perform, he or she, in addition, shall be liable for damages as a consequence thereof.”The court went further to state that: “x x x. Indeed, the rationale behind the fine of P1,000 a day is not difficult to divine — to give teeth to the coercive powers to the CSC as the implementer of civil service laws. It is meant to deter those who dare defy the authority of the CSC and in the process, interrupt, nay prejudice, the flow of public service.”Applying the above-quoted decision in your sister’s situation, the CSC may impose a fine of P1,000 a day as penalty against the agency or employer of your sister for indirect contempt for its defiance to obey the decision. The purpose of the fine is to give teeth to the powers of the CSC in the implementation of civil service laws. Finally, the imposition of fine is meant to deter the defiance of the authority of the Commission.We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice is based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to dearpao@manilatimes.net" - https://www.affordablecebu.com/