The Office of the Ombudsman Visayas Area Office conducted a Lecture On Anti-Corruption Laws Series (ACLS) before an audience of ESSU employees from every campus today, December 10, 2024, at the Teatro Ibabawnon of ESSU Main Campus.
Together, the College of Law (CoL) and the Gender and Development (GAD) office of the University organized the said activity for ESSU employees with the goal of reiterating the highest standards that government employees must be guided with in the performance of their duties and bringing them awareness of the services that the office of the Ombudsman provides to its clientele.
University leadership led by ESSU President, Dr. Andres C. Pagatpatan, Jr., along with Vice Presidents, Dr. Rhodora C. Mendoza—Administrative Services, and Dr. Jocelyn R. Castro—External Affairs & Quality Assurance, welcomed the honored guest for the seminar, Atty. Julmane N. Plaza, Supervising Administrative Officer of the Ombudsman Visayas Area Office, as the resource speaker.
As the program suggests, ACLS is a series of lectures provided by the office of the ombudsman as part and parcel of their mandate, apart from conducting investigations, providing protection to, and handling complaints concerning public officials. Today's activity is only one in a series of lectures that will be conducted for University employees in the future.
Atty. Plaza was very clear in reminding the audience that the Office of the Ombudsman acts as the protector of the people, which includes the government employees themselves, and that they don't just function against them, contrary to popular assumption. In his lecture, Atty. Plaza also cited concrete examples and clear explanations of the anti-corruption law, providing explicit guidance on how public officials should be guided in their conduct in and out of their office jurisdiction.
