Printing office GM cited for drinking alcohol while at Senate budget debates online

Officers of the Presidential Communications Operations Office were taken to task after at least one of them was determined to have been drinking alcohol while attending the Senate budget deliberations online.

As the Senate was tackling the proposed P1.838-billion budget of the PCOO for 2022, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian noticed what he called improper behavior of APO Printing Office general manager Dominique Tajon.

“I was also informed by our sergeant-at-arms that Mr. Tajon was drinking alcohol,” Gatchalian said.

APO is a government owned and controlled corporation under the PCOO.

GMA News Online has reached out to the PCOO for comment but has yet to receive any as of posting time.

“May I remind the PCOO team to conduct proper virtual etiquette because we can see Mr. Dominic Tajon moving around, and we saw some inappropriate pictures of individuals not clothed properly,” Gatchalian said.

“And now he disappeared because I think he’s guilty of it,” he added, referring to Tajon.

“But may I remind everyone to conduct proper virtual etiquette. This is a public hearing and we can all see you. We can all see what you are doing and keep this as a proper formal hearing,” Gatchalian said.

Gatchalian also called out Tajon for constantly moving his camera which distracted the senators at the session hall.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Tajon had total disrespect for the Senate.

“They are inside the session hall virtually  and they are taking alcoholic drinks during our session,” said Drilon, who attends sessions virtually.

“This is reprehensible Mr. Chairman. This is the first time in my 24 years being in the Senate that I heard of a resource person imbibing hard liquor or alcohol during our session,” he added.

For his part, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri required PCOO and other agencies to be physically present.

“I move that the budget of the PCOO be deferred ’til tomorrow and we will require all these agencies to be present here like we are everyday,” Zubiri said.

“They are there in the back [and] failure to attend for the agency head we just zero their budget,” Zubiri also pointed out.

 

The Senate then deferred the PCOO budget following Tajon’s behavior.

 

On top of this, Drilon moved to censure PCOO and Tajon over the incident, which the Senate approved.

 

“I am really disturbed by the report that Mr. Tajon is imbibing alcoholic drinks while we are in session. And it is a virtual session he is supposed to be in the Session hall,” said Drilon.

 

“I would submit that we censure the agency including Mr. Tajon for disrespect to the Senate. We so move that we censure them,” he added.

Printing office GM cited for drinking alcohol while at Senate budget debates online
Source: Filipino Viral News PH