POLL BODY’S EMPLOYEES IN ABRA SEEK TRANSFER OF THEIR BOSSY CHIEF

August 17, 2024 Provincial

BANGUED, Abra

The employees of the Commission in Elections (Comelec) Abra are seeking for the transfer of their Provincial
Election Supervisor (PES) for alleged unprofessional and unethical conduct. In their letter to Comelec Chairman Erwin Garcia, the officers and members of the Abra COMELEC Employees Society (ACES), condemned what they said “the unprofessional, unethical, unjust and unwarranted actions of Lawyer Mae Richelle B. Belmes-Chaudhary towards employees and election stakeholders in the province.

They claimed Belmes Chaudhary is suppressing their freedom to speak. The employees claimed before Chairman Garcia that they are afraid to speak out of their sentiments and opinions because Belmes-Chaudhary threatened them with failing marks on their individual performance ratings and other retaliatory actions that will affect their security of tenure, their mental health and professional development.

They also claimed that the PES directed the disbursement of the funds of ACES for her extravagant and impractical
plans even without the approval of the officers of the group. The group stated that Belmes-Chaudhary also used the food allowances of the employees for her plans. They also claimed that her sister who is the election assistant of La
Paz town in Abra, benefitted from the payments for the catering services during their past conferences.

The employees also complained they were subjected to humiliation by Belmes Chaudhary thru yelling and also
sarcastic messages in their group chat. The ACES stated that the PES degraded the morale of the employees affecting COMELEC Abra as a whole. “We humbly request your good office for the immediate reassignment/transfer PES Mae
Richelle B. Belmes-Chaudhary outside the province of Abra,” wrote the employees to Garcia. The Comelec national
office though referred the case to the COMELEC-Cordillera Regional Director Atty. Julius Torres for his information and appropriate action.

Artemio A. Dumlao/ABN