ELEVEN barangay heads from Alaminos City in Pangasinan province fired away with two charges of graft and abuse of authority against mayor Hernani Braganza, over the alleged freezing of barangay aid funds and seizure of barangay patrol vehicles.

The barangay captains filed the two cases before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Respondents in the complaints are Alaminos City Administrator Wilmer Panabang, Budget Officer Rowena Ruiz, City Treasurer Shirley dela Cruz and City Planning Development Officer Roel Añonuevo.

Those who filed the complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman were Barangay Captains Ester Bernal, Jessie Racraquin, Eusebio Fronda Jr., Ronald Bautista, Milagros Payas, Joeffrey Orfinada, Samuel Alcantara, Trinidad Soriano, Victor Ranches, Mario Rabadon and Joe Regatcho.

The complainants alleged that since 2010 up to the present, the accused, headed by Braganza, had withheld the share of barangays Amandiego, Balayang, Baleyadaan, Cayucay, Landoc, Pangapisan, Poblacion, San Vicente, Telbang, Victoria and Balangobong in the P1.17-million yearly barangay aid appropriations.

The other complaint brought to the Office of the Ombudsman stemmed from the alleged confiscation in 2010 of 11 patrol cars of the same barangays involved in the anti-graft complaint.

The complaint alleged that the confiscation of the barangay patrol vehicles constituted acts of oppression, grave misconduct and abuse of authority, citing the fact that the barangays themselves had appropriated a counterpart share of P 180,000 each or one-third of the total appropriation for the purchase of the said vehicles.

The yearly financial aid to barangays were duly provided by approved City Appropriation Ordinances of 2010 and 2011.

Out of the yearly barangay aid funds, P30,000 was supposed to be the share of each of all 39 Alaminos City barangays.

The complainants accused Bra-ganza and his fellow respondents of having withheld or impounded the financial aid intended for the 11 barangays, “despite our verbal request and follow-ups without apparent reason whatsoever.”

The barangay captains who filed administrative and criminal complaints against Braganza and his co-accused said that their “ failure to receive the much-needed financial aid from the city government for two consecutive years is so huge an amount which the respondents unreasonably withheld or impounded . . . depriving our constituents the basic services needed for barangay economic development.”