BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio Domogan supported city prosecutor Elmer Sagsago’s call for the establishment of the regional office of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the city.
During the flag-raising rites last Monday, the Monday urged the city council to approve the necessary resolution expressing support to the setting up of the DOJ Cordillera office in the city.
“It will be good for us and the region if we can have our own regional office as it will definitely speed up action on local concerns specifically on prosecution and other functions of the DOJ,” the mayor said.
Domogan said he expects President-elect Rodrigo Duterte to be supportive of the move being a former prosecutor himself.
“Being a former prosecutor, I don’t see why our incoming President will oppose this proposal,” the mayor said.
Sagsago said they have been clamoring for the Cordillera office to facilitate and better address the needs of the region.
“With the establishment of the DOJ Cordillera, we can pursue our aim of integrating the customary law of indigenous people into the legal system,” he said.
At present, the DOJ regional assignment follows the old set-up where Baguio, Benguet, Abra and Mt. Province are covered by the DOJ Region I office based in San Fernando, La Union while Kalinga, Apayao and Ifugao are served by the DOJ Region II office.
With the present set-up, it is hard to realize the said objective as the provinces sharing the same set of beliefs and values are served by two different offices and mixed with other areas with varied cultures.
The DOJ is the government’s principal law agency, serving as its legal counsel and prosecution arm.
By Aileen P. Refuerzo
