Ombudsman shifts Mindanao offices to remote setup amid earthquake

The Office of the Ombudsman has mandated its offices in Mindanao to shift to a work-from-home setup in light of the 7.8 earthquake that jolted areas near the municipality of Sarangani.

The shift of work modality was said to be in line with safety measures that would be undertaken in relation to any potential structural damages that their offices could have incurred through the early morning quake.

As part of further safeguards to prevent unforeseen problems, the Ombudsman said that it was currently conducting inspections on the H&C Building in Matina, Davao City and the Alu Building in Cagayan de Oro City.

Due to the remote work setup, the investigative agency stated that it would be temporarily suspending the release of clearances for individuals.

Despite this, any citizen that may have complaints was said to still be able to file their petitions through the email addresses of the Ombudsman.

As of writing, the total damages in the region due to the earthquake have yet to be fully disclosed as rescue and search operations from the respective local government units remain underway.