Something is rotten in the province of Marinduque

Something is rotten in the province of Marinduque. In five months, five provincial administrators have been appointed and have resigned. Each lasted only an average of one month. The second administrator, Greg Padernal, lasted only one week. The sixth, scheduled to assume his position two days from now, bears a good pedigree: lawyer Lord Allan Quinto Velasco, eldest son of Supreme Court Justice Presbitero Velasco. But it seems the family does not want the young Velasco to be provincial administrator of Marinduque’s Gov. Jose Antonio Carreon. They are afraid Lord Allan Velasco would be the next “sacrificial lamb” of Carreon. And they are also afraid that would tarnish the reputation of his father, who many believe may become chief justice.

Why, what’s wrong with Governor Carreon? Plenty, many of which are public knowledge in Marinduque although still unknown to the rest of the nation. They may become the subject of investigations by the Ombudsman in the coming weeks and months.
1. Near the coast of Mogpog, Marinduque, there were two sunken World War II Japanese warships. Local townsfolk want the place to be developed into a wreck diving site to boost local tourism since it lies in very shallow waters. An ordinance was recently passed declaring it a tourist site.

However, records show that Governor Carreon has authorized private salvage groups to take the two ships apart for scrap metal. Other provincial officials now question how these operations can be authorized without a permit from the Department of Environment and National Resources. Under the law, the DENR must issue permits for shipwreck recovery in Philippine territorial waters. Furthermore, there is no documented procedure in the selection of the salvage company, no authorization by the provincial board for the governor to enter into such contract, no copy of the contract, no bidding, no evidence that the province, municipality and barangay will share in the proceeds of the salvage operation.
2. Carreon wants to buy P110 million worth of road maintenance equipment and he is asking the provincial board for authority to borrow from the Land Bank of the Philippines. Marinduque is a very poor 4th-class province with an annual income of only P20 million. This meager income is not even enough to pay the salaries of its employees and the many consultants the governor has hired but the governor wants to buy new crushing and asphalt plants that preliminary estimates claim are double to quadruple the ongoing market price.