MINALIN - Incumbent Mayor Arturo Naguit was formally charged before the Office of the Ombudsman for allegedly engaging to illegal quarry activities in this town.
Former Mayor Edgardo Flores has accused Naguit of violating pertinent provisions of Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and grave misconduct for allowing a private individual to quarry even without the necessary permit.
This, according to Flores falls short of the conduct required of public officials under Republic Act No. 6713 otherwise known as Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.
The controversy rooted when the local government of Minalin and other adjacent municipalities were asked to assist the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in the pilot channeling activities for the San Fernando-Sto. Tomas-Minalin Tail Dike subject to the guidelines being observed by the public works to regulate the desilting operation.
Governor Lilia Pineda then issued gratuitous permits to quarry operators in the area to desilt the river channel upon the condition that there shall be no commercial disposals and the appropriate spoil site shall be determined in advance.
However, Flores in his complaint affidavit said that Naguit allowed a certain Rondon Mercado to "quarry" and deliver truckloads of sand to the compound of the Minalin Poultry Cooperative.
"It also caused undue injury to the government since heavy equipment belonging to the government were utilized for a private purpose," the former mayor stated in the complaint affidavit.
He also opined that the quarrying activity was in violation of the DPWH guidelines requiring easement distance to 20 meters because the same was done beside the dike which is contrary to the objective of preventing the collapse of the structure.
Flores believed that this quarrying exposed the dike to the danger making it vulnerable to flow of water current and this was committed right after a calamity.
With this, he stressed that Naguit acted with evident bad faith and gross negligence for allowing Mercado to conduct quarrying activity knowing that the guidelines for the same had not been satisfied.
During the hearing of the Provincial Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources and Public Works and Highways on September 10, 2012, Engr. Arthur Punsalan as evidenced by the transcript of records clarified that there was a permit issued to Mercado but it was a scrapping permit for fishpond development.
It can be recalled that during massive raining from August 1 to 8 2012 brought about by Habagat, the Sto.Tomas-Minalin Tail Dike was breached which caused heavy flooding in Pampanga particularly in the municipality of Sto. Tomas, Minalin including the City of San Fernando.
With this, Governor Lilia Pineda allotted some P10-million for the desilting of the old river channel from Gugu, Labuan, Pasig Potrero up to San Francisco river going to Pampanga Bay.
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