No conflict of interest in fed funding
Special Assistant for Administration Jose I. Deleon Guerrero yesterday maintained that the Division of Environmental Quality can still protect the interest of the Commonwealth even if it is receiving funding for the salaries of its 25 employees from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Assistant Attorney General Murphy Peterson has criticized the failure of DEQ to cooperate with the Attorney General’s Office in providing documentation concerning polychlorinated biphenyl contamination in Tanapag.
Mr. Murphy said the fact that EPA is paying the salaries of some 25 DEQ personnel, including Director Ignacio Cabrera, has caused tremendous conflict of interest, a view which he said is shared by the DEQ chief.
“There is no conflict of interest. I don’t see any problem because other agencies too are receiving federal funding,” Mr. Guerrero said. He added that the most important issue right now is how the local and federal agencies can work together to clean up the remaining PCB contaminated areas as soon as possible.
But Mr. Cabrera has insisted that funding of EPA does not in any way compromise his job to protect the interest of the Commonwealth. He said the conflict of interest issue should not be raised by the AGO since it is also benefiting from the federal funding through grants given to DEQ.
A three-man panel headed by Mr. Murphy which conducted an investigation on PCB contamination in Tanapag revealed that EPA Region IX and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers committed gross negligence and violated federal laws in carrying out a cleanup of the village.
In an effort to resolve the widening rift between Mr. Murphy and the DEQ, Mr. Cabrera asked the governor to assign another lawyer to the agency that will provide them legal advice.
The DEQ Chief claimed that Mr. Murphy who works as part-time legal counsel for DEQ, has already caused delays in the issuance of an administrative order and drafting of regulations.
However, Mr. Cabrera said he wants Mr. Murphy retained as counsel in charge of the PCB contamination issue to erase any doubts that it was one way to silence him because of his criticisms. (Lindablue F. Romero)
