MANILA---Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director Nicanor Faeldon has offered to go on leave following the apprehension of his 31-year-old son Nicanor Jr. in an anti-illegal drug operation in Naga City, an official of the Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Friday.
In a message to reporters, Justice department spokesman undersecretary Mark Perete confirmed that Faeldon has offered to resign his post if his son is found to be involved in illegal drugs.
"He has likewise offered to go on leave while the matter is under investigation," Perete said but clarified that they are still awaiting a formal report on the incident.
"As to the BuCor chief's offer to go on leave, the department will have to study the matter taking into consideration a number of facts, among which are the chief has just been appointed and the independence and integrity of the investigation on the matter is not likely to be affected by his stay in the Bucor," Perete added.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Faeldon’s appointment paper on November 19 and Faeldon took his oath before Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on November 21.
Prior to his appointment as BuCor chief, Faeldon was named Office of the Civil Defense deputy administrator.
He quit as Customs Commissioner amid the controversy on the PHP6.4-billion shabu shipment that slipped past the bureau.
The BuCor, an attached agency under the DOJ, exercises supervision over the country's penal facilities, including the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa - which currently houses more than 27,000 inmates serving their sentence. (PNA)
