End of the line for Darimbang

By LITO RULONA, Correspondent

HE has been regional director of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) in northern Mindanao since 1987 when Corazon Aquno was President, and holds the record as the longest serving chief of a regional office so far in Cagayan de Oro.

By Wednesday, Mandangan Darimbang would cease to be the LTFRB  regional director.

LTFRB chair Martin Delgra said Darimbang opted to retire from the government service by Aug. 31, a decision that would end the director’s 29-year control of the regulatory board’s regional office, after a performance and transaction audit on Thursday.

Darimbang was among those who were asked to attend a dialogue with representatives of various transport groups, and then a closed door meeting with Delgra along LTFRB board members and other officials. He left the meeting with a decision to avail of “early retirement.”

Delgra said dialogues with stakeholders are part of the process that the LTFRB is now implementing for every region so that officials would know the real concerns.

Delgra said allegations of of graft and corruption in the LTFRB regional office topped the list of concerns of stakeholders.

“After the dialogue, Director Darimbang decided to retire effective Aug. 31. We accepted his option, and we will meet with the LTFRB operation board to decide on who the new regional director should be,” he said.

Delgra pointed out that there was no order from President Duterte to replace Darimbang.

“Obviously, as to the issue of graft and corruption, it applies to everyone. No exemption sa bisan asa nga region. Ang gi-istorya sa President mao ang usa ka mga rason ngano nga among istoryahon ang mga stakeholders ilabi na sa mga anomaliya dinhi sa Region 10,” he said.

Darimbang, for his part, said he chose to retire not because there was an issue about graft and corruption in the LTFRB regional office but because he has already had enough after 29 years in government service. He said he had other options like transferring to another area but he chose retirement.