Unearthed documents trigger investigation

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Gov. Juliette Uy of Misamis Oriental on Thursday ordered a thorough investigation into the documents unearthed inside the compound of the provincial jail in Initao, Misamis Oriental. 

The provincial legal officer and the newly appointed jail warden learned of the documents Wednesday afternoon. 

Provincial lawyer Angel Lim said that the documents are currently being reviewed by the provincial government to determine whether they have been discarded illegally or needed to be disposed of. 

Lim said that they were at the jail compound to formally install the newly appointed provincial jail warden when the former warden informed the team about the buried documents.

He said that the team later discovered that the buried documents were mostly from the province’s Human Resources Department.

Lim said that the team also found some receipts that need to be inventoried and audited. 

“If it is determined that the documents are indeed disposable, we will formally dispose of them immediately,” said Lim

Lawyer Neil Pacana, former provincial attorney, noted that the documents were buried at the provincial jail because they believed that location was secure.

“The documents were mostly records of provincial government employees considered disposable,” Pacana said.      He added that there are also legal implications because some of the documents are considered personal and protected under the Data Privacy Act.