THE Attorney General’s Office has returned the contract of incoming Guam Department of Education Superintendent Jon Fernandez yesterday after finding it had not been reviewed by GDOE’s legal counsel and that there were at least four provisions that required conformance with the law.
According to the statement from the AGO, “Attorney General Leonardo M. Rapadas directed that there be an expedited review given that the contract contemplated a commencement date of June 15, 2012.”
In addition, the reviewing Assistant Attorney General requested that the questionable provisions of the contract be “changed in accordance with the law” before he recommends the contract to be signed by Rapadas.
Last night, Fernandez sent the following statement about his contract: “I am pleased to finally have some clarity and specific guidance. This is all that I have sought from the start, and it's unfortunate that we had to wait so long to reach this point,” Fernandez stated.
He added: “I believe it's time to move forward.s I spoke with Chairman Francis Santos and with board member Barry Mead earlier today, and I let them know that I remain committed to serving as superintendent. I have amended the contract in line with the Attorney General's comments and asked the full board for its support. We have lost a lot of time, and I am ready to see if we can begin to move forward together.”
