He is also the special assistant for special concerns at the Bureau of Customs (BOC) under Commissioner Napoleon Morales, which meant divesting his interests at the law firm.
His parents, Arturo Marcon and Teresita Consunji, were from Agusan Norte and and Samal, Bataan, respectively. The two settled here in Davao City in the 1960s.
The family moved in the early 80s and Marcon finished his A.B. English at the University of the Philippines in Diliman. He proceeded to study law in San Beda College and passed the bar exams in 1997.
Marcon is married to lawyer Aileen Marie Gutierrez, a senior state prosecutor at the Department of Justice and daughter of retired Supreme Court Justice Angelina Sandoval Gutierrez.
Marcon built his career from the ranks, first joining a realty firm owned by the Consunjis who are his relatives.
In 1998 he joined Zulueta, Puno and Associates where he honed his career as a lawyer.
"Tanan practices both criminal and civil litigation department diri nako na tun-anan (All practices, both criminal and civil litigation I learned here)," he said in a recent interview. An apt baptism of fire as he slowly built his name.
Eight years ago, Marcon was called to join the Videogram Regulatory Board as board of director representing film owners or the private sector. At that time, he was also the program director of the Motion Pictures Association of America Philippine chapter.
VRB is a government agency tasked to fight movie piracy.
Though he was not involved in the actual operations, Marcon met with other members at least once a month as they mapped out strategies to curb piracy and mobilize police raid.
As legal counsel, Marcon's role was to review policies of the board for speedy litigations and to coordinate police raids.
"Ni-abot ang time nga dili na nako mag-enjoy mag-tan-aw og sine. As I sit inside the moviehouse, the thought going through my mind was pirata na kaha ni. Nawala na ang entertainment value sa movies and it was my favorite form of relaxation. I felt parang each time you watch nagtatrabaho ka. (There came a time when I no longer enjoyed watching movies). As I sit inside the moviehouse, I asked myself if this movie is pirated? The entertainment value of the movice was lost and it was my favorite form of relaxation. I felt I am still working.)," he said.
After two years, he went back to law practice but public service seems to be at calling him at every turn.
In 2003, Marcon became a consultant at the Metro Manila Development Authority for legal services. Three years later, he joined BOC where he primarily oversees auction and cargo disposal of seized goods, selection and promotions of BOC personnel and technical endorsements of legal concerns, among others.
"Public service is its own reward. I do not seek ownership of my work. Magkaiba ang job satisfaction in private practice," he said.
He admitted that though his position may be considered as high profile, his role is administrative functions solely.
"It is a challenge working for the government itself. In school, customs law was part of a semester lang. The laws on importation, taxation are very technical, hindi ganoon kadali. There is an interplay of the enforcement of other laws of other government agencies," he said.
"Mabuti before I joined BOC, I had a client who had transactions her so 'nung pumasok na ako di masyado nahirapan," he said.
"At first, I had to get over the stigma of the perception of corruption with friends and family. We can't deny that such perception exists with the Department of Finance (where BOC is an umbrella agency)," he said.
"May malasakit siya sa opisina na baguhin ang image. He has been with BOC for the past 40 years. Insider siya at hindi papasa ang kalokohan sa kanya," Robert proudly says.
He also admits that with the plans of automation, corruption will diminish since there will be less contact with public.
Most transactions will be paperless.
BOC has some P240-billion target revenues per annum. Marcon said that they are also pushing that for better salaries and wages for BOC employees.
This, he believes, will pave the way for lesser corruption.
Marcon, despite living in the bustling city of Manila for the past two decades, longs for the laidback life at the province.
"I look forward to my visits in Davao. Napaka-relaxed dito, walang traffic. Dito may nakikita kang stores na sarado pag Sunday. Sa Manila wala ka na halos makita na saradong store," he said. "We still have our house here."
He long for the life in a smaller city and has remained a true Dabawenyo at heart.
