BEFORE Congress finally adjourns sine die on June 1, 2018, the Commission on Appointments (CA) confirmed the appointments of the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff and the heads of the Tourism, Justice and Agrarian Reform departments.
The commission gave its nod to Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Agrarian Reform Secretary John Rualo Castriciones, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra and AFP chief of staff Carlito Galvez Jr.
Castriciones, who was once bypassed by the CA, was approved despite protests by militant group Akbayan.
Senator Grace Poe, chair of the committee on agrarian reform, said 13 members voted to approve Castriciones’ nomination while two members of the panel voted no to Castriciones’ nomination.
Romulo-Puyat, who passed the CA with flying colors, said she was determined to pursue the 7.5 million arrivals target this year despite the six-month closure of Boracay Island.
Romulo-Puyat was unanimously approved by members of the joint Senate and House of Representatives CA committee on tourism and economic development.
The DOT chief is the daughter of Alberto Romulo, a former senator and former head of the Finance, Budget and Foreign Affairs departments.
Malacañang welcomed the confirmation of Galvez and the three Cabinet members.
In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said the CA's decision to approve the nomination of the three Cabinet officials demonstrate that they have the "competence and integrity" to serve the country.
Roque also welcomed Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Socorro Inting as part of the Duterte government after she secured the nod of the powerful CA.
"The confirmation of the aforementioned officials reflects the full confidence on the competence and integrity of President Rodrigo Duterte’s recent appointees," Roque said.
Earlier Wednesday, the CA confirmed the ad interim appointments of four Duterte appointees.
Puyat was a long-time Agriculture undersecretary before being appointed by Duterte on May 8 as replacement of former Tourism secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo who resigned following the Tourism department's controversial P60-million advertismentdeal with state-run PTV-4.
Guevarra was tapped by Duterte on April 5 to lead the Department of Justice after former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II quit his post, after he earned the President's ire over the dismissal of drug charges against alleged drug lords Kerwin Espinosa and Peter Lim.
Castriciones, a former Local Government undersecretary, replaced former Agricullture Secretary Rafael Mariano, whose ad interim appointed was rejected by the CA in September last year.
On April 17, Duterte designated Inting to serve as Comelec commissioner until February 2, 2015. Inting, who hails from Davao City, was a former Court of Appeals associate justice.
With their confirmation, Roque said the executive branch was hopeful that they would help Duterte to fulfill his goal to bring a "comfortable life" for his fellow countrymen.
"It’s time to work, work, work to realize the President’s vision of a comfortable life for all Filipinos," Roque said. (SunStar Philippines)