PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Francisco Duque III as interim head of Department of Health (DOH).
Duterte signed Duque's appointment on Thursday, October 26.
On October 12, the President temporarily assigned Undersecretary Herinigildo Valle as officer-in-charge of DOH, a day after Paulyn Jean Ubial failed to get the nod of powerful Commission on Appointments.
Prior to Duque's new stint as interim Health Secretary, he was elected chairman of the Government Service Insurance System by its board of trustees on February 28 after being appointed by Duterte as board member of the government-owned corporation on February 15.
Duque previously served as Health Secretary from June 2005 to January 2010 under Arroyo administration and chairman of the Civil Service Commission from 2010 to 2015 under Aquino administration.
Duque finished both his undergraduate and post-graduate degrees in Medicine at the University of Santo Tomas. He obtained his Master of Science majoring in Pathology at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. in 1987.
In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the government was confident that Duque would perform well as the new head of the Health department.
"Secretary Duque is not new to the DOH. He used to be its Secretary from June 2005 to January 2010. We wish him well in his present stint in the government," he said. (SunStar Philippines)