The poweful Commission on Appointments on Wednesday gave its nod on the interim appointments of Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, Agrarian Reform Secretary John Castriciones and AFP chief of staff Carlito Galvez.
Senator Win Gatchalian, chairman of the CA Committee on Justice and Judicial and Bar Council, sponsored Guevarra’s confirmation.
“Significantly, it seems that Secretary Guevarra is well aware of the challenges facing the DoJ after recent controversies, and is willing to face these challenges head-on.
He said Guevarra has pledged to reform the DoJ’s image and transform the department into a “cornerstone of our justice system,” to use his own words,”
During his short time on the job so far, he said Guevarra has been pro-active in fulfilling this ambitious but worthy promise.
“I hope that the good Secretary will stay true to his word and pursue his vision for the Department of Justice with courage, perseverance, and integrity. Like I said earlier, the new Secretary of Justice has a difficult task ahead of him—but no challenge, no matter how daunting, should be able to stop a genuine public servant from achieving the change he seeks to create for the benefit of the people,” said Gatchalian.
“In my humble estimation, it appears that Secretary Guevarra is more than capable of keeping his promise and making real change, as long as he stays the course he has set for himself,” he added.
Guevarra was a deputy of Medialdea prior to his appointment to the DoJ to replace resigned Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II. He also served as Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs during the term of former President Benigno Aquino III. Guevarra had also been appointed commissioner at the Philippine Competition Commission.
He had worked for the National Economic and Development Authority, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and was a former faculty member of the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law. He placed second in the 1985 Bar examinations.
Upon the confirmation of Catriciones, Poe, chairman of the CA Agrarian Reform committee, reminded him to address the longstanding woes of the country’s farmers and landless tillers and to use government resources judiciously.
She also asked Castriciones to reach out to the farmers and fisherfolk groups, landowners and tenants, department employees and to those who opposed his confirmation, saying they raised legitimate concerns during the hearings.
The members of the committee voted 13-2 in secret balloting on Tuesday to confirm Castriciones amid opposition fromgrarian reform advocates, including a former Agriculture secretary.
“The decision to confirm Secretary John Rualo Castriciones is a majority decision. The Commission on Appointments is a collegial body and works on the basis of cooperation, democratic process of majority rule and mutual respect,” Poe explained.
The senator said lawmakers would keep watch on Castriciones’ action on the pleas of farmers: acceleration of land acquisition, improving social services, declogging the backlog in agrarian reform cases; fasttracking the delivery of agrarian justice; and reducing the overhead of DAR to save money.
“This is my way of reminding the nominee that executive work involves constant navigation through a lot of constitutional checkpoints, the most tiring and tedious of which is during the appropriations season in front of the same Members of this body,” Poe added.
“So those questions we asked the nominee during the past weeks will not be archived, but simply bookmarked to be raised until we meet again, and raised again and again until the answers fully satisfy us,” Poe emphasized.
The senator said that while doubts were raised on the qualifications of the DAR chief, she believes these weaknesses can be overcome by his strengths.
“His past indiscretion is a debt repaid, but which he continues to amortize with every good deed he makes,” she said.
Meanwhile, the CA also confirmed the appointment of Carlito Galvez Jr. as the AFP chief of staff.
CA committee on national defense and Cavite 5th District Representative Roy Loyola sponsored the confirmation of Galvez's promotion to the rank of general. This was seconded by Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri.
Loyola and Zubiri both lauded Galvez's professionalism and qualifications.
"No other man understands the armed struggle than the subject appointee. General Galvez was at the forefront of the war… and led the successful liberation of Marawi," Zubiri said.
Galvez served as commander of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) based in Zamboanga City, the military command mainly responsible for areas addressing threats from local armed groups in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi.
Galvez graduated from the Philippine Military Academy, part of the Sandiwa Class of 1985. He received higher education in Australia as well as military and management trainings abroad, including at Harvard University in the United States.
The bemedalled officer was also a recipient of the United States Eisenhower Fellowships in 2006. Galvez is set to retire in December.
Aside from Galvez, the CA also confirmed the promotions of Nelson Collantes, to the rank of brigadier general (Reserve), Emmanuel Mahipus, to the rank of colonel, Philippine Air Force (Reserve), Rolando Rodil, to the rank of brigadier general and Joselito Maclan, to the rank of brigadier general.
The CA also confirmed the appointments of Sulpicio Miguel Confiado as ambassador to Egypt and Akmad Atlah Sakkam as ambassador to Jordan.
Malacañang, meanwhile, welcomed the confirmation of President’s Duterte’s appointees, saying the confirmation by the CA reflects the new Cabinet members’ competence and integrity.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the confirmation of Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Guevarra and Castriciones shows that the administration places the highest value of the newly appointee’s unwavering commitment to President Duterte and to the government’s various programs.
"The confirmation of the aforementioned officials reflects the full confidence on the competence and integrity of President Duterte’s recent appointees," the Palace spokesperson said in a statement.
“It's time to work, work, work to realize the President's vision of a comfortable life for all Filipinos,” Roque said.
Duterte’s previous appointees, resigned Justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II left the post due to controversies that were linked to him, including the way he handles various cases which includes the justice department's dismissal of charges against drug suspects Kerwin Espinosa and Peter Lim. Espinosa earlier confessed to drug involvement.
Former Tourism Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo resigned after the controversial P60 million advertisement with brothers Ben and Erwin Tulfo was exposed by the Commission on Audit.