The bicameral Commission on Appointments (CA) will proceed with its scheduled confirmation hearings for three Cabinet secretaries on June 3, despite President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s recent directive for all members of his official family to submit their courtesy resignations.
CA Assistant Minority Leader and Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel made this clear on Sunday, noting that the process will move as scheduled pending President Marcos’ withdrawal of the concerned officials’ appointments.
“Unless the President formally withdraws the ad interim appointments of the three Cabinet members under review, the CA committees are expected to move forward with the hearings on June 3,” said Pimentel.
Before the President’s call for courtesy resignations on May 22, the CA had already scheduled three committee meetings to deliberate on the ad interim appointments of the following secretaries:
- Vivencio ‘Vince’ Dizon – Department of Transportation (DOTr)
- Henry Rhoel Aguda – Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT)
- Jaybee ‘Jay’ Ruiz – Presidential Communications Office (PCO)
“A courtesy resignation is not the same as a formal resignation. It is simply an offer to vacate one’s position, which the President may choose to accept or reject,” Pimentel explained in a news release.
He emphasized that the three Cabinet members are not deemed resigned by default.
“Their ad interim appointments remain valid unless the President formally withdraws them or the CA disapproves or bypasses them,” Pimentel said. “A courtesy resignation does not, by itself, invalidate an ad interim appointment,” he added.
President Marcos have yet to act on the courtesy resignations of the aforementioned officials, who complied with his directive last Thursday. He initiated a widespread Cabinet revamp to recalibrate the government moving forward following the 2025 midterm elections.
The 25-member CA—composed of 12 members each from the Senate and the House of Representatives, and chaired by the Senate President as ex officio presiding officer—is constitutionally mandated to confirm or reject key presidential appointments based on merit and integrity.
The 19th Congress is set to resume sessions on June 2 following a four-month recess.