The Duterte government is not ruled by the military junta – Malacañang

Malacañang defended on Friday the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to appoint retired military and police generals, saying that this did not translate into a military junta in the bureaucracy.

The spokesman for the presidency, Salvador Panelo, criticized the statement of Liza Maza, former president of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), that the bureaucracy was "militarized" by Mr. Duterte.

In a statement, Panelo said Maza's view on the reorganization of the Cabinet was "misplaced or even distorted".

"We find it regrettable that a former cabinet member … has a misplaced, if not distorted, vision of the reorganization and composition of the Cabinet," he said.

"His conclusion that placing former soldiers in management offices would automatically result in a government led by the military junta is totally wrong," he added.

Previously, Maza had criticized on Facebook the recently issued Decree-Law No. 67, which renamed the Office of the Secretary of the Cabinet (OCS) as the secretariat of the Cabinet Cabinet.

Halloween "horror story"

Some agencies under the OCS have been transferred to other departments, such as the Ministry of the Interior and Local Government, headed by the former chief of the armed forces, Eduardo Año, and the Department of Social Protection and Development, headed by the former Philippine Army Chief Rolando Bautista. .

Maza criticized the OE for a "horror story" of Halloween noting that the NAPC was placed under the direct supervision of Bautista through the DSWD.

"No to the militarization of the civil bureaucracy! No to the military junta! No to martial law in any form whatsoever!

But Panelo pointed out that the president's decision to name people identified as left-wing in the early days of his government did not make the government a left-wing party.

"Ms. Maza's appointment to the government, including those identified or allied to the left, did not render the communist government or convert the respective offices they ran," he said.

"Trust in the army"

Mr. Duterte's preference for former army or police officers "reflects his confidence in the military hierarchy known for his high degree of professionalism, discipline and voluntary attitude," said Panelo.

During a briefing on the typhoon "Rosita" (international name: Yutu) in Isabela on Thursday night, the president paid tribute to the role played by the army and police in rescue operations, calling them " criminals "of the government.

He urged local officials to take care of the soldiers and police officers. "You know, our utilities in our civilization are now the army and the police," he said.

The president made the remarks a day after announcing that he would militarize the government by installing former generals in posts unrelated to national security.

Eight generals

Eight retired military generals and policemen currently hold senior positions in government.

Delfin Lorenzana as Secretary of Defense, Hermogenes Esperon as National Security Advisor, Rolando Bautista as Secretary of Social Affairs, Roy Cimatu as Secretary of the Environment, Eduardo Año as Secretary to Interior, Eduardo del Rosario as Housing Secretary and Task Force Bangon Marawi, Rey Leonardo Guerrero as Customs Commissioner and Isidro Lapeña as Director General of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.

Panelo said the "patriotic fervor of former generals, not to mention their degrees and their experience in leading and managing large organizations, qualifies them for the positions they occupy".

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