De Lima’s protege at DOJ stripped of powers

Justice Secretary Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa has reduced the duties and responsibilities of one of his assistant secretaries, Geronimo Sy, widely regarded as one of the proteges of former Department of Justice (DOJ) chief Leila de Lima.

DOJ spokesperson Undersecretary Emmanuel Caparas said Sy was stripped of 11 of 12 areas of responsibilities and given three new ones, namely as representative of the department in the National Privacy Commission, National Price Coordinating Council and the Committee on Women in Development.

Sy will remain as DOJ representative in the Public Sector Labor and Management Council.

Caparas said Sy will also be reporting to him, pursuant to the department order issued by Caguioa dated Dec. 7, 2015.

“His (Sy’s) activities are under my oversight function. His responsibilities are my responsibilities as well,” Caparas added.

Two important agencies that Sy used to head—Office for Competition (OFC) and Office of Cybercrime (OCC)—went to Caparas.

Asked why Sy was removed from the OCC and the OFC, Caparas replied, “Put it this way: it’s just the management prerogative [of the Secretary] so that there will be efficiency in the operations of the offices so that these would be able to faithfully comply with their obligations under the law.”