Rody advises Teddyboy: Be truthful

President Duterte has one reminder to Foreign Secretary Teodoro “Teddyboy” Locsin Jr. as he becomes the country’s foremost diplomat: Be truthful.

The President made the suggestion to Locsin after swearing him into office on Wednesday, along with new Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista.

Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the interaction between   Duterte and Locsin was brief.

This was because Locsin had to leave for Belgium to represent the President at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-European Union Summit.

Only one message

“I was there at the oath taking yesterday, and the conversation was like this: ‘I’m honored [by] your appearance today, and there is only one message that I would like to give you, and that is: Be truthful, and nothing more,’” Panelo quoted President Duterte telling Locsin.

President Duterte, he said, “appoints members of the Cabinet on the basis of truth and competence.”

Sought for clarification, Panelo said there was “nothing more” the President wanted from Locsin after the latter was administered the oath of office.

“I think what President PRRD means is that every Cabinet member should be like him, a straightforward person. He tells exactly what he feels when he meets with foreign leaders,” he added.

The President, he said, is always “honest with his position and calls a spade a spade,” a trait that he wants Locsin to emulate.

Independent policy

“He is always straight to the point without blinking an eye,” the presidential spokesperson said of his boss.

Panelo said Locsin was well aware of the President’s independent foreign policy.

“With respect to the foreign policy, I think the new Department of Foreign Affairs secretary knows exactly the marching orders of the President,” he said.

Panelo said the Duterte administration’s independent foreign policy had not changed since the terms of Locsin’s predecessors, Perfecto Yasay and Alan Peter Cayetano.

Locsin replaced Cayetano after the latter resigned to run for Taguig City representative in Congress.

Until his appointment, Locsin was the country’s permanent representative to the United Nations.

Honasan offer?

Meanwhile, Panelo said he was unaware of reports that the President had offered to Sen. Gregorio Honasan the position of secretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

“I was with the President, he has not told me anything about it,” he said, reacting to reports that President Duterte was considering Honasan to replace acting Secretary Eliseo Rio by January.