De Jesus: My relationship with Aquinos strong

Transportation Secretary Jose de Jesus on Thursday said that his relationship with President Benigno Aquino III and the rest of the Aquino family remained strong, and that his resignation should not be taken as an affront on the administration.

De Jesus has quit his post, making him the first Cabinet official to leave the Aquino administration. His resignation, filed on Monday, is to take effect on June 30, a year to the day he was appointed to the Department of Transportation and Communications.

“[Adding] my one year in [the DOTC to] the 25 years that I spent in various positions, I realized I have devoted one-third of my life on this planet to public service,” De Jesus added in a statement.

“I want to spend the rest of my life in relative quiet,” he said.

De Jesus served as public works secretary of the late President Corazon Aquino, Mr. Aquino’s mother. He also served as her Cabinet secretary.

Before then, he worked at the Development Academy of the Philippines.

“This represents one-half of my professional life,” De Jesus said. “It was well worth it, because our country has been generous with life’s blessings, and our people have been unselfish with their support.”

De Jesus belied speculation that his resignation was due to policy disagreements with Mr. Aquino, saying that “the President and I, in fact, share the same views on transport policies.”

“I did not resign because, as alleged, I cannot control some of my subordinates. Having a tight rein of my organization has never been my problem,” he said.

In Brunei, the President said De Jesus’ replacement would be known next week and was “no stranger.”

He also said he expected an answer from the person he had asked to replace Bureau of Corrections chief Ernesto Diokno, who had resigned over the unauthorized trip outside prison of former Batangas Gov. Antonio Leviste, a homicide convict.

Speaking with reporters on Wednesday night at the Philippine ambassador’s residence in Bandar Seri Begawan, Mr. Aquino said he had already offered to “somebody” the transportation portfolio, which his administration considered among the most important in the Cabinet.

“I approached somebody. [He said] ‘If you need me there, OK, but since this is out of the blue, there was no hint [of De Jesus’ resignation], maybe I can mull over it for a while.’ I expect an answer next week,” Mr. Aquino said.

Pressed on who the prospective appointee might be, the President said: “He’s not a stranger to you guys.”

Mr. Aquino was as stingy with details about his choice for Diokno’s replacement.

“I talked to somebody I have in mind. I gave him some time to think about it. That some time is not too long. Perhaps next week I’ll get an answer,” he said.

However, he said he gave the person “two choices.”

“He’ll be forced to do good or he’ll fold up from the challenge when he hasn’t made a decision yet,” Mr. Aquino said.