DND OIC Faustino physically reports for work after recovering from COVID

Defense Senior Undersecretary Jose Faustino, Jr. was accorded arrival honors at the Department of National Defense in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Wednesday. Contributed photo.

MANILA, Philippines — Senior Defense Undersecretary and officer-in-charge Jose C. Faustino, Jr. on Wednesday reported physically for his first day of work after completing required isolation procedure when he was tested positive for coronavirus.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has given Faustino arrival honors as he was welcomed by the officials and employees of the Department of National Defense.

He formally took over the helm of the DND on July 1 and has been performing his duties remotely while undergoing the required isolation period after testing positive for COVID-19 the day before.

“USec Faustino, who remained asymptomatic since testing positive for COVID-19, is fully vaccinated and boosted. In accordance with health and safety protocols, he completed the seven-day isolation before reporting physically to work,” DND said in a statement.

He will now oversee the operations of the DND and its bureaus: the AFP, the Government Arsenal, the National Defense College of the Philippines, the Office of Civil Defense, and the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office.

Faustino, who had served as chief-of-staff of the AFP during President Rodrigo Duterte’s term, was appointed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. as DND OIC.

He will then assume his post as Defense Secretary on November 13, 2022 following the one-year ban on the appointment of retired military officers under Republic Act 6975.

JPV