FILE PHOTO: Former Philippine National Police chief and retired Gen. Camilo Cascolan. INQUIRER FILES
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday defended his decision to name former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Camilo Cascolan as Department of Health (DOH) undersecretary.
In an interview on the sidelines of the National Information and Communications Technology Summit 2022 at the Manila Hotel, Marcos explained that Cascolan will mainly do “an administrative audit” – not to look at health issues but the DOH’s functions, including tracking possible syndicates at the agency.
He stressed that Cascolan’s tasks do not require him to be a doctor.
“It’s not health issues that he has to look at that’s why he doesn’t have to be a doctor. He’s going to look at the function of the DOH,” Marcos said.
READ: Ex-PNP chief joins DOH: ‘Insult to health experts’
“We talked about rightsizing. We talked about structural changes. ‘Yun, we need somebody to examine what has been going on. Ano ‘yung maganda, ano ‘yung hindi maganda, ano ‘yung pwedeng mas maayos. That will be his function kaya special concerns,” he added.
(We need someone to examine what’s good and what’s not, and what can be fixed.)
“That’s part of his work,” Marcos also noted, referring to detecting possible syndicates at the DOH. “Kung may lumabas na ganyan (If he finds out), he will have to report it to us and we will have to do something about it.”
“Generally, it is an administrative audit, if you want to call it that,” he further said.
The DOH confirmed Cascolan’s appointment last Sunday, October 23, which earned criticisms from civic and health groups including the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW).
For the AHW, the appointment of Cascolan shows Marcos’ lack of concern for the lives, health, safety, and welfare of the health workers and Filipinos in general.