PCO HEAD PRESENTS PROPOSED 2024 BUDGET: Secretary Cheloy Vlicaria Garafil briefs senators on the proposed 2024 budget of the Presidential Communications Office and its attached agencies and corporations amounting to P1.7 billion. During the finance subcommittee’s Monday (September 18, 2023) hearing, Garafil said the newly reorganized PCO requested P919 million, but the approved budget was P495 million. (Photo from Bibo Nueva España/Senate PRIB)
MANILA, Philippines — “For the record, wala po kaming troll.”
(We don’t have trolls.)
Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil on Monday made it clear before the Senate committee on finance during a hearing on the proposed 2024 budget of her office.
Senator JV Ejercito asked Garafil whether or not the 1,479 contractual employees of her office in 2021 are still employed.
In 2021, then-Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon challenged PCO to submit the records of these contractual employees, insisting on calling them “trolls.”
“No troll farm. No troll army,” Garafil stressed as he answered Ejercito’s question.
Garafil said PCO has 363 employees.
Of this number, only one is contractual, while 111 are personnel under contracts of service (COS).
“Yung one contractual [worker] namin ay project-based. Yung 111 are working talaga under PCO, pero hindi pa approved ang kanilang plantillas under [Department of Budget and Management],” said Garafil.
(Our one contractual [worker] is project-based. The 111 work under PCO, but their plantillas have not been approved under [Department of Budget and Management].)
She then explained these COS employees are employed under different clusters. Some of them are in digital media, production, and external affairs.
Ejercito acknowledged PCO’s need to hire more employees for content creation.
He highlighted the importance of “disseminating information regarding the accomplishments of the Marcos administration.”
The committee swiftly approved the proposed 2024 P1.9 billion PCO and its attached agencies.
Ejercito, presiding over the hearing, then recommended the PCO budget proposal for plenary deliberations.
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