Chavez takes charge of Palace comms

Cesar Chavez —PTV FB PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The newly appointed chief of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) vowed to play an active role in communicating issues related to the West Philippine Sea dispute, on top of explaining the key decisions and direction of the Marcos administration.

Secretary Cesar Chavez, who took his oath as the next PCO head on Thursday, said he would not serve as the presidential spokesperson but help President Marcos convey his development programs, foreign policy and legislative agenda beyond “mere bullets, PowerPoint presentations or soundbites.”

“I’ll take an active role in messaging and communicating our policies or related issues to the West Philippine Sea. I will focus on bringing you the news,” Chavez told Palace reporters after being sworn in before the President.

To do this, Chavez said, he would bring in “experts on national security, social development, and infrastructure” to join his PCO team, with him acting as a “backroom manager.”

Garafil to Meco

“Again, the spokesperson is the President. We will be helping him. This means we will be inviting speakers to help him explain what the President’s statement is,” he added.

Chavez is the third to head the PCO under the Marcos presidency, succeeding lawyer and former journalist Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil who took over the post in October 2022 as officer in charge before becoming its full-fledged chief in January 2023.

Garafil is set to be the next chair of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco) in Taiwan, the country’s de facto embassy in Taipei.

Chavez confirmed Garafil’s next appointment, but it was not immediately clear if she had resigned from the PCO.

Asked about her rumored resignation in a brief encounter with reporters at the Palace on Wednesday night, Garafil only replied, “Bayaan n’yo sila” “Bayaan nyo sila (Let them be),” before boarding her vehicle.

Meco is currently headed by Silvestre Bello III, who previously served as labor secretary under then-President Rodrigo Duterte.

Public apology

Before his latest position, Chavez was the presidential assistant on strategic communications and had the rank of senior undersecretary.  It was in this role, in December 2023, that he issued a public apology for posting on social media a “fake” proclamation allowing a half-day work schedule on Dec. 22.

Under Duterte, he served as a transportation undersecretary for railways and later spent a year on the board of the Bases Conversion Development Authority.

His earlier government stints date back to the Cory Aquino years, when he became chief executive officer of the Presidential Council on Youth Affairs. Under the Ramos presidency, he was nominated as youth sector representative and later named as commissioner-at-large of the National Youth Commission (NYC).

PCSO, MMDA

Under then President Joseph Estrada, Chavez chaired the NYC and also sat on the board of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

The Arroyo administration gave him his first transport-related post, as deputy administrator of the Light Rail Transit Authority.

Under then President Benigno Aquino III, Chavez was named assistant general manager for planning of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

On Thursday, Chavez, who is also a multiawarded broadcast journalist, anchor and station executive, said among his immediate steps as PCO chief is to designate a  “fact-check officer” in each of the state media agencies. These include the Philippine News Agency, Philippine Information Agency, People’s Television Network, and Intercontinental Broadcasting Corp. —With a report from Inquirer Research