Abad’s delegation of signing authority not a problem—Palace

MANILA, Philippines – There’s nothing wrong with Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad’s decision to delegate his signing authority to his subordinates, Malacañang said Thursday.

“Sa aking pananaw po ginawa lang niya ‘yung naaayon din naman sa mga prosesong administratibo,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a televised Palace briefing.

(In my opinion, what he did was in accordance with administrative processes.)

Budget Undersecretary for Operations Mario L. Relampagos. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

“Ang mga kalihim naman po ay mayroong kalayaan, may kapangyarihan na mag-delegate ng iba’t ibang pagpipirma, iba’t ibang mga awtoridad sa kanilang sinasakupan,” he added.

(Secretaries have the freedom and the power to delegate signing authority to other officials under his watch.)

Coloma gave the statement after the Philippine Daily Inquirer ran a story citing a one-page order that delegated Abad’s signing authority to Undersecretary for Operations Mario Relampagos and other officials.

Relampagos, however, said that while he “signed for everything,” all the documents had the approval of the Secretary, in addition to going through other offices in the department.

Relampagos, who has worked for the Department of Budget and Management since the time of President Corazon Aquino, is among the officials facing graft cases for his alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam.

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