Palace still drafting guidelines for Roxas’ Cabinet post

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang dismissed on Tuesday as “premature” Senator Joker Arroyo’s assertion that the appointment of former Senator Manuel Roxas II as presidential chief of staff would cause confusion and chaos in the Palace.

The Palace has yet to issue the administrative order that will detail the functions of Roxas as chief of staff because it is still “studying the functions of the Executive Secretary, the Presidential Management Staff and the newly created office to avoid any overlapping of functions,” according to Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte

“It’s premature. At this point, it would be better to wait for the issuance of the AO and to see the functions then to deliver an opinion based on the AO,” Valte told reporters.

Valte also said President Benigno Aquino III could create a chief of staff position, since under the Administrative code he “can reorganize his offices as he sees fit.”

“I think we’ve already mentioned that in the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, it had an office of the chief of staff,” she also said.

Senator Arroyo discouraged the Palace from pushing ahead with Roxas’ appointment as chief of staff because he said it might cause confusion and conflict with the position held by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr.