Pangilinan quitting; Domingo mulling extension

Secretary Francis Pangilinan is quitting the Aquino administration by the end of the month.

A Malacañang source said Pangilinan had tendered his resignation as Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization effective Sept. 30. Pangilinan could not be reached for comment.

The source said Pangilinan’s resignation was part of preparations for his planned run for the Senate in 2016.

Pangilinan, who was a senator from 2011 to 2013, ranked high among preferred senatorial candidates in recent surveys.

The President appointed Pangilinan agriculture czar amid the controversies hounding Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala in May last year.

Under his watch, Pangilinan was able to: slash the average price of rice by 14 percent to $440 per metric ton from $550 per MT; push for the passage of executive orders for the deployment of the coco levy funds; address the coconut infestation; shepherd the passage of P30 billion worth of irrigation projects such as for the Balog-balog high dam, Jalaur multipurpose dam, Umayam river irrigation system, Agno river irrigation, Casecnan river irrigation and Malinao irrigation project.

Meanwhile, Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo is considering postponing his resignation to a later date, possibly after the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) meetings in November.

“The President told me that some of the Cabinet [members] think that I should stay on until after Apec and I told him we could adjust the date. I will meet with the President soon to discuss the exact date,” Domingo said in a text message on Monday.

The trade chief declined to comment further when pressed for details.

Domingo confirmed on Saturday he had submitted his resignation to President Aquino without divulging the reason why. His resignation was reportedly under consideration, according to a statement issued by the Palace over the weekend.

The highly influential Makati Business Club (MBC) on Sunday called on Malacañang to have a “person of integrity and competence” appointed to the post of Domingo should his resignation be accepted by President Aquino.

“We will respect the secretary’s reasons for stepping down as well as the Palace’s final decision with the hope that a person of integrity and competence will be appointed to the Department of Trade and Industry urgently,” the MBC said in a statement sent via text message on Sunday.—Gil Cabacungan and Amy R. Remo