Binay names two Cabinet secretaries for his admin

Presidential candidate Vice President Jejomar Binay. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/LYN RILLON

Vice President Jejomar Binay said he wanted two government executives to be part of his Cabinet should he win as president.

In a radio interview in Dumaguete city, Negros Oriental on Wednesday, Binay said he wanted former Finance Secretary Margarito “Gary” Teves to be back in the Finance department.

Binay named Teves as among the former secretaries who he wanted back in the Cabinet because of his successful term in office.

“Katulad nga po ni Sec. Teves, ibabalik ko na ho uli siya sa Finance department. Ang pangarap ko sana, ang magiging miyembro ng aking gabinete ay dati nang mga cabinet members, and they were successful at their time,” Binay said.

(Such as Sec. Teves, I will bring him back to the Finance department. My dream is that my cabinet will be composed of former cabinet members who had been successful during their time.)

READ: Binay to plug revenue loss from income tax exemption

Teves was Negros Oriental third district representative from 1987 to 1998. He served as Land Bank of the Philippines from 2000 to 2005, and then as Finance Secretary of former President Gloria Arroyo from 2005 to 2010.

Binay also said he wanted Pag-Ibig Fund President Darlene Berberabe to be his Education secretary.

Binay had said he was impressed at Berberbe’s credentials having worked with her when Binay was head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and chairman of the Pag-Ibig Board.

“Ganun din ang aking mithiin na sa Department of Education maglagay ho tayo ng competent, may integrity, at may executive ability. And meron na ho akong naiisip ilagay diyan, si Atty Berberabe. Sa Pag-Ibig. Lahat yata ng awards yung sa 2014 naibigay sa kanya as an executive,” Binay said.

(Similarly, my aspiration for the Department of Education is to place a [secretary] who is competent, has integrity and has executive ability. And I already have someone in mind for that, Atty. Berberabe. Of Pag-Ibig, Nearly all the awards were conferred to her in 2014 as an executive.)

Berberabe defended Binay in a Senate Blue Ribbon investigation hearing allegations that he pressured Berberabe to get Omni Security Security Investigation and General Services Inc., his security service when he was Makati mayor, a contract with Pag-Ibig.

READ: Pag-IBIG exec denies Binay muscled way to get contract for security agency 

Berberabe said Binay only recommended the services of Omni, which he allegedly owned through dummies.

Berberabe said Pag-Ibig has not given Omni any undue advantage, adding that Omni was disqualified for being late in the submission of bids in 2012 for a contract to provide 236 security guards.

The only contract Pag-Ibig had with OMNI was her three close-in security worth P420,000 per contract for four months, Berberabe said, adding that no bidding was conducted because of the smallness of amount.

Binay had also said he wanted his running mate Sen. Gringo Honasan to be his anti-crime czar under his administration. CDG

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