President Rodrigo Duterte PHOTO from an RTVM video
President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday avoided naming resigned Tourism Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo when he underscored his administration’s war against corruption.
Teo was cited for conflict of interest after a Commission on Audit report revealed that the Department of Tourism last year paid P60-million worth of advertisements on a government television program produced by her brother, Ben Tulfo, and cohosted by another brother, Erwin, without documents showing the payments were valid and legal.
“Marami akong napaalis sa corruption, meron bago, it has nothing to do with any other reason, I just don’t want to make publicity out of it,” Duterte said in a speech before newly-promoted military officials in Malacañang.
The President, however, did not mention any names of officials he had axed, even as he hinted that he has just fired another official.
He admitted that he was hurting over the officials he fired, citing most of them were close to him.
“Ang masakit nito, most of those I have dismissed were the same people who urged me to run in the first place,” he said.
The President’s speech in Malacañang was his first public engagement after Teo resigned as tourism chief.
Teo, according to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, submitted her resignation to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea on Monday before the Cabinet meeting.
READ: Teo resigns
However, some reports have surfaced that Teo was fired following the controversial P60-million tourism advertisement.
But Teo’s camp, through her lawyer Ferdinand Topacio, insisted that her client resigned to spare the President from further controversies./ac