The next Ombudsman should not be a woman or a politician, President Rodrigo Duterte said on Wednesday.
“I want someone whose integrity people believe in. Of course, it could not be a politician, especially not a woman,” Duterte said in a mix of Filipino and English during an interview with reporters in Malacañang.
The term of Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales will end in July 2018.
The 76-year old Morales, a retired Supreme Court justice, was appointed by former President Benigno Aquino III in 2011 following the resignation of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez.
The President said the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) would need to come up with a shortlist of nominees before he could choose the next Ombudsman.
“I have to consult everybody. I will even have to consult the Ombudsman people – but not Morales,” he said. /atm