Lorenzana defends appointment of retiring Army chief to DSWD

Lt. Gen. Rolando Joselito Bautista, Philippine Army chief (Photo from the PA Facebook page)

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Monday said that former Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Judy Taguiwalo should respect the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to appoint retiring Army chief Lt. Gen. Rolando Joselito Bautista as the next head of the social welfare agency.

He reminded Taguiwalo that the security sector did not oppose her appointment when Mr. Duterte named her as DSWD chief despite her supposed links to communist rebels.

“Bakit nag o-oppose is Judy? It is the prerogative of the President to appoint whomever he wishes. She should respect as we respected the decision of the President to appoint her to the position, knowing that she is a CPP [Communist Party of the Philippines] member. Did the security sector object? No,” he told reporters.

Taguiwalo lost her DSWD post in August 2018 after her appointment was rejected by the majority of Commission on Appointments (CA) members.

Bautista, who is retiring on October 15, was named by Duterte as the next DSWD Secretary last week. He was previously offered the National Food Authority (NFA) Administrator post.

Critics, including Taguiwalo, said that Bautista was unfit for the position to do social development work.

“The DSWD Secretary is a civilian post that is mandated to provide welfare assistance to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in our society. Under the present administration which has again and again violated the rule of law, the constitutional provision of civilian supremacy over the military is being thrown out of the window,” Taguiwalo said last week.

But this was opposed by Lorenzana: “Why not an ex-military? Maybe it’s time the military should appreciate the work of these agencies and what better way than to put one of them on the job.”

Among the contenders seen to replace Bautista as Army chief include Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) Maj. Gen. Macairog Alberto and Army’s 10th Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Noel Clement. /kga