Aquino thanks Cadiz, wants next Solicitor General to prioritize Banco Filipino case

MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino thanked on Monday newly resigned Solicitor General Jose Anselmo Cadiz for a job well done during his two-year stint in government.

“I am grateful that he gave us close to two years of service,” President Aquino told reporters after he attended the 110th anniversary of the Bureau of Customs at the agency’s office in Manila.

In his interview with reporters and in a statement he also issued, Aquino said Cadiz resigned because he had finished fulfilling his commitment to the Chief Executive to help him out in the first years of his presidency before returning to private practice.

“While the time has come for him to return to private practice as we agreed, he can do so confident in the knowledge that the office he has headed is once more imbued with an authentic sense of public service and professionalism,” President Aquino said in his statement.

President Aquino did not confirm if he would appoint Deputy Ombudsman Francis Jardeleza as Cadiz’s replacement, saying he would announce the name of his appointee “at the appropriate time.”

Mr. Aquino said he would want the next Solicitor General to prioritize the Court of Appeals’ ruling ordering the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to reopen the Banco Filipino and give it P25 billion in assistance.

“That infusion is not a joke especially since the allegation is (the bank) was mismanaged very badly at that,” he said.