By: Argyll Geducos
Malacañang expressed regret over the Commission on Appointment’s (CA’s) rejection of Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Rafael Mariano.
Mariano’s rejection came in only less than a month after Duterte’s third Cabinet appointee, Judy Taguiwalo’s appointment as Social Welfare Secretary was rejected by the CA.
Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella, in a statement, expressed regret over “Ka Paeng’s” rejection, citing his efforts to promote the rights of farmers.
“We regret the news of Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Rafael ‘Paeng’ Mariano’s rejection by the Commission on Appointments,” Abella said Wednesday afternoon.
“Improving the quality of life of our farmers is the commitment of the Duterte administration, and Sec. Mariano has been pivotal in promoting farmers’ rights and welfare and ensuring their security of land tenure,” he added.
“Our people will always be grateful to Sec. Mariano for his dedicated and passionate service to the nation,” he continued.
Senate majority leader Vicente Sotto III explained that 13 members of the CA panel voted against Mariano’s confirmation.
Mariano is the fourth appointee of Duterte to be rejected by the CA. The first was then-Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr., followed by then-Environment chief Gina Lopez, and then Taguiwalo just last month.
Former senator Alan Peter Cayetano took the helm of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) while former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Roy Cimatu took over Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Duterte named Undersecretary Emmanuel Leyco as the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
