MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. announced on Tuesday that he has authorized his Cabinet to streamline their respective departments and offices.
In his first press conference as the country’s 17th president at Malacañang Palace, Marcos said he has ordered the Cabinet members to provide the public “better” and “more efficient” government services.
Marcos stated that he would allow Cabinet secretaries to exercise their authority to select staff and undertake agency-wide reforms.
“As we attend to immediate concerns, we are also trying to streamline the government so its function is better, its function is much more efficient,” he said. “Let’s get our bureaucracy streamlined. I gave them — I said I will not… [I tell them], ‘I give you a relatively free hand in deciding who you want to hire and how you want to change the structure of your department, if indeed that’s what you want to do.”
He issued the order to make government transactions “easier, simpler, safer, and more secure.”
Marcos stated that he has asked his Cabinet to implement the changes as soon as possible, emphasizing that they must “get to work immediately.”
“We have to realize how interconnected all the government is. That everything that’s done on one hand, affects the government in another place, sometimes not to its advantage. So we have to be careful about doing all of that properly,” he said.
Malacañang issued Memorandum Circular (MC) 1 on June 30, declaring vacant some of the government posts and items under the Executive department.
All presidential appointees holding co-terminus appointments, as well as those occupying posts created in excess of the authorized staffing pattern, are deemed separated from office effective noontime on June 30, the date Marcos took oath as the country’s 17th president, according to MC 1, signed by Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez with Marcos’ authority.
Non-Career Executive Service Officials (CESO) occupying Career Executive Service (CES) positions and contractual or casual personnel are also considered separated from service.
Under MC 1, in the exigency of the service and to ensure the continuous and effective delivery of government services, vacancy in the heads of departments, offices, agencies, and bureaus where no replacement has been appointed shall be filled up by the next-in-rank and most senior official as Officer-in-Charge (OIC).
Rodriguez also released MC 2, requiring strict compliance with the strengthened standards of complete staff work (CSW).
Based on MC 2, the CSW is to be undertaken for the processing and evaluation of requests for Presidential issuances, authorization and other approvals to ensure compliance with such form and substance.
