President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. has issued his first Executive Order which moves to abolish the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) and the Office of the Cabinet Secretary.
Signed by Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez dated June 30 but only released to the media on Thursday, the EO 1 states that the Marcos administration aims to achieve a simple and efficient bureaucracy by reorganizing and abolishing "duplicated and overlapping official functions."
"In order to achieve simplicity, economy, and efficiency in the bureaucracy without effecting disruptions in internal management and general governance, the Administration shall streamline official processes and procedures by reorganizing the Office of the President proper and the various attached agencies and offices, and by abolishing duplicated and overlapping official functions," the EO read.
Under the EO, Marcos said the powers and functions of the PACC shall be transferred to the Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs.
"Now, therefore, I, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order: The Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission is hereby abolished and its jurisdiction, powers and functions shall be transferred to the Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs," the order states.
"The Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs shall make recommendations on matters requiring its action, to the Executive Secretary for approval, adoption, or modification by the President," it added.
Meanwhile, the existing Cabinet Secretariat shall be placed under the direct control and supervision of the Presidential Management Staff following the abolition of the Office of the Cabinet Secretary.
"The Office of the Cabinet Secretary is hereby abolished… The Cabinet Secretariat, in coordination with the Executive Secretary, shall assist the President in the establishment of agenda topics for Cabinet deliberations, or facilitate the discussion of Cabinet meetings,” the order says.
Personnel affected by the abolition of the PACC and the Office of the Cabinet Secretary may be allowed to avail of the benefits provided under existing law, the directive noted.
