Vic Rodriguez steps down as Executive Secretary

Lawyer Victor Rodriguez on Saturday announced that he stepped down as Executive Secretary.

Rodriguez said that he had asked permission to step down from the position, which he had held for nearly three months.

“There is nothing more rewarding than answering the call to serve the country, a rare privilege not extended to all but was given to me by the President, His Excellency Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr.,” he said in a statement.

“The work of an Executive Secretary is a 24/7 job with myriad topics expected to be attended to every day. It demands a sense of urgency which essentially requires almost all of a public servant’s time to ensure that services are met and delivered,” he added.

However, Rodriguez said that he wanted to prioritize time with his family.

“Equally valuable, however, is to witness firsthand your young family grow and evolve into how every parent would wish them to become and they most need me too,” he said.

“I thank the President for his continuing trust and his sincere understanding of my decision. To the Filipino people, I shall continue serving you and the country as the Presidential Chief of Staff,” he added.

Rodriguez earlier served as Marcos' campaign spokesperson and chief of staff.

Meanwhile, Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles confirmed that Rodriguez stepped down from the position.

"We confirm reports that Atty. Vic Rodriguez has stepped down as Executive Secretary," she said in a separate statement.

Administrative Order No. 1 

The Office of the Press Secretary (OPS) said that Marcos signed Administrative Order No. 1, which created the position of Presidential Chief of Staff (PCS).

It said that the Office of the Presidential Chief of Staff (OPCOS) would be under the direct supervision of the President.

"The OPCOS shall have the primary function of supervising and ensuring the efficient and responsive day-to-day operational support to the presidency to enable the President to focus on strategic national concerns," AO No. 1 stated.

The OPS said the AO, which was signed by the President this week, also provides for the PCS to have the "rank and emoluments of a Cabinet Secretary."

It said that the PCS' immediate staff will be drawn from defunct agencies such as the Office of the Cabinet Secretary and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission.

"Rodriguez will immediately assume his new position as PCS. This, in effect, will leave vacant the Office of the Executive Secretary (OES)," the OPS said.

"There are names now being considered for the position of Executive Secretary and these names are now under the process of vetting by the Office of the President (OP)," it added.

Citing AO No. 1, the OPS said that the OES would continue to supervise, control, and oversee all agencies and offices under and attached to the OP.

The OPS said the order also stated that the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) and the OPS would assist and support the PCS.

It said the OPCOS would be in charge of the President’s security monitoring system, "which shall be responsible for providing regular situation reports to the President on a real-time basis."

"The OPCOS will also supervise and coordinate closely with the PMS as the primary government agency directly responsible for providing substantive staff assistance in the presidential exercise of overall management of the development process," the OPS said.

"The Presidential Chief of Staff will also coordinate closely with presidential advisers and assistants whose outputs shall be submitted to the President through the OPCOS copy furnished to the Executive Secretary," it added.

The OPS said a draft special order, which sought additional functions to what was already provided under AO 1, was disapproved by Marcos based on the recommendation of Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile. — DVM/VBL, GMA News