Marcos administers oath to reappointed Cabinet officials

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Tuesday morning administered the oath of office to his reappointed Cabinet officials.

Former Chief Justice Lucas Bersamin led the list of Cabinet officials as he took his oath as the administration’s executive secretary, replacing lawyer Victor Rodriguez.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri earlier said 12 Cabinet secretaries and two commissioners needed to be reappointed after being bypassed by the Commission on Appointments (CA).

According to the CA website, an ad interim appointment ceases to be valid upon disapproval by the CA or, if not confirmed, until the next adjournment of Congress.

Those who took their oath were the following:

• Benjamin Diokno - Secretary of the Department of Finance
• Manuel Bonoan - Secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways
• Alfredo Pascual - Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry
• Erwin Tulfo - Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development
• Jaime Bautista - Secretary of the Department of Transportation
• Renato Solidum Jr. - Secretary of the Department of Science and Technology
• Raphael Perpetuo Lotilla - Secretary of the Department of Energy
• Susan Ople - Secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers
• Arsenio  Balisacan - Secretary of the National Economic and Development Authority
• Jose Rizalino Acuzar - Secretary of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development

Lawyer Trixie Cruz-Angeles was not included in the list. She later confirmed that she had resigned as press secretary due to health reasons.

Information and Communications Technology Secretary Ivan John Uy was also not among those who took the oath.

Uy was out of the country, but he will be reappointed, according to Bersamin. —AOL/VBL, GMA News