President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. presides over a Cabinet meeting at the State Dining Room, Malacanan Palace on Tuesday, July 2, 2024. KJ Rosales, PPA Pool/File

MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. retained his economic managers and revamped the leadership of several agencies after he asked all his Cabinet secretaries to tender  courtesy resignations, Malacanang said Friday.

Marcos will keep the following Cabinet secretaries in his economic team, said Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.  

• Trade Secretary Maria Christina Roque
• Finance Secretary Ralph Recto
• Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan
• Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman
• Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs Sec. Frederick Go

"Itong limang ito ay magpapatuloy sa kanilang panunungkulan, paninilbihan sa taongbayan at makakaasa kayo na sila naman ay sinsero o dedicated sa kanilang sinumpaang katungkulan," Bersamin said in a press briefing.

Bersamin said he would stay as executive secretary.

"He (Marcos) communicated to me na I have his full backing for as long as I wish to work for him... That is a sign, manifestation, full, trust confidence in myself," said the Palace official.

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DFA, DENR, DHSUD

Antonio Manuel Revilla Lagdameo, the Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations, "has signified his desire to retire after many years as ambassador," Bersamin said.

He said Lagdameo would be replaced by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Enrique Manalo effective August 1.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro will replace Manalo as head of DFA. 

Meanwhile, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga will be replaced by Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla.

Loyzaga will rest for while and may be given a Cabinet position in the future, Bersamin said.

Engineer Ramon Aliling will be the new Secretary of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), replacing Jerry Acuzar, who will be Presidential Adviser for Pasig River Development.

Aliling was a former DHSUD undersecretary and was in charge of the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino and a project revitalizing the Pasig River. He is the current president and CEO of Jose Aliling Construction Management Inc.

Bersamin said Acuzar's removal from the DHSUD was not due to corruption or underperformance. Acuzar's failure to meet his high target of a million housing units per year was due to obstacles that were beyond government control, the Palace official said.   

"To us now because of the results of the elections, it's time for the President to take him out there and bring another one who might make a better performance. Ganyan nag tingin ko sa kaso ni Sec Acuzar. Wala namang masamang tinapay yan si Sec. Acuzar," Bersamin said.

Bersamin also clarified that DENR's Loyzaga had no corruption issues.

Asked about why Marcos did not retain her in the Cabinet, Bersamin said, "Underperform siguro ang tawag diyan, oo. Kung may expectations ang Presidente and you do not peform, ang messaging is underperformance is not going to be allowed."

Bersamin said there would be "more careful evaluation in the other positions" in the next days and more announcements could be made around the middle of next week.

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‘CONTINUED TRUST’

Meanwhile, Balisacan thanked the President for retaining his services as part of the government’s economic team.

“I thank the President for his continued trust and confidence,” he said in a statement.

 “(I) assure him of the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development's continued efforts, together with members of the Economic Team, to steer the economy to a prosperous, inclusive, and resilient future where every Filipino benefits from our nation's progress.”

On Thursday, Marcos called on his entire cabinet to resign after disappointing results for his party at midterm elections.

The midterm polls held last week were seen as a referendum on the current administration, and only 6 out of 11 Marcos-endorsed candidates secured a Senate seat.

"The people have spoken, and they expect results -- not politics, not excuses. We hear them, and we will act," Marcos said, calling his plan for Cabinet renewal a "bold reset".

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Marcos, in a podcast interview after the elections, openly reflected on his administration's performance.

“Ang mensahe sa aming lahat, hindi lamang sa akin, kung hindi sa aming lahat: ‘Tama na ang pamumulitika ninyo at kami naman ang asikasuhin ninyo,’” he said.

“Ang pangalawa, disappointed ang tao sa serbisyo ng gobyerno. Hindi nila nararamdaman at masyadong mabagal ang pagbubuo ng mga project na hindi pa nila maramdaman,” he added.

Mass cabinet resignations in the Philippines have followed political crises in the last decades.

In 2005, former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo called on her entire cabinet to resign instead of her after she was pressured to step down in the wake of an election fraud scandal.

In 1987, Corazon Aquino's cabinet members also submitted their resignation after being triggered by a coup attempt.

The Palace said government services would not be interrupted during the transition, and stability and meritocracy would guide the selection of Marcos' new executive team.

— With a report from Agence France-Presse