Conflict could erupt in Malacañang with the designation of Vic Rodriguez as presidential chief of staff (PCS) over the possible duplication of tasks with other offices, Aquino-era presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said.
In an interview on One News’ “The Chiefs” Monday (September 19), Lacierda said Rodriguez’s responsibilities as PCS should be spelled out.
“So one has to be very very clear that there are no duplication. Otherwise, gulo yan. It interlays a conflict within the office of the president and you don’t want conflict to be happening in the highest levels of government,” he said.
Lacierda, who was the late former President Benigno Aquino III’s spokesperson for six years, said Rodriguez’s tasks as PCS can be done by the office of the private secretary within the Office of the President.
“So you’re now providing a very public position of chief of staff, which by and large is just an administrative in nature, it’s chief of staff. Because the real power next to the President is devolved in the office of the Executive Secretary,” he explained.
Rodriguez announced his resignation as Executive Secretary on September 17 amid the controversies he has been linked to since the start of the Marcos administration.
The 48-year-old abogado has been tagged in the aborted but unauthorized plan to import 300,000 metric tons of sugar, and confusion over certain government appointments.
Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile already advised President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. against creating the post of PCS for Rodriguez.
In a five-page memorandum dated September 15, 2022, Enrile said the Office of the Presidential Chief of Staff will overlap with the functions of other existing government offices, such as the Office of the Executive Secretary, the Presidential Management Staff, and Office of the Special Assistant to the President.
Lacierda believes Marcos agreed to the revival of the PCS post as a political accommodation for Rodriguez, who served as his campaign spokesperson.
“The President values also the months of, or years of work that Mr. Vic Rodriguez provided him. So he doesn’t want to let go entirely,” he said.
