(Eagle News) – Senator Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan III will soon be named the new secretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III confirmed that Honasan could be appointed to the DICT next week, particularly on Nov. 12, by President Rodrigo Duterte based on talks they had with the President on Oct. 29.
Among those who attended the meeting in Malacanang with President Duterte were Senators Panfilo “Ping” Lacson and Honasan himself, former Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.
“Last October 29, we had a meeting with the President. It was discussed. Napag-usapan yun na kung puwede November 12 na,” Sotto said.
Sotto said that only after Honasan had taken his oath as new DICT secretary and confirmed by the Commission on Appointments (CA) will he resign as senator.
“Napag-usapan lang naman kasi si Greg na para hindi ad interim, para nomination. In other words, kapag na-confirm siya at nag-oath siya, saka na lang siya mag-resign. When we resume next week he would still be in the Senate,” the senator said.
“We have a tradition in the CA — kapag ikaw ay former member of (the) senate you will be given courtesy,” he said.
Sotto believes that Honasan will be “an asset in the DICT.”
“Kasi ang malaking factor dun ang national security even the entry of the third telco. Honasan is a good manager so he will not disrupt anything beneficial to the government,” he said.
-DICT’s Rio to stay — Sotto –
Sotto also said that the current acting secretary of the department, Eliseo M. Rio Jr., would not be leaving the DICT once Honasan is appointed by President Duterte.
Rio was appointed as Undersecretary for Special Concerns of the Department of Information and Communications Technology and was sworn in office on September 13, 2016.
After the resignation of Rodolfo Salalima as DICT Secretary, Rio was appointed oficer-in-charge of the department upon the instructions of President Duterte on October 10, 2017. He was then elevated to acting Secretary of the department on May 8, 2018.
Rio also vowed to support whoever will be appointed by President Duterte as DICT Secretary.
Rio was a retired military general who was the Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications, Electronics and Information Systems, Armed Forces of the Philippines when he retired in October 2000. He was later appointed as commissioner of the National Telecommunications Commission in February 2001 by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
(Meanne Corvera, Eagle News Service)