PHILIPPINES
Manila Times-MAY 31
President Rodrigo Duterte has fired another government official — a deputy commissioner at the Bureau of Customs — for indulging in foreign travels in the short time he was in office.
In remarks during the destruction of smuggled luxury motor vehicles at Port Area, Manila, Duterte said Deputy Commissioner Noel Prudente had excessive personal travels to Singapore and Europe.
“This is now under investigation by the House. This already took a long time, so I will cut short the agony of Congress. I am firing him today,” Duterte said.
He added that the military and police would help find out the anomalies at Customs.
“You may not know this, but we are all being monitored because Customs has always been considered as the purgatory of government service,” Duterte said.
“If the intelligence tells me that it is true and you are a presidential appointee, you are fired. I am sorry but that’s the way how it should be,” he added.
Prudente, a former Philippine National Railways director, was appointed to the post in February.
He took over the post left by Gerardo Gambala, who was implicated in the P6.4-billion shabu (methamphetamine) shipment from China last year.
Prudente was one of those investigated by the panel.
Two weeks ago, Duterte said more heads would roll when he returns to Manila.
A few days after, Palace spokesman Harry Roque Jr. announced Duterte’s axing of transport assistant secretary Mark Tolentino for allegedly having dealings with a presidential relative regarding a government contract.
This was followed by the firing of Government Counsel Rudolf Jurado.
Duterte said in a speech on Monday that Jurado granted a franchise to the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone for a casino outside its territorial jurisdiction.
Earlier this month, Malacañang also bared that Duterte had asked justice assistant secretary Moslemen Macarambon Sr. and public works and highways assistant secretary Tingagum Umpa to resign because of alleged corruption.
In a press briefing on May 15th, Roque said the investigation conducted by the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission revealed Macarambon’s interventions on behalf of suspected smugglers of gold and other precious jewelry in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Umpa, on the other hand, was advised to tender his resignation for alleged grave abuse of power and acts of corruption, Roque said, citing a report of the DPWH.
Roque added that the department had acquired sworn statements wherein Umpa, who was assigned in the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), allegedly asked contractors in the region for certain percentages.
The anti-corruption drive is one of the key promises of the Duterte administration.
Days before taking his oath as President, Duterte said that he will fire government officials even with “one whiff of corruption.”
Duterte has fired a number of government officials since June 2016 because of excessive foreign trips, as well as corruption.
The list includes interior secretary Ismael Sueno; National Irrigation Administration chief Peter Lavina; Social Security System commissioner Jose Gabriel “Pompee” Lavina; Maritime Industry Authority administrator Marcial Quirico Amaro 3rd; Commission on Higher Education chief Patricia Licuanan; and Presidential Commission for Urban Poor chairman Terry Ridon and commissioners Melissa Aradanas, Manuel Serra Jr, Noe Indonto and Joan Lagunda, among others. Labor undersecretary Dominador Say and tourism chief Wanda Tulfo-Teo resigned because of corruption allegations.
