ADVERTISEMENT
‘I serve at the pleasure of the President’ a worn-out catchphrase, says Lacson
By DONA MAGSINO,GMA News"I serve at the pleasure of the President" is such an overused excuse these days, Senator Panfilo Lacson said Thursday.
Lacson had been asked during an interview on CNN Philippines if he thinks embattled PhilHealth chief Ricardo Morales should take a leave of absence amid alleged corruption in the state health insurer.
"There are persons sensitive to the issue of propriety na kaunting issue they decide to take a leave of absence. But there are also people [who would] rather say, 'I serve at the pleasure of the President,' the most abused statement," he said.
"Sometimes the President cannot decide to fire an official out of so many reasons, mostly personal. Pero di ba dapat tulungan na lang ang Presidente, huwag na maghirap mag-decision?" he added.
Lacson pointed out that Morales initially said he was considering going on leave amid the allegations.
"But when Malacañang—through Senator [Bong] Go
ADVERTISEMENT
The Palace said President Rodrigo Duterte would not fire Morales unless there is clear evidence that the appointee is involved in corrupt activities.
The phrase "I serve at the pleasure of the President" has been used by other officials hounded by accusations of corruption or incompetence, including Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.
In previous months, several senators also Duque's resignation for alleged "failure of leadership" amid the pandemic, but the latter has refused to go and has been defended on several occasions by Duterte himself.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III underscored that government officials, especially those appointed, should be both "competent and reliable."
"Incompetence in governance legitimizes a corrupt and broken system . The inability of top officials to explain the lapses in PhilHealth is enough evidence that these managers are taking us—the public—on a joyride," he said.
Morales, for his part, denied coddling corrupt officials in PhilHealth despite admitting that around P10.2 billion of the state insurer's funds could have been lost to fraud in 2019. — BM, GMA News