Duterte names heads of Housing Department, PHL Space Agency

President Rodrigo Duterte appointed the heads of the newly created Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the Philippine Space Agency.

Duterte appointed former military man Eduardo del Rosario Secretary of the DHUD and named Joel Joseph Marciano Jr. director general of the PhilSA, according to a list of new appointees released by Malacañang on Tuesday.

The President also renewed the appointment of Dante Ang as his special envoy for international public relations.

Del Rosario used to be the chairperson of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council which was merged with the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board to create the new department as mandated by Republic Act 11201.

The President signed RA 11201 in February last year.

Prior to his appointment, Marciano served as acting director of the Department of Science and Technology-Advanced Science and Technology Institute. The DOST-ASTI is focused on programs such as technology transfer and space technology.

PhilSA is a creation of Republic Act 11363 which was signed by Duterte in August last year.

The law calls for a Philippine Space Development and Utilization Policy which will serve as the country’s strategic roadmap for space development and will embody the country’s goal of becoming a space-capable and space-faring nation in the next 10 years.

PhilSA is an attached agency of the Office of the President. — DVM, GMA News