Justice Undersecretary Jose Justiniano has resigned from his post two days after President Benigno Aquino III appointed his Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Benjamin Caguioa as replacement for Justice Secretary Leila de Lima who bowed out of service on Oct. 12 to run for the Senate under the administration Liberal Party.
“It is a family decision for me to go back to private practice,” Justiniano said, in a text message to reporters.
Justiniano, who was reported to be one of the strongest candidate to succeed De Lima, confirmed that he has submitted to President Aquino his resignation letter on Thursday.
Justiniano’s letter states that his resignation is effective Oct. 30, 2015.
According to him, he will join the newly-created Peña and Lumagui Law Firm, which will be called the Morales Justiniano Peña and Lumagui Law Firm next year.
Justiniano made the decision on the same day his former colleague at the Sycip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan Law Firm, Caguioa took over his new post as secretary of Justice.
Justiniano supervised the DOJ investigation on the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam.
He was also deputized by the Office of the Ombudsman in the prosecution of PDAF related cases before the Sandiganbayan.
He was appointed as DOJ undersecretary in 2013.
Rey Requejo