President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has renamed the Office of the Press Secretary as the Presidential Communications Office and placed it under the Office of the President.
Mr. Marcos, through Executive Order No. 11, streamlined the administrative structure of the Office of the President as part of efforts “toward efficiency and responsiveness in the delivery of its critical mandates to the Filipino people.”
The Office of the President will now consist of five offices: the Executive Office, Office of the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel, Private Office, Office of the Special Assistant to the President, and the Presidential Communications Office.
The Executive Office shall consist of the offices of the following: Executive Secretary, Senior Deputy Executive Secretary, Deputy Executive Secretary for General Administration, Deputy Secretary for Legal Affairs, Deputy Executive Secretary for Finance and Administration and Internal Audit Office.
The Office of the Special Assistant to the President shall have control and supervision over Presidential Assistants and the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office.
The Private Office will provide direct services to the President and attend to personal functions and matters of the First Family.
The PCO shall be responsible for crafting, formulating, developing, enhancing and coordinating the messaging system of the executive branch of the government.
The Presidential Management Staff will be under the supervision of the Office of the Executive Secretary and will perform the functions of the Cabinet Secretariat in assisting the President for establishing agenda topics during Cabinet deliberations and meetings.
Meanwhile, President Marcos appointed new officials that would join the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) and the Office of the Executive Secretary (EOS), the Palace said Wednesday.
Former Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) chief Gilbert Cruz has been designated as PAOCC Undersecretary, while lawyer Rogelio Peig has been named as the OES Undersecretary for Strategic Action and Response Office.
Cruz previously served as a member of the Dangerous Drugs Board under the Duterte administration.
Meanwhile, Peig served as city administrator of the Valenzuela City government from April 2008 to May 2010 and chief political affairs officer at the House of Representatives from July 2004 to April 2009.