The Presidential Communications Office on Thursday confirmed that Presidential Adviser on Creative Communications Paul Soriano has submitted his resignation from his post.
In a statement, PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil said Soriano sought to prioritize his “personal commitments”.
“Presidential Adviser Paul Soriano took a well-deserved break to spend time with his family and newborn daughter,” Garafil said.
Soriano took a break from his work with the administration in July, citing personal reasons.
Garafil said there is still no replacement for Soriano’s role at the moment.
Earlier, Soriano’s resignation was revealed during the Senate deliberations on Thursday on the proposed budget of the Office of the President (OP) for 2024.
Soriano’s leave from work came as his wife, actress-host Toni Gonzaga, was expected to give birth to their second child.
President Marcos named Soriano his adviser for creative communications last October 2022. He had been behind Mr. Marcos’ campaign advertisements since the latter started as vice governor of Ilocos Norte until he was elected president last year.
Soriano also directed Mr. Marcos’ first State of the Nation Address and his first 100 Days recap.
Last May, Soriano’s office also launched the “We Give the World Our Best—The Philippines” branding campaign with the goal of “making us proud to be a Filipino, here at home and anywhere, everywhere all over the world.”
Soriano reportedly agreed to receive P1 each year as his salary.
“One of the greatest assets of the Filipino is our creativity, and we must find many ways to highlight that to the rest of the world. And that is what Paul Soriano has already been doing in his career as a filmmaker. And now we have asked him to help us at one peso per year,” Marcos said.
Soriano had thanked the President for tapping him as his adviser.
“It’s an absolute honor to be able to serve, first and foremost, of course, for the country and then, of course, for the PBBM administration,” Soriano said. “It’s a passion of mine to just create and communicate. It’s an absolute honor that the President has trusted me with this position.”
Soriano was tasked to advise the Chief Executive and assist departments and agencies, including government-owned and controlled corporations, on matters that will enhance their information dissemination programs and initiatives.
“You know, in this day and age, you need to do it creatively, and you need to communicate so that the mission and the vision and the message of the President is clearly communicated to the Filipino people,” added Soriano.
Soriano won “Best Director” in the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival for his movie “Siargao” which also won Best Film. His film, “A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery,” won the Alfred Bauer Award for Best Film at the Berlinale International Film Festival in 2016.
His other films also won best film awards from the Catholic Mass Media Awards, Cinemalaya Film Festival, Mexico International Film Festival, Film Academy of the Philippines, and Star Awards for Movies.