MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said he has fired an official of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) over corruption allegations.
In a speech during the inauguration of Cavite Gateway Terminal in Tanza, the President announced the dismissal of Secretary-General Falconi Millar.
Aside from his work at the HUDCC, Millar was also the head of the secretariat of the interagency Task Force Bangon Marawi, which oversees the rehabilitation of the war-torn Marawi City.
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo, in a statement released Thursday, confirmed the firing of Millar but refused to elaborate.
“There are no sacred cows in the administration, especially in its drive against corruption,” Panelo said. “As the President said, he will not tolerate even a whiff of corruption in the executive branch of government.”
“We assure the public that the delivery of public services shall unimpededly continue, especially in rehabilitating Marawi City and other affected areas,” he added.
Millar denied that Duterte fired him, insisting that he tendered his resignation from the HUDCC post early Thursday.
“It is an obvious demolition job,” Millar said in a statement sent to GMA News.
“In protecting the interest of the government, I have annoyed some personalities. I filed my resignation (on Thursday) morning,” he said.
His dismissal came a week after Duterte said in a speech in Papua New Guinea that he will fire another government official over corruption.
Duterte had been vocal against corruption since the start of his administration in 2016. He already fired a number of Cabinet members, some of them his close friends, due to links to corruption./PN
