ILOILO City – The termination of an Ilongga undersecretary and two others from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has dismayed cause-oriented groups.
President Rodrigo Duterte fired Undersecretary for Disaster Response Management Group Hope Hervilla of Iloilo, confirmed Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea yesterday.
According to Reylan Vergara, secretary general of the human rights group Karapatan, Hervilla’s firing was part of the President’s efforts to silence critics, most especially those from progressive groups.
Prior to her DSWD appointment in 2016, Hervilla was a Bayan Muna regional chairperson and party-list nominee.
The two others terminated were Undersecretary for Protective Operations and Programs Group Mae Ancheta-Templa and Undersecretary for Promotive Operations and Programs Group Maria Lourdes Turalde-Jarabe.
“We are dismayed. Those who are working hard, qualified and not corrupt are being eased out,” said Vergara.
Ancheta-Templa was a member of the Forum of Women for Action with Rody Duterte prior to her DSWD appointment while Turalde-Jarabe was formerly Gabriela Women’s Party secretary general.
Vergara also believed the firing was part of the Duterte administration’s “militarization” of the civilian bureaucracy.
“Balantayan ini. Gusto ni Duterte nga iposisyon ang military para ma-control ini kag magsunod sa iya gusto. Sa gihapon nagaluntad ang espiritu sang martial law sa administrasyon,” said Vergara.
Former Army chief retired Lt. Gen. Rolando Bautista is now the secretary of DSWD.
Medialdea denied that the termination had anything to do with the undersecretaries’ being left-leaning.
“No,” Medialdea said, explaining that it was to give Bautista a free hand to form his own “good team” at the DSWD.
“We expect the new Secretary to bring his own team to provide better services to the public,” added Medialdea./PN
