The deactivation of the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) was in line with the desire of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to streamline government operations and fine-tune the use of government resources, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said.
“I think the deactivation of the PACC was along that line, but surely it was not because the PACC was ineffective,” Guevarra said in a statement over the weekend.
Guevarra disclosed that the President gave all department heads a free hand in reorganizing their agencies and streamlining operations to promote a more efficient allocation of scarce government resources.
“As a former Justice Secretary, I had a meaningful collaboration with the PACC in the overall campaign against corruption in government,” Guevarra said.
Among Marcos’ first acts after his June 30 inaugural was to issue Executive Order (EO) No. 1 abolishing the PACC and the Office of the Cabinet Secretary to achieve “simplicity, economy, and efficiency” in the bureaucracy.
The Chief Executive said his administration aims to achieve “a comprehensive and meaningful recovery through a just allocation of resources and a simplified internal management and governance of the Office of the President and its immediate offices and common staff support system.”
Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles also said during Friday’s Palace press briefing that the PACC has been abolished because it is “not in line with streamlining.”
“First of all, its nature is investigative, which can also be conducted by the Office of the Ombudsman. So, usually, what they do is they gather evidence on presidential appointees and file the case with the Ombudsman,” Angeles said.
EO No. 1 stated that “the Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs shall promulgate rules of procedure in administrative cases under its jurisdiction; provided that the existing rules of procedure in administrative cases promulgated by the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission shall remain in force unless otherwise repealed or amended.”
The winding-up of the operations and disposition of the functions, positions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the PACC will be administered by the Executive Secretary.
