- Cabinet Secretary replaced vice president as housing czar
- He will manage the HUDCC along with supervising 10 other gov’t agencies
- Evasco said other Cabinet officials are free to resign if they do not agree with president’s views
MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang Palace announced the appointment of Cabinet Secretary Leoncio “Jun” Evasco as the head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) amid Vice President Leni Robredo’s resignation.
“PRRD [President Rodrigo Roa Duterte] just appointed CabSec Jun Evasco to head HUDCC. This is on top of Sec. Evasco’s current job responsibilities,” the Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Communications Secretary Martin Andanar as saying.
Aside from being the new housing czar, Evasco currently holds supervisory powers over the Cooperative Development Authority, National Anti-Poverty Commission, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, National Food Authority, National Youth Commission Office of the President – Presidential Action Center, Philippine Commission on Women, Philippine Coconut Authority, Presidential Commission on the Urban Poor, and Technical Education Skills Development Authority.
An ex-rebel priest and former mayor of Maribojoc, Bohol, Evasco served as Duterte’s national campaign adviser before becoming Cabinet Secretary.
After Robredo’s resignation, Evasco said other Cabinet officials are free to resign if they feel their views do not coincide with the president’s.
“Cabinet members accept the appointment with the implicit agreement that they agree with his program, platform and policies. While there may be matters they take issue with, these are to be handled consensually because it is vital for the Cabinet to be united,” he said. “It is important that while one is a member of the Cabinet to express one’s views discreetly and not be adversarial publicly. If in any case a member finds cause, it is his or her prerogative to resign from the Cabinet.”
