Arroyo Says Gonzalez will Stay in Cabinet
MANILA, Philippines -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Wednesday said Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez will stay in the Cabinet.
"No, hindi siya kasama sa secret, (he is not included in the ‘secret’)," Arroyo told reporters when asked if Gonzalez would be axed.
The President confirmed reports Tuesday of a looming shakeup in her official family. But she declined to name who will be affected by the revamp, saying it will remain “secret” as of now.
On Wednesday, Arroyo visited the Department of Justice to meet with officials to talk about the rice problem.
Arroyo has also said Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro will not be affected by the revamp.
In text messages that have been making the rounds since late last year, Teodoro has been touted to be the next justice secretary. Purportedly, Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno will take over from Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, who will be appointed ambassador to Washington.
But a Palace official, who would only speak off the record, said Tuesday that unlike Puno, Ermita and Gonzalez were too valuable to the crisis-plagued President to be axed.
The source quoted Arroyo as saying at a recent Cabinet meeting: “If I have 10 more Raul Gonzalezes, that will be half of the Cabinet already.”
Gonzalez on Wednesday said he was "pleased" with the "vote of confidence" from the President.
"Well, you will always be pleased with a vote of confidence from your boss,” he told reporters. “That is something one should treasure."