DENR chief on the way out

Environment Secretary Michael Defensor, one of President Arroyo’s most trusted advisers, is moving in to Malacañang to serve as her chief of staff.

Defensor’s appointment comes on the heels of a reported Cabinet revamp.

Defensor, the youngest member of the Arroyo Cabinet, admitted in a telephone interview yesterday that he is "now officially working for the President" despite the absence of a formal appointment.

He will file a leave from his post as head of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

"By next week I will file my leave in transition to fix the situation," he told The STAR. "I don’t want to be working for the President and neglect my job at the DENR."

Defensor said his new job as Palace chief of staff is to "help manage the affairs of the President and some of her flagship projects."

Defensor was designated earlier this week by Mrs. Arroyo as her point man and coordinator of her P35-billion "pump-priming" economic program for the first quarter of the year.

He expects the formal presidential appointment to be issued next week at the earliest, formally outlining his functions.

Defensor said he would closely consult with Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) to avoid overlapping of functions.

"Basically what I see is that I would be handling the official personal functions of the President compared to the official governance functions that are being handled by Executive Secretary Ermita," Defensor said. "The executive secretary is first among equals in the Cabinet and I still defer to the executive secretary."

A Malacañang official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the presidential appointment defining the functions of Defensor’s new job was still being finalized.

The official said Mrs. Arroyo tasked Defensor himself to draft the executive order that would grant him more powers than outgoing PMS head Rigoberto Tiglao, who previously held the post.

Tiglao’s recent appointment as ambassador to Greece was confirmed by the Commission on Appointments. He is expected to leave for his new posting next month.

The Palace official said Mrs. Arroyo felt the office of the chief of staff could not be effective under the current setup, which makes it a clearinghouse for documents in the Office of the President.

The official dismissed speculation that Defensor’s position might overlap with some of Ermita’s powers. "They get along very well," the official said.

Another Malacañang official, who is drafting Defensor’s appointment paper, said Defensor will assume a concurrent Cabinet position, either as head of the PMS or the Department of Social Welfare and Development, temporarily headed by Undersecretary Lualhati Pablo.

Pablo was designated officer-in-charge of the department when Corazon Soliman, a former close Arroyo ally, resigned in July along with several Cabinet officials and advisers following Mrs. Arroyo’s public admission that she spoke with an election official during the presidential ballot counting in 2004. The President’s admission was meant to address electoral fraud allegations raised by the opposition.

Defensor was not certain at this time if he would also be heading the PMS or the social welfare department.

"But definitely, I will be handling the many personal affairs of the President as well as official activities concerning the presidency," Defensor told The STAR. He declined to elaborate.

"So, by next week we would be able to finalize my specific new role or assignment," he said.

Palace sources said Defensor’s new job would be in line with Mrs. Arroyo’s "aggressive campaign" to revitalize the country’s fragile economy, among other goals.

These would include "the President’s reconciliation efforts with those opposing her administration in the economic and political reforms," one official said. "So a strong Malacañang front is being formed with Defensor by her side."

The same sources said there was no indication yet on who would take over for Defensor at the DENR.

"But there are a lot of other vacancies in the Cabinet that the President will have to fill within the next few days," one source said.

Ermita described Defensor as the Arroyo Cabinet’s "superboy" for his ability to handle any task thrown at him by the President.

Defensor served as Mrs. Arroyo’s election campaign spokesman in the hotly-contested 2004 presidential election as well as tackling other jobs including making speeches, scheduling and setting up meetings with local officials and lawmakers.

Defensor was one of Mrs. Arroyo’s fiercest defenders when the opposition accused her of cheating in the 2004 polls.

Mrs. Arroyo is currently locked in a protracted battle with the opposition after surviving a bitter impeachment bid in the House of Representatives in September.

Defensor has been frequently away from his DENR office nowadays and is usually seen close to the President on her many rounds.

Yesterday, Defensor was in Cebu with Mrs. Arroyo, who attended the founding anniversary of Toledo City.

Defensor was with Mrs. Arroyo during the holidays in Baguio City. He was also with her the other day in Payatas, Quezon City, where Mrs. Arroyo inaugurated a government livelihood project.

Defensor said four people are being considered as his replacement in the environment department.

Mrs. Arroyo is reportedly considering Office of the External Affairs Secretary Ed Pamintuan, Government Media chief Secretary Cerge Remonde, Interior Secretary Angelo Reyes and Transport Undersecretary Jose Cortez. — With reports from Marichu Villanueva