Hizon, not Danga, is new National Printing Office chief

MANILA, Philippines - A retired Navy officer linked to the wiretapping of President Arroyo in 2004 will no longer be named to head the National Printing Office (NPO) under the Office of the Press Secretary.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita announced yesterday the appointment of retired police general Servando Hizon as NPO chief.

The Palace announced in January that Tirso Danga was to be appointed to the NPO but his appointment papers were not signed. Apparently, some quarters questioned his qualification for the post after the announcement came out.

Ermita did not explain why Danga’s appointment did not push through. He likewise did not elaborate on Hizon’s qualifications to hold the post.

Danga was chief of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines during the 2004 elections when some members of the unit allegedly eavesdropped on the telephone conversations between Mrs. Arroyo and former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.

The recordings, which were leaked to the public the following year, triggered the “Hello, Garci” scandal that put Mrs. Arroyo in one of her worst political crises.

Hizon is a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1973. He was considered for the top post of the Philippine National Police in 2006.

He was also once assigned as head of the PNP for Western Mindanao.

The vacancy at the NPO was triggered by the resignation of Enrique Agana in January after he was accused of raping a 13-year-old girl.