Ex-MWSS head named DOJ spokesman

MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Benjamin Caguioa has appointed former Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) chief regulator Emmanuel Caparas as spokesman for the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Caguioa, who was named DOJ chief last month, made the appointment through Department Order 885 released yesterday.

Caparas resigned from his post in the MWSS in June last year.

Caguioa said he decided to appoint an official spokesman of the DOJ to conduct regular media briefings.

The DOJ secretary said he is not fond of giving media interviews.

He believes such a designation would provide convenience to media organizations covering the department.

Caguioa said he would come up with a strategic plan for his eight-month tenure in the department.

He has already met undersecretaries and heads of offices in the department, including Prosecutor General Claro Arellano and National Bureau of Investigation director Virgilio Mendez.

Among the tasks in the DOJ left for Caguioa to finish in the remaining eight months of the Aquino administration is the resolution of the criminal charges against leaders of the influential Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) over alleged abduction of ministers and also the charges against Moro Islamic Liberation Front commanders and fighters tagged in the encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao last January.

The DOJ chief also sees as a challenge the resolution of tax evasion cases pending with the department.

He revealed that there are 398 complaints filed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue since 2010 and only 72 were either filed or set for filing in the Court of Tax Appeals.