Locsin, Cayetano to meet next week for DFA leadership change

“If the appointment papers are in order, and if papayag ‘yong secretary-designate, I’d like to do the symbolic turning over of the DFA flag to him on Wednesday or sooner,” he told reporters after the flag retreat at the DFA-Office of Consular Affairs Friday. (PNA file photo by Jess M. Escaros Jr.)

MANILA — Outgoing Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said he will meet with DFA secretary-designate Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Monday to discuss transition in the agency’s leadership.

“If the appointment papers are in order, and if papayag ‘yong secretary-designate, I’d like to do the symbolic turning over of the DFA flag to him on Wednesday or sooner,” he told reporters after the flag retreat at the DFA-Office of Consular Affairs Friday.

Cayetano is vacating the DFA leadership to run as Taguig City representative for the 2019 mid-term polls.

Cayetano said he will seek the House Speakership, but emphasized that his decision was to better serve President Rodrigo Duterte as an ally at the legislative branch.

Meanwhile, he denied that President Duterte instructed him to run.

“I asked for his support and he confirmed it to me,” Cayetano said.

While his supporters have been urging him to run for congressman after Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez was ousted as house speaker in July 2018, Cayetano said he only decided to run after the visit of Duterte to Israel and Jordan last month.

Cayetano confirmed he will file his certificate of candidacy on Wednesday.

“Because I expected to finish the ASEAN-EU Summit and the visit of President Xi Jinping, I was initially geared to substituting and resign after the state visit, but I felt that ang gusto ng pangulo ‘lahat ng tatakbo, tumakbo na kayo’,” he said.

Locsin, who is current Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, earlier said he accepted the offer from President Duterte.