PRRD formally appoints Piñol to MinDa

FILE: Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol announces his support for supplying rice rather than providing cash allowance to the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries during a press briefing in Malacañang on January 18, 2017. TOTO LOZANO/Presidential Photo

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has formally appointed former Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol as chairman of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDa).

According to a list of presidential appointees from Malacañang, Piñol was appointed MinDa chairman on August 5. The Palace has yet to release his official appointment paper to reporters.

Duterte earlier bared that Piñol would be the perfect “point man” to help develop the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) given his experience as a farmer and former North Cotabato governor.

“I must remember that it is an agricultural country and Piñol is a farmer who was once a governor and he was born there and he’s good. The Mindanao Development Authority is a Cabinet position. He is still a Cabinet,” Duterte said in a television interview with Pastor Apollo Quiboloy in Davao City last month.

“I’m sure he can help the BARMM and the government to fast-track everything,” he added.

Meanwhile, William Dar will be returning as acting DA secretary.

Dar first served as acting Secretary of Agriculture during the term of President Joseph “Erap” Estrada.

This is despite Duterte’s earlier pronouncement that he would want a “military man” to be the next DA chief.