New NTC, ISAFP heads named

A government agency attached to the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the NTC is primarily responsible for the regulation, supervision, adjudication, and control of all telecommunications services and television and radio networks in the country. (File photo by Elmer B. Domingo – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0)

MANILA – Malacañang on Friday released the names of new appointees of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., including the respective heads of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP).

NTC officer-in-charge Deputy Commissioner Ella Blanca Lopez has been tapped as the agency’s new commissioner, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil confirmed.

Garafil said the appointment paper of Lopez, a lawyer, was signed on Feb. 7.

Before serving as NTC commissioner, Lopez worked as the director of the commission, officer-in-charge of its legal branch, and chief of staff of the Office of the Commissioner.

Lopez earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman and studied law at the Ateneo de Manila University.

A government agency attached to the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the NTC is primarily responsible for the regulation, supervision, adjudication, and control of all telecommunications services and television and radio networks in the country.

Garafil also announced the appointment of Maj. Gen. Leonel Nicolas the new chief of ISAFP, the office in charge of the military’s intelligence efforts.

Nicolas, whose appointment paper was signed on Feb. 1, was among the military officers who were recently promoted to two-star rank.

Before his new post, Nicolas served as the AFP’s deputy chief of staff for intelligence.

He was also the commander of the Army’s 102nd Infantry Brigade and the Joint Task Force Zamboanga.

Nicolas became chief of staff and assistant chief of staff for operations, and commanded the 10th and 5th Infantry Battalions of the 1st Infantry Division.

He is an Airborne and Scout Ranger and a well-rounded military officer with expertise in operations, intelligence, and managerial acumen.

Nicolas earned his Master of Management from the Liceo de Cagayan University and his Master of Public Management major in Development Security from the Development Academy of the Philippines.

Marcos, Garafil said, also signed on Feb. 7 the appointment papers of the new members of the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (NTIPC) and the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB), both operating under the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

The President designated Arturo Baesa, Annie Geron, Angelita Señorin, and Jesus Villamor as members of the NTIPC, representing the labor sector.

The NTIPC, the main consultative and advisory body mechanism lodged with the DOLE’s Bureau of Labor Relations, is responsible for processing major issuances affecting labor, employment, and related concerns, as well as a clearinghouse for the recommendation and ratification or denunciation of International Labor Organization Conventions.

Meanwhile, Juan Johnny dela Cruz and Alfonso Lao were appointed as members of the RTWPB in the Cordillera Administrative Region and Romeo Sustiguer Jr. as board member in Caraga, representing the employers’ sector.

The RTWPB is responsible for setting minimum wages and promoting productivity improvement programs.

Marcos also tapped Romeo Leyes (Director IV), Josemari Hernando (Director III), and Lita Rosales (Director III) as new officials at the Department of Agrarian Reform; Karen Kristien Roscom (Director IV) at the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards; Paul Limson (Director IV) at the Bureau of Animal Industry; and Ma. Jozzenne Claire Beltran-Carandan and Maria Dionesia Rivera-Guillermo IV, both Deputy Executive Director IV at the Government Procurement Policy Board-Technical Support Office.