BBM keeps Cabinet members who made him unpopular

GOTCHA

- JARIUS BONDOC

Bongbong Marcos has retained Cabinet men who maimed PhilHealth. That issue discredited him starting 2024. He doesn't seem to care.

BBM kept Secretaries Ralph Recto of Finance and Amenah Pangandaman of Budget. Of five Cabinet men in PhilHealth's board, the two are most to blame for the illicit transfer of P90 billion of our PhilHealth money to bridge works. BBM knows that.

BBM swiftly removed the Foreign, Environment and Energy chiefs. But he's wavering over Health Secretary and PhilHealth chairman Ted Herbosa.

Herbosa abetted the P90-billion mess in 2024. In 2025 he was silent when Congress removed PhilHealth's P74-billion funding.

No word as well from BBM about two other Cabinet men in PhilHealth, Labor Sec. Benny Laguesma and Social Welfare Sec. Rex Gatchalian.

BBM claimed to be revamping his Cabinet to appease voters. Health disservice, costly food and low incomes had topped the election concerns.

The admin misread the signs. People were impatient for results, BBM said. That's why only five of his 12 senatorial bets won last May 12, and two defected.

The screwing of PhilHealth began in December 2023. Recto was deputy speaker when Congress enacted the 2024 national budget.

That budget was irregular. It funded through political "ayuda" under Programmed Appropriations a surprise People's Initiative for Charter Change.

To accommodate that maneuver, the 2024 budget relegated to Unprogrammed Appropriations certain projects for which foreign loans and aid already had been secured.