‘Seadog’ to head Marina

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Navy Vice Admiral Narciso Vingson Jr. has been appointed officer-in-charge of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), replacing Rey Leonardo Guerrero who was named by President Duterte as the new Bureau of Customs (BOC) chief.

Secretary Arthur Tugade of the Department of Transportation announced his designation yesterday, a move lauded by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

His colleagues in the AFP consider him a “seadog” for commanding three commissioned vessels: the patrol gunboat BRP Alberto Navarette (PG394); patrol craft escort BRP Iloilo (PS32) and the presidential yacht BRP Ang Pangulo (AT25). 

Also yesterday, Duterte appointed former Urban Poor Commission chairman Noel Felongco as lead convenor of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC).

Alvin Feliciano, deputy director of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), will replace him as head of the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor.

“Both appointments were signed by the President last Oct. 31,” said presidential spokesman and chief legal counsel Salvador Panelo.

The latest wave of appointments came after Duterte reorganized some offices under the Office of the President and the Office of the Cabinet Secretary. In Executive Order 67 he signed last week, he placed TESDA and the Cooperative Development Authority under the Department of Trade and Industry. 

The Department of Social Welfare and Development will have direct supervision over the NAPC, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples and the Presidential Commission on the Urban Poor. 

Malacañang also released yesterday the ad interim appointment of Eduardo Año as secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and that of Charmalou Dureza Aldevera as assistant secretary under the Office of the President. 

Aldever is a legal counsel of the President’s close associate, Pastor Apollo Quiboloy. She was earlier rumored to replace the post vacated by presidential assistant Christopher Go, who resigned after filing his candidacy for senator. 

A graduate of Philippine Military Academy Sandiwa Class of 1985, Vingson serves concurrently as executive director of the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping Office (STCWO), the MARINA unit primarily responsible for the implementation of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for seafarers.

He went through several training courses – including anti-submarine warfare, amphibious warfare, naval gunfire operation and combat information center operation – in the US and pursued higher education at the Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, earning a degree in Master of Science in Systems Engineering.

In 2016, after spending 31 years in the naval service, he became Inspector General of the Armed Forces of the Philippines general headquarters and 73rd AFP deputy chief of staff a year after.

Talent farm

Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. said newly installed Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles is just one of the numerous lawmakers whose skills, talent and experience have been tapped by the executive department. 

“The legislative branch has always been a talent farm of the executive. Congressman Karlo joins the long list of lawmakers tapped for Palace service,” he pointed out.

He added: “As head of the appropriations committee, he (Nograles) brings with him a wealth of experience in matching public resources with people needs.”  

Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo welcomed Nograles’ appointment, saying the latter “will do very well in his new position and he will be a valuable member of the President’s team. I wish him all the best!”

Former speaker and current Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. described Nograles as “very capable.”

“He will do justice to the position,” Belmonte added.

Reps. Albee Benitez (Negros Occidental), Ben Evardone (Eastern Samar), Gus Tambunting (Parañaque) and Nograles’ younger brother Jericho (party-list Partido ng Bayaning Atleta) also lauded the former legislator’s new designation. 

“It’s a challenging position. But Karlo is young and talented and can easily overcome those obstacles,” Benitez said.  

Evardone said Nograles “will be an asset to the Duterte administration,” while Tambunting described him as “very qualified.”

Jericho also had good words for his sibling, thanking the President for the trust and confidence. “This is a great honor and even greater responsibility to help the administration of President Duterte succeed.” –With Delon Porcalla, Jaime Laude, Christina Mendez