PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he wanted former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos in his administration, but noted that it doesn't mean someone will be removed from the Cabinet so he can be reappointed.
"Okay. I'll be very candid. I'll be very frank with you. Of course, I want Benhur to play a more active role in government. Of course, he has been there, and he has been helping us in many ways, informally, privately," Marcos told reporters in Kazan, Russia.
"I wouldn't mind finding a way for him to help us in an official capacity. But just because we want him to join, to become, to play a more active part in government doesn't necessarily mean that somebody else has to be [removed]," he added.
Abalos resigned as secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government in October 2024 to vie for a Senate seat under the Marcos administration’s coalition slate in the 2025 midterm elections. He finished 16th among the senatorial candidates.
The president's statement comes amid speculation about the possible exit of current Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, who is reportedly to be replaced by Abalos.
Marcos dismissed the claim.
"You know the — what you want to do — what you are trying to promote in government is stability and the steadiness of work. And that’s part — that’s an important part of governance," the president said.
"If you keep moving people around, they have to start learning their job again. And that they — we just don’t have time for that. And this — the people who are sitting in their particular capacities, be it Cabinet, be it some other agency — are, as far as I’m concerned, doing the job that they are asked to do and have gained already the experience that they have learned lessons from," he added.
Marcos said he and his Cabinet officials are working well together, describing the team as a "really good group."
The President said a revamp was not discussed during Cabinet meetings.
"I don’t see why you keep talk — why does this subject keep coming up? Because I have to tell you, when we sit around the table in meetings, we don’t talk about that," Marcos said.
