MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said he appointed a former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief to the Department of Health (DOH) to conduct an administrative audit on the agency.

The President gave the statement days after several health groups and medical practitioners questioned his decision to appoint former PNP chief Camilo Cascolan as an undersecretary in the department tasked to manage the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Ex-PNP chief Camilo Cascolan appointed as DOH undersecretary

“Si General Cascolan, I put him there because he has to look at… not health issues. That’s why he doesn’t have to be a doctor,” he told reporters in a chance interview.

“He is going to look at the function of the DOH. We are talking about rightsizing, we are talking about structural changes. We need somebody to examine what has been going on, ano yung maganda, ano yung hindi maganda, that will be his special concern,” he said.

(We need somebody to examine what has been going on, what's good, what's not.)

• From PNP chief to DOH usec: Who is Camilo Cascolan?

“Generally, it is an administrative audit if you want to call it that,” he added.

When asked if he ordered Cascolan to trace possible procurement syndicates within the DOH, the President said: “That’s part of his work.”

“Kung may lumabas na ganiyan (if that surfaces), he will have to report it to us and we will do something about it,” he said.

• Cascolan defends DOH post: Managing health is not just about medical knowledge

In 2020, several lawmakers questioned why the government procured billions-worth of allegedly overpriced face masks and other pandemic-related supplies through the Department of Budget Management’s Procurement Service.

The previous Duterte administration said the transactions were aboveboard and denied that the medical supplies were overpriced or substandard.

• Duterte's defense of Pharmally should not be seen as tolerance of corruption - Tolentino

RELATED VIDEO:

Watch more News on iWantTFC