Marcos appoints new PCGG head

Malacañang on Monday announced the appointment of 35 key officials of various government agencies, including the new chair of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), the body mainly tasked to recover the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcos family.

President Marcos named retired Court of Appeals Justice Melchor Quirino Sadang as PCGG chair, replacing its former head John Agbayani. Created during the term of then President Corazon Aquino, the PCGG has reportedly recovered about $5 billion in ill-gotten Marcos wealth while about $2.4 billion remain under litigation.

Aside from Sadang, Mr. Marcos also named Jesus Nathaniel Martin Gonzales as undersecretary of the Department of Transportation; while Asis Perez returns to the Department of Agriculture as undersecretary. Other new key appointees include Ethel Agnes Valenzuela as commissioner of the Commission on Higher Education; and Rose Marie Arenas as board member of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office. —MELVIN GASCON