Faces of the News: August 4, 2024
Alfredo Pascual
Alfredo Pascual stepped down as secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) effective on Friday, marking the departure of the third Cabinet official under President Marcos this year. Pascual, 76, announced his resignation earlier on July 31, saying in a statement that he was returning to the private sector. “There, my roles will allow me to continue contributing my expertise and experience while being able to spend quality time with my family,” Pascual said. Some critics, on the other hand, believe he was replaced but was given the opportunity to make a more graceful exit. There were speculations as early as December last year that Mr. Marcos was looking to replace him, for reasons ranging from a supposed lackluster performance in keeping down prices of basic goods, to more political reasons attributed to maneuverings behind the scenes. Despite his departure, Pascual appeared grateful to the President for the opportunity to serve his administration, describing his stint in the DTI as one of the most fulfilling experiences in his long and diverse career in the private sector and in government. —Alden M. Monzon
Cristina Aldeguer-Roque
Cristina Aldeguer-Roque’s rise as acting secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is as sudden as the departure of her predecessor in the agency, Alfredo Pascual. The Presidential Communications Office announced her appointment just two days after Pascual’s resignation. Aldeguer-Roque also concurrently keeps her undersecretary position in the DTI’s unit for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Go Negosyo, the advocacy arm of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship, immediately backed her appointment, citing her affinity with MSMEs and advocacy for the development of the sector. “We will continue to build programs that will support MSMEs which compose 99.59 percent of our business and also employ around 60 percent of our country’s workforce,” she said in a statement after assuming the role of acting secretary. Aldeguer-Roque herself is not unfamiliar with enterprise, being the founder of popular clothing brand Kamiseta and its skin-care business, Kamiseta Skin Clinic. —Alden M. Monzon
Olympics drag performers
In a post on X last week, the Olympic Games said “The interpretation of the Greek God Dionysus makes us aware of the absurdity of violence between human beings”—referring to an opening presentation of drag queens in the Paris Games. The Olympics’ home page on the former Twitter platform also states: “Excellence, respect, friendship.” But the Christian faithful, among others, felt violence inflicted upon them and discerned no respect or friendship in the scene which they saw as a poor depiction, at the very least, of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.” Catholic Bishop Robert Barron called the performance a “gross, flippant mockery” of the Christian faith. Artistic director Thomas Jolly responded that he would never have the desire to mock or denigrate anyone and denied that the Da Vinci masterpiece was the inspiration for the performance. Yet French drag queen Piche and Barbara Butch, who both played roles in the sketch, maintained that their performance was a parody of Jesus spending the famous last meal with the disciples. One news outfit, while noting the criticisms, praised the queens’ shining hour in the Olympics.
Jesus Crispin Remulla
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the Department of Justice would not stop the International Police Organization (Interpol) from serving arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court (ICC) on ex-officials who took part in former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody drug war. The Marcos administration has maintained that it would not cooperate with the ICC’s investigation into the extrajudicial killings under Oplan Tokhang before and beyond the country’s withdrawal from the 2019 Rome Statute which established the court. But Remulla said the possible arrests would be “very tricky” because the Philippines remained a member of Interpol. “That [scenario] is what we need to discuss as a legal group within the government. But most of the time—99 percent of the time—we respect the actions of the Interpol,” Remulla said on Thursday, noting further that the Philippines was “not in the business of blocking” the Interpol’s actions due to possible “repercussions.” Still, it remains unclear how the officials in Duterte’s drug war would be arrested since the Interpol does not have its own law enforcement agents. —Jane Bautista
Imane Khelif
Everybody regularly checking out their social media accounts has likely come across posts regarding the controversy surrounding the gender of two boxers in the Paris Olympics, particularly Algeria’s Imane Khelif. The debate raged on after Khelif won over Italy’s Angela Carini, who after receiving a few blows quit 46 seconds into their bout. Khelif and Taiwanese Lin Yu-ting were disqualified by the International Boxing Association (IBA) during the 2023 Women’s World Championship for failing their sex eligibility tests, since the two were deemed to have high levels of testosterone. But they were allowed to fight in the Summer Games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which no longer recognizes the IBA and has tapped the Paris Boxing Unit. The IOC said that Khelif and Lin are eligible after having met Olympic guidelines. From the world-famous to the man on the street, it seems everyone has his take, either by quick judgment or based on available information. As for Carini, she eventually apologized for her conduct, particularly her refusal to shake hands with Khelif after their fight. —Jonas Terrado
