Congressman Rodolfo Ordanes Jr. filed House Resolution 326 which calls for an investigation of the NCSC Chairman due to its failure in leading and NCSC’s anomalies.
The National Commission on Senior Citizens (NCSC)under the Office of the President was created by Republic Act 11350 of 2020 with a mandate to ensure the full implementation of laws, policies and programs of the government on senior citizens, review and conduct related studies and recommend policy to Congress and the President.
Yet after two years, its chairman, Franklin Quijano, is subject of House Resolution 326, filed by Senior Citizen Partylist Rep. Rodolfo Ordanes Jr. calling for a House investigation of the NCSC head for leadership failures and alleged irregularities.
Ordanes said in a privileged speech last Wednesday that Quijano has failed to carry out a quick transition despite becoming NCSC chairman in 2020.
"However, two years have already passed under his leadership and yet the NCSC has languished in reaching its (transition)milestones and has yet to make any significant progress in shepherding the transition of the functions of DSWD for senior citizens," Ordanes said
NCSC’s anomalies
Quijano, in the last two years, failed to submit an NCSC en banc-approved organizational structure and staffing pattern.
In addition, NCSC still has no approved strategic plan or budget for 2023. It also has no duly-appointed executive director but has been appointing regional directors despite lacking an approved organizational structure.
Despite having no appointing powers, Quijano has been single-handedly appointing officials to the Commission without consulting his fellow Commissioners.
Ordanes said that the chairman was also bypassing the NCSC Commissioners for Visayas and Mindanao, and has been acting on his own and sometimes with the NCSC Commissioner Reyman Mansilungan as they completely disregard the collegial nature of the NCSC.
Quijano was also wasting public funds by sending the Commissioner for Luzon, instead of the Commissioners for Visayas and Mindanao, on listening tours to the Visayas and Mindanao.
One of the staff that Quijano has appointed was even convicted of gun smuggling in the United States which shows that an appointed staff is of “dubious character.”
The House chairman of the special committee on senior citizens said that the NCSC budget sent to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) was not approved by the Commission as a whole.
Quijano has also failed to secure permanent offices for the NCSC. He has also favored and openly campaigned for an organization of which he is a member, other than the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-accredited seniors’ organization.
These anomalies prompted Ordanes to file House Resolution 326. The House has also referred to its Committee on Rules the Privilege Speech of Ordanes.
Tags: #NCSC, #HouseResolution, #Leadership, #Failure, #Anomalies