Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) chair Secretary Leo Tereso A. Magno on Wednesday assured that no employees will be dismissed following his assumption as the new head of the agency.
Magno said he did not go to MinDA to remove people and was not put in the position to find fault.
“Unang ginagalaw sa personnel ng MinDA ay yung co-terminus. Hindi ako pumunta sa MInDA para mananggal ng tao, hindi ako nilagay diyan para maghanap ng mali. Kung ang tao ay nagta-trabaho at maganda ang kanyang pinakita and he or she is still willing to work for the development of Mindanao wala akong karapatan at wala sa puso kong magtanggal ng isang tao na nakakatulong naman sa ahensiya,” Magno said during Wednesdays media forum at Abreeza Ayala Mall.
With regards to the appointees of former MinDA chair Mabel Acosta, majority of whom are allegedly her family and relatives, Magno explained that because they are co-terminus they were automatically removed.
A social media platform Davao Breaking News 2 reported that when Acosta was still in office, she hired several members of her immediate family members when she assumed office in January 2022.
Among those she hired were her husband and her son.
Acosta allegedly also hired her daughter-in-law as well as the sister of a son-in-law. Both have already resigned.
There were a total of 65 contract service personnel hired by Acosta since she assumed office.
“What Acosta said was that all the appointees during her time na relative o kamag-anak niya work as co-terminus in nature. I don’t see anything wrong with that. Sila mismo automatic yun pag co-terminus ka at nawala yung appointment noong head, automatic yun,” Magno said.
Meanwhile, Magno praised the professionalism of the employees and personnel of MinDA.
“I’m very thankful for the professionalism of the different department heads and all the employees have shown to me and MinDA. I have nothing but praise for everyone in MinDA and because of what they’ve shown me in the past few days I can say that MinDA is a professionally run office. Maganda ang ipinakita ng different department heads at suporta na pinakita sa akin ng mga empleyado na kasama ko araw araw,” Magno said.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. appointed Magno, who was the former secretary of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Mindanao-Eastern (OPAMINE) as the new chair of MinDA.
Magno’s appointment was signed by the President on May 13, 2024.
