Palace: Duterte can remove Cabinet officials but denies scouting Duque’s replacement

President Duterte's authority to remove Cabinet officials has been reaffirmed by Malacañang in response to reports that he may be seeking a replacement for Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.

Presidential Spox Harry Roque stated that any Cabinet member can be removed if the President loses trust, but could not confirm reports of Duterte scouting for a new DOH chief.

Senators like Lacson and Sotto have suggested potential replacements for Duque, citing his handling of the COVID-19 crisis as problematic.

Lacson noted there are at least 170,000 licensed physicians in the country who could be more competent than Duque, while Sotto emphasized expertise and lack of business interests in a replacement.

Duque faced criticism for confusing statements about the second wave of COVID-19 infections and has been under scrutiny over testing equipment purchases and PHIC's testing package costs.