Finger-pointing may net Duque new name, says Ping. Di ba, Ar-TURO?

A penchant for finger-pointing at subordinates when things go wrong may net Health Secretary Francisco Duque III a new name, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Saturday.

Lacson, in a radio interview, said Duque may yet find himself called “Arturo” instead of Francisco due to his annoying habit.

“Ikaw ang kalihim tapos wala kang ginawa kundi magtututuro. Baka mapalitan ang pangalan niya baka di na siya si Francisco. Baka si Arturo na siya,” he said in an interview on DWIZ radio.

Lacson noted the first time Duque engaged in finger-pointing during the COVID-19 crisis was at a Senate hearing where he was asked about contact tracing efforts.

At the time, Lacson noted Duque pinned the blame on his subordinates, and even the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, and the NAIA administration.

The second was during a Senate hearing on overpricing of medical equipment by the DOH, including a P4-million nucleic acid extraction machine. Duque at the time pointed to the Department of Budget and Management’s Procurement Service, which said it based its acquisition on the DOH’s request.

But the third and most glaring by far was during a televised address by President Rodrigo Duterte on June 5, when Duque was asked about the distribution of P1-million compensation to the kin of 32 health workers who died battling COVID-19.

Duque at the time blamed his subordinates, adding another cause of delay was that at least two of the fatalities had two spouses.

“Nariyan pa ba yan? Namatay na ang tao tapos gaganunin mo pa. Sila pa dahilan at sinisi niya ibang tao. Teka muna, ikaw ang kalihim diyan. Sa iyong department. Dapat naman matuto siyang tumanggap ng responsibility,” Lacson said.

Lacson added all these show a “pattern of failure, a pattern of neglect, a pattern of inadequacy.”

“Nasa sa kanya na yan. Huwag na niya pahirapan si PRRD, magkusa na lang sana siya,” he said, calling on Duque to make the sacrifice himself.

Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)