December 02, 2002, The Philippine Star, New Philippine cabinet members lay out plans for new position.

December 02, 2002, The Philippine Star, New Philippine cabinet members lay out plans for new position. 

New Environment Secretary Elisea Gozun said yesterday she would stick to her principles in carrying out her new duties and vowed not to give in to any pressure in making decisions, even controversial ones, for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

In an interview, the 50-year-old mother of two said there would "definitely be no sacred cows" during her stewardship of the DENR, adding that she hopes to make judgments for the greater good. "I can assure you now that whether he is a big fish or a small fish, so long as he is doing something illegal, we will enforce the full extent of the law," Gozun told The Star. "The bottom line here is to stick to your principle because at the end of the day, I would like to sleep with a clean conscience."

President Arroyo named Gozun as the new DENR secretary Saturday, replacing Heherson Alvarez...

Gozun plans to apply a holistic approach in managing the DENR. She also intends to build stronger partnerships with non-government organizations (NGOs) and local government units (LGUs). She said she intends to establish community-based environment management programmes and focus on the economic, environment and social aspects of every issue. Part of her plan includes ensuring livelihood options to affected people or communities to attain genuine sustainability. Gozun said she supports the equity stance of the government on Mt. Diwalwal, but will have to study the issue further. Gozun likewise vowed to reject any proposition to defer the full implementation of the Clean Air Act of 1999. "So far, I think the deferment on the implementation of the Clean Air Act is a dead issue. We have conducted studies and research on the quality of air we have today and to me dirty fuel means dirty air. How can we compromise the lives of the people?" she asked...

Gozun said she will look into new policies and programmes being pushed by the DENR and talk to the people in the agency so she can understand and assess the situation there.

She may also give up her position as a consultant to the World Bank so she may render her full attention to supervising the DENR...

New DA chief

Meanwhile Luis Lorenzo Jr takes over the helm of the Department of Agriculture (DA) replacing Leonardo Montemayor. "I'm honoured by this manifestation of the president's confidence," Lorenzo said in a press statement after his appointment was announced Saturday. "This is a very great responsibility, because agriculture is our country's major source of livelihood, with almost 40 per cent of our labour force in agriculture. My priority now is to build upon the policies and programmes envisioned by President Arroyo and started by past DA secretaries, with keen focus on making our farmers more productive, efficient and profitable while also giving Filipino consumers more affordable and better quality food," Lorenzo said. "We shall rally the DA to action and target significant and clearly tangible results in the countryside."

Lorenzo has been functioning as Presidential Adviser for Jobs Creation in Agriculture over the past 14 months and was tasked with ensuring the sustainability of jobs created through market-driven and private sector-led initiatives. He was the President's point man in resolving transport and logistics problems from Mindanao to Luzon. Lorenzo also promoted biotechnology and spearheaded a multi-sectoral drive to rehabilitate the local coffee industry. Prior to this, Lorenzo was designated by Mrs Arroyo as chairman of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PRRI) and her Cabinet Officer for Regional Development for Region X and the Caraga region...