A ranking member of the House of Representatives is pushing for an investigation on the alleged ineffective leadership of National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC) Chairman Franklin Quijano.
Quijano was the subject of a privilege speech delivered by Senior Citizen Party-list Rep. Rodolfo Ordanes Jr. during the plenary session Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 31.
In his speech, Ordanes, chairman of the House Committee on Senior Citizens, claimed Quijano failed to execute a swift transition despite already being NCSC head honcho since 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 (Department of Social Welfare and Development) for senior citizens into the NCSC," Ordanes said.
The solon said Quijano, in his two years in office, failed to submit an NCSC en banc-approved organizational structure and staffing pattern. NCSC still has no strategic plan and approved expenditure plan for 2023, he noted.
He further alleged that Quijano, despite having no appointing powers, has single-handedly appointed officials to the commission sans consultations with his fellow commissioners.
Ordanes also claimed that Quijano has been bypassing the NCSC Commissioners for Visayas and Mindanao and has been acting on his own.
The NCSC budget sent to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) was not approved by the Commission as a whole, the chairman of the special committee on senior citizens said.
Ordanes has also questioned the way Quijano has been spending the commission's funds.
Quijano, the congressman said, has also failed to secure permanent offices for the NCSC.
Ordanes's request for a probe on the NCSC chairman is mentioned in House Resolution (HR) No.326, which the former filed.