Nagpaplanong bumalik sa pagtuturo pagkatapos ng kanyang termino bilang hepe ng Department of Health (DOH) si Secretary Francisco Duque III.

“I’m still going to work but in the private sector,” ani Duque sa isang online forum, Miyerkules, Hunyo 8.

Sinabi ni Duque na plano niyang magtrabaho sa kanilang family-owned university sa Dagupan City, Pangasinan—na Lyceum Northwestern University.

“I will teach and I will help grow and internationalize the family-owned university,” aniya.

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Ipinahayag niya ang kanyang pasasalamat sa suporta ng mga opisyal at kawani ng DOH sa ilalim ng kanyang pamumuno.

“It’s been a tough journey for the DOH. But, I really commend my DOH family for standing by me, for its continuing trust and confidence in our stewardship in the DOH,” aniya.

“It is really hard to run a big bureaucracy like the DOH, it is never a walk in the park because there are too many human resource issues that are equally important that you need to address to make effective solutions and interventions—long-term not patch work,” dagdag niya.

Ang DOH ay “far from perfect,” ani Duque.

“But I just want people to understand that it is very difficult to do your job under pandemic circumstances… Remember, the pandemic brought the whole world down to its knees,” aniya.

Handang humarap sa mga alegasyon

Nagpahayag din ng kahandaan si Duque na harapin ang posibleng mga kaso laban sa kanya sa kanyang paghawak sa krisis sa Covid-19 sa bansa.

“Marami tayong mga haharapin, yung mga sinasabi nila na ‘prepare a good lawyer,’ yes, I always have good lawyers and well-meaning advisers who knows [what] I have to go through while helping and leading this country in this historic pandemic,” sabi ni Duque.

Kamakailan, pinayuhan ni outgoing Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon si Duque na kumuha ng mahusay na abogado sa gitna ng mga alegasyon na ibinabato sa kanya.

Samantala, nagpahayag din ng pasasalamat si Duque kay Pangulong Duterte sa pagsuporta sa kanya sa kabila ng iba't ibang isyu na ipinukol sa kanyang pamumuno.

“The President has always stood by me and defended me. Not only as a good lawyer, but I think, more importantly as a president, who does not tolerate corruption under his watch,” aniya.

“The President has stood by me and always had his full trust and confidence in me and this is for a good reason—because alam naman niya ang track record ko,” dagdag niya.

Analou de Vera