Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Usec. Claire Castro on Monday defended President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr., after his sister, Senator Imee Marcos, questioned the appointment of acting secretaries, alleging it was an attempt to avoid scrutiny by the Commission on Appointments (CA).

In a press conference, Castro said the President is exercising his constitutional prerogatives by appointing officials to temporary or permanent positions, and that all current acting secretaries have yet to serve for a full year, which is the maximum allowed under law.

“That’s too harsh. Very harsh… The President means no offense to the CA. The President is merely exercising his constitutional prerogatives. He can make an appointment in temporary or permanent positions,” Castro said during a press briefing.

Sen. Marcos had earlier criticized the appointments, saying, “Napakarami ng Cabinet-level na mga secretary at appointee ng Presidente na puro acting… Siyam na sila sa bilang ko. ‘Yung iba, paso na sa one year, hindi na siya temporary, overacting na ‘yun.” She implied that the practice undermined the CA’s role.

In response, Castro emphasized that none of the current acting secretaries has yet reached the one-year limit.

“Alam naman po natin at alam naman po niya na ang mga acting secretaries can remain as acting secretaries for a period of one year. So kung susumahin po niya ang lahat na na-appoint sa ngayon na acting secretaries, wala pa pong one year ang pagsisilbi sa kanilang posisyon,“ she said.

“The President will submit the appointments in due time,” Castro added.

Castro also described Sen. Marcos’ comments as “very harsh,” saying the criticism seemed directed only at the President while similar issues involving allies went unmentioned.

“That's too harsh. Very harsh. Para sabihin ito sa Pangulo… At parang kay Pangulo lamang harsh si Senator Aimee Marcos. At hindi natin ito nakikita sa ibang mga kaalyado niya na nasasangkot sa ibang mga 'di umano'y paggawa ng anomalya,” she said.