Aquino admin tourism exec back as DOT undersecretary

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED 2:31 p.m.) — President Rodrigo Duterte has reappointed former Department of Tourism official from the Aquino administration as an undersecretary of the agency.

Former DOT assistant secretary “Art” Boncato Jr. returned as the agency’s undersecretary for Administration and Special Concerns to replace the vacated post of Jose Gabriel “Pompee” La Viña. La Viña is now taking his third government post under the Duterte administration as an undersecretary of the Department of Agriculture.

Boncato’s appointment paper signed by the president was dated June 13.

He was sworn into office on Thursday. Boncato took his oath of office before Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat at the DOT office in Makati City.

Prior to his appointment, Boncato was seen volunteering for community-based project of Puyat with former Environment chief Gina Lopez’s foundation, Loving Organizations for Village Economies (I LOVE) Foundation last June 12.

Puyat last month announced that she would bring back Boncato in DOT, citing that the latter was an assistant secretary of former DOT chief Ramon Jimenez. He was a tourism assistant secretary for almost two years.

READ: Aquino admin Tourism exec offered DOT post, new chief says

Boncato was previously the DOT regional director for Davao Region during President Benigno Aquino III’s administration.

He is also an assistant secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry since July 2017 and was detailed a post to the Department of Finance for an Asian Development Bank project.