OIC Maria Rosario Vergeire during a press conference as she announces her bid for DOH Secretary. Photo by the Daily Tribune.
Six months after being the Officer-In-Charge (OIC) of the Department of Health (DOH), Maria Rosario Vergeire says she is ready to be appointed as DOH Secretary on Tuesday, January 31, 2023.
When asked about taking the position, Vergeire told reporters that it would be a process she could discuss with the President. “But he doesn’t need to approach me and ask me to be the health secretary. I will be the one who would tell him and talk to him,” Vergiere says.
Last October 2022, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. stated he would name a health secretary once the country’s COVID-19 situation “normalizes.”
The vacancy in the health department has raised concerns and criticisms as it “indicates the priorities of the government.”
Vergeire says she had a lot of hesitations because of her career executive position. “Pero sa tingin ko, with all these things happening, at sa lahat-lahat ng trabahong dapat gawin, I think it is the appropriate time for me to help my country."