Another switcheroo in the cabinet.
On Monday, October 26, Malacañan Palace officially announced the weeks-long speculations about another shake-up with the administration.
In a Palace press briefing, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Lino Cayetano said that Secretary Vince Dizon, who has been at helm of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) since 2025, is moving back to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
In exchange, Secretary Giovanni Lopez, who had been in charge of the Transportation Department since Dizon’s move to DPWH, takes over the role as the new Public Works chief.
According to Cayetano, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed Dizon to accelerate reforms aimed at improving daily commutes and expediting mass transportation projects.
Meanwhile tasking Public Works and Highways Lopez has been told to institutionalize reforms and sustain gains in infrastructure development.
In the President’s own words: “We are shifting gears to accelerate reform. Secretary Dizon goes to DOTr to fix the daily commute. Secretary Lopez goes to DPWH to make sure the reforms there last. Lahat ng ito, para lalong bumilis at gumaan ang serbisyo ng gobyerno para sa ating mga kababayan.”
The PCO chief furthered, “The President’s direction is clear: Secretary Dizon will accelerate results at Transportation, and Secretary Lopez will strengthen and sustain reforms at Public Works. This is how the President leads. He puts the right people where they can deliver the most.”
Marcos has directed Dizon to make daily commuting easier for Filipinos by shortening queues at the Land Transportation Office (LTO), eliminating fixers, and accelerating the completion of critical mass transportation projects — initiatives that aim to reduce the time workers and students spend on the road, allowing them to spend more quality time with their families.
“The mission stays the same: a government that works faster, serves better and makes life easier for every Filipino. Arangkada ang reporma para sa bawat Pilipino,” Cayetano said.
During his year-long stint at the DPWH, Dizon pursued reforms to promote transparency and accountability in infrastructure projects and thousands of projects were opened to public scrutiny following the flood control corruption scandal.
There were also efforts to complete long-delayed projects and address waste and corruption.
Lopez, meanwhile, has been tasked with building on these gains by strengthening safeguards and institutionalizing reforms through policies, processes, and systems that will ensure their continuity beyond the current administration.
“Secretary Giovanni Lopez will secure these gains with a system built to last. A lawyer and certified public accountant, he has been tasked to strengthen safeguards and institutionalize the reforms, turning them into rules, processes and systems that will keep serving Filipinos even after this administration, for decades to come,” Cayetano added.
He has also been tasked to speed up the roads, bridges and other government infrastructure projects Filipino communities need.
As regards to the 2027 budgets of these departments, the newly designated secretaries can still defend their agencies’ proposed expenditure plans.
“We believe that the budget that we set forth is the budget to help the Filipino people solve their problems across many areas of governance,” Cayetano said. “So, as always, the Cabinet works intimately with the DBM para iyong mga isina-submit ho natin na mga programa, proyekto ay mga programa, proyekto na naniniwala tayo para sa ikagaganda ng buhay ng mga kababayan nating Pilipino.”
The PCO chief explained that for each Department, it is not only the Secretary who will work on the budget, but several other members of the Department.
“So, the Department is just more than one Cabinet member, so, I’m sure the transition will be seamless,” the PCO Secretary said, adidng that the two secretaries will be starting off their jobs “hitting the ground running.”
“And they are working closely together. So, wala ako nakikitang problema po,” Cayetano continued.
