Environmental defenders opposed the appointment of an “amateur” to Malacanang’s sustainable and resilient communities portfolio, saying a former tourism secretary’s selection is an insult to Filipinos.
The Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment condemned the appointment by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of Christina Garcia Frasco as presidential adviser on sustainability and resiliency, saying the move is not good governance but political accommodation masquerading as climate action.
“[It is…] an insult to the millions of Filipinos who suffer the worst of the climate crisis while this administration treats environmental policy as a revolving door for its favorites,” the group in a statement said.
Presidential Communications Office undersecretary and Palace press officer Claire Castro on Thursday, in announcing Frasco’s dismissal as tourism secretary said she will now help Marcos “strengthen the implementation and sustained follow-through of priority national initiatives at the community level.”
Frasco is said to have been fired as Department of Tourism boss following criticisms over alleged self-promotion in travel materials and the failure to meet arrival targets.
Kalikasan however said the member of the powerful Garcia political clan of Cebu province is not a good appointment to her new post, describing her a “dilettante,” a non-expert who appears to only cultivate self-interests in the positions she had held.
“Frasco is not a climate scientist, a disaster resilience expert, or a community organizer. She is the daughter of Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, the wife of Deputy Speaker Duke Frasco, and the product of the Garcia political dynasty whose party, One Cebu, exercises near-feudal control over Cebu politics,” the group said.
The group said that Frasco’s family record on the environment is equally damning.
“Her mother Gwendolyn Garcia was found guilty by the Ombudsman of misconduct for issuing a desilting permit without the mandatory Environmental Compliance Certificate, and previously faced charges for pushing the destructive Balili coal-fired power plant,” it said.
Under the Garcia dynasty’s watch, Cebu has seen over 636 hectares of reclamation projects approved, destroying coral reefs, mangroves, and fishing grounds while displacing hundreds of fisherfolk in the very communities adjacent to the Frasco family’s political base, Kalikasan pointed out.
This is the person Marcos appoints to advise on “resilient communities” — someone whose own family presides over the destruction of the ecosystems that make communities resilient,” the group added,
Frasco’s appointment is grotesque against the backdrop of the Philippines ranking as the deadliest country in Asia for environmental defenders for over a decade running, with 17 killed or disappeared in 2023 alone and seven more in 2024, the network revealed.
“The climate crisis is not a consolation prize for failed cabinet members, and the environment is not a parking lot for political debt. Marcos must answer: is this true governance, or is this just a game?” Kalikasan asked. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
