Undersecretary Jacinto "Jing" Paras (Photo courtesy of DOLE)
MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO) Undersecretary Jacinto "Jing" Paras as Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced Paras' appointment in a Palace press briefing on Thursday.
“Kasama po natin ngayon ang bagong talagang (We have with us the newly appointed) Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, Secretary Jacinto Paras. Sec. Paras, congratulations po,” he said.
Paras has the rank of Secretary and sits on the Cabinet as a political adviser.
He is tasked to coordinate the legislative and political coalition liaising and constituency-building efforts of the Office of the President.
Prior to his appointment, Paras served as mayor of Guihulngan in Negros Oriental from 1986 to 1988.
He was elected as 1st district representative of the province in 1998 and served there for three terms.
Paras was also appointed as Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment in 2018.
As a member of the Duterte-allied Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption, Paras has filed complaints against former Commission on Elections chairman Andres Bautista over the 2016 elections data breach and former Overall Deputy Ombudsman Arthur Carandang for alleged "unlawful disclosure" of the Duterte family's bank transactions the following year.
In 2018, he filed three complaints against former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV over inciting to sedition connected to the lawmaker's remarks on the voiding of his amnesty; grave threats; and the senator's supposed remark to soldiers to shoot Duterte with their sub-machine guns. (PNA)
