The powerful Commission on Appointments (CA) rejected on Wednesday the appointment of Environment Secretary Gina Lopez.
Senator Manny Pacquiao, chairman of the Commission on Appointments’ (CA) committee on environment and natural resources read the CA’s recommendation rejecting Lopez’s appointment, which was later adopted on the floor. The CA members who voted for Lopez’s confirmation are Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III, Senators Francis Pangilinan, Loren Legarda, and Joseph Victor Ejercito. Lopez faced strong opposition and criticisms after she ordered the closure of 23 mines and the suspension of five others. She was reappointed by President Rodrigo Duterte after she failed to get the CA nod before Congress went on a six-week break last March 15.
