President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced on Thursday his intention to bring former Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos back into an official government role, while clarifying that his return would not require replacing any current Cabinet members.
Speaking to journalists following the ASEAN-Russia Commemorative Summit, Marcos Jr. disclosed that Abalos has continued to support the administration privately, despite failing to secure a Senate seat during the 2025 midterm elections.
“I’ll be very candid, I’ll be very frank with you. I want Benhur to play a very active role in government,” the President said.
“Of course, he has been there and he has been helping us in many ways, informally, privately. I wouldn’t mind finding a way for him in helping us on an official capacity,” he said.
“But just because we want him to join to play a more active part in government doesn’t necessarily mean that someone else has to leave,” he stressed.
The President dismissed rumors of an impending Cabinet reorganization, expressing complete satisfaction with the performance of his current team. He described his administration’s officials as a cohesive group that operates efficiently together.
“It’s not a zero-sum thing in the Cabinet that you have to remove somebody to gain somebody else,” Marcos said.
Marcos Jr. further explained that frequent reassignments can disrupt state operations, as constant adjustments force new appointees to relearn their responsibilities from scratch.
“If you keep on moving people around, they will have to start learning the job again. They just don’t have time for that,” Marcos said, adding that those occupying key positions were “doing the job that they are asked to do.”
Abalos previously resigned from his post at the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to launch a senatorial bid under the administration’s Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas coalition. Following his electoral defeat, he was succeeded in office by current Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla.