- Cesar Montano resigned from TPB.
- President Duterte accepted Montano’s resignation.
Embattled Tourism Promotions Board Chief Cesar Montano has finally decided to step down from his post.
On Monday, May 21, actor Cesar Montano resigned from his position in Tourism Promotions Board following the controversial Buhay Carinderia project.
In his resignation letter addressed to President Rodrigo Duterte, Montano said he is resigning from his post as Tourism Promotions Board COO effective immediately.
“In faithful adherence to my duty as a public servant, I am respectfully tendering my courtesy resignation as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), effective immediately,” the letter said.
Montano also added that he is grateful for the opportunity to serve the country through TPB.
“I am truly grateful for the trust and the opportunity you have bestowed upon me to serve our country through the Tourism Promotions Board,” Montano added
Meanwhile, DOT Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat confirmed that President Duterte has already accepted his resignation.
“Mr. Montano’s resignation has been accepted by the President. The post of COO is now considered vacant and the search for his replacement will commence,” Romulo-Puyat said.
Montano has been at the receiving end of criticism after COA questioned Montano’s 80Php million payment to Mary Linbert International for the sponsorship of the “Buhay Carinderia” project.
Montano, a strong supporter of President Duterte during the election was appointed to the Tourism Promotions Board last December 2016.
Buhay Carinderia was not Montano’s first controversy. In March 2017, TPB employees filed a complaint against Montano for alleged questionable deals, nepotism and mismanagement of the agency.
He was also recently criticized for cutting his speech short in one of TPB’s events in the US to watch the musical Hamilton.
