President Corazon Aquino sacked her Public Works secretary and his deputy Saturday amid criticism that bureaucratic logjams have prevented the cash-strapped government from using more than $1 billion in foreign aid.
In a letter released by the presidential press office, Aquino accepted with "regret" the resignations of Secretary of Public Works and Highways Juanito Ferrer and Undersecretary Teodoro Gener.Named to replace Ferrer, 66, was Fiorello Estuar, the American-educated presidential adviser on Public Resource Utilization who also administers the U.S.-supplied Economic Support Fund for the Philippines.
Official sources said Estuar's appointment reflects Aquino's desire to speed up development projects, particularly in the countryside where her government is fighting the guerrillas.