Dr. Francisco T. Duque III, MD, MSc, Chairman, Philippine Civil Service Commission

Dr. Francisco T. Duque III completed his medical education from the esteemed Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas (UST) in 1982, he pursued further studies in Immunology and Pathology from 1985 to 1987, earning a Master of Science degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He subsequently excelled in the Executive Education Program of the distinguished Harvard University School of Public Health in 1992.

Assuming executive positions in various educational and civic institutions, he was awarded in 1993 the Most Outstanding Rotary President, District 3790. UST also honored him with The Outstanding Thomasian Alumnus Leadership (TOTAL) Award in the Field of Government Service in 2004; then the Albertus Magnus Science Award in 2007 by the UST College of Science for his achievements in Medical Science, Public Health and Stewardship of the National Health Insurance Program.

In 2006, Pangasinan State University conferred him the degree of Doctor of Humanities (Honoris Causa). In November 2007, he earned the same doctorate degree from the University of Mindanao. This recognition was anchored on breakthroughs made in health security.

As PhilHealth President and CEO from 2001-2005, Chairman Duque improved PhilHealth’s fiscal position thru efficient collections, sound investments and good governance. Above all, PhilHealth posted an unsurpassed social reach achieving a sustained 84%-86% coverage from 2004 to 2010, benefiting millions of poor Filipinos through the Indigent Program – a feat never before attempted in the country’s social health insurance program. Indeed, he brought PhilHealth to unprecedented heights, achieving near universal coverage in a span of three years since assuming his post in 2001 when PhilHealth only had a measly coverage of 30%.

As Health Secretary from 2005 to 2009, he redefined leadership in the health sector and led the institution toward a golden age of action, reforms and activism. He engineered a paradigm of health reforms – the Formula One for Health thru which he prioritized sustaining and increasing investments for health as central to strategic reforms. He emphasized the role of social health insurance in the promotion of equity. These on top of pursuing regulatory reforms and improved public health service delivery through good governance.

Chairman Duque is a crusader for the health of Filipino children and women. He revived and strengthened the Safe Motherhood program in the country and pushed for universal child immunization. He fearlessly advocated breastfeeding to save infant lives. Due to these, the Save the Children Organization recognized the Philippines as the leader among 55 nations in child health care in 2007 and one of the top 10 countries with the boldest strategies to cut maternal deaths and save women’s lives in 2009.

Among his triumphs is the historic passage of two major legislations – the Universally Accessible, Affordable Quality Medicine Act of 2008 and the Food and Drug Administration Law of 2009 – to fulfill the promise of greater access to essential medicines for Filipinos. Under his leadership, the Department of Health (DOH) successfully implemented the Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act of 2008 leading to 50% reduction in prices of the most expensive and commonly used branded drugs and medicines since August of 2009.

In 2006, when the National Nutrition Council became an attached agency of DOH, the President named him anti-hunger czar of the Philippines. He was on top of the multi-agency drive to mitigate hunger and malnutrition in the country.

In the field of international health governance, he was Vice-Chairman during the 59th World Health Assembly meeting held in Geneva in 2006. He was Chairman of the ASEAN Plus Three Health Ministers Meeting in 2008, as well as the 59th Session of the World Health Organization Regional Committee Meeting for Western Pacific countries.

Chairman Duque set the record of being the Health Secretary who wrestled with the most number and with the most extraordinary disasters and health emergencies including the A(H1N1) – a most feared pandemic influenza in 2009, for which the WHO commended the Philippines for effective containment and mitigation strategies as well as for being one of three countries worldwide with the best risk communication on A(H1N1).
           
In October 2008, his transparent and successful handling of public health challenges, as well as his excellent relations with the public and the media, earned him the Communication Excellence in Organizations Award (CEO EXCEL Award) by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), an independent organization composed of media and public relations experts.

Under his leadership, DOH was consistently #1 in the fight against graft and corruption based on consistently high approval ratings in public surveys from 2005 to 2009 and the recognition by the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission. He garnered the highest public satisfaction rating among all cabinet members (SWS 2nd Quarter 2007, Pulse Asia 2nd Quarter 2007, SWS 4th Quarter 2008, SWS and Pulse Asia 2nd Quarter 2009). And DOH enjoyed a consistently high net approval and satisfaction rating among different government agencies (Pulse Asia 2006-2007).

Making the Health Department #1 among government line agencies and moving the nation’s health forward in the direction of equitable, fair and responsive Philippine health system can be replicated, if not exceeded, in the civil service. From the health department, he now brings the stamp of excellence to a broader body – the Philippine civil service.

Appointed in 2010 as Chairman of one of the constitutional bodies, the Civil Service Commission, he lost no time in charting a brighter, better course for the bureaucracy. He was pivotal in developing the Commission’s Roadmap for Development and Reforms for 2010-2015, a five-year blueprint which spelled out the Commission’s priority programs for the country’s 1.4 million workforce.

He steered the Commission in the adoption of the Performance Governance System onwards to setting the agency’s vision of becoming “Asia’s leading Center for Excellence for Strategic Human Resource and Organizational Development by 2030.”

A definitive step towards the realization of this vision is the creation of the Civil Service Institute (CSI). It was because of his unrelenting commitment to better the competencies of civil servants that the CSI was created as a central learning hub for state employees.

Health matters remain a priority as he batted for the provision of more affordable, high quality medicines to government workers through the creation of Botika Para sa Taumbayan outlets starting 2011.

It was under his leadership that CSC designed the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS), which, upon full institutionalization in all government agencies, will serve as the primary tool in assessing the performance of individuals anchored on scientific and verifiable basis.

Another initiative is the interconnectivity of government helplines through the Contact Center ng Bayan (CCB). Now on its way to initial implementation, CCB is one breakthrough in government service accessibility as it shall provide just one access number to citizens through which they can reach government offices. Groundwork has also been laid for the CSC Computerized Examination System or COMEX which will fast-track acceptance and processing of exam applications, conduct of tests, and scoring and generation of test results.

Chairman Duque placed premium on integrity-promotion and anti-corruption efforts through the implementation of the Anti-Red Tape Act and other civil service rules. He helped broaden participation in promoting integrity in the civil service by engaging local and international institutions. The IT-based Confidential Reporting of Anomalies and Irregularities and the highlighting of best practices in social audit are but two of the projects funded by the United Nations Development Programme during his stead.

Another notable achievement is working for the inclusion of the CSC Chairman in the Board of Trustees or Directors of agencies whose functions affect state employees: the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, the Employees Compensation Commission and the Home Development Mutual Fund. Through this unprecedented move, the CSC now takes a more active role in setting policies and directives affecting the welfare and benefits of civil servants, and their families as well.

Commissioner Mary Ann Z. Fernandez-Mendoza

I aspire to live by the principles of integrity, continuous learning, balance and holistic development; to build and sustain relationships based on trust and respect; and, to serve with joy..

Such is the mission statement of Commissioner Mary Ann Z. Fernandez-Mendoza, who was appointed on May 5, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Commissioner Fernandez-Mendoza rose from the ranks, starting out as Researcher at the then National Manpower and Youth Council, now Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, in 1972. She flourished at the NMYC with her last post being Manpower Development Chief from August 1975 to November 1979. Then she joined the Management Staff of the National Economic Development Authority from December 1979 to April 1982.

From May 1982 until March 1987, she served as Director of the Bureau of Local Employment of what was then called the Ministry of Labor and Employment followed by a brief stint as Fellow of the Institute for Public Policy from April to November 1987.

Fernandez-Mendoza.s career in government service also witnessed her at the portals of Malacaņang. This was from December 1987 to December 1990 at the Office of the President.s Cabinet Secretariat where she held the positions of Presidential Staff Director and Assistant Secretary. She continued to serve as Assistant Secretary when the Cabinet Secretariat was absorbed by the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) during reorganization in January 1991. She stayed at the PMS until early 1993. Then in April 1993, she became Assistant Secretary at the Department of Labor and Employment. She served the post for two years.

Incidentally, her longest stint was at the Civil Service Commission where she served as Assistant Commissioner. During her more than nine-year stay at the CSC, from February 1995 to April 2004, Fernandez-Mendoza introduced and implemented programs such as gender mainstreaming, public service ethics and accountability, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, mentoring, technology of participation, and service delivery excellence.

She left the CSC to become Executive Director of the Career Executive Service Board also in April 2004 only to make a grand come-back two years after, this time as member of the Commission.

Commissioner Fernandez-Mendoza.s enduring vocation in public service has nurtured and equipped her with substantive knowledge and experience in policy analysis and formulation, program development and evaluation, and government operations. Her knowledge and experience embrace the particular areas of governance and institution development, labor and employment, education, civil service reforms, and human resource development. Attendance to both local and international training programs and conferences further bolstered her extensive experience in government.

Commissioner Fernandez-Mendoza finished Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service in 1970 at the University of the Philippines. She earned her Masters in Public Administration also from U.P. in 1975, and Master of International Development Education from Stanford University, California in 1976.

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