By Janice M. Cave
MANILA, (PNA) — Malacanang confirmed Monday Land Transportation Office chief Asst. Sec. Virginia Torres sought President Aquino’s permission to retire at the end of the month.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said Torres spoke with Aquino last Monday and volunteered to retire. He, however, said he does not know the details of the conversation between Aquino and Torres.
Quoting a text message from Transportation and Communications Sec. Joseph Emilio Abaya Jr., Lacierda said, “I’ve spoken to Asec. Virgie Torres and she has spoken with the President. She has volunteered to file for retirement and she’s eligibile to retire.”
“As to the details ano ang napag-usapan, siguro it might be discussed later sa coffee meeting ni President with the Philippine media [covering the APEC summit],” he said.
On Monday, Torres announced that she will be retiring, saying she had already asked the permission of Aquino.
There have been speculations, however that the LTO chief was sacked after she met with Aquino before he left for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders summit in Bali, Indonesia.
Torres was in hot water after an amateur video showing her playing a slot machine inside a casino circulated online.
“I cannot speculate kasi the details are between the President and Asec Torres . I won’t be able to speculate why she decided to retire,” Lacierda said.
The Palace has yet to announce who will replace Torres.