Raphael Lotilla hadn’t warmed his seat at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources when environmental groups called on him to put the country’s key biodiversity areas at the top of his to-do list. 

“We urge Secretary Lotilla to uphold the DENR’s mandate to protect our environment. This includes the protection of critical biodiversity areas that are facing threats, including the Verde Island Passage (VIP),” said Father Edwin Gariguez, lead convenor of Protect VIP.

Lotilla, the erstwhile energy secretary, was reassigned to the DENR by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. a day after the latter demanded the courtesy resignations of all the Cabinet members.

Lotilla replaced Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga, whose “globe-trotting” ways apparently irked Malacañang.

According to Gariguez, Loyzaga’s term was marked by one of the country’s biggest environmental crises — the oil spill off Oriental Mindoro that devastated parts of the VIP and affected the livelihoods of its communities.

“Secretary Lotilla can learn much from the shortcomings during Secretary Yulo-Loyzaga’s term. We challenge him to take this as an opportunity to strengthen the DENR’s approaches in addressing environmental crises, starting with the long-term rehabilitation of the still unresolved oil spill in Oriental Mindoro, and imposing the most stringent standards against pollution in the VIP and other biodiversity hotspots,” he said.

Gariguez said that while they acknowledged Lotilla’s background as a former energy secretary, his new role at the DENR requires that he prioritize the protection of the country’s critical ecosystems.

“It is Secretary Lotilla’s task to place environmental integrity above the interests of the destructive energy industry while advocating for a just transition to sustainable energy from renewables,” Gariguez said.

Experts, civil society groups, local communities, and government actors — including the DENR under Secretary Yulo-Loyzaga — have been calling for the Verde Island Passage to be granted protection under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (ENIPAS) Act.

“As Secretary Lotilla begins his term at the DENR, we urge him to follow Yulo-Loyzaga’s endorsement and finally move towards officially designating the VIP as a protected seascape,” Gariguez said.

Fit for the job

Meanwhile, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines has backed the appointment of Lotilla, saying he could use his law background to resolve the legal issues at the DENR.

“Lotilla is a good choice for DENR after his second stint as DoE secretary. His Master’s in Law will serve him well as DENR secretary, as many environmental matters involve legal issues,” ECOP Chair Edgardo Lacson told DAILY TRIBUNE in a Viber message.

Lacson said Lotilla’s record as a public servant was clean as a whistle, despite a backlash from environmental groups that slapped him with a criminal complaint under Republic Act No. 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and an administrative complaint for grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service at the Office of the Ombudsman last year for alleged violation of the coal moratorium in favor of a power firm where he had served as a board member.

“A brief look at Lotilla’s career shows that he has served in the President BBM Cabinet since 2022. Lotilla first headed the Department of Energy from 2005 to 2007,” Lacson said.

He said Lotilla has had a long career in government and the academe. He has served as executive director of the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia, an international organization for coastal and ocean governance.