PRESS Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles on Thursday offered her condolences to the family of Mr. Mario Castro, an employee of the Information Communications Technology Office (ICTO), who died after falling from the 4th floor of the Mabini Hall inside the Malacañang Compound.

“The Presidential Security Group and the PNP Security Force Unit are jointly investigating the unfortunate incident. We in the Office of the Press Secretary are sending our deepest condolences to Mr. Castro’s family and loved ones,” Angeles said.

The PSG and PNP-SF are looking into the possibility that Castro could have deliberately jumped from the 4th floor of the Mabini Hall.

Castro is an administrative aide of the ICTO, which is under the Office of the Deputy Executive Secretary for Finance and Accounting (ODESFA).

“He died from an apparent fall from the fourth floor of Mabini Hall which is located inside the Malacañang compound,” she said in a Palace press briefing.

Angeles said Malacañang is ready to provide assistance to Castro’s family.

“We will do whatever we can to help the family,” she said.

This developed as Angeles assured government employees, particularly those falling under Job Orders (JOs) and Contract of Service (COS) that the proposal for downsizing the government bureaucracy will take into consideration those personnel whose jobs are necessary for the operations of their respective agencies.

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman had said affected personnel may apply for positions that will be created as an effect of the initiative.

The government will also provide a retooling program for personnel so they may apply in vacant positions.

Those who opt to retire will receive appropriate retirement benefits.

“Pwede po silang mag-apply doon sa ibang position na pwede nating gawin at mabuo because of the downsizing po. Iyong iba, magbibigay tayo ng tamang programa para sa kanila for retooling (The affected personnel may apply in positions that we can create because of the downsizing. For others, proper program will be given for their retooling),” she said.

“Kasama po natin possible po ang Civil Service Commission. ‘Yung mga magreretire po, meron naman tayong ibibigay na mga retirement benefits po para sa kanila (Civil Service Commission is possible part of it). Those will retire, we will give retirement benefits for them),” Pangandaman said.

The proposal to downsize the bureaucracy excludes teaching and teaching-related positions, medical and allied medical positions or those in the health sector, and the military as well as other uniformed personnel.

Angeles said the President’s policy will determine which among the 187 government agencies and government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) with more or less 2 million personnel, may be streamlined through merging, restructuring or abolition.

Quoting Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, Angeles said that “with the proposed rightsizing, government will be able to save a significant amount of the budget which may be used to fund priority projects such as in building much-needed infrastructure, for social services, programs in the health sector, agriculture, among others.” OPS