Prime Minister John Briceño is now wearing yet another ministerial hat; this time, Defense. Today, the Office of the Prime Minister announced that Briceño will temporarily take over the Ministry of National Defense and Border Security, following Florencio Marin Junior’s leave of absence. The move comes just one day after the Prime Minister approved Marin’s request to step aside. With that decision, Briceño’s ministerial portfolio has grown even larger. He is now responsible for Finance, Investment and Economic Transformation, Civil Aviation, E-Governance, National Defense and Border Security, seven ministries in total. But Marin’s departure is not happening in isolation. He is the second minister connected to the Ministry of Defense to go on leave in just two weeks. Last Monday, former Defense Minister Oscar Mira also stepped aside, as the Office of the Auditor General continues an audit into the ministry’s finances and allegations of corrupt financial practices. So, while the Prime Minister assumes direct control of the Defense Ministry, the bigger story remains the widening scrutiny over how the ministry’s money was managed, and why two ministers have now been forced to the sidelines in such quick succession.
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