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DFA blasts report on supposed career officers' call for Cayetano to quit

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MANILA - A Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) statement on Wednesday disputed a newspaper report which claimed that career diplomats want Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano to resign, saying the reported call does not represent the views of the &quot;entire Foreign Service Corps.&quot;&quot;The alleged clamor by career officials for the Secretary to resign as contained in the supposed letter came from some who do not represent the views of the entire career Foreign Service Corps,&quot; reads the statement posted on the DFA website. The DFA said its career officials remain &quot;committed to the highest standard of professionalism and patriotism.&quot;&quot;Under the guidance of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, the career Foreign Service Corps can be counted upon to pursue the President’s vision of an independent foreign policy,&quot; it added.The DFA&#x27;s reaction was issued in response to a report by The Philippine Star that career officials want Cayetano and his appointees to resign &quot;for gross incompetence that led to the diplomatic standoff with Kuwait.&quot;Kuwait recently expelled the Philippine envoy there following the controversial rescue of Filipino migrants in distress from their employers&#x27; homes. The Gulf state took the unilateral action as an affront to its sovereignty. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/25/18/kuwait-expels-philippine-envoy-amid-tensions-over-domestic-workers">Kuwait expels Philippine envoy amid tensions over domestic workers</a></li>	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/01/18/duterte-eyes-soft-landing-on-row-with-kuwait">Duterte eyes ‘soft landing’ on row with Kuwait</a></li></ul>The DFA called the Philippine Star report &quot;malicious&quot; and criticized the reporter, veteran journalist Pia Lee Brago, for supposedly failing to get its side.&quot;It is unfortunate that the Star published unverified information from an anonymous source. It is lamentable that Ms. Brago did not double-check the authenticity of the information that was provided to her nor even attempt to get the side of the Department,&quot; it said.The supposed letter calling for the resignation of Cayetano has also not been seen by the Office of the President, the DFA statement reads. &quot;Today, Ms. Brago claimed a letter demanding Secretary Cayetano’s resignation purportedly coming from career officers was sent to Malacañang. The Office of the President has not seen such letter,&quot; it said.The DFA also denied a reported shouting match between Cayetano and Labor Chief Silvestre Bello III in a meeting. Both Bello and Cayetano have also denied the report. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/01/18/hindi-nagsigawan-bello-cayetano-deny-shouting-match">Hindi nagsigawan: Bello, Cayetano deny &#x27;shouting match&#x27;</a></li></ul>

MANILA - A Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) statement on Wednesday disputed a newspaper report which claimed that career diplomats want Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano to resign, saying the reported call does not represent the views of the "entire Foreign Service Corps."

MANILA - A Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) statement on Wednesday disputed a newspaper report which claimed that career diplomats want Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano to resign, saying the reported call does not represent the views of the "entire Foreign Service Corps."