Interior Secretary Eduardo Año reported for duty for the first time in more than three months on Friday, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) announced.
Año, 59, had been on leave since Jan. 11.
In a statement, the DILG said Año would start working from home and eventually would return to his normal work routine.
“After more than three (3) months of grueling struggle, including a heart operation, the secretary is well, in high spirits and ready to reassume his duties in the Department as well as in the National Task Force Covid-19 and in the IATF-EID,” DILG spokesman Jonathan Malaya said.
“We thank the public for respecting his privacy the past few months and for giving him the time to rest, recuperate and fully recover. The department thanks all those who stormed the heavens, prayed for him and sent messages of support during a most difficult time. We are forever in your debt,” he added.
Año contracted Covid-19 twice in 2020. He filed his leave of absence to “pace himself, to get plenty of rest, to prioritize his health and to further undergo some tests,” Malaya earlier said.
Interior Undersecretary Bernardo Florece was in charge of DILG during Año’s absence. John Ezekiel J. Hirro