President Ferdinand ”Bongbong” Marcos Jr. named Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla as the new Ombudsman.

Remulla will replace former Ombudsman Samuel Martires, whose term expired last July 27.

Remulla will serve a fixed term of seven years without reappointment.

Malacanang said Remulla appointment was Marcos administration commitment to fight corruption wherever it exists.

”As Ombudsman, Remulla is expected to uphold transparency, strengthen anti-corruption measures, and ensure that justice is administered fairly and efficiently,” Malacanang said.

The Office of the Ombudsman handles the complaints filed against high-ranking government officials and those occupying supervisory positions, complaints involving grave offenses as well as complaints involving large sums of money and/or properties.

Remulla previously vowed that the Tanodbayan’s office would not be used as a weapon, saying that “too much politics” are taking place in the office.

“One thing I intend to do is to do away with the Ombudsman, the Office of the Ombudsman, used as a weapon against people,” he had told the JBC.

With his appointment, Remulla is expected to tackle pending complaints filed with the Ombudsman.

One of these was a complaint filed against Vice President Sara Duterte for the alleged misuse of P500 million in confidential funds of the OVP and P112.5 million in confidential funds of DepEd from 2022-2024.

This stemmed from the recommendation of the House committee on good governance and public accountability to file charges against her.

In June, the Ombudsman directed Sara and nine officials from the Department of Education and the Office of the Vice President to respond to the charges.

She has filed her counter-affidavit answering the allegations.