President Arroyo has named four new appointees, more than a month before the two-month constitutional ban on government appointments, Malacañang said Friday.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita announced that Lina V. Castro, who served as director of Social Statistics Office of the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), has been appointed as deputy executive director V of the NSCB, which is under the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA).

Ermita also announced that Nimfa B. Torrizo has been promoted from assistant regional director of the Department of Health (DoH)-IX to Director II of the DoH.

Amer D. Bantuas Jr., of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DoTC), has also been promoted as Director II of the department, which has been tasked by Mrs. Arroyo to render the 100-percent completion of her key infrastructure projects promised in her State of the Nation Address (SoNA).

Prior to his new appointment, he served as the director of the Telecommunications Office (TelOf) XI under the Regional Development Council, which seeks to implement and monitor both short and long-term regional development plans and investment programs as well as regional physical framework plan and special development plans. He is also the member of the Regional Information Technology and Electronic Commerce Committee (RITECC) XI.

Apart from the three officials, the President named Amelia Perez-Panganiban as City Prosecutor of Batangas City. She previously served as the Assistant City Prosecutor in that city.

Malacañang earlier said President Arroyo is keeping close to her chest the list of her preferred nominees, who will replace Chief Justice Reynato Puno who is set to retire on May 17, which is within a two-month constitutional ban on government appointments.

It maintained that the President can appoint the new Chief Justice as provided under Article 8 Section 15 of the Constitution, saying that she is mandated to appoint Puno’s successor within 90 days from the existence of vacancy.