Gov.-elect Rosselló announces 1st cabinet appointments
November 29, 2016
Gov-elect Ricardo Rosselló is flanked by his new appointees during a news conference Monday.
Gov-elect Ricardo Rosselló is flanked by his new appointees during a news conference Monday.
Gov.-elect Ricardo Rosselló announced Monday the first five members of his cabinet, including his Chief of Staff, chief legal advisor and his representative before the Financial Oversight and Management Board.
During a news conference in San Juan, Rosselló confirmed the following appointees:
- William E. Villafañe-Ramos, Chief of Staff — The designee has a BA in Business Administration with a major in Accounting from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez campus, and a Juris Doctor from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. He has served as: legislative counsel; Executive director of the Special Reports of the Comptroller, Housing and Urban Development, and Family and Community Committees; Advisor to the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, the Municipal Affairs Commissioner’s Office (known as OCAM for its initials in Spanish) and the Housing Finance Administration; Administrator, chief executive, special examiner and legal counsel of the Public Service Commission; and, Secretary General of the New Progressive Party (NPP.)
- Itza M. García-Rodríguez, Associate Chief of Staff — García-Rodríguez is a private-practice attorney who has chaired Rosselló’s “Plan for Puerto Rico” campaign platform.
- Ramon Rosario Cortés, Secretary of Public Affairs and Public Policy —Rosario-Cortés is an attorney admitted to practice law and notary in Puerto Rico. In addition, he is admitted as a lawyer in the U.S. Courts system, including the First Circuit and Supreme Court. He earned his Juris Doctor at the University of Puerto Rico. He was law clerk at the Supreme Court and chief counsel of former Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuño. He was responsible for writing and editing the Puerto Rico Electoral Code in 2011. He was chairman of the Puerto Rico State Insurance Fund and member of the boards of directors of the Automobile Accident Compensation Administration, known as ACAA, the Puerto Rico Public Broadcasting System, and the Police Academy.
- Alfonso Orona-Amilivia, Chief Legal Advisor to the Governor — Orona-Amilivia has worked as Deputy Legal Counsel and currently works as a lawyer in private practice.
- Elias F. Sánchez-Sifonte, Representative of the Governor to the representative before the Financial Oversight and Management Board — Sánchez-Sifonte is a graduate of the UPR Law School, where he earned his Juris Doctor Magna Cum Laude. With more than 15 years of experience in government and politics, Sánchez-Sifonte has been legal advisor, director of human resources and executive assistant in a municipal administration, Secretary General of the NPP and advisor to the President of the Senate. In 2010 he left the public sector to fully dedicate himself to the private sector. As a lawyer, he spends most of his practice to Administrative and Corporate Law.
“The people I’m appointing today have experience both in the public and private sectors. All have been part of our campaign effort and of the ‘Plan for Puerto Rico’,” Rosselló said.
The new appointees will assume their jobs once the new administration takes office in January.
Author Details
Author Details
Business reporter with 30 years of experience writing for weekly and daily newspapers, as well as trade publications in Puerto Rico. My list of former employers includes Caribbean Business, The San Juan Star, and the Puerto Rico Daily Sun, among others. My areas of expertise include telecommunications, technology, retail, agriculture, tourism, banking and most other segments of Puerto Rico’s economy.
