The Office of the Press Secretary (OPS) and the United States (US) Embassy in Manila on Thursday expressed their intent to enhance their ties to promote public information drive.

This development came after Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles met with officials of the US Embassy in Manila in her office.

In a Facebook post, Cruz-Angeles said she discussed with Kanishka Gangopadhyay, Press Attaché of the US Embassy, and Camille Conde, the new press and media specialist of the embassy’s Public Affairs Section the ways to boost cooperation on public information and communications campaign.

“Kabilang sa mga natalakay natin ay ang pagpapalakas ng relasyon at pagtutulungan ng inyong opisina sa US Embassy lalo na sa aspeto ng public information at communications campaign (We discussed the strengthening of our relations and cooperation between our office and the US Embassy, especially on the aspect of public information and communications campaign),” she said.

Improving cooperation in the field of public information is vital to ensure that the country, as well as the other nations, are getting the “right” information about the Marcos administration’s activities, programs and policies, Cruz-Angeles said.

“Magkakaroon pa tayo ng mga ganitong pagkakataon dahil hindi lang sa sambayanang Pilipino nakararating ang mga tamang impormasyon ukol sa mga programa at inisyatibo ng ating pamahalaan, kundi pati na rin sa diplomatic at international community (We will have more opportunities like these because the right information about the administration’s programs and initiatives will be delivered not only to the entire Filipino nation but also to the diplomatic and international community),” she said.

Cruz-Angeles said the US Embassy in Manila also offered to extend necessary assistance to OPS and its attached agencies.

Executive Order (EO) 2, which was signed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on June 30, reorganizes and renames the now-defunct Presidential Communications Operations Office to the OPS.

EO 2 mandates the OPS to supervise the operations of state-run TV networks PTV-4 and IBC-13, radio station Radyo Pilipinas, and the news wire agency Philippine News Agency (PNA).

Cruz-Angeles earlier said the OPS is crafting a “more comprehensive” feedback mechanism to enable the Marcos administration to be “more responsive” to the needs of the people.

She added that the OPS is also using social media platforms to monitor the netizens’ responses.

She is currently handling two Facebook pages (Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles and the Office of the Press Secretary) and Twitter accounts (@SecCruzAngeles and @opsgovph).

She also has a TikTok account with the username @seccruzangeles.

Her office also manages the Office of the President’s (OP) official Facebook page. (PNA)