MANILA, Philippines - Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II received his confirmation yesterday from the Commission on Appointments (CA) after Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago withdrew her threat to block it by invoking her one-person veto power.
Malacañang later thanked Santiago for her “magnanimous gesture.”
Roxas had faced the CA before in various capacities, from trade secretary to transportation secretary.
Being a former member of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, Roxas had a relatively easy time getting confirmation from the CA despite Santiago’s threat and the appearance of one person opposing his appointment.
The CA committee on local government chaired by Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III took up the lone opposition to Roxas’ confirmation raised by a certain Marivic Sarao, president of the union of the Bureau of Immigration. She was represented by lawyer Henry Tubban.
Tubban questioned Roxas on his supposed role in taking away the grant of overtime pay to the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine officers.
Since the matter has already been referred to both the Senate and the House of Representatives, the CA ruled that it was not the proper forum to raise the complaint.
During the plenary session of the CA yesterday, Santiago rose to exercise her one-person veto power under section 20 of CA rules.
Although not required to explain her veto, Santiago told the CA that she was “deeply insulted” by the failure of Cabinet members – including Roxas – to attend her committee’s hearing last Sept.14 on the controversies involving resigned DILG undersecretary Rico Puno.
“I now want to stand by the principle that the executive branch cannot effectively prevent the legislative branch of the government from holding any inquiry in aid of legislation, a constitutionally protected power, simply by agreeing among themselves that they will not show up,” Santiago said.
“I resent that a certain person cannot be investigated on a mere say so of the Cabinet. Who is he, untouchable? I deeply regret that as collateral damage I have to take counter action and exercise my power of one-person veto over all Cabinet members who were summoned but did not attend,” she added.
During his confirmation hearing, Roxas said he had written Santiago explaining his absence during her committee hearing.Roxas said he did not intend to snub her hearing but felt that his presence wouldn’t matter much since he was not yet officially the DILG secretary and that he knew nothing about Puno.
“As you may know, I have not yet passed through the required confirmation process by the Commission on Appointments,” Roxas told the CA members.
“I am not as yet officially the DILG secretary and have not assumed any function, duty or responsibility as such. Since I am not yet familiar with the issues pertaining to the DILG, I will be unable to contribute any constructive information and cannot speak with authority on these matters,” Roxas said.
“Inasmuch as I have not worked with Undersecretary Puno, I will not be able to render a cogent evaluation of his work performance,” he said.
Sotto promptly appealed to Santiago to reconsider her decision and withdraw her threat to veto. Santiago relented and withdrew her motion.
“My high intelligence quotient dictates that I should reconsider and therefore withdraw my motion to suspend,” Santiago said.
Unlike Roxas, his successor at the Department of Transportation and Communications, Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, breezed through his confirmation hearing and was even showered with praises during the plenary session.
Santiago even took note that both Roxas and Abaya were descendants of great historical figures, namely former President Manuel Roxas and the country’s first president, Emilio Aguinaldo.
Abaya is a great grandson of Aguinaldo and a descendant of revolutionary hero Isabelo Abaya. His father Plaridel Abaya was a three-term congressman.
The new DOTC secretary graduated with honors from the US Naval Academy in Annapolis where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics in 1988.
He also has a degree from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York where he completed a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering.
Abaya, chairman of the House committee on appropriations, said that he would stay on as a congressman until the proposed P2-trillion national budget for 2013 is approved on third reading.
Asked by reporters if she would still block the confirmation of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima and Environment Secretary Ramon Paje Jr., Santiago said she would think about it first.
Also confirmed during yesterday’s plenary session were the promotions of 106 senior and junior officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
At the end of the CA plenary session, Roxas expressed his gratitude to the members of the CA.
“I wish to thank members of the CA who gave me support, particularly Sen. Miriam who reconsidered her position and who was the first to declare that I am competent and qualified for the job,” Roxas said.
After his confirmation, Roxas vowed to continue the initiative of the late DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo, particularly with regard to transparency and accountability of local officials.
At Malacañang, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda thanked Santiago for withdrawing her objection to Roxas’ appointment, saying the “office of the DILG is a very important position.”
“It deals with local governments and peace and security. We are very happy that Senator Santiago has placed national interest above her concerns on the snubbing of Secretary Mar Roxas,” he added. “For that, we thank Senator Santiago for her magnanimous gesture.”
The opposition bloc in the House of Representatives also welcomed the confirmation of Roxas and of Abaya.
House Minority Leader and Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez said while Roxas is more fit to head the DOTC, the former senator can ably lead in his new post just as well.
“He (Roxas) has the main prerequisite for any leader in any post – he’s clean,” Suarez said. “That’s very important.”
He said Roxas can use his managerial expertise in running his department. – Rainier Allan Ronda, Paolo Romero, Delon Porcalla
