New DILG chief named next week

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – President Benigno Aquino III will name the replacement of the late Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo next week, before he leaves for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Vladivostok, Russia.

Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said on Wednesday, August 29, that the President would “definitely” appoint the new chief of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) before September 7, when he leaves for the 24th APEC summit.

Lacierda said that to his knowledge, the President has not met with any sector or person in relation to the DILG appointment. “Certainly, the President has been thinking about the best replacement. But insofar as meeting anyone, any particular, special interest group, he has not done so,” Lacierda told reporters.

At the Senate, Sen Panfilo Lacson believes the Liberal Party (LP) will have a first crack at the position. Lacson is one of those reportedly being considered for the position. (He finishes his Senate term next year.)

Lacson indicated that he has not received any formal offer from the Palace. “I will only comment on DILG if there is [an] offer,” he told Senate reporters. “This is not competition. I’m pragmatic…the party in power, LP, will have first crack,” the senator told reporters.

Lacson is an independent and not a member of the LP. He is said to be a friend of the President’s.

LP president Mar Roxas earlier said that given the chance he would choose Cavite Rep Joseph Emilio “Jun” Abaya to head the DILG. Abaya is the secretary-general of the LP and a good friend of Robredo, who was also an LP member. Abaya is currently the chair of the powerful House committee on appropriations.

When asked about Roxas’s remarks, Lacierda said this was the Secretary’s “personal opinion.” He added: “I’m not sure if the President and Secretary Mar Roxas have spoken to each other with respect to that…if he had recommended Jun Abaya.”

Key allies of the President in the House of Representatives want Abaya for the post.

Question of control

“Personally I think that’s a position that should be given to a member of the LP because Jesse Robredo is a member of the LP,” House Majority Leader Neptali “Boyet” Gonzales told a press conference.

He pointed out that with the death of Robredo, only two Cabinet members are left allied with the LP. These are Roxas and Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad.

“Although you can say that the LP is the ruling party but by no stretch of imagination can you say that it is occupying all the government positions,” Gonzales, a member of the LP himself, said.
 
The others being considered for the post aside from Lacson and Abaya are former Isabela governor Grace Padaca, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, and Davao City Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.
 
Gonzales said Abaya embodies the qualities of the late Secretary Robredo.
 
“We need the likes of Jesse Robredo that you can say is not a politician in the sense that politics comes first before work. I think Jun Abaya has those qualifications. His character is like that of Jesse Robredo’s, a silent worker,” he added.
 
In an ambush interview, Abaya said he was ready to help the President “in whatever way” he could.
 
Abaya is already on his last term as a congressman. He obtained his law degree from Ateneo de Manila University in 2005. A former Navy officer, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, United States.
 
“My general attitude is in whatever way I could help the President, I will and if he’d offer and request me to do (the job), I’ll help…I will not expect anything of the president but as a good soldier, I’ll do whatever he says,” Abaya said.
 
Abaya said he was never formally—or informally—offered to take over the DILG.
 
“I’m just laughing deep inside where all of this is coming from,” he said.

How about Ochoa?

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr is the current OIC of the DILG. His ally, Vice President Jejomar Binay, earlier told reporters Ochoa is qualified for the job. Ochoa served for many years as administrator of Quezon City Hall.

Reporters asked Lacierda is Ochoa is interested in the post. “Not that I know of. He is the Executive Secretary.”

Both the LP and the Binay camp are gearing up for the 2013 senatorial and local elections. Control of the DILG, which oversees local governments and the police, would be crucial for any political party.

Robredo had played a critical role in bridging the LP with local officials. – Rappler.com