Alastair McIndoe
The Straits Times
29-03-2010

House supporters keen to see her named new Speaker; she’ll pick new CJ before term ends

With a general election nearing, Philippines President Gloria Arroyo could be expected to be wrapping up her administration and thinking about legacy issues. Far from it.

Not only is Mrs Arroyo planning a new life in politics by running in the May 10 polls for a seat in Congress, she also made a controversial appointment in the armed forces, and now looks set to pick a new chief justice before she steps down.

Speculation over her intentions is adding to an already heated election.

Mrs Arroyo’s critics say she is trying to extend her influence in key institutions before her term ends.

To be sure, she has good reason to watch her back. Her administration was buffeted by corruption scandals, and it is widely expected her foes will push for these to be re-examined in the courts and public inquiries.

‘The President has to protect herself and get as much support as she can from established institutions,’ said political science professor Edmund Tayao.

Despite her unpopularity among many Filipinos, Mrs Arroyo is expected to have little trouble winning a seat representing a district in her home province.

A skilful political operator, Mrs Arroyo had majority support in the House of Representatives, and her allies there have made no secret of their desire to see her appointed as House Speaker, an influential, agenda-setting post, in the next Congress.

‘It is now clear that Mrs Arroyo is absolutely intent on consolidating and perpetuating her power by shifting it from the executive to the legislative branch,’ regional risk consultants Pacific Strategies and Assessments said in a report.

According to a count by the Philippine Daily Inquirer, 159 of Mrs Arroyo’s current allies are running for seats in the 260-member House in the May polls.

It is not a given they will all win or remain loyal. But analysts expect a sizeable ‘Arroyo bloc’ in the next Congress.

Meanwhile, opposition fears of a failed election in the country’s first electronic vote prolonging her presidency are being aired prominently in the local media.

Election commissioner Jose Melo has dismissed fears of a system meltdown on polling day as ‘pure fantasy’.

But in a survey released on Friday by pollsters Social Weather Stations, 48 per cent of respondents expected ‘people power’ protests if the polls fail.

For her part, Mrs Arroyo has made repeated assurances of her intention to step down on June 30, when her terms ends.

‘Our entire administration is devoted to ensure a smooth transition to a new government,’ she told troops during a ceremony early this month to mark her appointment of Lieutenant-General Delfin Bangit to the top post in the armed forces.

Lt-Gen Bangit is seen as particularly close to the President, and his promotion drew fire from the political opposition for bypassing more senior officers.

In another row over appointments, a Supreme Court ruling this month that a ban on presidential appointments during the election period does not cover the judiciary will enable Mrs Arroyo to appoint a successor to the retiring chief justice.

Right now, all 14 serving justices of the Supreme Court are her appointees, made over a decade of being in power.

The ruling set off angry protests over an ‘Arroyo court’ by some members of the legal profession. But Prof Tayao believes fears of a pliant court are overdone.

‘The debt of gratitude is an important part of Filipino culture, but not to the point of sacrificing institutions,’ he said.

Even so, one of the leading candidates for the presidency, Mr Benigno Aquino III, has said that if elected, he would not recognise a chief justice picked by Mrs Arroyo.

By Paolo Romero
The Philippine Star; March 20, 2010

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang yesterday assured the public there would be no failure of elections this May but warned of a possible military takeover in the ensuing chaos arising from such an event.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Charito Planas said President Arroyo is definitely stepping down on June 30 and arrangements were already laid out for a peaceful turnover to the next chief executive.

Planas made the statement amid talks of a possible failure of the country’s first nationwide automated elections allegedly being orchestrated by the administration to prolong Mrs. Arroyo’s stay in power, starting with the appointment of her trusted generals to top posts in the military.

Planas noted that Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile issued a similar warning of a possible military junta taking over in the event of political turmoil arising from a failure to install a new president by June 30.

“It’s possible that the military would take over. That’s possible as military juntas have taken over in several countries in Southeast Asia,” Planas told a news briefing.

When asked whether the President is prepared to remain in office while waiting for the new president to be proclaimed, Planas said: “Let’s look at the Constitution.”

“It’s not the President who will say: ‘I want to remain here.’ It’s the situation and the Constitution that will dictate what will happen,” Planas said but did not elaborate.

Planas, however, stressed the possibility of a failure of elections occurring is extremely remote.

She said the public should not confuse delays or failures in the transmission or canvassing of voting results as failure of elections.

Once the votes are cast, the elections have successfully occurred, Planas said.

Even in past elections where votes were counted manually, Planas said the declaration of failure of elections was only limited to certain areas or polling precincts.

Presidential spokesman Ricardo Saludo, for his part, said there has never been a general declaration of a failure of elections in the country’s political history.

“Even with the manual counting of votes. Now there will be automated counting in most precincts, with no more than 30 percent manual count in a worst case scenario, Hence, there is nil chance of failure,” Saludo said, citing the argument of election lawyer Romulo Macalintal.

Even in the face of ceaseless arguments that the May 10 elections is likely to fail, Saludo assured this would not happen.

“Our elections have never failed. Neither will the 2010 polls, even if all our votes are counted by hand,” Saludo said.

Malacañang earlier called on the public to support the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to ensure the successful holding of peaceful and honest polls on May 10.

Critics had warned the power crisis in Mindanao is only the dry run of the plan to stage a failure of elections.

The opposition Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) of former President Joseph Estrada said Malacañang is exerting all efforts to allow Mrs. Arroyo to stay in power.

“And now that its end is near, the whole country is witnessing how this administration appears to be using every trick in the book to extend its hold on power even when our people are clearly eager to replace it through the ballot,” PMP spokesman Ralph Calinisan said.

Opposition Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Delfin Bangit would be forced to retain Mrs. Arroyo in power if a failure of election is declared on May 10 where no president and vice president are proclaimed.

Rodriguez said no one among her constitutional successors could serve as head of state since the terms of Vice President Noli de Castro, Senate President Enrile and Speaker Prospero Nograles will all lapse on June 30 along with Mrs. Arroyo.

For his part, Bangit said he would not go beyond his oath of providing security in case a failure of election occurs in May.

Bangit also appealed to critics to spare the military from political intrigues.

“I already made my statement. I won’t repeat it anymore. I have my oath and it will be to protect and to support the Constitution, nothing more, nothing less…I will not go beyond my oath,” he said.

AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, Jr. said the military has no intention of taking over the government in the event that no president is proclaimed or to lengthen President Arroyo’s stay in power.

“Our mandate is to provide security. In case there is a failure of elections, our mandate is very clear. We will come in to maintain peace and order. That’s all,” Brawner said.

Brawner said the AFP would only come in to help the Philippine National Police (PNP) restore order if a failure of elections is declared.

Brawner said such intervention by the military would ensure the constitutional provisions on succession would be upheld. – With Alexis Romero, Jose Rodel Clapano

By MIRIAM CORONEL FERRER
ABS-CBN News; 03/13/2010

Everyone has been focused on the election trail, and while we’re not looking, the government is fast tracking the selling of valuable government assets.

The issues surrounding the selling of the Food Terminals in Taguig and the real estate owned by government in Fujimi, Japan have already come out in the open. But still outside of the public glare is the ongoing negotiation to sell the 10 percent share of the government in the Malampaya oil field.

If Malacanang manages to arm twist the Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC) board to sign the deed of sale – and it seems they are trying their darnedest to pull this through — the billions of fresh funds from the sale will immediately prop up the sagging coffers of this administration. But the Filipino people and Philippine government will lose forever significant and potentially higher annual revenues from the resource in the next 20 years.

Gas from Malampaya fuels the 2,700 megawatt power plant in Batangas. So far, Malampaya is the biggest oil and gas producing field in the country. It is estimated to contain 3 trillion cubic feet of gas and 40 million barrels of recoverable oil reserves. However, there are indications that it has much more in store not only in the Malampaya structure, but also in the nearby prospects that Shell and the Service Contract 38 joint venture have identified and will be drilling soon.

The government plans to sell Malampaya for about US$300 million or P14 billion. In 2008, the PNOC-EC earned P3.08 billion, most of which came from Malampaya earnings. At this rate, and assuming steady gas prices and volume of sales, it can easily raise the $300 million in six years without having to sell the goose that lays the golden egg.

In fact, the Malampaya consortium has already fully recovered its initial $4.5 billion investment. It started operation only in 2001.

Obviously, disposing of the asset now will immediately strip the government, starting with the next administration, of a sustained and significant revenue source.

Without the Malampaya asset, the PNOC-EC’s net worth would be decimated. It won’t have the capacity to invest in other exploration projects.

The government plan is to eventually sell 60 percent of the PNOC-EC. But without the Malampaya goose, it won’t fetch much. If it sells PNOC-EC with its Malampaya share intact, it can fetch a much higher value for the same share. So why is the government so keen to sell the shares now?

This is the not the first time, the GMA administration tried to sell the participating interest of the PNOC-EC in Malampaya. In 2005, it approved the sale of half of Its participating share to the Korean LG company. But several people in government managed to block the planned sale. With only three months to go before a new administration takes over, high-ranking government officials are once more working fast to swing a deal asap.

Speculations as to motives are naturally rife when a government-brokered deal is evidently unwise from a business investment point of view and fraudulent from a governance perspective. Some surmise the funds will be diverted to private pockets, or electioneering. Others think the administration wants to exit without the shameful legacy of a huge budget deficit. That’s why they badly need the green bucks-transfusion. Still others cannot help think of even more sinister plots in the offing, such as the eventual privatization of the much devalued PNOC-EC at bargain prices to a favored investment group.

The president has promised a smooth transition to the next administration. And while we have yet to see through this promise, we have before us very high-ranking government officials hell-bent on using their terminal powers to squeeze the most benefit for themselves.

The president has been filling up all appointive positions with people whom we will have to suffer even after she has stepped down. It seems she will appoint the chief justice of the Supreme Court during the election ban period even at the cost of a constitutional showdown. It is pathetic that an incoming AFP chief’s inaugural speech is a plea for trust, given how little there is on both the appointer and appointee.

And now, we have this impending sell-out of a prime revenue-generating government asset for one more short-term and self-serving gain.

E-mail: mcf178@yahoo.com