Yasay on way out

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr. confirmed yesterday he was one of the officials asked by President Estrada to step down to give him a free hand in appointing a new head of the regulatory agency.

Yasay said Estrada talked to him last month about his plan to revamp the Cabinet. The move is meant to win back public confidence in the Estrada administration and to arrest the President's sagging popularity.

Yasay said he formally wrote the President yesterday about the matter.

"Considering the various fundamental issues that will have to be addressed with respect to any resignation, paramount of which is its impact on the independence of the SEC and the ability of the regulatory agency to effectively perform its functions and responsibilities without political interference or influence, I have deemed it prudent to refer this matter to my legal counsels, headed by Dr. Jovito R. Salonga and former ambassador Sedfrey Ordoñez, for appropriate study. This would insure that my action would be lawful and will be supportive of the programs and objectives of your administration towards the development of the securities market," Yasay wrote.

Among those reportedly being considered as possible replacement are Cynthia del Castillo, dean of the Ateneo College of Law and partner at the Romulo Mabanta law office;

Lilia Bautista, former ambassador to Geneva and currently undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry who chaired the Philippine panel to the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade; Monico V. Jacob, former SEC associate commissioner and chairman of Petron Corp.; and Jerry Barican, spokesperson of the President.

If Yasay leaves, it is likely that some of the commissioners will also be replaced, paving the way for an entirely new team at the SEC. For one, commissioner Edjer Martinez is said to be past the mandatory retirement age, while Danilo L. Concepcion and Rosalinda Casiguran are finishing their terms this March.

SEC sources said Estrada's top advisers have been pressuring the President to let Yasay go, especially after the latter made a number of controversial statements about the ongoing Senate investigation of BW Resources Corp. (BWRC) whose top officials are considered close friends of the President, among them businessman Dante Tan who is the single biggest shareholder of BWRC.

The same sources said replacing Yasay at this time would do more harm than good, and will not help any in the President's bid to regain credibility. They added that Yasay was appointed to his post until 2004 and yielding his post will before pouring in their money in local industries.

"It will definitely send the message that the SEC is not independent and policies can be changed at the whim of the present administration," SEC sources said.