Only 7 of 25 political envoys return home

MANILA, Philippines - Only seven out of the 25 political ambassadors have complied with the recall order and have returned to the country, with the others still clinging to their posts.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo said only former Ambassadors Generoso Senga (Iran), Alejandro del Rosario (Poland), Masaranga Umpa (Nigeria) and Alexander Yano (Brunei) have returned to the country.

Also back are former Ambassadors Rigoberto Tiglao (Greece), Antonio Villamor (Saudi Arabia) and Domingo Siazon Jr. (Japan), who were seen at the home office.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) might inform the host governments of the political ambassadors who have ignored the recall order that any functions the diplomats would perform after June 30 are no longer official.

Ranking DFA officials, who asked not to be named, told The STAR that the political ambassadors could face an embarrassing situation if it reaches the point where the DFA has to inform the host governments, and cited a precedent in a Philippine diplomatic post in Africa.

“The host governments may be informed that

the ambassadors who are co-terminus with former President Arroyo cease to hold office by July 1,” a DFA official said.

The officials said some of the political ambassadors were resisting the recall order, prompting the DFA to issue reiterations of the order and directing them to make necessary protocol and travel arrangements in order to return to Manila on or before June 30.

The officials said the DFA reiterated the recall order in its instruction for all political ambassadors dated June 10 with a heading “very urgent and confidential” that was signed by DFA Undersecretary for Administration Franklin Ebdalin.

The DFA reiterated its order by issuing another instruction on June 16 after some of the political ambassadors called up the home office questioning Romulo’s recall order.

Copies of the June 10 and June 16 instructions to the ambassadors obtained by The STAR showed that the DFA informed the political ambassadors that “all emoluments beyond June 30 will not be granted unless the extension or re-appointment is granted by the new President, when he shall have assumed office and authority.”

Among the non-career ambassadors who were resisting the recall order were Ana Ines de Sequera-Ugarte (Madrid), Acmad Omar (Muscat), Vidal Querol (Jakarta), Ernesto de Leon (Canberra) and Villamor. Villamor though has since returned to Manila.

The officials said Ugarte sent a note to a DFA official who asked her to choose the schedule for packing and shipping back her personal and household effects.

“She doesn’t want to come home. She was trying to resist the order and said she can still stay on the basis of her Canadian citizenship. But holding dual citizenship is against the regulations,” another DFA official said.

Ugarte said in her note to the concerned DFA official that she was following the order of former Executive Secretary Leandro Mendoza to stay at her post until further orders.

“Therefore, I cannot schedule packing for the moment,” Ugarte said.

The ambassadors recalled to the home office include Ma. Consuelo Puyat-Reyes (Santiago), Francisco Ortigas III (Mexico), Jose Brillantes (Ottawa), Francisco Benedicto (Beijing), Noe Wong (Phnom Penh), Shirley Ho-Vicario (Port Moresby), Bienvenido Tejano (Wellington), Delia Albert (Berlin), Manuel Antonio Teehankee (Geneva, World Trade Organization), Antonio Manuel Lagdameo Jr. (London), Regina Irene Sarmiento (Prague), Mercedes Tuason (Vatican), and Cardozo Luna (The Hague).

Senga tendered his irrevocable resignation and was the first political ambassador to relinquish his post even before the recall order for non-career ambassadors was issued in April. His letter of irrevocable resignation dated April 15 was effective May 3.

The DFA reminded the political ambassadors in both the June 10 and June 16 instructions that Malacañang’s order for the DFA to defer the implementation of Romulo’s April 28 recall order does not change the nature of their appointment, and that they are by law and Constitution co-terminus with the appointing authority, referring to Arroyo.

The political ambassadors were also informed that the charge d’affaires is the next ranking officer at post who shall take over effective June 30 based on existing DFA regulations.

DFA officials warned that the regular rotation in the foreign service would be disrupted should a substantial number of political ambassadors refuse to leave their posts.

“The career foreign service corps is not only beleaguered but restive particularly over this issue. This is the reason why the department has seen it proper to issue this reiteration,” a senior DFA official said.

The Arroyo administration defended the order for the DFA to defer its recall of political ambassadors so as to avoid a vacuum in leadership of the affected diplomatic posts around the world.

But DFA officials said there would be no vacuum in leadership because the charge d’affaires, or the next ranking officer at post, will take over.

The DFA said the controversy on the deferment of the recall orders for political ambassadors has implications on the conduct of Philippine diplomacy.