P-Noy wants SONA leak investigated

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino disclosed yesterday that he has asked for an investigation into the leak of a copy of his State of the Nation Address (SONA), which gave undue advantage to the ABS-CBN News Channel.

There are concerns that ABS-CBN might enjoy undue advantage because Communications Group Secretary Ricky Carandang and his undersecretary, Manuel Quezon III, were former staffers of the TV station.

“I’m having a different agency look to it and check whether or not there was such a leak and who actually was part of it, if there was such a leak,” the President told reporters.

“If there was, I apologize. The speech, you know, we were editing it a few hours before the delivery of the SONA. So I would be very, very surprised if anybody would have gotten a hard copy of what we were doing, but there was only one person who really was distributing. If, at all, if there was any distribution, he’ll give advance copies to the Senate and the House leadership and to senior members of the Cabinet, and some of them said they never received their copies,” Aquino said.

Aquino said this is what they should fine tune and did not discount the possibility that the copies for officials were taken by other people.

He added that he would make sure there would be no favorites among the media.

“Since I don’t have a bias, my people should not have a bias also and I think you will all be witness to the fact that I entertain everybody if I can. Regardless if it’s a national organization or regional or even a provincial, we do not choose. If at all, we only need fine tuning and I’ve called their attention already,” he said

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda also said over radio station dzRB that he would make sure the members of the Malacañang Press Corps would not be left behind in the dissemination of information.

He only announced the content of Memorandum Circular No. 2, which allowed the non-career service officials in various government offices to stay on until Oct. 31, in one station because of the urgency of the issue.

Lacierda said the President had already signed the executive orders on midnight appointments and the Communications Group and these would be released soon.

Lacierda said Carandang and Quezon have given assurance that they would not leak any information to ABS-CBN.

P-Noy a sport

In his speech Friday night during the 60th anniversary of GMA-7 in Makati City, Aquino said he was open to criticisms from media “because it is media’s right and obligation to encourage public discourse.”

“But I hope it is the type of discourse that leads to consensus and ultimately action,” the President said.

The President said he was counting on media “to be part of this difficult but worthwhile journey of turning our country around.” He also gave assurance that media could count on his support.Past and present executives of GMA as well as captains of industry and government officials attended the network’s event

Aquino hailed GMA Network as he recalled that during martial law, the TV station persisted in keeping the public informed despite the risks of censorship and even the safety of its reporters.

“Working under the yoke of a dictatorship, GMA-7 kept the flickering light of truth alive during that difficult and dangerous time,” he noted.

He said GMA-7 touched his life in a very personal way, being among the TV stations that prominently covered the assassination of his father, Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. as well as the subsequent wake and funeral.

“It was also the TV station where my mom, former President Corazon Aquino, made her television debut on Aug. 21, 1983. You were also present in her historic wake and funeral which we will be commemorating in two days,” the President said.

He expressed gratitude to the network “for your courage in delivering the news to our people. I am extremely grateful.”“You certainly made a positive impact on the lives of so many Filipinos through stories that are not only worth telling but are also worth remembering,” he said.

He pointed out, however, that he was not just a viewer but media’s partner. “This administration will defend your right to free expression.”

“By working together, we can enhance democracy and make it real, not just for those who have more in life, but more so for those who have less,” he said.