Noy asked to recall appointment of BCDA chief

MANILA, Philippines - Lawyer Howard Calleja has asked President Aquino to recall the appointment of Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) president and chief executive officer Arnel Paciano Casanova.

In a three-page letter sent to the office of the President last Monday, Calleja explained that Casanova’s taking his post and performing his duties violated Republic Act 7227 (the law creating BCDA) and that the board of the state-run corporation should only be headed by its duly appointed chair Felicito Payumo.

Calleja, a law professor and former lawyer of various groups like the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting, asked Aquino “to evaluate the appointment mindful of your constitutional roles in the appointment of heads of government agencies and government-controlled corporations.”

“As the prime mover of good governance and practices, I write to your good office to inform you that one of the presidential appointees and as confirmed by Commission of Appointments is under serious legal question and I appeal to you to revoke such appointment,” he told the President.

He urged Aquino to correct what appeared to be a tradition since 2002 during the term of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo where “the positions of chairman and president of BCDA were divided without legal basis, providing two presidential appointees for only one position.”

“The illegal practice of splitting these positions mentioned should be stopped and should not be continued, as it has no basis in law,” he appealed.

Calleja cited Section 9 of RA 7227, which provides that “the powers and functions of the Conversion Authority shall be exercised by a Board of Directors to be composed of nine (9) members” with “a full-time chairman who shall also be the president of the Conversion Authority.”

“It is unmistakably clear that there is a discrepancy between the law and the appointment of Mr. Casanova. The law distinctly states that the appointed chairman shall also serve as the chief executive officer and president of the agency. It was never the intention of the lawmakers of the charter to separate the positions mentioned. As every legal practitioner would know, if the appointee has no vested right in office that he holds, his acts as president, issuances and orders should also not hold water,” he argued.

With this premise, the lawyer stressed that the appointment of Casanova was invalid from the start and all his acts and decisions should likewise be nullified “as he has no authority and power to enter into agreements, issue orders and represent the BCDA since there is no provision of law nor order that separates the duties of the chairman and the president.”

Calleja also sent a similar letter to the Office of the Solicitor General calling for an investigation on Casanova’s appointment.

“To my knowledge, the Office of the Solicitor General is the counsel of the Republic of the Philippines and the government department and agencies in legal controversies, but it is likewise the primordial duty of the Office of the Solicitor General to be the people’s tribune and to see to it that justice is done for all citizens in our court,” he urged Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza in a four-page letter sent also last Monday.

“Thus, in your commitment to strive for legal victories amidst the vast concerns of the sovereign, I write to your good office to inform and bring to your attention that one of the presidential appointees and as confirmed by Commission of Appointments is under serious legal question,” he added.

When asked for comment, Casanova downplayed Calleja’s challenge, which he believes is “ridiculous.”

“I believe that the President has the power to appoint and it enjoys the presumption of regularity and legality in the appointment. I’m bound to follow the President’s orders for me to function as public official for the interest of public service in the BCDA,” he stressed.