MANILA, Philippines - Former Isabela governor Grace Padaca assumed her post as election commissioner yesterday, vowing to prove her independence from President Aquino and their ruling Liberal Party (LP).
“The people can judge me through the decisions I will make,” Padaca told reporters after being sworn in by Secretary Leila de Lima at the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Critics earlier expressed reservations on the appointment of Padaca to the Comelec, citing her being a member of the LP, which they said could jeopardize her position in the poll body that is supposed to be independent from the executive branch.
They likewise cited her close ties with the Chief Executive, who personally rallied behind her in a graft case she is facing in the Sandiganbayan.
It was the President who paid for her P70,000 bail bond.
Padaca said she thanked the President for her appointment and the latter wished her well in her new post.
Although he did not give specific advice, she believes the President wants her “to do my job well and fairly.”
“I thanked him and then he responded, ‘Ingat (Take care) Grace.’ I did not put any meaning to it,” she said.
Padaca said that she will resign from LP and the civic group Kaya Natin! Movement and will meet with officials of both groups, which have several members running for elective posts in 2013.
Her younger brother Marlo Angelo is also running for Isabela governor.
She said she could opt to inhibit from any election case involving them.
Padaca believes that although she is not a lawyer, her experience as a former governor would suffice to enable her to do her job well.
“Comparing it to my previous job as governor – in terms of work load and variety of problems and concerns that I should face – I think being a commissioner will be easier because here I only focus on elections,” she said.
She said she is also a certified public accountant, which she can use to address issues on finances of Comelec.
Still, she said her new job entails “a big challenge.”
Asked about her immediate plans, she cited the need to focus on qualification of party-list groups in preparation for next year’s midterm elections.
Padaca also vowed to pursue electoral reforms by working to stamp out “three plagues” in the system – vote buying, terrorism and fraud.
“We have existing laws so we don’t need new ones. We just have to implement what should be implemented,” she stressed.
Padaca said she decided to take her oath before De Lima, who served as her election lawyer in 2001 and 2004, for practical purposes.
She said waiting for a schedule to take her oath before the President at the Palace might take a while and she already wanted to start working.
“I’ve been a candidate for four elections and now I’m with the Comelec. I know how important the role of the Comelec is and I hope I can really help the commission,” she said, describing her feeling toward her new job as “surreal.”
Asked how she would fit in the Comelec, which is composed of six lawyers, Padaca said she would “sufficiently be guided” by her staff who are lawyers.– Sheila Crisostomo, Christina Mendez