4 bypassed Cabinet members still have Noy’s trust – Palace

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino continues to have trust and confidence in Secretaries Leila de Lima of justice, Ramon Paje of natural resources, Corazon Soliman, of social welfare, and Jericho Petilla of energy, Malacañang said yesterday.

Speaking over state-run radio dzRB, Secretary Herminio Coloma of the Presidential Communications Operations Office said: “They continue to serve because the President still has his full trust and confidence in them.” 

During a session last week, the Commission on Appointments (CA) bypassed confirmation of the four Cabinet members.

Aquino is expected to issue another round of reappointments for the officials.

Senate President Franklin Drilon, CA overall chairman, said Aquino must issue new ad interim appointments to the four to enable them to continue discharging their functions.

“Their appointment terminates when we adjourn,” he said.

Petilla was named energy secretary only in October 2012, while De Lima, Paje and Soliman assumed office in mid-2010 when Aquino took over as president.

Aquino appears to have abandoned a bill that he authored when he was a senator in 2007 limiting to thrice the reappointment of Cabinet members.

He had repeatedly reappointed Soliman, Paje, De Lima and presidential adviser on the peace process Teresita Deles.

Then senator Aquino filed Senate Bill 1719, the Appointee Ineligibility Act of 2007 seeking to empower the CA to declare as ineligible presidential nominees who fail to secure a confirmation after three hearings.

In a press release dated October 2007, then senator Aquino said President Arroyo’s “practice of reappointing her nominees regardless of the number of times these nominees have been bypassed by the CA frustrates the CA’s constitutional mandate.”

Senate Bill 1719 stated: “The President (GMA) has abused her power to appoint because of her consistent reappointment of her nominees who have been consecutively bypassed by the CA.

“In fact, a cabinet official, who had been successively bypassed for 15 times in a span of three years, of which seven took place in just one year, was re-appointed by the President, and was allowed to continue performing the functions supposedly reserved only to those qualified officials whose nominations had been confirmed by the CA. 

“Through this proposed bill, any nominee declared ineligible by the CA shall be barred from being re-appointed or appointed by the same President to any of the positions provided for under Article VII, Section 16 of the Constitution. The principle of check and balance on the executive’s appointing power will be lawfully enforced through the CA.”