Shortly after President Noynoy Aquino assumed office, I could not help but use the acronyms that people much younger than I am use when communicating. OMG. WTF. President Aquino had appointed to various government positions old faces from the Arroyo administration, people not exactly known for their exemplary performance in government.
He also appointed people who were not exactly known for their brilliance to important government positions that required that quality for their offices to be effective. Figuring out why he did so was easy. Ties of friendship to the right people or membership in the “in” fraternity seemed to explain those choices. My only hope was that the payment of the political debts that President Aquino felt he incurred during the campaign period would not result in too much damage to his declared “real bosses”–us, the people.
I don’t regret having voted for President Aquino. As my friend pointed out, it could have been worse had someone else won. What is apparent at this time is that there is a lot of room for improvement and that the earlier President Aquino learns what these areas are, the better for all of us. The most obvious would be to appoint Secretary Jesse Robredo as Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and not just in an acting capacity.
It’s been a while since we had anyone as idealistic and dynamic as Secretary Robredo in a department identified with traditional politicians and the status quo. Secretary Robredo has the necessary educational qualification for the job, including a masters degree in business administration from the University of the Philippines and one in public administration from Harvard University.
For his transformation of Naga City during his term as mayor, he has reaped a lot of awards, including the Ramon Magsaysay Award for government service. He is also in the shortlist for the 2010 World Mayor Prize. Not surprisingly, people who see him as a potential rival in the Bicol region (or even for a national position) would be interested in ensuring that he is out of the limelight. There are also news articles alleging that he is being eased out because of his opposition to jueteng.
Most importantly, having Secretary Robredo at the helm of the DILG means that President Aquino’s campaign promise to end corruption would have a better chance of succeeding. On 31 August 2010, Secretary Robredo issued DILG Memorandum Circular No. 2010-03 requiring governors and mayors to post in public places, local media, and their websites their LGU’s 2010 Annual Budgets, Quarterly Statement of Cash Flows, 2009 Statement of Receipts and Expenditures, 2010 Trust Fund Utilization, 2010 Special Education Fund Utilization, 2010 IRA Utilization, 2010 Gender and Development Fund Utilization, 2010 Statement of Debt Service, 2010 Annual Procurement Plan or Procurement List, Items to Bid, Bid Results, and Abstracts of Bids.
This enumeration means that it would be easier for us, the real bosses, to know how our money is being spent by the people we picked to be our public servants. It is not too difficult to understand why others would rather that we did not have this information.
The 2010 presidential campaign convinced me that many of us still have not lost hope in the Philippines and that most of us continue to see the value of participating in its democratic processes by campaigning and voting. Regardless of whether or not our candidate won, we can continue to do so by making ourselves heard. If we don’t like the way President Aquino is running things, we should complain, loudly. If we can suggest a solution, it would be even better.
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Email: kay.malilong@gmail.com