Working together

Presumably, the amendment of EO 15 would follow if Mrs. Robredo accepts the challenge to help solve the country’s illegal drugs problem.

It’s now official. Vice President Leni Robredo will be back to the folds of the Cabinet team of President Rodrigo Duterte. That is, if the Vice President accepts her new appointment. 

As of this writing, VP Robredo has yet to inform Malacañang whether she accepts or not her new designation to this special body overseeing the conduct of the government’s all out war against the illegal drugs trade in our country. President Duterte designated the Vice President as co-chairperson of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs, or ICAD.

In a memorandum, President Duterte gave the Vice President a Cabinet rank position as co-chairperson of the ICAD until the end of his administration on June 30, 2022, “unless sooner revoked.”

Ironically, the Vice President will serve as co-chairperson of Philippine Drugs Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino who, just last Monday, denigrated Robredo’s capability to lead the anti-drug campaign. Aquino had to eat the humble pie yesterday and had to welcome the President’s designation of Mrs. Robredo as his co-chairperson of the ICAD.

Created through Executive Order (EO) 15 issued in March 2017, the PDEA chief was originally the designated chairperson of the ICAD.“The PDEA, as Chairperson of the ICAD, shall have the overall responsibility to ensure that the objectives of the ICAD and the clusters herein created are accomplished,” Section 1 of EO 15 stated. It is not clear yet if President Duterte would amend EO 15 to officially accommodate the new position he created for the Vice President.

Presumably, the amendment of EO 15 would follow if Mrs. Robredo accepts the challenge to help solve the country’s illegal drugs problem. 

The offered assignment to the Vice President is contained in a memorandum addressed to Robredo and the respective Cabinet officials and heads of the 20 government agencies that compose the ICAD. It was signed by President Duterte on Oct. 31 but Malacañang Palace released it only yesterday.

For this purpose, the President instructed the PDEA, Philippine National Police (PNP), Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) and all other law enforcement agencies to extend their “full assistance and cooperation” to Vice President Robredo to “ensure the success of the government’s efforts in the war against illegal drugs.”

On the same day the presidential memo came out, a separate transmittal letter addressed to the Vice President was sent to her by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.

At least the Vice President this time was given formality unlike the unceremonious way she was removed from the Duterte Cabinet as the head of the now defunct Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC). Then Cabinet Secretary Jun Evasco informed the Vice President in a text message to her “to desist from attending all Cabinet meetings” effective Dec. 5, 2016.

The official designation of Robredo came three days after the President first publicly offered to his estranged Vice President a chance to prove the better way of solving the illegal drugs problem in the Philippines.

In his usual extemporaneous remarks after the oath-taking rites held last Oct. 31 at the Palace, President Duterte made this offer with obvious exasperation over the criticisms attributed to the Vice President saying the anti-drug campaign of the administration was not working.

The presidential pique obviously stems from a number of human rights violation complaints. President Duterte has been accused before the International Court of Justice over alleged extra-judicial killings (EJKs) of suspected drug users and peddlers slain in anti-drug operations by law enforcers purportedly with his tacit go-signal.

 While he was running for President in the May 2016 elections, the former Davao City Mayor promised to solve the country’s problems on illegal drugs in six months. But after six months of serving the Presidency, the Chief Executive admitted having underestimated the extent of the drug menace that it needs more time to deliver this promise. This was why, initially, the President offered Mrs. Robredo to be designated as anti-drug czar for six months.

The presidential pique was perhaps toned down after the Vice President herself subsequently came out in media to clarify the statements attributed to her. She claimed being misquoted by the Reuters interview.

During her regular radio program over DZXL, the Vice President clarified she is not totally against President Duterte’s drug war but urged the administration to “tweak” what is no longer effective in its campaign. “What I said in my interview (with Reuters) was that the government should assess if the strategy they are using is still effective,” Robredo explained. “Because if it’s already improper, we need to tweak it. Tweak means to change slightly,” she added.

But the international wire agency Reuters issued their own statement and stood by their story on the Vice President.

At this point, Mrs. Robredo seemed not keen on taking the anti-drug job when this was first offered to her publicly by the President. She told reporters last week that the President does not have to delegate the job if the administration’s anti-narcotics campaign was successful.

Her official spokesman Barry Gutierrez confirmed the Office of the Vice President received yesterday the Palace memorandum to Mrs. Robredo. But as to whether she will accept it or not, Gutierrez disclosed the Vice President will give her reply today. Up to this point, Gutierrez echoed skepticism of the opposition camp headed by Mrs. Robredo if the offered designation for the Vice President is genuine or not.

The Vice President, being the second highest elected official of the government, will serve – like President Duterte – a term ending on June 30, 2022. It would do well for the Filipino people if the top leaders of our country work together, not work against each other for the remaining three years of their term in office.