All the boxes

The Marcos team is coming together nicely. Public attention to the economic cluster is understandable, given the national rebuilding forced upon us by the pandemic. But even line or staff appointments to the departments handling political and social development have been predominantly satisfactory.

The outgoing administration was unapologetically Jacksonian in allocating positions, valuing loyalty as its first criterion. In contrast, the model of best and brightest has clearly inspired president-elect BBM’s selections. His message of unity and of not dwelling on the past is also immediately seen in the complexion of his “hybrid” Cabinet. Continuing the metaphor of his marriage to 31 million, we see the elements of something borrowed, blue, old and new.

But not of rivals, just yet. If the electoral contest had been more cardiac than it actually was, then coopting the worthy from across the fence would be a fantastic idea. After all, unity is a recurring and universal theme. The privilege of representation, however, is better if deserved. And not just symbolically but also in recognition of the numbers. Had it been a photo finish, then whoever nosed through at the end could defer to the voice of the other half of a divided people.

To be sure, the total runner-up votes would have been enough in ordinary times to elect a president. But BBM’s victory with a margin of twice that number amounts to a conclusive and emphatic public acclamation serving also as imprimatur for the president’s choice of his own men.

Interestingly, however caustic the campaign was, the vitriol was largely one sided. Gratuitous attacks disproportionately targeted the leading candidate. None emanated from president-elect BBM nor did he return the vituperation. Still, magnanimity should be easy. But the resistance may be felt more from the ranks of the defeated rather than from those victorious.

The Shepherd. Inevitably, these Cabinet members, especially the veterans, will become power centers. But the reality is that the primus inter pares position of Executive Secretary (ES) will be acknowledged. We have yet to publicly see how that relationship between Atty. Vic Rodriguez and the department secretaries will play out. Reports have it, though, that the ES has earned the respect and deference of the team.

As between him and his principal, however, we’ve witnessed during the last two campaigns the esteem in which he is held by the president-elect. Unlike the two previous position holders whose appointments surprised us, the nation expected Atty. Rodriguez to essay the role he had played de facto, apart from being spokesman when called upon in the past. This speaks to the trust and confidence reposed upon him. He has pawned blood, sweat and tears through the difficult years. Theirs was not a partnership where, as has happened with other administrations, the Boss would have to speak up for him in a reversal of roles.

The people’s department. In Congress, the House has managed to mirror the overwhelming majority of the president-elect’s win in the unanimous choice of Ferdinand Martin Romualdez (FMR) to lead them. He will not be the first Speaker Romualdez. His distant uncle, Nacionalista party stalwart Daniel, was the first back in 1958 to 1962. Speaker FMR is eminently qualified as veteran congressman and majority leader. He brings vast experience in navigating the uneasy path between separation and check.

As of press time, Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon has been announced as ascending to the position of third in the line of succession. His selection as Senate president will reinforce the Mindanawon contingent in the geographical distribution of the first five. President-elect BBM is from Luzon (Ilocos Norte) as is Chief Justice Alex Gesmundo (Laguna); vice president-elect Sara Duterte from Davao; Speaker FMR from Leyte.

The incoming Senate president trod the same path as Speaker FMR as he also served as Majority Leader previously. Unlike in the US or Phl of old with a two-party system, under the present multiparty scenario, it’s not party lines or platforms at the root of majorities. Rather, it’s the common interest to secure what each one can get. Win-win rather than zero-sum. Erstwhile aspirant Senator Cynthia Villar belongs, as he, to the coalition supporting the president-elect.

There is no set formula on how to get there. There is the more democratic consensus choice, based on seniority and leadership as in Senate President Tito Sotto’s route. Certainly, there is always the element of possible intervention from Malacañang. Senate president Koko Pimentel famously secured his position on the back of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s support.

Independent republic. For Senator Imee Marcos, that kind of intervention would be improper. Even Senator Zubiri felt compelled to speak out for independence. Hence, we see the optic of president-elect BBM in a working meeting with his former colleagues purportedly on legislative agenda rather than it being a coronation of the only candidate in the table.

Re: independence, 2019’s neophyte senators should, by now, realize that their interests coincide with those of the institution. The coattails on which they rode is no longer around. Of the 2022 batch, only two are newcomers to Congress. The great majority are veteran. This bodes well for the Senate’s bulwark image.

They are heirs to the chamber’s long tradition of independence. As when, among others, senators rejected the 1991 US bases treaty; clashed with each other on the Estrada and Corona impeachments; elevated their case against EO 464 in Senate v. Ermita; fulminated against the unilateral termination of the VFA by PRRD and, recently, challenged the EO forbidding attendance at the Pharmally hearings.

The very quality that vests them with the raiment of popular approval is that independence. But it is independence and never obstruction. It’s the working together and this is also the metaphorical meaning of the choice of inaugural venue. The National Museum is not only the old Legislative Building where Ferdinand Marcos Sr. once served as Senate president, it also hosted the inaugurals of presidents Manuel L. Quezon, Jose P. Laurel and Manuel A. Roxas. All were members of the Legislative department before they became Chief Executive.