The appointment of retired Supreme Court Justice Hilario Davide as presidential adviser for electoral reforms should erase the worry of career foreign service officers on the possibility that another violation of the Foreign Service Law is in the offing, involving a person they regard highly.
We say to them, at least for 60 days because that’s time given to the newly minted presidential adviser for electoral reforms to submit his recommendations to Gloria Arroyo, the president who was never elected by the Filipino people.
A DFA source said months before his retirement last December, Davide had been lobbying to be appointed permanent representative to the United Nations in New York, a position currently being held by Ambassador Lauro Baja, a retired foreign service career officer.
Although acknowledged in the DFA as a UN expert, Baja is included in the list of overstaying ambassadors in the DFA. Under the Foreign Service Law, the age cap for ambassadors is 65. There’s a school of thought that political appointees are not covered by age limit but there are others who say nobody is exempted from the law.
Foreign Affairs officials say it would add insult to injury if Davide replaces Baja because the latter is 69 years old while the former is past 70 . “You replace an oldie by an older oldie!,” they say.
If Davide gets the UN post, he would not be the first retired Supreme Court justice to be sent to the UN. Claudio Teehankee was Philippine UN permanent representative for a year in 1988.
We are not surprised by Davide’s lobbying for an appointment. He is not above that as many of his admirers may find it hard to believe. Former President Estrada revealed that businessman Lucio Tan lobbied for Davide’s appointment as Supreme Court chief justice. He said he was invited by Tan to a dinner in Sheraton Hotel where Davide was waiting.
Admirers of Davide among civil society members, who are strong on ethics among public servants, were silent on the impropriety of Davide asking the help of Tan who has pending cases before the Supreme Court.
Davide never said he wasn’t interested in another government position after his retirement. What he told reporters was, “I will defer an answer because I have not yet retired.”
He also said he was looking forward to spending more time with his family, particularly his wife, Gigi, and their 11 grandchildren. “Gigi, I’ll be back to you,” Davide said. Well, we are sure they will have a grand time in New York.
But Davide also said he was planning to become a farmer “to participate in the act of creation.”
That, he may not be able to do in New York. DFA people are not taking him seriously. “We know he lobbied for the UN job. It is being made to appear that it was offered to him. There’s a bit of hypocrisy there,” one source said.
But if Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez, former national security adviser, still has his sway on Malacañang, he would like Davide to head a body that will look more deeply on the electoral problems in the country. He said, “I urge Malacañang to create and independent Electoral Reform & Truth Commission instead (of an Office of Presidential Adviser for Electoral Reforms) and appoint Davide as chairman.”
He said the country needs a Davide Commission II (Davide Commission I, created by President Aquino, investigated the coup attempts during her administration).
Golez said the Davide Commission II should study how to reform our electoral system and start investigating the biggest election scandal in Philippine history. “If the President means what she says that she wants the truth, she should create that independent commission with power to subpoena anyone in the government.
Golez, obviously an admirer of Davide, said: “The first time a truth commission was broached last year, there were serious misgivings because no one could credibly and independently lead it. Now there is newly retired Chief Justice Davide, who has the integrity and independence to lead the way from the darkness we are in.”
The Parañaque solon further said the title of presidential adviser “is very demeaning” to Davide. “He will just be one of many subordinate presidential advisers in Malacañang.”
Our beef with Davide’s new appointment is that it diverts the public’s attention from the basic issue that Arroyo cheated in the 2004 elections. We seriously doubt if Davide’s new office will address that.
(Davide photo above from Wikipedia)
Well, Ma’m Ellen..you hit it right again…”diverting attention(s)”…that’s what the “Evil Empire” had been doing all along…everytime they would do something para lalo pa nilang “mapalakas ang kapit” sa kapangyarihan at “pagsasamantala” sa ating bansa, they always come out with these “sub-plots”…wala yang inilayo sa mga teleserye ng TFC. Para pahabain ang isang teleserye, pinapasukan nila ito ng mga bagong “twist” sa istorya, yun nga yung “sub-plots”, resulta…humahaba yung “palabas”, let’s say if that particular “teleserye” was originally planned to be shown for a couple of months only, they can make it last for even four or five months.
So right now, this present “administration” is surviving by “creating other top-news story” to divert the attention of the “discontent, disgruntled, suffering, (the list can go on), unhappy” people, in order for them to PROLONG their “existence”. GMA ang her “groupies” are all SMART, before they make any “move”, they’ve already “brainstormed” about it much-much ahead of time prior to “making the moves”, they’ve “played and analysed” all the “possible scenarios”. Kaya nga lang, no matter how great their “planning and analysis” there is always one big “wildcard in the equation”, na kahit kailan ay hindi nila kayang “kontrolin”…and that’s GOD’s WILL.
Ellen,
Imagine it is the second to the last day of GMA…who is there around her?
If I were Mr. Davide, I’d love the UN post a million times more than sticking around on a Sinking Ship to man the Bingo Table of Elections. In America, he would safely reap a retired Chief Justice’s easy retirement in the glorious Rome of the Modern World that is New York. Why stay here in the dark and dank of the Peloponessus with these Godless barbarians, when already there awaits the delicious cocktail circuits and lecture tours of the Continental Diplomatic Corps? Who needs a barong, when tuxedos are de rigeur at such affaires? Unfortunately for him, I think he has to be there on the Last Day of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, just as he was there on the First Day. He can’t leave just as yet, is my guess, because he is much needed as a CONSIGLIERE in certain crucial cases this year. He won’t be allowed to go to an American Retiree’s Paradise in the Big Apple. Who does he think he works for, Osama Bin Laden? uh uh. You stay here and help with this Gordian Knot caused by Gloriagate. You stay and explain this Lorenzo Tanada. I think Davide is “essential personnel.”
It’s Barong Tagalog time and Electora Reforms or yeah, he can be a farmer.
27 January 2006
TEKA, TEKA, TEKA!!!!(parang narining ko na yun a.What is the DFA doing about this, are they trying to sit on their asses, while the LEPRECHAUN by the pasig river is destroying the foreign service???tsk,tsk.tsk, I pity the DFAS tapunan na lang ba ang DFA???, Is there somebody from the DFA who courageous enough to twart this???maybe its about time that they wake up from the horror of their nightmare. Davide, pls stop insulting the foreign service corps, if you still have and understand the word DELICADEZA. Its enough that the leprechaun has damaged that noble institution.
jinx
As much as we don’t like “oldies” to be appointed to plum positions just like appointing retired generals to juicy government jobs, there’s nothing really that we can do except to voice out our dissent. Writing blogs and commenting on others is one way, but are they really effective? I guess not. It might be that nobody in the sitting administration takes a hoot on what we say.
But of course, we need not stop what we’re doing. In due time, our voices will be heard.
–“A DFA source said months before his retirement last December, Davide had been lobbying to be appointed permanent representative to the United Nations in New York…”
Who is this “DFA source”?
By the way, if Arroyo “cheated,” who legalized it?
Or who “proclaimed elected” Arroyo?
Ellen,
Hah! Davide wants to be out of the country when the situation becomes untenable.
Wily, smart but warped cookie this chief justice crook is!
The Filipinos in the US should lobby now against this brewing nomination in the UN…mustn”t do it at the last minute (employ Gloria’s favorite pre-emptive calibrated strike policy!)
No other way to do it. Feed Davide’s qualification papers to a shredder in UN hqs.
I’m reprinting here the letter of Amb. Hermie Cruz to my fellow Malaya columnist, Ducky Paredes, who had also written earlier about Davide’s lobbying for the UN position:
Ipadala na lang si DAVIDE sa IRAQ o san man may giyera…
He’s a CROOK Chief Justice, he’s responsible for the
CRISIS named “GLORIA”
If Davide gets the UN post he will collect a big payoff.
He will get at least about $30,000 per month, representing
$20,000 free housing ( rental of Consul General Cecile
Rebong in New York ), plus at least $10,000 a month in
salary and allowances. That translates to $30 K per month or $360,000 per year. If GMA stays on until 2010 that means four years in New York for Davide. The total amount he will collect will be almost $1.5 million or Php 75,000,000 way beyond the plunder limit of Php 50 million.
The problem when you look at these figures is how many of our nationals will not conclude that GMA and Davide did not
concoct the “constructive resignation” doctrine to oust
Erap? The credibility of the GMA administration is so low
that people will not give it the benefit of the doubt.
Malakas talaga ang apog ni Hilarious Davide. Imagined he asked Lucio Tan to convince Erap to appoimt him as Supreme Court chief justice. In return he betrayed him. I believe there was a conspiracy between Davide and Gloria Arroyo in ousting Erap.
I have a friend herein New York City who e is from Mandaue City, Cebu. He said Davide is an oppurtunist. Can we expect fairness and just decision from the Supreme Court. I doubt it because majority of justices are tainted and tuta of Gloria.
As long Gloria Arroyo is in Malacanang, lying, cheating and thieving will rule in her administration.
Who is this “DFA source”?
Unmask this “DFA source” so that Davide can be given the opportunity to confront the allegations.
Freedom of speech is the freedom to destroy the reputation of others–in this case, a CEBUANO.
The “DFA source,” I’m sure, is a TAGALOG.
We protect our sources.That’s basic in journalism. If it’s not true, all Davide has to do is categorically deny that he is interested to be appointed to the UN job.
Ellen,
You made a good point. A lot of the problems of our country
will be solved outright if only some officials display self
restraint and a sense of patriotism. Our present crisis will end abruptly if only GMA will resign. The majority of
our citizens have repeatedly shown that they want her out.
It is the same with Davide. He can come out with a statement that he is not aspiring for the UN job and will not accept it under any circumstances. Had GMA turned out to be a good president, Davide’s doctrine of “constructive resignation” to get rid of Erap would have been hailed as
a milestone in jurisprudence.
However, GMA turned out to be a lemon president. Thus
Davide’s “constructive resignation” will forever be associated with failure. A lot of our countrymen now I am
sure are blaming Davide for the GMA fiasco. In their eyes
he should not be rewarded with a choice assignment like the
UN job. And if Davide, nonetheless, takes the UN job, this will lead to the inevitable conclusion that GMA is a master dealer who dealt two crooked hands to gain the presidency. EDSA II was the product of a GMA-Davide deal and Election 2004 was the product of a GMA-Carci deal.
The Davide doctrine of “constructive resignation ” went too far and re-wrote the established doctrine for resignations.
It will create chaos and confusion if it is applied to all
civil servants. Until the Davide doctrine, resignations
are governed by two rules :
a) They must be in writing for all permanent positions
( this includes the position of president ); and
b) They must be explicit and cannot be done by inference.
“Constructive resignation” threw these two principles aside. To illustrate the confusion this doctrine will create, if the head of an agency in a moment of exasperation
states : “I am fed up, I am quitting!” under the Davide
doctrine that will be enough to cause the separation from the service of the head of agency, more so if somebody in his office took down notes and put it in his diary.
The agency head’s formal letter of resignation is no longer required.
For this reason I have reservations if this approach will be accepted as the rule on resignations in our civil service.
The other observation I wish to make here is why they used “constructive resignation” in the Erap case. They may have rested their position on more solid grounds if they had
invoked “abandonment of office” in getting rid of Erap.
Abandonment of office could be implied. A government
employee may have his family residing abroad and holding green cards. If the employee applies for a prolonged leave
of absence and himself applies for a green card, it may be
reasonable to infer under the circumstances that he has
abandoned his job. His getting permanent residence in another country could be a hindrance to his performing his duties as a public servant.
Excerpts from Randy David’s column (Philippine Daily Inquirer, Jan. 29, 2006)
Randy put it best when he said: “At worst, it (position of political adviser) serves as a mechanism for political payback, a halfway station for favored individuals on their way to better destinations.”
Even if Davide denies what the “DFA source” whispered to the author, his denial is NOT what you and others want to hear.
Pity Cebuano Davide, he should have been born Tagalog who are PATRIOTS.
Domingo ARONG…it seems like you’re to “defensive”, this is not a question of our “regionality”…we are all FILIPINOS, even those kababayans of us who are already holding American, British, etc. etc. passports, they are still calling themselves FILIPINOS, the way you are “talking” (should I say writing), you are “echoing” what this BOGUS PRISIDINTI of yours is always saying…”that CEBU gave her the BIGGEST margin in the last ELECTION”… I am a LABRA, I am half-CEBUANO(VISAYA), but I would never separate myself from my true NATIONALITY…that of a FILIPINO. You see, when we all go out of our country, as the Philippine’s number EXPORT (OFWs), no matter if you’re a PANGGASINENSE, PAMPANGGUENYO, ILOCANO, TAGALOG, VISAYA…etc. etc., the people of the country where we would arrive would only address us as…”Hey, you…filipino”….shame on you to say…” been born Tagalog who are PATRIOTS”…even those Goin’ Bulilit kids knows that LAPU-LAPU is a PATRIOT…and he’s A CEBUANO by today’s GEOGRAPHY.
Hindi pwedeng pang-tapat si GMA sa mga tulad nina Yudhoyono, Thaksin, Lee Hsien Loong, Chen Shui Bian, Badawi at ibapa.
At ang isa sa masakit nito sa mga Cebuano ay marami na sa kanila ang nagco-convert sa Islam.
Si Davide ang panapat sa mga lider na nabanggit ko sa itaas “thru UN post”
The difference between Davide and Dagohoy
D-A-V-I-D-E = 6
D-A-G-O-H-O-Y = 7
Dagohoy conquered Bohol
Davide conquered “PINOY JUSTICE SYSTEM”
“dilikadisa” no more
You miss my point, Spartan.
Davide, like all Cebuanos, can very well defend himself…if he gets to know his accuser, an accuser that does not hide under the mantle of “journalism.”
I’m one of the few Cebuanos, by the way, who did not vote for Arroyo. I voted for Roco, an upright Bicolano who was not an actor.
If Cebu gave Arroyo, and to quote, “her biggest margin in the last election,” and, premised on that statement, you call her “BOGUS PRISIDINTI”; then, the implication is that the Cebuanos, NOT Arroyo, did (or permitted) the “cheating” that allowed Arroyo to win.
There seems to be no other implication from you statements.
Yet, it was Congress, NOT Cebuanos, who “proclaimed elected” Arroyo.
Congress under the Constitution is tasked “upon determination of the authenticity and due execution” of the Certificates of Canvas to “canvass the votes” and “the person having the highest number of votes shall be proclaimed elected.”
So, if there is one institution to blame for their glaring negligence in the lingering blame-game, it is Congress who “proclaimed elected” what you now call as a “BOGUS PRISIDINTI,” not the Cebuanos for having voted overwhelmingly for Arroyo (I, to repeat, was not one of them).
Congress should “withdraw” that proclamation of a “BOGUS PRESIDINTI.”
The power to proclaim obviously carries with it the power to withdraw or rescind that proclamation.
But another democratic assumoption to confront is the “tyranny” of the MAJORITY.
Shall we now do away with the “Rule of the Majority” too?
Meanwhile, let us wait for the results of the PET regarding the Legarda protest questioning the Cebu elections.
But my point regarding the Torrevillas column was the identity of the “DFA source.”
If, as claimed, protecting the “DFA source” is basic to the tenents of journalism, I have no quarrel with that assumption. I am not a journalist, but I have bought and read all the books of Alexander Meiklejohn on free speech.
But Tordesillas will agree with me, there are other equally basic assumptions.
Confrontation of an accuser is also fundamental to a civilized society. For this allows the accuser the opportunity to point the finger and the accused to reply–to deny or admit.
Without knowing if that “DFA source” really exists, this will not stop those, like me a Cebuano who regards Davide highly, to think that this might just be one of the usual politically-motivated “spin.”
And this will not stop me from thinking that the column was malicious and intended to destroy Davide’s reputation for being Arroyo’s “friend.”
It usually goes like this: Arroyo is my enemy; Arroyo’s “friend” also becomes my enemy. Davide is Arroyo’s “friend”; Davide must be demolished.
Also, this will not stop me from voicing the perception of Cebuanos, like me, that there is more to what the reference to a nameless “DFA source” imparts.
I am also a Filipino, like you, Spartan. But to Cebuanos, the perception is that Tagalogs consider Cebuanos as their “maids.” Watch how these “tagalog” TV shows mock and belittle Cebuanos, who are usually portrayed as the ignorant, ugly “maid,” the same Cebuano-speaking “maid” they have in the house
To Tagalogs, it is unthinkable that a Cebuano, like Davide, can rise up to the stature of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Imperial Manila.
If federalism remains to be a dream anong PROMDIS, Cebuanos should unfurl the flag of the Republic of Sugbu, the republic of cebuano-speaking Filipinos.
This is the flag that Cebuanos wanted to unfurl in 1978 during the height of Martial Rule, had the 13 PUSYON BISAYA candidates for members of the Batasang Pambansa in Region VII (Davide was one of them)–who swept (13-0) the 1978 elections against TRAPOS and Marcos tutas–were not declared the winners or were not allowed to take their seats.
I am now 63, Spartan. I was there as founder (not as AMBASSADOR) of ANG MGA KALIWAT NI LAPU-LAPU, having been born in Barangay Baring, Island of Santa Rosa, municipality of Opon, now City of Lapu-Lapu.
In 1987, I retired from active political activity after seeing the “dawn” in 1986.
How old were you, Spartan (or your father), in 1978?
Shame also on you, who claims to be a half-breed Cebuano but thinks and acts like the Tagalogs in this blog.
CEBUANO’s should draw the line between being pro-western and “partido japayuki”
I heard that a lot of japayuki are Cebuana descent
nagsasabi lang ako ng totoo
Pugak, Cebuanos need not draw any line that does not exist between “pro-western” or “partido japayuki.”
But there are also “pam-pams” in the journalism marketpalce.
Truth is Cebuanos are the “maids” of Tagalogs.
So, how can the brain of a “maid” become the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Imperial Manila of the Tagalogs?
Ellen,
The tirades above show why the Philippines find it difficult to progress.
Should a Filipino’s citizenship quality or class make a difference if that person hails from Batanes or Tawi-Tawi?
In times of adversity, shouldn’t Filipinos be just Filipinos, regardless of island origin?
Ambassador Cruz,
Re: Potential Davide’s $360,000 per year earnings as ambassador to UN.
Wow! That’s a very handsome payoff. I guess, his children will get staff positions too. After luciously having milked and gotten very rich ‘serving’ the Judicial Fund, what better way for them and their families than to cap it all by having a good time in New York?
Question: But if Davide is mandatorily retired by law from government service, why is he allowed to work for government again?
I don’t like Davide, never did and never will. When he allowed the Joker Arroyo-led (the name Arroyo in politics seems to be a curse on the Philippines) impeachment advocates to walk out of the Erap impeachment trial and not called them back to order to be able to legally, formally finish the trial, he had allowed himself to become a witting tool and one of the proponents for mob rule.
The events that followed confirmed that the man is utterly corrupt.
A Supreme Court Justice who has no delicadeza should be fired and when he circumvents the rule of law, he should be hanged.
Davide should be hanged twice because he was the Supreme Court Chief (In)Justice. And Gloria Macapagal alongside him.
a de brux,
I guess this Arong is in the wrong “country”…he should have been living in places like those African countries or Bosnia-Herzegovina where “division” among the nationals are base on their so-called “ethnicity”, that’s why they are much into “ethnic cleansing”…I for one have never had a Visayan maid…I was raised by our “ilokana kasambahay”…but the late Ferdinand Marcos, whom even if a lot of us would hate to admit was one “brilliant” president. We should not “make use of our regionality” as a defense for the bad actions and decisions of our “political figures and leaders”.
True Spartan, me too during my childhood days I never boast to my friends and neighbors that we have a “katulong”,”tsimay”,chimi-ahah and alike.
I used to treat them as ‘kasama sa bahay’.
People like Arong should be categorized as Kpelle of South East Asia
Totoo naman talaga kapag nakakita ka ng Pinay sa Japan at tanungin mo: “Saan ka sa Manila?”
sasagutin ka nang, “Hindi ako taga Manela, Seboana ako!”
Spartan and Pugak. Sorry, I could not reply immediately, since I do not own a computer.
Most Cebuanos like me, unlike Tagalos, are POOR.
I have to go (walk, I don’t own a car, never did) to the house of my daughter (my youngest) and wait until she permits me to use her computer for not over 2 hours.
Anyway, the better tag is–“You can’t go wrong with Arong.”
Tagalog “pam-pams” also say it uniquely this way:
Papsiiikiiil, traysiiikiiiil, eeeegiiiil.
But, too late, you can oust Arroyo if you want.
Cebuanos will be exteremely grateful if you get to.
We will thank you for ousting the beloved President of the Tagalogs, Arroyo.
A coup to remove Arroyo will give Cebuanos a very good reason to leave the chaos of Imperial Manila.
A coup will also be the sought-after justification to finally get to raise our own flag (I still have that 1978 Republic of Sugbu Flag, by the way).
In fact, Cebuanos are prepared to secede now, even with Arroyo remaining to be your “loving” President.
Long Live REPUBLIC OF SUGBU!!!!
LONG LIVE BOHOL REPUBLIC!!!
NO TO CEBUANIZATION OF VISAYAS AND MINDANAO!!!
NEGRENSE, PANAYNON, SAMARNON, LEYTENON, MINDANAOAN AND ALL THE PEOPLE FROM VISAYAS AND MINDANAO SHOULD RESIST “IMPERIAL CEBU” DOMINATION OF OUR SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL LIVES!!!
Go ahead.
We don’t need you.
Cebuano “maids” in “Imperial Cebu” can do it without ALL of you.
Hindi lang Cebuano “maids”
Isama mo na pati ang mga japayuki na “karamihan sa kanila” ay mga CEBUANO
Hindi ka ba kinikilabutan sa mga “KALAPATING MABABA ANG LIPAD”?
Hahahaha!
And you people wonder why we haven’t progressed! Shame on you guys for your myopic regionalism!
Kung gusto niyo ng away, Civil War nalang tayo! Tutal, ang ma-macho nating lahat eh bakit pa tayo nag-uusap?
Ma’am Ellen, I propose you close off this blog before it further deteriorates into more meaningless regionalistic diatribes that will only further exacerbate our problem of lack of national unity. (And that’s regardless of WHO sits in Malacanang)
If ya ain’t being part of the solution, then shut your traps people.
so are you REady to eat some crow now, domingoarong?
It appears that foreign service is a junk yard for senile political appointees. There an age limit for ambassador under Foreign Service Act of 1991. The age cap for ambassadors is 65. Former Supreme Court Justice Hilario Davide is 70 years old. Last year the Commission on Appointments rejected the confirmation of 77 years old veteran journalist Amando Doronilla as ambassador to Brussels, Belgium. It would be rough sailing for U.N. ambassador designate Hilario Davide in the Commission on Appointments.
But who respects the Foreign Service Act inthe administration of Gloria Arroyo?
Davide’s UN appointment unmasked him as an opportunist.