Senate President Franklin M. Drilon, concurrent CA chairman, also announced that the CA’s local government committee would hold its last committee hearing on the fitness of Angelo Reyes to become the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary and decide to reject or bypass him. The Commission just held its 13th plenary session in the current first regular session of the 13th Congress.
The CA, with 13 senators and 12 congressmen as members, holds its last plenary session on June 8, a Wednesday, before it adjourns. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives adjourn sine die on June 10.
During the last plenary session, a Commission member can no longer invoke Section 20 of the CA rules to block the confirmation of a nominee. Once invoked during regular sessions of the CA, the commission is mandated to stop temporarily the confirmation of a nominee.
Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, chairperson of the CA foreign relations committee, said the nomination of Ambassador Lilia Bautista was temporarily kept on hold with the consent of Bautista herself and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Bautista was nominated as Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Belgium, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Commission of the European Communities, and the Council of the European Union. She carries the appointment of chief of mission, class II.
The CA gave its consent to the nominations of Teresita G. Barsana, Estrella A. Berenguel, and Bayani B. Mangibin.
Barsana, named chief of mission, class II, is the new Philippine ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Federative Republic of Brazil with concurrent jurisdiction over the Republic of Colombia, the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, and the Republic of Surinam.
Berenguel, named chief of mission class I, is the Philippine ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Mangibin, named chief of mission, class II, is the Philippine ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, with concurrent jurisdiction over the Republic of Algeria, the Republic of Chad, the Republic of Mali, the Republic of Malta, the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, the Republic of Niger, and the Tunisian Republic.
Confirmed as foreign service officer, class I were Ma. Josefina V. Ceballos, Ma. Agnes M. Cervantes, Giovanni E. Palec, Jose V. Arizabal, and Wenceslao Jose O. Quirolgico.
Confirmed as foreign service officer, class II were Igor G. Bailen, Maria Fe. T. Pangilinan, Alejandro V. Vicente, Pedro O. Chan, and Leoncio R. Cardenas Jr.
The submission by Franklin M. Ebdalin, DFA undersecretary for administration, of certificates of clearance from financial accountabilities of Mangibin, Chan and Cardenas prompted Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile (Ind.) to withdraw his objection to their confirmation.
Enrile had stressed that those with unliquidated cash advances must first settle their accountabilities before their appointment or nomination would be acted upon.
Opposition Sen. Sergio Osmeña III has been hammering at the alleged questionable administrative capability of Reyes to head the DILG, including his past position as secretary of the Department of National Defense.
Osmeña said Reyes failed to oversee the military establishment when alleged unexplained wealth charges were filed lodged against g generals, particularly those in the comptrollership post.
The CA secretariat gave Osmeña a 7,000- page audit report of the Commission on Appointments (CA) covering the disbursement of millions of pesos for the on-going Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) modernization program and the "questionable" travels of Reyes and his wife.
Osmeña said he would devote his time in going over the COA report as the CA local government committee undertakes its last inquiry on Wednesday. He said he wanted to check on alleged overpricing of some projects covered by the AFP modernization program.
