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Saturday, October 01, 2005
That’s what Glo calls it, as allies oppose EO 464
More national and local leaders voiced their objection to President Arroyo’s gag order.
Cebu City Reps. Raul del Mar (north district) and Antonio Cuenco (south district) said they will oppose the President’s Executive Order (EO) 464 if this will be used to prevent government officials from giving their testimonies during congressional hearings.
“It’s definitely not in order if the President uses the order to prevent government officials from appearing in the hearings. Our right to request for their presence cannot be denied,” del Mar told Sun.Star Cebu in a phone interview yesterday.
In a “mass for truth” assembly held at the Miriam College in Quezon City, former president Corazon Aquino also said she wondered why people who were giving information that “would lead to the truth behind the alleged cheating in last year’s elections were prevented by the present government.”
She said EO 464 blocks all avenues for the truth, which many Filipino people are seeking. She clarified that she is not against the President but she only wants the truth to come out.
Aquino said she will continue to join anti-Arroyo protests until the President steps down from her post. The former president said a signature campaign for the resignation of Arroyo is now going on.
Politics
The Counsel for the Defense of Liberties (Codal) also said EO 464 “is unconstitutional and illegal.” It said the President committed another culpable violation of the 1987 Constitution when she issued EO 464.
But in a speech to families of military veterans, President Arroyo defended her stance of banning executive officials from appearing at Senate investigations, saying these were “inquiries in aid of destabilization.”
“I put my foot down for the sake of the people. For the sake of enabling the government to work rather than be disabled by the politics of insult,” Arroyo said, amid a looming confrontation with the Senate, which has launched numerous probes into her government.
She charged that the investigations were part of a continued effort to undermine her government, following the quashing of an impeachment complaint in Congress on Sept. 6 and the failure of opposition attempts to organize huge street protests against her.
“They didn’t succeed in the impeachment, they did not succeed in the streets...now they are bringing their battleground to the Senate,” she said.
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña supports the President’s move because she has the right to protect her administration from harassment by the Senate.
“I’m losing my respect for them,” he said of the Senate.
The mayor, however, clarified that he was referring to Sens. Joker Arroyo and Franklin Drilon, after a reporter asked him if it included his brother Sen. Sergio “Serge” Osmeña III.
Propaganda
Osmeña said the Senate’s refusal to discuss the matter in an executive session instead of a hearing shows the senators are not interested in finding out the truth, “but in building up a propaganda image that this administration should go down.”
Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas also thinks President Arroyo did not abuse her authority when she issued EO 464.
“I am under the discipline of the chief executive, an alter ego of the President, and if the President thinks I should ask for permission, I will,” she said.
Sto. Tomas said EO 464 “is a welcome relief to the government officials because it would give them enough time to be prepared once they are called for a public hearing.”
She said the President has been trying to shield them from aggravating circumstances like what happened to National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales, who suffered a hypertensive attack after intense questioning by the senators on the lobbying contract with the US-based Venable LLP.
Gray area
In a phone interview, Congressman Cuenco said the Lower House is not bothered by the President’s gag order, but Arroyo should also clarify the limits of EO 464.
“She did not say who among the officials should seek her permission, there’s a gray area there. If she requires everybody, including the military and police, we don’t think this is justified in any circumstance,” he said.
In Malacañang, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said those covered by the executive order are senior officials of the executive departments, military officials and flag officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, key Philippine National Police officials, and other officials, as determined by the President.
“It’s an executive privilege,” Bunye said, by way of dismissing criticisms of the executive order.
He pointed out that people who testify before these investigations as resource persons usually end up being “persecuted as though they are guilty of unsubstantiated charges.” <>b>(Sunnex)/LCR)
(October 1, 2005 issue)
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