1. The Presidential Legislative Office (PLLO) that you head as presidential assistant on legislative affairs is different from Ledac or the Legislative-Executive Development Council. And yet don’t their functions overlap -- both are “consultative and advisory bodies to the president for programs and policies” that are essential to national development -- as House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez cited last Feb. 13? Tell us why PLLO is still needed despite Ledac.
PLLO is very much different from Ledac. It was created by two 1987 memorandum orders during then president Corazon Aquino’s term.
Most of its functions deal with advising the president on legislation and executive-legislative relationship. But it also handles tasks promoting the president’s legislative agenda, seeing to the confirmation of presidential appointees to the Cabinet, coordinating with government for the administration’s legislative proposals with existing programs -- and a lot more than dealing with the legislature.
Ledac, on the other hand, is the Development Council composed of congressional leaders, on one side, and selected Cabinet members on the other. Ledac identifies the priority bills common to both Congress and the executive. PLLO’s work is day-to-day, year-round while Ledac meets only when both Congress and the executive need to lay down priorities. The two agencies’ functions don’t overlap. PLLO prepares for Ledac business and concerns but it has many tasks that occupy it each working day, not the least of which is advising the president in legislative matters, including relations with each legislative leader and member. Ledac, on comparison, met only twice during president Benigno Aquino III’s six-year term.
2. You said PLLO does more than executive-legislative liaison, although much of your functions deal with that, such as monitoring progress of administration bills and other measures affecting the presidency and government programs. How much of your functions require your physical participation, by you or your representative?
I attend all meetings of the six Cabinet clusters and report to the Cabinet meetings the legislative priorities for the president’s legislative agenda.
PLLO also participates in Senate and House committee meetings and organizes the Legislative Liaison System composed of liaison officers from all Cabinet and government agencies.
3. Have you done other work since your appointment? Give us an idea what you’ve been doing other than dealing with Congress.
I have been asked by the Cabinet secretary to preside over meetings:
-- of undersecretaries and liaison officers and farmers groups to come up with a unified version of pending bills on the P75 billion coco levy funds;
-- on the president’s plan to create the Department of Overseas Contract Workers/Dept. of Migration and Development and iron out concerns from DFA, Dole and DBM.
-- to come up with amendments to existing laws on immigration officials’ allowances the president vetoed under the 2017 budget.
-- to present, with DILG, to the Cabinet the “Roadmap to Federalism” (which the Cabinet approved immediately after the May 8 presentation).
4. Nothing has happened since Speaker Alvarez’s threat to abolish PLLO and the Congressional Spouses Foundation Inc. (CSFI). The public already knows the reason for scrapping SPFI. What’s the story about that move to remove PLLO?
I believe the Speaker Alvarez’s need for space for the House members. On the continued existence of my office, I leave that to President Duterte. The presidential memo creating it he can easily revoke or modify.
My position is at his mercy. But with or without presidential appointment, I’m always a Duterte follower. I’m convinced of his advocacy for federalism which the country really needs. I’m a witness to his sincerity in the fight against illegal drugs and corruption. I salute his handling of foreign affairs.
5. There are only two major appointments of Cebuanos, if we look at the Malacañang roster of high officials: yours and Michael Lloyd Dino’s. Given its political and economic force, is Cebu adequately represented in the “corridor of power” under Duterte?
True about Michael Dino, a presidential assistant assigned to the Visayas, and myself with Cabinet rank, being the only two Cebuanos among presidential appointees. But I’m quite certain that the president’s heart bleeds for the Cebuanos.
His father Vicente was Danao City’s first appointed mayor during the Liberation. His pa’s first cousin was Beatriz Durano (wife of Rep. Ramon Durano Sr.). His uncle Ramon was the first elected vice mayor of Cebu City who later, in 1957, became mayor. His first cousin Ronald was mayor of Cebu City when Edsa occurred. The president also belongs to the Veloso clans of Cebu, Leyte, Samar, Palawan and Davao. Lots of projects will be enjoyed by Cebu soon.
6. People are glad about the third-bridge project in Cebu having broken ground so early in Duterte’s term, although preparations for it had gone on for some time before. What other projects are readied or on stream to prop up or complement the operation of Cebu’s third bridge?
(DPWH) Secretary Mark A. Villar came to Cebu to announce big infrastructure projects and they were extensively reported by media.
Additionally, I am working for more infrastructure projects in Mactan Island by way of government counterpart to the third bridge. The third bridge needs to be easily accessible to the international airport and the beach resorts.
There are investors pushing to build bridges connecting the Visayas under the PPP scheme. Most likely to be realized first is that between Cordova, Cebu and Jetafe, Bohol.
7. What do you see for Cebu in the rest of the president’s term? Any message to the local politicians on how its province and cities may keep pace with the changes going on or still to be done?
Let us unite behind the president and give him the chance to pursue his agenda for Cebu and the entire country. He was elected truly and directly by the people, not through leaders.
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Ade’s deluged with requests
He has moved to Manila. “To be near my place of work and to be ready on call.”
Still does ballroom. “I find my work less taxing than my practice of law and compatible with my qualifications and experience. I still manage to go ballroom dancing weekly and exercise regularly. Minimize the aging process. After all, age is a matter of the mind. If you don’t mind, it does not matter, provided that which matters does not age.”
What they bring up. “I am deluged with requests, not only from fellow Cebuanos but from outsiders, including those from Metro Manila: applications for positions, follow-up on projects, complaints against suspected grafters and drug dealers, etc.”