Belmonte hands off on Leni Cabinet post

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. is keeping his hands off the possible role of vice president-elect Leni Robredo in the administration of president-elect Rodrigo Duterte.

“That’s between the president and the vice president and I should not (intervene) and neither should the Liberal Party,” Belmonte said on Tuesday when asked if he would lobby for a Cabinet post for Robredo.

Once the next administration assumes office on June 30, Robredo – an outgoing Camarines Sur representative – will hold the highest post among members of the Liberal Party.

She ran alongside former interior secretary Manuel Roxas II who lost to Duterte of PDP-Laban.

Robredo earlier said that she intends to streamline the anti-poverty programs of the government and mentioned the National Anti-Poverty Commission or the Department of Social Welfare and Development when asked for her choice of a Cabinet post.

Duterte, however, said he is not inclined to appoint Robredo to any Cabinet post, saying he does not want to offend Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. who lost to her by a slim margin.

The Marcos camp intends to file an election protest against Robredo.

Robredo’s camp, meanwhile, said they would not have a problem should the president-elect decide not to give her a Cabinet post.

Belmonte, along with a number of lawmakers, flew to Davao on Tuesday to pay a courtesy call to Duterte.

He also met with Davao del Norte Rep.-elect Pantaleon Alvarez, Duterte’s choice to be the next speaker, to discuss the expected inclusion of LP in the “super majority” in the House.

Among those discussed by Alvarez with the media on Tuesday are the legislative agenda of the incoming administration, including the proposed shift of the form of government to federal-parliamentary.                        

Asked if the new government will remove the post of vice president in the parliamentary form of government, Alvarez said it would be up to the body that will amend the Constitution.

“It will depend on what the members of the constitutional convention – if it is a convention or if it is a constituent assembly – would agree on,” he said.

In Manila, the camp of outgoing Vice President Jejomar Binay is scheduled to submit its transition report to the team of Robredo today.

Meanwhile, the Commission on Appointments (CA) has bypassed four members of President Aquino’s Cabinet by failing to approve their nominations before Congress adjourned its third and last regular session on Monday.

Bypassed were Secretaries Zenaida Monsada of energy, Emmanuel Caparas of justice, Adrian Cristobal of trade and industry and Emmanuel Esguerra of economic planning.

Aquino would have to reappoint them or allow them to stay in office in a holdover capacity until they step down with him on June 30, when he finishes his six-year term.

Duterte has already appointed replacements for Monsada, Caparas and Esguerra.

They are former airport manager Alfonso Cusi for energy, Vitaliano Aguirre II for justice and Ernesto Pernia for economic planning. Duterte has yet to name his trade and industry secretary.

The CA also bypassed civil service commissioner Nieves Osorio, four colonels and 30 diplomatic officers.

Before Congress adjourned, the CA confirmed the nominations of Sheriff Abas and Isabel Agito as commissioners of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and Commission on Audit (COA), respectively.

Aquino appointed Abas along with Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista and Commissioner Rowena Guanzon in May 2015. Bautista and Guanzon were confirmed ahead of Abas, who is a nephew of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) chief peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal.

According to Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, a critic of Iqbal, the real name of the MILF negotiator is Datucan Abas.

The new Comelec and COA commissioners will serve until Feb. 2, 2022 and Feb. 2, 2018, respectively. – Janvic Mateo, Jess Diaz