A typical day in the life of our Foreign Secretary
At 76, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario displays the energy of a man who is two decades younger. Despite having to go through several medical procedures last year, he shows no indication of slowing down, attending to the numerous responsibilities that go with his Cabinet position.
To describe his work as challenging would certainly be an understatement, because as the country’s top diplomat, he has to have a global perspective and be attuned to what’s happening in the rest of the world; but at the same time, he must also stay connected to domestic politics and issues that could impact our relations with the international community.
Some have described the job of a Foreign Affairs Secretary as the best portfolio in the Cabinet, but the reality, however, is that it is very demanding, involving voluminous paperwork that he has to go over and briefings conducted with senior staff members. He wants to be updated on the status of critical issues like, for instance, the country’s suit involving China’s encroachment and construction activities at the Spratlys, or the latest developments regarding the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement. The schedule can be crammed with brief conferences or face-to-face interactions with diplomats, consuls and foreign business delegations on top of Cabinet meetings and other activities that have to do with policy crafting.
It goes without saying that the Foreign Affairs Secretary is on top when it comes to visiting leaders like the Imperial Couple from Japan who were here on a five-day state visit, with Secretary Del Rosario on hand to welcome Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. People at the DFA actually describe the Secretary as energetic, as he attends one function after another like being the guest speaker at the luncheon of the Consular Corps of the Philippines headed by its Dean and Monaco Consul General Fortune Ledesma, then going to the Australia National Day celebration in the evening.
It’s obvious that Secretary Del Rosario loves what he is doing — and it is equally clear that he is doing a good job at it, too, judging from the praises and accolades that he regularly receives. The morale at the Department of Foreign Affairs is high, especially because he gives priority to career diplomats instead of political appointees. Although he is expected to retire soon, I can unequivocally say that he has turned out to be one of the best, if not the best, Foreign Secretaries we’ve had in this country in a very long time.
