NOY: MAR IS MY SENIOR ADVISER / NOY NOT READY TO LET GO OF PUNO
NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010 (STAR) By Aurea Calica � President Aquino has confirmed his choice of former senator Manuel Roxas II as his unofficial senior adviser amid a brief hubbub stirred by his former running mate�s presence among members of the official retinue.
Looking fresh and upbeat upon arrival here on a chartered flight from San Francisco , Mr. Aquino made a promise at once to Filipinos who welcomed him that he would make the most of out of his trip and bring home jobs for the people.
Mr. Aquino arrived at around 5 a.m. here (5 p.m. Manila time) and went straight to Hotel Sofitel where he was billeted. He granted local reporters waiting for him at the lobby a short interview.
�Our first platform is job generation and we want to make sure that we bring in more than we expected to deliver and we hear very positive developments about it,� Mr. Aquino said.
Mr. Aquino said Roxas could help him a lot in his meetings with business groups and potential investors because the former senator had worked as an investment banker here for a long time.
He said there �is something about a personal touch� that could facilitate business dealings.
Roxas, for his part, said it would be up to Mr. Aquino to define his role because he would only give inputs when asked. As a candidate in the last elections, Roxas is barred from holding public office within a year after the polls.
Roxas claimed that he and the President had not talked about his future official position in government .
Mr. Aquino said he had been studying various issues to be raised during his meetings and made sure he would not suffer from jet lag.
�I think it is my duty to ensure that I am prepared before I do meet all of them,� Mr. Aquino said, adding he had brought with him 12 attach� cases containing briefing materials for all the meetings he would be leading.
With Mr. Aquino, aside from Roxas, were Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo and Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras.
The President as a young man had lived in the US in the 1980s as an exile together with his parents and sisters.
Happy meals
Mr. Aquino said he would like to eat �mom and pop� pizza and a beef chow mien, a Chinese dish. But he said Chinatown is far from his hotel.
He also said he found the burger in the �In and Out� in San Francisco �delicious� and that his companions savored theirs like starving kids. �They were very happy,� he said. He said he did not know how much his burger was because his companions only gave it to him.
Mr. Aquino said he was excited to meet the Filipino community which supported him during the last elections.
Mr. Aquino said he took nine members of the Presidential Security Group with him and that the US security officers would also have to deal with them.
He said he wouldn�t mind traveling on courtesy lanes or getting police escorts. �We have no control here,� he said laughing.
Yesterday, the President had lunch at Serafina Fabulous Grill near Park and Madison Avenue. He then had a bilateral meeting with Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet in the afternoon.
He was also interviewed by The New York Times.
The interview was held at the New York Times Building on 620 Eighth Avenue, and was conducted by six Times staff, including deputy foreign editors Ian Fisher and Joseph Kahn.
The interview covered topics ranging from overseas Filipino workers, the Maguindanao massacre, the Abu Sayyaf, the insurgencies in Mindanao, as well as the US and regional concerns regarding the Spratly Islands.
In the evening, the President enjoyed a steak dinner at the Keens Steak House in Manhattan.
Mr. Aquino also clarified that his meeting with US President Barack Obama was not yet confirmed but he would be participating in the US-ASEAN Leaders� Meeting.
Aquino not ready to let go of Puno (The Philippine Star) Updated September 24, 2010 12:00 AM Comments (34) View comments
NEW YORK � President Aquino will not yet let embattled Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Rico Puno resign as he cited the possibility that his close aides are targets of a demolition job.
Puno said he would tender his courtesy resignation once Aquino returns to the country from the United States but the President stressed if his enemies deserve due process, his allies also could avail of the same.
�Maybe it�s normal to expect from a person who does not cling tightly to his position if his honor is at stake. If they feel that they are not able to be part of the change that we are after, (then resigning) means also continuing with their commitment to help,� Aquino said.
Aquino said he would not immediately accept Puno�s resignation pending the investigation of the allegations against Puno that is being conducted by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. and Presidential Legal Counsel Eduardo de Mesa.
Aside form being linked to jueteng protection, Puno is also under fire for the bungled rescue operations and negotiation during the hostage crisis in Manila that resulted in the death of eight Hong Kong tourists last Aug. 23.
�Their work will be wasted if we immediately remove a person and say he is guilty when under our laws he is presumed innocent. So, we have a process. We should give the same process given to our enemies to our friends and allies too. They should also undergo a process. I cannot hang him just because some people asked me to. I don�t think that is right,� he said.
Aquino said his administration is only on guard against people who were hitting him and his group hard when they were still in the opposition.
He said the people being targeted now were very close to him and apparently his enemies do not like the current setup.
�If we remove all the people who are close to me and replace them with those who are not very close, we might end up with enemies,� Aquino said.
The President explained that he would like to work with the people who have been dependable and are helping change society, its systems and institutions.
�We are conscious about that and that is why if I am expecting loyalty from them, I can also provide loyalty in the sense that they will be given due process and we will not be carried away by speculations or suspicions, allegations that are baseless,� Aquino said.
Aquino also described retired archbishop Oscar Cruz as a �very opinionated person� who had been saying negative things about him since the campaign.
�I think I came out publicly asking him for a dialogue if he wanted to and I think he answered that he didn�t want to. I will even invite you to Google his pronouncements about me personally, even from the campaign period. And I think you will see that Archbishop Cruz does not think highly of me. So, that�s okay with me. That�s part and parcel of the territory,� Aquino said.
Cruz named Puno and former Philippine National Police chief Jesus Verzosa as the two trusted officials of Aquino who were receiving jueteng payoffs.
Aquino also said he was not aware of the supposed visit to Cruz of his cousin, businessman Tonyboy Cojuangco.
�Now with the things he (Cruz) said, how can I comment properly to something I have no personal knowledge? He�s not talking to me so how would I know if these things were really relayed to him? I haven�t seen my cousin and asked him about it. We have been here (US) for a few days and attending to things we need to attend to,� he said.
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said that it would be up to Puno to resign if he wants to save the Aquino administration from the embarrassment caused by his alleged involvement in the jueteng protection racket.
�Did he resign? Well, that�s the only thing left for him. I�m not saying that the accusation is true. But if he�s in that position, and considering his closeness to the President, then the least that he must do is to tender his resignation. It�s up to the President to decide whether he will keep him or not because the relationship of the President with his Cabinet, including the undersecretaries, is one of trust,� Enrile said.
Interviewed after her privilege speech, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago said Puno is left with no choice but to get out of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
�He has no more choice if he is not going to resign and continue to defend himself with arguments that neither makes sense nor constitute logic, the public itself will likely express themselves with ways he cannot foresee to make sure that he is removed from DILG,� Santiago said.
Santiago said Puno represents what is contrary to the platform of President Aquino, which is taking the �matuwid na daan (straight path).�
�Maliwanag naman na baluktot ang daan niya. Kaya maliwanag na dapat mag-resign siya (It is clear that he has crooked ways and he should resign),� Santiago said.
Sen. Francis Escudero lauded Puno for his move, saying it is uncommon for many public officials to tender their resignation amid controversies.
�It is a surprise that a public official moves to put national interest ahead of his own personal interest. I laud (Puno) for his action,� Escudero said.
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said Puno has shown his loyalty to the President by insisting that he does not want to be a burden to him.
�To me that�s a good sign, that brings delicadeza. Other officials won�t bow to pressure even three years after a controversy,� Sotto said.
Sen. Franklin Drilon said Puno should resign to be able to avoid being excess baggage for Mr. Aquino.
�That�s a welcome development because the President is certainly burdened by the findings of the incident investigation and review committee (IIRC) and now the revelations of Archbishop Cruz on Puno. That should give President Aquino an opportunity to act decisively on this raging issue before the public,� Drilon said. With Christina Mendez
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