Public sentiment is divided on the Commission on Appointment’s rejection of Gina Lopez as secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
There are those who claim that her passion and enthusiasm to protect the environment against irresponsible miners should be considered.
Those who are against her confirmation say she went beyond her authority and took it upon herself to commit illegal acts.
Santa Banana, she is unfit to be a member of the Cabinet!
Imagine, she hired 55 consultants to help her without clearing first with the Civil Service Commission!
I looked at the list of members of the CA who were in favor of, and who were against, her confirmation. As for the allegation that lobby money prevailed and that lawmakers would be investigated—I doubt it.
Lopez’s rejection boils down to one thing—she is not fit to be the head of an Executive Department.
These things bring me back to why President Rodrigo Duterte should not have appointed her in the first place. Is it true she does not have a college degree? As far as I can remember, she was a drug addict committed by her parents, the late Geny Lopez and his first wife, Concita Lao, to DARE Foundation managed by former priest Bob Garon. I was then vice president of DARE. Would you believe Gina sued her mother when she joined the Indian Buddhist cult, Ananda Marga?
I am citing all these as a background and wake-up call for Malacañang to dig deep into the backgrounds of its appointees. Remember what happened with former Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay? Now we have Lopez herself.
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In a few days, and perhaps within the week, President Duterte will appoint the successor of Amado Tetangco as governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
The announcement has been delayed mainly due to what my sources say is the attempts of some people close to the President to include names of their own preference.
Among the names being mentioned are Nestor Espenilla Jr., Diwa Gunigundo, Peter Favila and Antonio Moncupa Jr.
Espenilla and Gunigundo are deputy governors. Favila was former president of the Bankers Association of the Philippines and member of the Monetary Board. Moncupa is East-West Bank president.
All of them are competent and qualified. This is also probably why the President is having a difficult time deciding. But if Tetangco himself were to be asked, he would rather have either of his deputies to continue his record.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez has said that the new BSP governor would be the most important appointment by the President. He added that if he himself had a choice, it would be either of the two deputy governors.
In my opinion, low-key and unheralded BSP deputy governor Nestor Espenilla is the best choice among the four.
The fact that some people close to the President have their own bets tells us that the independence of the BSP might be put in peril. There are issues which these people want to advance, foremost of which is the control of the Anti-Money Laundering Council which has stood by its mandate despite efforts by some quarters to prevent it from performing its function. The council is chaired by the BSP governor.
To say that the central bank’s function is critical to the economic stability of the nation is an understatement.
This institution has kept its independence since the time of the late CB governors Miguel Cuaderno, Andres Castillo, Alfonso Calalang and Jobo Fernandez.
The same goes with the late Gregorio Licaros, Gabriel Singson, Rafael Buenaventura.
President Duterte will do the country a great service if he does not mess around with the central bank tradition.
The advantage of both Espenilla and Gunigundo is that they have risen from the ranks. Of them, the latter is the public face of the BSP, asked to explain the BSP’s position on reactions to economic news, or elaborate on policy announcements.
Espenilla, on the other hand, is embedded in BSP regulatory matters. His work has had real impact on the country’s fiscal position. He helped strengthen the Philippine banking system; today, Philippine banks are considered the healthiest in Southeast Asia. They have stronger capitalization. As a result, they are more capable of handling shocks.
Espenilla made the needs of local consumers a priority. He institutionalized the National Retail Payment System project and pushed for a more inclusive banking system. This allowed micro, small and medium enterprises and low-income individuals to avail themselves of a wider array of financial services, especially in unbanked and underbanked rural areas. This he achieved through a balanced regulatory approach.
Espenilla is a skilled watchdog and an economist. He has reinforced the Philippine banking system such that our banks are now deemed among the most resilient in the region.
[Editor’s note: As of press time, Espenilla has been named BSP governor.]
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There are efforts to privatize 46 casinos of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.—and I say it’s about time.
I have been urging previous administrations and now the Duterte administration to privatize Pagcor’s casinos. There is a clear conflict of interest here. Pagcor is the regulator of casinos and other forms of gambling. At the same time, it operates casinos.
