DAVAO CITY, Philippines — The appointment of Benjamin Diokno as central bank governor does not have to be confirmed by the Commission on Appointments (CA), the presidential spokesman said yesterday, withdrawing an earlier pronouncement.
Salvador Panelo, who is also chief presidential legal counsel, said that after further evaluation of relevant laws and jurisprudence, he realized the CA’s confirmation powers do not cover the appointment of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor.
Diokno succeeded Nestor Espenilla Jr., who died of tongue cancer on Feb. 23. Diokno was budget secretary before his appointment to the top BSP post.
When asked if his appointment would need CA nod, Diokno replied: “I don’t think so.”
On Tuesday, Panelo, citing Article VII, Section 16 of the Constitution, said Diokno’s appointment would require the nod of the CA. Panelo expressed confidence that Diokno’s nomination would be confirmed.
But yesterday, Panelo said a closer examination of the constitutional provision on appointments revealed that the position of BSP governor is not covered by the CA’s confirmation powers.
He cited the Supreme Court ruling on the Calderon vs. Carale case, which rejected the position that Congress may require CA confirmation of presidential appointments other than those “expressly mentioned” in Article VII, Section 16 of the Constitution.
Panelo also cited the eventual dismissal of the petition against then BSP governor Gabriel Singson.
“While the petition in Tarrosa vs. Singson was dismissed due to its nature and the lack of legal standing of the petitioner, the Supreme Court in the said case had the occasion to cite the above-mentioned case of Calderon vs. Carale,” Panelo said.
Yesterday, Diokno made it clear he has the competence to lead the BSP.
“As central bank governor you have the necessary tools to analyze what is presented to you. I have a PhD in economics, so I know exactly what is going on,” he told reporters.
“I don’t buy that concept that as if the CB (Central Bank) governorship is the prerogative of those who are from the inside. I don’t buy that. I know how government works. I know where we want to go. I’m familiar with the program of the government,” Diokno said, citing the case of the late BSP governor Rafael Buenaventura who was a banker from the private sector.
“Our BSP is supposed to be independent, but that does not mean it has to be against. It has to understand what the administration is trying to do. If you have to be supportive, you support but without losing your independence,” the new BSP chief added.
Beyond CA’s reach
Meanwhile, some lawmakers admitted the position of BSP governor is beyond the CA’s jurisdiction.
“We do not confirm the governor of the BSP or central bank. He is not one of the officials enumerated by the Constitution as subject to CA confirmation,” Isabela Rep. Rodolfo Albano III, a former CA member, said yesterday.
He said such officials are Cabinet members who head departments, members of constitutional commissions, ambassadors, consuls and ministers and military officers from the rank of colonel or captain in the Navy.
“When President Duterte appointed the late Nestor Espenilla as BSP governor in July 2017, the latter did not go through the CA process. Not one BSP governor went through it,” Albano, who was then CA majority leader, said.
Another congressman, Ben Evardone of Eastern Samar, said the law amending the BSP charter does not require CA confirmation for the BSP chief.
“It was not one of the amendments we endorsed because we were aware of the provision of the Constitution,” he said.
Evardone was chairman of the House of Representatives committee on banks and financial intermediaries when the panel recommended the bill that amended the law creating the central bank.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra was quoted as saying the new BSP law provides that the central bank governor is not subject to the CA process.
Other congressmen said not going through the CA is good news for Diokno.
“With the bitter exchange of charges and countercharges on pork barrel fund insertions in the proposed 2019 national budget, the former budget secretary would surely face rough sailing in the CA if he were to pass through the confirmation process,” one lawmaker who did not want to be named said.
He said he is sure that the House leadership would instruct the chamber’s contingent in the CA headed by San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora “to make life difficult for Secretary Diokno.”
“They could delay his confirmation or dig up dirt on him. They could even oppose his appointment,” he said.
The lawmaker recalled that leftist Cabinet appointees of President Duterte who crossed swords with or did not kowtow to the wishes of the House were not confirmed.
“In the sense that he will not face a hostile House panel in the CA and not suffering the fate of his former Cabinet colleagues, Secretary Diokno is lucky,” the congressman said.
For Minority Leader Danilo Suarez, Diokno should be made to answer issues raised against him before a CA panel.
Diokno snubbed at least six summons lawmakers sent him in relation to budget-related anomalies.
“We have two seats in the Commission on Appointments,” Suarez said, referring to the 12-man House contingent in the bicameral conference body that screens and confirms appointments made by the President.
“We will be asking questions. That’s also good for him. It will enlighten and maybe answer some issues that haven’t been answered during the question hour,” he told newsmen.
“As I’ve said, the ultimate objective of the minority and the public accounts committee is to have closure. Mas maganda naman iyun na may closure iyung kaso niya (It’s best if his case reaches closure),” Suarez added. “The (committee) report will be something else, but there will be a CA. I think he’ll be confirmed, he’s the President’s choice. But questions will be asked,” he said.
Rep. Anthony Bravo of party-list Coop-Natcco also said Diokno’s appointment would have to go through the bicameral body.
“Just to clarify, the governor of BSP shall be subject to confirmation by the CA. But take note, Congress is about to adjourn. There is CA policy that during adjournment… it would be voting,” he said.
Former majority leader Rolando Andaya Jr., who had grilled Diokno over questionable insertions in the 2019 budget when the lawmaker was still head of the appropriations committee, expressed exasperation at how developments had turned in Diokno’s favor.
“Maybe some other time, or some other person,” he told a news conference, apparently referring to the unlikelihood of Diokno facing the House again to answer allegations of wrongdoing. “It’s OK. I have learned so many lessons,” he said.
‘Good choice’
Despite being enmeshed in controversies, Diokno is a “good choice” for BSP governor, based on his track record as budget official in previous administrations, Manila Mayor and former president Joseph Estrada said yesterday.
Diokno had served as budget secretary during the Estrada administration from 1998 to 2001.
“His track record as one of my former Cabinet members and as then budget undersecretary under the late former president Corazon Aquino was excellent,” Estrada said.
The Manila mayor also defended Diokno against accusations of corruption over insertions in the 2019 national budget.
“President Duterte appointed Diokno because of his expertise and talent, and he is not involved in any graft and corruption,” Estrada said.
Militant labor, however, expressed fear Diokno’s appointment would bring “elitism” to the central bank.
Leody de Guzman of the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) said Diokno was insensitive to the poor’s suffering when inflation reached record high level.
“The working class will never forget his callous statement ‘kung masipag ka lang, hindi ka magugutom sa Pilipinas’ (if you’re hardworking, you won’t go hungry in the Philippines) at the height of the country’s inflationary crisis last year when he held the reins of fiscal policy,” De Guzman said.
“Appointing someone as insensitive to effects of inflation to the poor like Diokno is a recipe for disaster, especially for our 2022 target to reduce poverty to 14 percent,” De Guzman added.
He also said Diokno’s alleged insertion of P75 billion in the public works budget was something taxpayers should be worried about.
The labor leader stressed the need for the government to put forward “pro-labor” reforms in the central bank’s charter, following its amendment under Republic Act 11211 signed by President Duterte last February.
Under Republic Act 7653, the number of government representatives to the monetary board has been reduced as well as the central bank’s role in price stabilization.
“This mandate is conspicuously absent in later versions of the central bank charter,” De Guzman noted.
“It is time for Congress to reverse the elitism of the BSP, with Diokno as its new avatar, and design a central bank that consciously promotes the welfare of the majority,” De Guzman said.
source: philstar.com
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