MANILA, Philippines?The merger of the ruling parties Lakas-CMD and Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) was done in ?undue haste? and ?by dictation, not by consultation,? former President Fidel V. Ramos said Friday.

?I don?t know why it?s the tendency or culture of administration bigwigs to put up things in a hurry ? Puro (All) instant ang nangyayari (is what happens), puro madalian (all in haste),? the chair emeritus of the old Lakas said at a press conference in his office in Makati City.

?Why the undue haste? Is it because of a trip to Korea?? Ramos said in reference to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo?s scheduled trip to South Korea on May 30-June 2.

He said he learned about the Thursday launch of the merger only from ?a fax message from a friend.?

Ramos, who arrived from the United States at dawn on Thursday, skipped the Lakas-Kampi-CMD affair at the Manila Hotel, where he was to have delivered an inspirational speech.

He said he put himself on ?self-quarantine,? as required of persons arriving from countries with known cases of the Influenza A(H1N1) virus.

He also said he was informed that he was to be the inspirational speaker at the launch only on the day itself.

Ramos admitted that talks on the Lakas-Kampi merger had started in 2008.

He said he had ?supported? the merger since then, but had indicated that he wanted proper consultation with all stakeholders, ?to be able to study and make comments on the merger agreement in the form of the constitution and bylaws of the merged parties.?
According to Ramos, the plan to formalize the Lakas-Kampi merger was ratified in a national directorate meeting in March 2008.

He said another meeting was held in March 2009, where it was agreed that the merger should be finalized ?as soon as possible,? and not later than July 27, when Ms Arroyo is to deliver her State of the Nation Address.

Before he left for the United States early this month, Ramos was shown a draft of the merger agreement and observed that CMD (for Christian Muslim Democrats) was omitted from the name of the merged party.

Clarification needed

He said he told Gabriel Claudio, Ms Arroyo?s political adviser, ?that CMD must not get lost because that is the basic philosophy of the organization.?

Ramos said he also wanted to be clarified about what would happen to the old Lakas and Kampi parties after the merger.

He pointed out that Lakas-CMD was accredited by the Commission on Elections.

?Can a grand meeting with lots of photo ops wipe out the Lakas-CMD? I don?t think so,? he said.

The party used by Ramos when he ran for president in 1992 was initially named Lakas Tao.

Lakas loses int?l character

That name was changed to Lakas-National Union of Christian Democrats-Union of Muslim Democrats of the Philippines (Lakas NUCD-UMDP), and later to Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD).

The party is affiliated with the Christian Democrats International (CDI), according to Ramos. Pangasinan Rep. and former Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. is the vice chair of the CDI global organization, and the chair of CDI-Asia Pacific.

?What happens to the international character of Lakas after the merger?? Ramos said.