Aquino’s favorite to be SC Justice? COA chief denies closeness to the President

COA Chief Maria Gracia Pulido-Tan INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Commission on Audit (COA) Chairperson Grace Pulido-Tan on Friday said she is not personally close to President Benigno Aquino III who appointed her to head the COA, the first woman to hold the post.

Tan is one of the candidates to replace Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Roberto Abad who retired this month upon reaching the age of 70.

She became popular last year when her agency’s special audit on the disbursement of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) from 2007 to 2009 which resulted in the filing of cases against lawmakers who allegedly conspired with businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles to pocket PDAF funds through ghost projects.

Tan’s term as COA chief will expire on February 2015. She is rumored to be President Aquino’s choice to take the high court’s vacant post.

“Let me say I am not personally close to the President. When I was appointed, I do not know him personally. We met only after he appointed me,” Tan told members of the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC). JBC is a constitutional body that vets nominees for vacant positions in the judiciary and the Office of the Ombudsman.

She said she never gave the Office of the President any special privilege. Tan said they audited the Office of the President just like any other agencies.

With regard to the PDAF scam, she assured that she will always be fair even if it may implicate administration allies.

“I adhere to the higher standards of morality, of integrity, of excellence in professionalism,” Tan said.

She said as COA chief, she deals with influence peddlers everyday.

“Every day, I had to stand ground and I did…I will decide on any given case based on the merits alone,” Tan said.

RELATED STORIES

COA chief among candidates to replace retiring SC Justice

No sacred cows for ‘Tres Marias’