They have an ax to grind, Aquino says of people blocking appointees

MANILA, Philippines — President Benigno Aquino III thinks the appointments of his Cabinet secretaries are hanging by the thread not because of professional matters but of personal grudges.

“Palagay ko medyo nape-personal as opposed to ‘yung professional na objection,” he told media on Thursday during an ambush interview at Diamond Hotel.

Aquino was referring to the pending confirmation of the appointments of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima, Social Welfare Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman and Environment Secretary Ramon Paje.

“We are trusting the system that will eventually, hopefully confirm all of these three people. But, again, ‘pag tinanong natin bakit ba hindi nako-confirm, ang lumalabas ‘yung parang may specific individuals who have an ax to grind (but again, if we ask why they are not being confirmed, it appears that there are specific individuals who have an ax to grind),” the President pointed out.

President Benigno Aquino III INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

De Lima on Wednesday failed to get the Commission on Appointment’s approval after she was met with strong opposition from Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada and Sandra Cam, president of the Whistleblowers Association of the Philippines.

Estrada accused her of receiving P1 million per month in allowances from former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo when she was still chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights. Cam, on the other hadn, criticized her for removing a whistleblower from the witness protection program amid exposing anomalies in the Bureau of Customs.

Soliman was endorsed for plenary confirmation on the same day but Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago vowed to block her appointment because of her ties with the Arroyo administration and for “denouncing” the Senator’s integrity during the Estrada impeachment case.

Meanwhile, the hearing on Paje’s confirmation was suspended and will resume next week.

Hopefully, the discussions will shift from personal grudges to “very professional” queries, Aquino said.