Fire Abaya if he can’t deliver, says Enrile

Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio “Jun” Abaya speaks during a press conference on the “tanim-bala” or bullet-planting scam at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 on Nov.4. Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile says Abaya should resign if the transportation secretary can’t deliver on his responsibilities. RAFFY LERMA/INQUIRER

“If he’s incompetent fire him. Don’t even ask him to resign, fire him if he’s incompetent,” Senate minority leader Juan Ponce Enrile said of beleaguered Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, who had been the subject of resignation calls by several lawmakers.

“He’s not being paid by anybody, he’s being paid by the people. If he can’t deliver he should be fired. Any member of the Cabinet for that matter, that’s the norm,” Enrile added.

But what if the appointing officer, in this case President Benigno Aquino III, would not fire Abaya?

“Then he is walang hiya (he has no shame),” Enrile said.

“During the time of Marcos when a thing like that happened, we resign … (Not out of delicadeza), it’s your duty. The people are the ones paying your salary. If you can’t deliver the service that you should give to the people—honor, dignity …”

Asked again if he thought Aquino should fire Abaya, the opposition leader said: “Ewan ko, I’m not president.”

Enrile said Abaya’s remaining seven months in office should not be used as an excuse not to fire him if he was incompetent.

“That’s no excuse even for one month or one day. If you think that your Cabinet member is stupid or incompetent or inutile, fire him for the sake of the country,” he said.

But the senator would not say whether or not he thought Abaya was incompetent despite various reports of his alleged failure to address the problems haunting his office.

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