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By Angelo S. Samonte, Reporter
Chairman Romulo Neri of the
Commission on Higher Education will take over as administrator of
the Social Security System starting August 1, Press Secretary Jesus
Dureza announced Wednesday.
Neri will replace Corazon de la
Paz, who had submitted her resignation as president and chief
executive officer in June.
“Secretary Romulo Neri has been
appointed by President [Gloria] Arroyo administrator of the Social
Security System. He will assume office August 1 this year,” Dureza
said in a statement.
The statement is a reversal of
what the Press Secretary told The Manila Times on Tuesday, when he
said that the replacement of de la Paz by Neri “is not being
discussed among Palace officials.” The denial was also echoed by
Deputy Spokesman Anthony Golez.
Ricafort vs. Angeles
At the regular press briefing in
Malacañang on Wednesday, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said
that based on the usual practice, the one next in line will fill in
the post to be vacated by Neri at the Commission on Higher Education
(CHED).
“Very often it is the next line
officer who assumes as OIC [officer-in-charge] on acting capacity
until [the] President decides who should take the position that will
be vacated. In all probability, as soon as Neri is out of CHED, an
appointment can be made by the President, and I am not privy to
it,” he said.
It was reported that Nona
Ricafort, a commissioner at the education agency, has been appointed
to replace Neri, and her appointment paper has been signed by
President Arroyo.
But Ricafort, who sources said
enjoys the backing of the politically influential Iglesia ni Cristo,
may be up against another aspirant for the post.
According to a source at the
Commission on Higher Education, Angeles University Foundation
Chancellor Emmanuel “Manny” Angeles is to replace Neri. The
source asked not to be named. Angeles was a former president and
chief executive of Clark Development Corp.
Neri competent
Ermita said the President
appointed Neri as SSS president because she believes he is competent
to manage the pension fund.
“I think everyone knows the
competence as economist and executive of Secretary Neri. Before the
Arroyo administration, he was with CPBO [Congressional Planning and
Budget Office] in the House of Representatives, a professor, and an
organization man. He has wide knowledge on the economy, and
therefore he is competent in running offices, such as SSS,” he
said.
As SSS president, Neri will also
be the cluster head of the newly launched national social welfare
program with a Cabinet rank. The program was created under
Administrative Order 232 released Tuesday that would consolidate the
social welfare programs of the government.
Asked if Neri will remain covered
by the executive privilege because he is given a Cabinet rank,
Ermita said Neri will enjoy the privilege with the new designation.
Neri had invoked executive
privilege when he testified on the controversial National Broadband
Network, particularly when he was asked about his conversations with
President Arroyo on the project.
Neri draws flak
Senators Manuel “Mar” Roxas
2nd and Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Wednesday questioned Neri’s
appointment to SSS.
Roxas said Neri’s appointment
was “unwise at a time when the stock market is volatile, the peso
is losing steam, and the country is beset with global uncertainties.
“It is not the time to appoint
someone with minimal real-life work experience in the marketplace to
sit atop the SSS, which has nearly 30 million members. Besides, this
appointment will just drive unneeded political controversy,” he
said.
Escudero said Neri has a track
record of placing the interest of President Arroyo above that of the
nation. He was referring to Neri’s refusal to divulge details
about his conversations with the President on the aborted
$330-million National Broadband Network project.
“I am afraid political
interests would intervene if Neri is appointed to the SSS, which
holds private funds of the private sector,” he said.
He expressed the hope that SSS
funds would not be used for politics or for the interest of a few.
“He should hold supreme only
the interest of the SSS members, and make sure that it would not be
wasted or used for politics,” he said.
SSS in good shape
In a radio interview, de la Paz
confirmed filing her resignation in June and effective July 31.
She cited poor health, old age
and a desire to return to the private sector as reasons for
resigning.
De la Paz said she is more
comfortable in the private sector, and that even after seven years
at the helm of SSS, she never really got used to the “style” in
government. She was already 60 when she joined SSS. She used to be
chairman of the auditing and management consultancy company, Joaquin
Cunanan & Co.
She declined to elaborate when
asked if there were other reasons for resigning, saying, “Sa akin
na lang iyon sa ngayon [That’s only for me to know for now].”
De la Paz also said in the radio
interview that she has been coordinating with Finance Secretary
Margarito Teves, who acted as her go-between to the President.
She added that all she was hoping
for was that the President would appoint a person fit for the job of
leading the agency into the right direction.
During her tenure, de la Paz said
the SSS has become “much stronger and stable.” When she started,
de la Paz said there were concerns that the SSS fund was shrinking
and would only last until 2015. But the fund has grown beyond
expectations, and the SSS can now meet its obligations up to 2036,
she added.
“Naibalik na ang kompyansa ng
mga miyembro. Kaya dumadami ang aming membership [We regained the
public’s confidence. That is why our membership is growing],”
she added.
Sen. Recto and NEDA
Ermita denied that the President
is appointing former Senator Ralph Recto to head the National
Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the post being occupied
by that agency’s acting director general, Augusto Santos.
“Those reports are untrue. This
issue wasn’t discussed within the President’s inner circle,”
he said.
Senator Escudero, who also heard
the news about the former senator, said, “Senator Recto also has a
wide experience in the economic sector. I only hope he would
understand that the people need economic relief now and not added
burden that the government might impose on them.”
Ermita said President Arroyo will
announce the successor of Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman
Rodolfo Albano soon, whose term is set to expire this week.
--Efren L. Danao And Francis Earl A. Cueto
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