Reforming presidential appointments
BY DUCKY PAREDES
Palace-DFA disconnect
Ellen Tordesillas
‘It’s clear that foreign relations is not Aquino’s strong point and he needs a competent adviser on this area.’
WILL somebody please tell President Aquino that he doesn’t have to answer queries of reporters? That’s why he has a spokesperson. Like the cancellation of the visits to Vietnam (Sept 13 to 14) and Indonesia (Sept. 14 to 15). Coming from him, the cancellation had a grating effect.
Aquino also said that he is pushing with his visit to the United States scheduled Sept 18 to 28.
"Canceled na yung trips, the first one will be America," he said. He will be speaking at the United Nations and will be witnessing the signing of the Millenium Challange Corporation’s $434-million grant. Other activities have been lined up for him during his US visit.
By making the United States his first foreign visit, Aquino breaks the tradition among Southeast Asian leaders to take his first foreign visit to any of the fellow members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Vietnam was chosen because it is the current chair of Asean and Indonesia because it will take over the chairmanship from Vietnam for 2011. By the way, President Cory’s first foreign visit in 1986 was to Indonesia.
There’s no law that punishes those who veer away from traditional practice. But tradition is what holds people with common aspirations together. There’s also common sense in the tradition of visiting a neighbor first before going to a distant ally.
I know that Aquino is so desperate for stories to obscure the August 23 hostage fiasco but did it have to be him doing the talking to the media? Aside from his spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, he has two communications chiefs, Sonny Coloma and Ricky Carandang. The Department of Foreign Affairs also has spokesperson Ed Malaya who could have done better in announcing the cancellation.
After Aquino made the announcement, the DFA had to issue this official announcement: "After prior notification to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Republic of Indonesia, the State Visits of President Benigno S. Aquino III to Hanoi and Jakarta are deferred.
"President Aquino looks forward to visiting both capitals at a more propitious and mutually convenient time, to discuss bilateral issues towards further enhancing Philippine relations with Vietnam and Indonesia, respectively. "
Foreign Affairs sources said they sent a note verbale to the governments of Indonesia and Vietnam during the weekend after Malacañang made the decision last Friday.
So be it. The visits to Indonesia and Vietnam are cancelled. But Aquino had to talk more about it which revealed something’s amiss in his office.
He said: "Yung Indonesia, I understand, can only accommodate us sometime in October." He added that anyway he will be meeting Indonesia president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vietnam president Nguyen Minh Triet for an Asean leaders side meeting in New York.
A DFA source said "I think the President was misinformed because Indonesia has not declined the Sept. 14 and 15 visit. In fact it was still being arranged until he canceled it ."
As to the Vietnam visit, in my talk with Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang about two weeks ago, he explained that Aquino, in consonance with his austerity program, has informed the DFA that he would rather make the state visit immediately after the Asean summit last week of October, so that he did not have to make two trips to one country in one month.
It makes sense. Was that conveyed to the DFA? If that was conveyed, there would not have been any preparation for a Sept. 13 and 14 visit. And therefore, there would not have been any need to cancel anything. What cancellation then was Aquino announcing?
That’s why it would have been better that somebody familiar with foreign relations and preparations for the visits made the announcement.
It’s clear that foreign relations is not Aquino’s strong point and he needs a competent adviser on this area.
Malacañang and DFA sources say Aquino does not have rapport with Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo. It has been widely written that Aquino accommodated Romulo, whose record of incompetence is known in the diplomatic community, in his cabinet because of his sisters’ wishes.
The disconnect between Malacañang and the DFA showed its adverse repercussions in the missed calls of Hong Kong executive Donald Tsang to Aquino at the height of the Aug. 23 hostage crisis.
It is certainly hoped that Aquino learned a lesson from that unfortunate episode.
E-mail:ellentordesillas@gmail.com