Pastilan! Living the dog-eat-dog world of a Global Pinoy!

While President Aquino expressed concerned over decision of the Supreme Court favoring the midnight appointments of Gloria Arroyo, his secretary of foreign affairs is condoning, even supporting, the illegal stay of Arroyo’s appointees in their foreign posts.

The other day, members of the Filipino community in Greece staged a rally in front of the Philippine Embassy in Athens protesting the continued stay of former ambassador Rigoberto Tiglao in his post.

Francisco Benedicto, also refuses to return to Manila holding on to the appointment signed by Arroyo as basis for his continued stay in Beijing.

It’s a mess out there at the DFA and the foreign secretary either encourages it as in the case of Tiglao or clueless as in the case of Benedicto.

It must be recalled that there was a controversy over the extension of the stay in their posts of 21 political ambassadors appointed by Arroyo after June 30, 2010. Since all political appointees are co-terminus with the appointing power, it goes without saying that when Arroyo’s term ended noon of June 30, 2010, they no longer had any legal authority as of 12:01 of June 30, 2010.

Romulo misled Malacañang into thinking that relations with countries where these political appointees were posted would suffer if they were to return to the Philippines without a replacement. Unfamiliar with foreign affairs matters, Aquino believed Romulo.

That was wrong. In foreign service, in the absence of the ambassador the number two officer takes over as charge d’affaires or officer-in-charge. Under the Vienna Convention on Foreign Relations, the host country recognizes the authority of the charge d’affaires.

Because of that wrong and scheming advice, all the 21 political ambassadors were given extension , “in a holdover capacity for a period of three months effective noon of 30 June 2010.” Three months from June 30 is September 30, 2010.
The extension itself is illegal because the President has no power to extend a non-existent appointment. What he has is the power to appoint. If he wants them to continue serving in their posts, he will have to give them new appointments.

They would have to get confirmation by the Commission on Appointments, get an agrément from the host country. Only after completing this process can the ambassador assume his post.

The Union of Foreign Service Officers decided not to bring the issue of illegal extension to court in deference to the new president. September 30 has passed. Most of the 21 ambassadors have come home. But not all. Tiglao and Benedicto are among those who refuse to give up their posts.

A DFA source said, Tiglao, one of the most trusted advisers of Arroyo, has requested that he be extended up to Dec. 31, 2010. The DFA issued this official statement on Tiglao: “The extension of the tours of duty of political ambassadors, including Ambassador Tiglao, expired Sept. 30. The most senior foreign service officer at post, Career Minister Constancio Vingno, assumed as charge d’affairs at the Philippine Embassy in Athens on 1 Oct.”

Our source said Tiglao does not report to the embassy but he continues to stay in the ambassador’s residence and he has not started to pack. That’s because Romulo has assured him he will get his wish. Romulo’s daughter, Agriculture Undersecretary Berna Romulo-Puyat, is lobbying for him.

News reports from Athens said the protesters the protesters belong to Filipino organization Kasapi Hellas who accused Tiglao of not being helpful to Filipinos in Greece. In their statement, the group said, “In a news release, Athens-based Filipino organization Kasapi Hellas urged President Benigno Aquino III not to re-appoint Tiglao, saying he has not done much to assist Filipinos in Greece.”

GMA News reported that Tiglao, who now writes a column for the Philippine Daily Inquirer (something which some DFA officers are questioning), declined to comment on the allegations of Kasapi Hellas saying he was “on leave and the matter was “sensitive.”

The case of Benedicto is even more anomalous.

He was able to wangle the appointment as ambassador to China December 2009, six months before the end of Arroyo’s appointment.

There’s a rule among career foreign service officers not to be given foreign assignment if he has less than three years before retirement. Because that the length of time one needs to be effective in his post. One needs at least one year to familiarize with issues and establish network in his post.

Anyway, Benedicto assumed his Beijing post before the May 2010 elections but he was only able to present his credentials last Sept. 30. Those papers said he was the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Gloria Arroyo.
Benedicto has refused to return to Manila. He has no appointment signed by President Aquino. If he has, he should pass through the CA and get another agrément.

Sources at the DFA said Aquino has asked businessman Alfredo Yao of Zest –O Corporation to be his ambassador to China.