Gina’s fate decided on May 3 – CA
The Commission on Appointments (CA) will decide on the fate of Environment Secretary Regina Lopez when Congress reconvenes in early May.
“We have agreed to vote on her confirmation or rejection on May 3,” Isabela Rep. Rodolfo Albano lll, who is CA majority leader, said yesterday.
“There will be no more hearing on her. If we have to conduct an additional hearing, we can do it on May 2, when we resume session, and take a vote the next day,” he said.
A secret vote would be conducted on whether to confirm or reject Lopez, according to Albano.
“I hope she does not suffer the fate of secretary Yasay,” he added.
The CA has rejected the appointment of former foreign secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. for allegedly lying on his citizenship.
He initially denied having acquired American citizenship only to admit later that he had been naturalized and in fact had a US passport.
However, he had renounced his American citizenship shortly before joining the Duterte Cabinet.
Albano would not hazard a guess on the chance of Lopez, saying, “It could go either way.”
“She has supporters and critics among the congressmen and senators sitting in the CA,” he said.
He said he was for confirming Lopez “until I entertained doubts about her competence.”
“I admire her passion for the environment, her incorruptibility. But after our hearings, there are now questions lingering (on) my mind about the decisions she made as secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR),” he said.
He cited her hiring of consultants and giving them provincial environment and natural resources officer (PENRO) positions.
“It’s her prerogative to hire consultants. But why give them PENRO items, which are reserved for the chief DENR officers in the provinces? Why not pay them out of funds of the office of the secretary?” he asked.
Lopez has ordered the closure of 23 mines, including one operated by the family of San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora, who heads the 12-member House contingent in the CA.
The Zamoras own Nickel Asia Corp., one of the biggest mining companies in the country.
In one hearing, Lopez bluntly told Zamora: “Your brother has killed a big mountain.”
Some CA colleagues have urged the San Juan congressman to inhibit himself from the hearings and voting on Lopez, but there has been no word from him.
The mines that Lopez has ordered closed continue to operate despite the fuss about their closure, since they have appealed her directive to President Duterte.
‘True-blooded environment advocate’
For former president and current Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, Lopez is a true-blooded environmental protection advocate who deserves to stay as DENR secretary.
In a telephone interview yesterday with The STAR, Estrada said that Lopez was a victim of strong opposition from mining companies whom she had stepped on with her strong and serious campaign to protect the environment.
Lopez remains challenged in seeking her confirmation as DENR secretary from the influential CA, composed of senators and representatives.
“She is quietly working for environmental protection. She has no publicity stunts,” Estrada said.
The city government of Manila, with the assistance of Lopez, has long cleaned and now maintains operations in various esteros and the Pasig River, which traverses several parts of the city.
“We have been doing that. Secretary Gina Lopez was a big help to us. She helped me clean various esteros in Manila. She is a lady with a serious advocacy for environmental protection,” Estrada said.