Noynoy gives green light for transition

Now that he has been proclaimed, President-elect Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino III has given his prospective Cabinet members the green light to start transition work with the outgoing administration. Incoming Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said she already met Wednesday with officials of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to be briefed on the job. "Opo, (nagbigay) siya ng instruction, pwede na kaming makipagusap, bahagi yan ng transition (Yes he gave instructions to us that we can now talk to our outgoing counterparts. This is part of the transition)," Soliman said in an interview on dzRH radio. Aside from Soliman, Aquino had confirmed as members of his official family Teresita Deles as peace adviser, Edwin Lacierda as presidential spokesman, and Paquito "Jojo" Ochoa as most likely the executive secretary. On the other hand, Makati Business Club executive director Alberto Lim confirmed he got an offer from Aquino to join his Cabinet, and that he has accepted it. [See: Makati Business Club exec confirms Cabinet post offer] 'Hello, Garci' Soliman said that in her case, she formally met Wednesday with DSWD officials. Her priority is to implement Aquino's instructions to sustain the government's conditional cash transfer program for poor families, she said. "Nakipag-meeting ako sa kanila formal kahapon sa opisina. Bahagi yan sa aming susuriin para itong pulitika at leakages ay maiwasto namin at maabot sa nangangailangan ang programa (I met with the DSWD formally Wednesday. We will review the program for traces of politicking and leakages, and address these problems so that the agency's programs would benefit those in need)," she said. Soliman, who left the DSWD in 2005 in the wake of the "Hello Garci" scandal involving alleged fraud in the 2004 elections, said she expects to hit the ground running. "Dati ko silang kasama, so ang adjustment at learning curve halos wala dahil dati ko sila nakatrabaho. Ina-update nila ako sa nangyari at pinaunlad ang problema noong wala ako (I had worked with the people at DSWD so the adjustment and learning curve will not be a problem. I merely asked for updates on the department's programs since I left)," she said. 'Blueprint' for new Cabinet In Malacañang, Presidential Management Staff head Elena Bautista-Horn said the transition team she now heads will submit a blueprint to the incoming administration. She said the blueprint includes a 20-page situationer on the Arroyo administration's "accomplishments and challenges," including a world food crisis in 2007 and an economic crisis in 2008. The document is entitled "The Transition Team, the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Blueprint," she said. Bautista-Horn also said they will give the incoming administration two three-inch-thick books including the functional transitional report and operational transitional report of the bureaucracy. She said the list of problems that Aquino wants to see will be contained in the reports. "Ang list of problems, makikita sa specific agency report. Itong 20-pager na ito compiled lang natin ang important factors na gusto natin ilagay (You can see the list of problems in the specific agency report. The 20-page report is a compilation of important factors we want to highlight)," she said in an interview on dzXL radio. She also insisted the reports have no window-dressed data. "We definitely have no intention to deceive. I can look them straight in the eye at sabihing tama ang datos (and tell them the information is accurate)," she said. However, Bautista-Horn admitted the chances of a joint Cabinet meeting between the incoming and outgoing administrations appear slim at this time. "Medyo nga po pero kung sakali po ay nakahanda tumulong (The chances of a joint Cabinet meeting appear slim at this time but we remain ready to help the incoming administration)," she said. — LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV