Nothing irregular with Arroyo appointments, spokesperson says

The former head of the Presidential Management Staff chief on Wednesday insisted that there was nothing irregular with the appointments made by former President and incumbent Pampanga Rep Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. "Wala kaming appointment na ginawa beyond the prohibited period, lahat yan dumaan sa PMS (We did not make an appointment beyond the prohibited period; they were all reviewed by the PMS)," Elena Bautista-Horn, former PMS chief now Arroyo spokesperson and chief of staff, told reporters on Wednesday. At the same time, Bautista-Horn appealed to President Benigno Simeon Aquino III to let the officers stay at least until the end of the year. "And you know para sanang kagandahang loob na rin na… hanggang end of the year man lang ang mga kasamahan natin sa bureaucracy para meron din silang benefit na matanggap (Out of compassion, may the bureaucrats be allowed to stay at least until the end of the year, so they could receive some benefits)," she said. "…Appeal lang yun to the goodness of their hearts na ma re-consider naman na ang mga ito ay nagtrabaho nang maayos sa government (This is just an appeal to the goodness of their hearts, to consider that these people served the government well)," she added. Under the Civil Service rule, the removal of an ordinary civil servant should undergo a due process, she said. “They can only be removed with a cause. Ang due process nga sa government ay may memorandum ka to explain something that you did not do right, you have 72 hours to reply and they will assess what the reply is all about," she said. She said the removal of a career executive service officer would take longer, at least one year. She added: "Sana mabigyan din ng due process at kung ano pa pwede nilang makuhang benefit man lang ay mabigay sa kanila, at para makahanap sila ng malilipatang trabaho (May they be given due process and whatever benefits are due them, and to help them find other jobs to transfer to)." Bautista-Horn said they have yet to get a copy of the Executive Order 2 revoking the alleged “midnight appointments" to see how the Aquino administration defined that term. "Sa aming definition, midnight appointment po ay ginawa during the prohibition under the Constitution, so that is starting March 10, dahil nga po may election ban na. (In our definition, a midnight appointment is made during the prohibition, under the Constitution, so that is starting March 10 because there was already an election ban)," said Bautista-Horn. "Ngayon kung ang defintion nila ay other than that, siguro dapat pag-aralan din (If they have a definition other than that, then it should be studied)," she said. — VVP/RSJ, GMANews.TV