Joker hits Palace legal team for 'rushed' EOs

With three of President Benigno Aquino III's four executive orders now being questioned before the Supreme Court, Senator Joker Arroyo on Sunday raised doubts on the capabilities of Malacañang's legal team. In an interview on dzBB radio, Sen. Arroyo said that as much as possible, the Office of the President's team of lawyers should ensure that Malacañang's issuances are not "rush jobs" so these will not be assailed before the courts. "I don't want to criticize the lawyers because it's not fair. But I hope they won't be overeager, like an overeager bride and groom who cannot wait for their wedding," said the senator. GMANews.TV is trying to reach Presidential Chief Legal Counsel Eduardo de Mesa for comment. Last Thursday, allies of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo at the House of Representatives asked the Supreme Court to nullify Mr. Aquino's Executive Order No. 1, which creates the Truth Commission that will probe alleged anomalies during the Arroyo administration. In their petition, House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman and Representatives Rodolfo Albano Jr., Simeon Datumanong and Orlando Fua Jr. said President Aquino usurped congressional powers in creating such body. They likewise said the commission, whose composition is yet to be finalized, should be struck down because it duplicates the powers of the Ombudsman and the Justice Department. Prior to that, Justice assistant secretary Jose Arturo de Castro and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) director Eddie Tamondong also asked the SC to void Executive No. 2, which revokes Mrs. Arroyo's so-called midnight appointments. De Castro and Tamondong both argued that their date of appointments, March 1, did not fall within the constitutional ban before the elections last May 10. De Castro also went to the Supreme Court to challenge the President's Executive Order No. 3, which overturns Mrs. Arroyo's EO No. 883. The latter automatically conferred the Career Executive Service Officer (CESO) Rank III on government lawyers in the executive department. However, the Palace said EO No. 883 was illegal because only the Career Executive Service Board can confer CESO ranks. The government, through the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Department of Finance, got a temporary legal blow last Friday after the court put on hold the planned imposition of 12-percent value added tax on toll rates and the 250-percent increase in South Luzon Expressway fees from Alabang to Calamba. With these four legal obstacles the Executive Department is facing — the questions on EOs 1, 2, 3, and the temporary restraining orders issued on the separate toll hikes — Senator Arroyo said the administration started on the wrong foot. — LBG, GMANews.TV