Appointments body defers confirmation of DOE chief

The Commission on Appointments on Wednesday deferred the confirmation of the appointment of Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras amid "hanging" questions posed to him by some lawmakers. Senator Sergio "Serge" Osmeña III, chairman of the CA energy committee, said they will conduct another hearing on December 14 to ask Almendras more questions regarding his department. "There are some hanging questions that they (members of the CA) asked him to look into (so) I will not predict if we will be able to confirm it ( Almendras' appointment) on the next hearing," Osmeña told reporters. Osmeña said that among the hanging questions is the one posed by Quezon Rep. Danny Suarez about the supposed non-payment of taxes by the Pagbilao Plant in Pagbilao, Quezon. Other hanging questions concern the decision of the National Electrification Administration — chaired by Almendras — on the corruption and bribery charges filed against a former Iloilo governor, and the Palawan share on the Malampaya deep water gas-to-power project royalties. "He (Almendras) was not there when the trial (on the bribery charges) was going on so he promised to do some research. The DOE (also) promised that they will do its best (to answer the Malampaya issue)," Osmeña said. Still, Osmeña expressed confidence that Almendras would be able to handle the questions that would be thrown at him during the next hearing. "He was humble, he was very knowledgeable. I think he can very easily satisfy these," he said. Sought for his reaction on the development, Almendras merely replied: "Susundin natin ang batas (We will follow the law)." Second deferred confirmation The CA had also earlier deferred the confirmation of Education Sec. Bro. Armin Luistro because of the objection made by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago against his appointment. The CA is set to conduct another hearing on Luistro's appointment on Tuesday next week. So far, the commission has only conducted hearings on the appointments of Luistro and Almendras. Osmeña, however, said it is still possible that they might be able to confirm a Cabinet member's nomination before Congress goes on its holiday break. "A possibility yes, a probability yes. (But) who (will be confirmed) I don't know," he said. The CA is composed of the Senate president as its head and 12 senators and 12 congressmen as its members. The commission’s duty as mandated by the 1987 Constitution is to confirm all appointments made by the President of the Philippines, except those of the Ombudsman and Supreme Court justices. The CA discusses and deliberates on nominations at the standing committee level and at the plenary session. Nominations or appointments may end up being confirmed, rejected or bypassed. — RSJ/KBK, GMANews.TV