Surprise us

There were no surprises as President Estrada announced changes in his government yesterday. For some, the long-awaited revamp was a disappointment. The reshuffle announced yesterday was reported by the press days ago.

Still, letting go of his numerous presidential consultants, advisers and assistants with no particular functions was a welcome move. Not that the public ever knew in the first place what all these one-peso-a-year officials were doing, apart from flashing fancy business cards and writing on stationery bearing the seal of the Office of the President.

The business community will also welcome the creation of the President's Council of Senior Economic Advisers, composed of Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Vicente Paterno, Gabriel Singson, Washington SyCip and Cesar Virata.

Apart from these changes, the President's Report to the Nation at the start of the year was generally a rehash of his inaugural speech 18 months ago. His priorities: food security, housing for the poor, peace and order and the fight against graft and corruption. His promise to give no special favors to relatives and friends this time included an appeal to those taking advantage of their closeness to him: "When you drop my name, you drag me down." He no longer wanted his administration jumping from crisis to crisis, he said, putting out one fire after another.

He also wanted to "reorganize... re-energize" for a more powerful team. And yet his announcement yesterday showed a reluctance to let go of his friends, even the non-performing ones. Were it not for the irrevocable resignation of Finance Secretary Edgardo Espiritu and the power play with the President's favorite cop that drove Ronaldo Puno out of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Chief Executive would not have managed to announce any significant changes in his official family yesterday.

Still, it's the start of the year -- a time of faith and hope. "The revamp of the government is by no means over," the President vowed as he admitted that despite his achievements in the past 18 months, the people expected much more. In reiterating his inaugural promises to provide a better life for the people, to fight corruption and make the people proud to be Filipino, the nation can only hope that this time he means it. While the President's Ulat sa Bayan offered no surprises, his administration can surprise us with a much better performance this year.