Noy appoints Villacorta as RP's permanent representative to Asean

HANOI, Vietnam — President Aquino yesterday confirmed here the appointment of Wilfrido Villacorta as the Philippines’ permanent representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Mr. Aquino said he had already signed Villacorta’s appointment papers and submitted them to the Commission on Appointments (CA) for confirmation.

“I have already signed his appointment, and it would be up to the CA to approve. I think it is because his rank carries that of an ambassador,” Mr. Aquino told reporters at the Grand Plaza Hotel here.

Villacorta, 65, served as deputy secretary-general of ASEAN based in Jakarta, Indonesia. He was a delegate of the 1986 constitutional commission, an academician and professor emeritus of De La Salle University.

He was also a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Merit in 2007 for service to ASEAN regionalism.

Villacorta will be replacing former senator Orlando Mercado, an appointee of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the post.

Mercado was a veteran broadcast journalist before he was elected to the Senate. He once served as Defense secretary to former President Joseph Estrada.

Originally appointed to become Philippine ambassador to China, Mercado though did not pass confirmation from the CA.

Arroyo instead named him as Philippine permanent representative to ASEAN, citing the appointment does not necessarily need CA approval unlike that of the rank of ambassador.

President Aquino, on the other hand, said he is looking forward to meeting with his fellow heads of state to discuss issues of security, climate change and disaster preparedness in the region.

Mr. Aquino is on a state visit here prior to the 17th ASEAN Summit.

“As we can gather from the theme ‘From vision to action,’ there are so many problems that affect the entire region, from global warming to the issue of piracy, to so many other issues that really affect not only one state,” Mr. Aquino said.

“Even the growth of our economy is so dependent on acting in unison and in consort with those who are our closest neighbors. So we expect that after this ASEAN summit there will be more concrete steps towards harmonizing and unifying the entire region,” he added.