Purisima confirmation deferred

MANILA, Philippines - Despite his perceived closeness to President Aquino, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima failed to get the nod of the powerful Commission on Appointments (CA), in what could be considered the longest confirmation hearings so far.

Purisima’s failure to get confirmed was largely due to the efforts of the contingent from the House of Representatives.

After four hours of grilling by the CA members, the hearing on Purisima’s appointment was suspended to allow the other members to raise more questions before the Secretary in another hearing set on March 16.

Quezon 3rd District Rep. Danilo Suarez opposed Purisima’s appointment, even as the 12 members of the House contingent to the CA were conspicuously absent at the start of yesterday’s hearing and only came in more than two hours after the 9 a.m. schedule.

The hearing actually started at 10:30 a.m. and the congressmen who arrived earlier were ushered to the office of CA overall chairman, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.

After dispensing with the first party against the finance secretary’s appointment, who was identified as Danilo Lihaylihay, Suarez was allowed to state his case against Purisima.

Suarez raised the claim of Quezon province and Pagbilao municipality against the national government, through the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM), in the amount of P6.1 billion, representing real property tax liabilities, fines and interest accumulated since 1993.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the province and Pagbilao on its claim on the real property tax for the Pagbilao facility, saying it is not exempted from the tax.

The claim was initially made against the developer of the plant Mirant Corp. (formerly Hopewell Power Corp.) but this was transferred to Team Energy when the consortium acquired the assets of Mirant, including the Pagbilao coal-fired power plant in 2007.

The National Power Corp. assumed the tax liability of Team Energy under the terms of the build-operate-transfer contract, but based on the provisions of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act, the obligation was transferred to PSALM.

“The province wants justice. For the past several years there has been an astronomical increase in illness, mostly respiratory problems, kidney problems, lung problems, a sizeable percentage of immeasurable damage to the youth — retentiveness in memory and capability in knowledge,” Suarez said.        

He said the province was willing to compromise with the national government on the settlement of real property taxes because it is fully aware that the full amount would bear a heavy burden on the state. - Iris Gonzales