Bulacan governor defends hiring of consultants

MALOLOS CITY , Philippines  â€“ Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino Alvarado, along with other provincial officials, yesterday defended the hiring of consultants in the provincial government, saying there is no law restricting its number.

They also confirmed that there is no Catholic priest or bishop hired as consultant, saying that a bishop was hired as consultant not for his religion but for his professional capabilities.

“There is nothing wrong with the number of consultants we have,” Alvarado said in a telephone interview yesterday, alleging that earlier reports about findings of the Commission on Audit (COA) were politically motivated.

Alvarado admitted that he hired 52 consultants, saying 27 of them had technical expertise while the rest were tapped because of their professional backgrounds.

Vice Gov. Daniel Fernando hired 20 other consultants for the provincial board.

Alvarado said the Local Government Code is clear on the hiring of consultants, adding that it offers no restrictions, except that compensations must fit with the allocated budget of the government.

He said Bishop Ephraim Perez of the Christian Catholic Church was hired not for his religion but for his other skills like counseling and community development.

Alvarado said the previous administration of the Bulacan provincial government even had more than 40 consultants who were highly paid using government funds.

“They had highly paid consultants, too, but they are hitting us now when we have more but are paid less,” he said.

As of July 1, he said he had terminated the contracts of at least four consultants.

For his part, lawyer Enrique de la Cruz, a provincial board member from the second district of Bulacan, said the separation of Church and State in the Constitution is clear.

He said the Constitution does not limit a religious person in serving in the government like former Pampanga governor Ed Panlilio. However, he agreed that the law restricts the government in favoring certain religions.

De la Cruz also said the hiring of consultants is highly discretionary and their function is limited to providing advice.