If
President Arroyo’s plan to hire New York City Mayor Rudolf Giuliani as
consultant is true, she might as well sack all her cabinet officials and replace
them with the best and the brightest the United States could offer.
This was the reaction today of House Assistant Minority Floor Leader Gilbert Remulla on Mrs. Arroyo’s statement that she is contemplating of hiring Giuliani as Malacañang’s consultant, saying that this is an outright admission of her government’s incompetence.
Remulla pointed out that Mrs. Arroyo’s statement only shows that she could no longer count on the expertise of her own cabinet members and advisers, that she now wants an American government official to advise her on the affairs of the state.
He added that Mrs. Arroyo’s statement, along with her previous actions only demonstrates her extreme bias “towards anything that is American.”
“ First she allowed the American to go to Mindanao to participate in the offensive against the Abu Sayyaf. Then, she hired an American PR firm to improve her public image. And now she wants Giuliani to be her adviser? Mabuti pa siguro tanggalin na rin niya lahat ang kanyang mga gabinete at palitan ng mga Kano dahil wala naman yata siyang bilib sa kanila eh, ” Remulla said.
Remulla said it is also a slap on the face of the country’s law enforcement agencies like the Philippine National Police (PNP), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Department of Interior and Local Government when President Arroyo said that Guiliani’s primary area of concern would be the country’s peace and order problem.
“ This is an insult to our law enforcement agencies. If she has no confidence with our law enforcement agencies, Mrs. Arroyo should also sack them and replace them with retired operatives of the FBI and the New York City Police Department and the CIA,” Remulla retorted.
Although he admits that he admires Giuliani’s extraordinary leadership especially during crucial times such as the September 11 attack in the United States, Remulla said Mrs. Arroyo does not need the charismatic New York City Mayor to improve her way of governance because he is not in touch with the realities in the Philippines.
“ I share Mrs. Arroyo’s admiration towards Mayor Giuliani but the situation in New York is far different from our domestic woes. What Mrs. Arroyo should do is to listen closer to the sentiment of her constituents. Their voice is more important than that of someone who don’t have the slightest idea on what’s life like in the Philippines,” he said.