Writings on the wall

Herbie Gomez

I DO not know if Environment Secretary Gina Lopez has realized by now that the only reason she’s still in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is because her appointer has a big mouth? You see, when she paid him a visit in Davao last year to congratulate him for winning the presidency, he casually told her that the environment post was hers if she wanted it. He said that casually; Lopez took that seriously. As it appeared then and as it appears now, he was merely making the prominent environmentalist–a member of the influential Lopez family at that–smile.

The offer was made on impulse, a characteristic that is very typical of the President. What he did not expect was her “yes” answer a day or days later. And so, “nahinayak.” But smile she did. And the mining lovers who worked hard and spent a lot of money during the 2016 campaign period frowned.

Now, to lay down the predicate of what’s about to happen to Lopez’s appointment, Perfecto Yasay, had to let go of his post as foreign affairs secretary. Or was it the Palace that let go of him after he was caught lying about his US citizenship? Be that as it may, Yasay knew all along that the Department of Foreign Affairs post is reserved for the 2016 running mate, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano. That was made very clear in the President’s public pronouncements last year. And so, when Yasay was rejected by the Commission on Appointments last week, it was not really that difficult for the Big Boss to do a Pontius Pilate. Everyone knows Yasay would have stepped down sooner or later. And so, what gives?

And Lopez? By all indications, what the public is seeing are part of a scenario to get rid of her in a way that would allow the President to wash his hands the way he did after the CA rejected Yasay.

Clearly, the CA is run by people who are not politically independent. They are the very same people who are working to bring back the death penalty because that’s something that would make the President happy. (The sight of spilt Filipino blood seems to have a Viagra-like effect on some VIPs these days.) Point is, if the President wishes Lopez to become a full-fledged DENR secretary, she will become a full-fledged DENR secretary. But Lopez should know by now that the President is surrounded by people in the cabinet with mining interests or mining links, the reason why she was ambushed in the CA on Thursday.

What about Sen. Manny Pacquiao, the chairman of the CA environment committee? He just said that Lopez would be bypassed, and the President may need to re-appoint her. But will the President re-appoint?

If anyone wants to know what the President really wants, just watch and listen to the boxer because the Pacman has done nothing in the Senate since 2016 but be the hatchet man.

There is a pattern here, and I doubt that Lopez hasn’t read the writings on the wall yet. Simply put, they really don’t like Lopez to stay because she’s simply a pain in every miner’s behind–and pocket.

Good luck to you, Madam Secretary. Pastilan.