Face-saving time EDITORIAL 08/18/2010

Face-saving time

EDITORIAL Click to enlarge 08/18/2010 Palace propagandists were quick to state to media, after Noynoy Aquino claimed Monday that he had suspended the expanded value added tax (eVAT) on tollways as well as suspending the close to 300 percent increase in toll fares since last week, that his statement on the toll tax and the expressway fare increase was not a “face saving” gesture. Yet up till Friday last week, and just before the Supreme Court (SC) issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the fare price hike along with the imposition of the eVAT on tollways, there was Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Chief Kim Henares, saying that there were no orders from Noynoy, stressing that all he had told her, when she was appointed by him, was for her to “just implement the law.” And to her, the law says that eVAT is to be imposed on tollways. And up till Friday, Noynoy’s spokesman, who presumably speaks for him, insisted that which Noynoy did was right, as he blamed the Arroyo administration for not having implemented the law, whose bases, apparently, are the two memorandum circulars Gloria Arroyo had issued. Given the conflicting statements of Noynoy and his BIR chief, along with what his presidential spokesman stated, it looks like there isn’t any presidential clearance at all whenever his subalterns issue statements. But then again, this also shows that Noynoy’s style of “governance” is to leave his Cabinet secretaries and bureau chiefs to decide for themselves — to the point of their making policies — without any discussions with him, nor decisions made by him.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100818com1.html

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