The resignation of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) chairperson Margarita “Margie” Juico last week continues to be a trending topic among political observers. Reports have it that she was forced to quit because she could no longer stomach political intrigues.
This is an interesting angle because Margie and her husband Philip Juico are no strangers to the dirty game of politics. Having espoused the political causes identified with the late Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr and his widow, Corazon “Cory” Aquino, the Juicos are counted among the most avid and loyal Aquino partisans. Thus, when Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III ran for president in 2010 the Juicos rallied behind him with the same fervor and steadfastness they gave Cory in 1983. After P-Noy won, it came as no surprise when he appointed Margie Juico as chairman of the PCSO.
P-Noy apparently picked the right person for the job. When she assumed office, Juico inherited an agency with a P4 billion deficit. She leaves the Sweepstakes office with a cash surplus amounting to P16.6 billion.
With that kind of connect and creditable performance, a presidential appointee like Margie Juico should be coated with Teflon. The question is: Who and what did her in?
In her irrevocable resignation letter submitted to Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Juico cited personal reasons for quitting. She said that after more than 20 years of serving the government (as member of the PCSO board of directors under four presidents, namely Cory, Fidel V. Ramos, Joseph Estrada and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) she is stepping down to spend more time with family.
Because the resignation was all too sudden, it left the Executive branch with little time to allay speculation that changes in the PCSO are part of preparations for the 2016 presidential race.
Events prior to Juico’s resignation seem innocuous. According to reports, a representative of Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas was asking the PCSO for certain documents.
Juico reportedly declined the request because the representative had no formal authority from Secretary Roxas to secure documents from the PCSO office. To bridge the gap, Margie tried to reach Roxas through his mobile phone but there was no reply. The next thing she knew, President Aquino summoned her to Malacañang and called her attention on why she is not giving Roxas due courtesy. A month or two later, reliable sources told Juico that former Imus Mayor and Cavite Congressman Ireneo “Ayong” Maliksi had announced that he is set to be the next PCSO chairman of the board.
Intrigues are not just part of the territory but it is ingrained in the system if you’re talking of an agency that is a steady source of money for the government but what can Juico do in the face of the forces who want her out?
I think the one thing that perhaps led her to discern it is time to head for the exit door is the ruckus involving Roxas in the Wack-Wack Golf and Country Club. You must have heard about the controversy which had to be resolved by the president of the elite sports club, Margie’s husband, Philip. Roxas was penalized for violating club regulations, a euphemism for bad behavior if you ask me.
The rest is history.
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May is the merry month of fiestas in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Inserted in the 31 days of the 5th month is the celebration of Mother’s Day and I have been smothered, like most mothers around the globe with love and affection by my children, relatives and friends.
One of the most touching Mother’s Day messages posted in my Facebook account read, “May she who gave you birth be happy. This verse speaks to God’s wish that all mothers be happy and content in their lives.” To the verse I like to add, in the warmth and reassuring love of their children at all times, whether good or bad.
Last week, I was shocked to learn that my good friend, Guadalupe “Luping” Cabahug Latonio of Mandaue City lost her eldest child, Paolo Alessandro Cabahug Ignacio in a fatal vehicular accident in Florida. The mishap happened in April 10 and although Paolo had acquired American citizenship, Luping decided to bring the body to Mandaue City and have it interred in the family cemetery in Consolacion town.
In solidarity with my friend, I attended Paolo’s wake in Rolling Hills. The Mass officiated by Fr. Jules Amamangpang of the Mission Society of the Philippines (MSP) was already underway when I arrived in the funeral facility. In his homily, Fr. Jules recalled not Paolo but Luping’s mother, the late Vicenta Labucay Cabahug, wife of former Cebu Governor and Justice of the Court of Appeals Sotero Cabahug.
Noy Terong and Mana Tintay as they are fondly called are exemplary Mandauehanons although it is Noy Terong who is better remembered because he was in the public eye in the prime of his life.
Paolo’s wake became an occasion to honor Luping’s outstanding mother – a pious woman who generously gave to Church undertakings, one of which is the MSP priests’ house in a marginal community in barangay Tejero. Mana Tintay helped raised funds for the MSP Congregation – an endeavor that practically initiated the building of a parish now known as the Blessed Sacrament Parish.
Although Luping’s sorrow is, in her own words, “beyond grief”, the recollections of her mother Mana Tintay are a great source of consolation.
Words are simply not enough but I hope Luping would fall back to the greatest consolation of all: the promise of the Resurrection.