Social Welfare Assistant Secretary Lorraine Marie Badoy slammed the lack of reason behind the rejection of the interim appointment of Judy Taguiwalo as the Social Welfare secretary and said that the ultimate reason is Taguiwalo’s opposition against pork barrel.
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“When Cong Almario went to the podium to tell us they had rejected Sec Judy Taguiwalo, did you hear one measly reason for this rejection? I didn’t,” Badoy wrote.
“No one who was there did. Not even a make believe excuse for why they thought the Sec wasn’t fit for the job,” Badoy said.
Badoy said that the Commission on Appointments (CA) probably had a hard time finding Taguiwalo’s weakness, hence the lack of reason behind their rejection of her appointment.
“You know why? Judy Taguiwalo made it real hard for them to find that one small weakness they could cling to to say grandly, “HERE. THIS is why she can’t be DSWD Sec,”” she added.
“No reason. Not one. Not even half a reason that I would have been so eager to know. Kahit na imbento lang,” Badoy said.
Badoy lamented over the fact that the Filipinos just missed out on an “excellent public servant.”
“We’ll never know because apparently apart from their inability to feel the pain we all feel at the loss of such an excellent public servant, they also feel they owe us no explanations,” she said.
“The arrogance of it all,” she added.
The DSWD assistant secretary then brought up Taguiwalo’s fight against pork barrel.
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“That all it boils down to is – pork. The long and short of it. The start and end of it. That this woman stood between them and business as usual. That for the first time, someone was clearly telling them “No. What belongs to the people must stay with the people,”” she said.
“Wag na kayo maghanap ng malalim na dahilan kung baket hindi na-confirm si Sec Judy Taguiwalo. Wag na yang “peace talks” or “maniobra ng LP” or “gusto ipitin si Pangulong Duterte” or “kasi leftist,”” she added. “Simple lang to. The long and short of it. The start and end of it. PORK. Mga baboy.”
On August 16, Taguiwalo also opined that her opposition to pork barrel funds for those in congress in the DSWD and the executive’s tax reform package could be the reasons why she was rejected by the CA.
“What more could they ask from me? I did not steal money,” Taguiwalo told reporters.
Heading into the hearing with CA, Taguiwalo said that she was “hoping for the best but expecting the worst.”
With her rejection, Taguiwalo said: “I have served the people well. I gave my all and I’m proud to say that my integrity remains intact and I have never lost sight of the people I have sworn to serve with fidelity and courage.”
Taguiwalo said that she told congressmen who claimed their district had funds with the DSWD that there was no money and that she wanted to follow the Supreme Court ruling that outlawed the pork barrel system. She also ordered status reports and audits to monitor where DSWD funds were spent.
Taguiwalo said she also opposed the tax reform package for being disadvantageous to the poor. She stood for free tuition for students in state universities and colleges and added pension for workers.
While rejected DENR Secretary Gina Lopez sang “I Believe I Can Fly” as her parting song, Taguiwalo said her parting song would be “Do You Hear the People Sing?” from the musical “Les Miserables.”
“That’s [what] I want to tell the people. That even if I’m not with the DSWD, I am with the people who are standing for what is right, for the people and for the poor,” she said.
Sources: ( inquirer.net )
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