World | Philippines
Aquino appoints Jardeleza as chief government lawyer
Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. announced the appointment of Jardeleza on Saturday
- By Gilbert P. Felongco, Correspondent
- Published: 15:03 February 11, 2012
Manila: A top executive of Philippine based food and beverage giant San Miguel Corporation, had been appointed the new Solicitor General.
Francis H. Jardeleza has been appointed by President Benigno Aquino III to replace Anselmo Cadiz who resigned a week ago to return to private law practice.
Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. announced the appointment of Jardeleza on Saturday.
Jardeleza was formerly senior vice president and general counsel of the food and beverage giant San Miguel Corporation and is a product of the University of the Philippines. He completed his master of laws in Harvard.
The appointment of Jardelaza came at a tumultuous period for the post of top government lawyer. This early, workers at the Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac, Central Luzon expressed suspicions that the appointment does not bid well for the cases involving the huge estate.
Land dispute
Hacienda Luisita is owed by the family of President Aquino. The estate had long been the subject of a dispute between the farmers working the more then 5,000 hectare land and the Aquino-Cojuangco clan.
A statement issued by the Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA or Union of Farm workers) and the local union in Hacienda Luisita, the Alyansa ng mga Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita (Ambala) expressed their worries over the "non-commitment" of Jardeleza over the case of the disputed Hacienda.
According to UMA secretary general Rodel Mesa, the latest pronouncements Jardeleza on the issue of the hacienda gives a strong signal that it would not act according to the concept of agrarian reform justice; rather it would be "on the side of the Government" whose chief is one of the owners of the disputed 5,000-hectare land, which is found at the very heart of Tarlac province.
"The new Sol-Gen is sounding like a private lawyer of [President] Aquino, not a representative of the farmworkers in the issue of the Hacienda Luisita case," Mesa said.
De Mesa also said that backing the distribution of the hacienda to the actual tillers is "a moral, legal and just thing to do" and there must be no reason that the Office of the Sol-Gen (OSG) would deviate from its earlier position of agreeing to the morality of distributing the disputed land to the farmworker-beneficiaries.
"His office should pursue [the] filing of comment supporting the High Tribunal's November 22 [2011's decision], ordering the distribution of Hacienda Luisita and for the Cojuangco-Aquinos's pay the farm workers their share on the proceeds of sales on the 500 hectares parcels of land," Mesa as he referred to a decision by the Supreme Court last year, affirming the distribution of Hacienda Luisita lands to the farmers.
He also said that the Jardeleza should not succumb to pressure from the presidential palace, no matter what happens.
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