Arroyo abolishes SPDA

President Gloria Arroyo called for the immediate deactivation of the Southern Philippines Development Authority (SPDA), a government agency, which handles development projects in 13 provinces and nine cities.

Arroyo declared vacant all positions in the board of directors, board of advisors and the administrator of the SPDA.

The deactivation was due to duplication of functions of some other agencies involved in developing Mindanao, said Arroyo, adding the plan was to streamline the bureaucracy.

The abolition of the SPDA occurred after Arroyo appointed Vice President Teofisto Guingona Jr. as the head of Mindanao development projects.

Guingona was also appointed overseer for the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Guingona will supervise the Overseas Filipino Investment Bond, the housing programme for OFWs, the establishment of an integrated steel plant in Mindanao, the creation of a seafarer's welfare programme, and other development projects in Mindanao.

The position was offered to Guingona to placate him after the row between him and Arroyo over the Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) and after the palace's premature announcement of his resignation as foreign affairs secretary this year.

Guingona accepted the position despite his differences of opinion with Arroyo.

"The offer was sincerely given and the offer was sincerely accepted," said Press Secretary Itgnacio Bunye.

Asked whether acceptance of the token position would make Guingona more of a team player in the Arroyo administration, Bunye said: "I think the vice president will do his very best to be able to pursue the goals and objectives set forth in these various programmes and projects and that involves coordinating with the administration."

At the same time, Arroyo created a task force headed by presidential assistant on Mindanao Jesus Dureza to oversee SPDA's deactivation.

"Only Congress can abolish SPDA as it was created by legislative fiat," said Arroyo, but added that the presidential office can also call for its dissolution.

The task force was directed to recommend on or before March 30, the process needed for SPDA's smooth abolition.

The SPDA personnel will lose their job on December 30. Those qualified for retirement said they called for optional retirement.

Earlier, the SPDA was headed by Nur Misuari, head of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which forged a pro-autonomy peace settlement with the government in 1996. The agreement allowed him to head the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) which had four province members.

At that time, Misuari suggested the expansion of the ARMM to 13 provinces and nine cities, which resulted in the creation of the SPDA that was mandated to oversee development projects in 13 provinces and nine cities in Mindanao.

A second referendum in 2001 resulted in the expansion of the ARMM into six-provinces. The SPDA became a redundant agency because the ARMM became an agency in charge of the development projects in its own areas.

Guingona's task will include implementation of the specific projects that the SPDA had identified for Mindanao's development.