Gordon blames Arroyo flip-flopping on poor legal advice

By Juliet Labog-Javellana
Inquirer

SENATOR Richard Gordon said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s flip-flopping on the issue of a retake of the June 2006 nursing licensure examination was due to “poor legal advice'' from her officials.

“It's cha-cha, atras-abante (forward-backward steps of the dance). It doesn't give the administration high ratings in terms of judgment,'' Gordon said of Malacañang's confusing position on whether or not a retake would be required.

Gordon, who asked for a Senate investigation into the leakage that attended the nursing licensure exams, reiterated his call for the resignation of Professional Regulation Commission Chair Leonor Tripon-Rosero to end the controversy.

“I don't see why the President can't fire Rosero. But if I were Rosero, I will resign because she has already done so much damage,” Gordon said.

Gordon said Rosero compounded the problem when she pre-empted the National Bureau of Investigation probe into the leakage by administering the oath to the examinees and announcing there would be no retake of the exam.

Senator Rodolfo Biazon said nobody should be surprised anymore about Malacañang's flip-flopping.

“This issue is being considered from a political point of view and not through thorough study of the issues,” said Biazon, chairman of the Senate civil service committee investigating the leakage.

Gordon and Biazon said the prudent thing for Malacañang to do is to wait for the CA and abide by its decision.

“Otherwise if the decision of the court runs counter to the decision of the executive, what would happen? We will have another situation like the Ombudsman against the Supreme Court,” Biazon said.

Biazon was referring to the Ombudsman's recent decision exonerating officials of the Commission on Elections from the P1.3 billion poll automation deal which the high court had nullified.