Solon hits Marina chief over frequent foreign trips

By Gerry Baldo

01/19/2010

It seems that jet-setting is a trend among administration officials.

In a privilege speech yesterday, a lawmaker scored the head of a branch of the government’s transportation department for leaving the country for abroad too often apparently at the State’s expense.

According to Agusan del Sur Rep. Rodolfo “Ompong” Plaza, Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) chief Elena Bautista is the second most traveled official of the Arroyo administration, with 77 foreign trips since she assumed her present post 18 months ago.

She is three trips shy of President Arroyo’s 80 trips from since she took over the presidency from ousted President Joseph Estrada in 2001 to the present.

Citing Marina records, Plaza said Bautista has been designating officers-in charge during her frequent absences to go abroad. He said she has spent more time in London than in her office here in Manila since she assumed the post 18 months ago.

“She has been traveling at the rate of at least one foreign trip in a week, or an average of 4.8 trips in a month,” Plaza said.

According to the lawmaker, Bautista was even abroad when some of the big shipping accidents in the country happened.

Plaza then questioned Bautista’s foreign trips as he noted that there was no distinction between the personal and official travels of the Marina chief, who, he said, has been wielding a travel authority from the Department of Transportation and Communications whenever using her regular passport.

“Does she need a travel authority to travel using her regular passport? Or does she use her official passport when traveling on her personal account?” he said.

Plaza charged that Bautista has been using taxpayers’ money to pay for her foreign trips.

“Do our countrymen know that as a public official, Madame Elena needs US$400 for her daily expenses while being abroad?“ Plaza alleged.

He said Bautista has spent a total of P4.158 million in her 77 foreign travels.

At the same time, Plaza assailed Malacañang for allowing Bautista to go on her “jet-setting and cosmopolitan ways” at the expense of the taxpayers.

“What kind of government is this that grants Elena Bautista this special privilege of spending the people’s money for her super-frequent travels abroad?” he said.

Plaza moreover said he had received information that Bautista is planning to set up a maritime office in London that would be headed by an attaché, such as herself.

He, though, said he was wondering why she is so keen on having an office in London and at how frequent she travels to Europe.

“I am willing to understand if Miss Bautista might have conducted those trips abroad because she loves Europe, or loves someone from Europe,” Plaza said.

Bautista’s boyfriend is reportedly a German.

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