Palace superbody

Office of Representative RAFAEL V. MARIANO

South Wing - 615, House of Representatives
Constitution Hills, Diliman, Quezon City
Tel. No. 931-6397& 931-5001 loc. 7314

NEWS RELEASE
October 22, 2004

References:
Rep. RAFAEL MARIANO, ANAKPAWIS Party-list (0920-4516504)
Jim Fernando, Public Information Officer (0921-3838393)

Palace superbody is “image reengineering” machinery – solon

Anakpawis party-list Representative Rafael Mariano today described
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s newly created Office of External
Affairs (OEA) as an “image reengineering” machinery to save the
administration from increasing political isolation from the Filipino
people.

Reports cited that the OEA is emerging as a “superbody” and appears to
duplicate the work of regular line agencies and forms part of the
President’s policy of political accommodation.

“Aside from being a dumping ground (of presidential appointees) and
bureaucratic duplication, the OEA will serve to repackage the image of
the President,” says Mariano.

“The creation of the OEA is an open admission that the President is
suffering from increasing political isolation and that her policies and
programs does not enjoy people’s participation and support,” Mariano
stressed.

“No amount of public relations and cosmetic surgery can save the
President from increasing political isolation,” he added.

The peasant lawmaker said that “Ms Macapagal’s failure to address the
problems of landlessness, hunger and poverty coupled with the soaring
prices of oil, water and electricity rates, basic goods and services,
and the imposition of unjust taxes could hardly rebuild her worn-out
image.”

“The OEA will surely fail in its so-called job to bring the government
closer to the people and the people closer to the government,” he said.
“This so-called superbody is expected to end up a weakling.” #