Angelo Reyes' Arrogance

Naninigaw, evasive, hostile... I guess Angie's just trying to show who's boss, eh?

Ilocos Norte Rep. Imee Marcos was correct when she said it was Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Angelo Reyes who actually involved his mother when he claimed that his P4.1 million bank deposit belonged to his mother.

Rep. Marcos is right to complain that Reyes was very discourteous when he shouted at her in full view of the TV audience.

This attitude is not peculiar to Secretary Reyes alone. You have seen it in the different Edsa II personalities whose arrogant behavior projected their thinking that Edsa II “heroes” are a superior race and should not be questioned on their performance.

O baka may personal na away lang between Golez and Reyes?

The hearings on corruption charges against Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia have confirmed the bad blood between Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez, former national security adviser, and Secretary Angelo Reyes, former secretary of the Department of National Defense (DND).

Remember the Oakwood mutiny last year when the young officers called for the resignation of Secretary Angelo Reyes on account of incompetence in the Mindanao campaign and corruption? At the time, President Arroyo angrily stated, “they want to remove Reyes to weaken me” and refused to give in.

But shortly after, Mrs. Arroyo asked Reyes to resign as DND chief. Aides of Reyes say they discovered that National Security Council (NSC) head Roilo Golez sent memo after memo to the President that tends to confirm the validity of the Magdalo officers' grievances. (Golez wanted the DND post). Round one to Golez.

At the House hearings the other day, Golez tried to pin down Reyes on the amount of allowances he receives, Reyes answered four times in a loud, angry voice “I receive only authorized allowances.” Congressmen seated close to Golez saw he had a document containing a Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) certification that Reyes was receiving an extra allowance of P2 million a month.

But apparently, Reyes' angry tone forced Golez not to confront him with the Pagcor document at the time.

Golez then reported to the House after the hearings that Reyes confronted him with this challenge, “Pare, pinepersonal mo ako, ano bang gusto mong mangyari?”

To whom Golez just smiled and said, “Relax ka lang.”

Before he left the House, Angie was heard to say “I will get back at him (Golez) with a vengeance.”

Among Golez, Imee Marcos and Peter Allan Cayetano, they barely got anything out of Reyes who they correctly described as arrogant and evasive. Round two to Reyes.

One good thing about this — the hot exchanges between Reyes and Golez have caused Golez to state he will see through these hearings to the end, meaning he is not giving in to Malacañang pressure to terminate the hearings.

But still, Angie's attitude in all this is inexcusable.