Biz Buzz: Battle of the lawyers

WITH the prescribed end to the term of Securities and Exchange Commission Chairperson Fe Barin already upon us, the local business community remains largely clueless as to who Malacañang will name as the country’s top corporate regulator.

According to our sources, however, there is yet another name that is being considered in the growing list of candidates. If wags are to be believed, Ateneo Law School dean Cesar Villanueva has also become a candidate for the top SEC post, given difficulties—this way or that—associated with the current crop of aspirants.

Known more as a constitutionalist than a corporate lawyer, Villanueva is the right-hand man of the influential Fr. Joaquin Bernas S.J. and is widely respected in business and legal circles.

Of course, the frontrunner in the race remains PCGG Chairman Andy Bautista who recently wiggled the PCGG out of a hole by successfully resolving the corporate impasse at United Coconut Planters Bank.

Bautista—who is also believed to be the bet of Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima—last week submitted a glowing accomplishment report to President Benigno Aquino III, detailing his successes in the first 100 days of his PCGG stint.

Yet another lawyer being considered for the top SEC post is Accra’s Francis Lim who, apart from his corporate law skills and having headed the Philippine Stock Exchange before, is also supposedly a fraternity “brod” of Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa.—Daxim L. Lucas

“Mr. Bean” aboard PAL

IF you fly Philippine Airlines one of these days, don’t be surprised to see a Mr. Bean look-alike as the model in the new official video on safety features and instructions. It was a fresh, humorous and professional approach to getting public attention.

But the first thing that came to mind was: Could this be in response to Cebu Pacific’s dancing flight attendants video, which became a YouTube sensation ahead of the budget carrier’s IPO last year?

We found out that PAL started production of the new safety video when it took delivery of a Boeing 777 in November 2009. Company sources explained that the new safety video was completed in mid-2010, but as it was undergoing final editing, the dancing FA phenomenon happened. Thus, the public launch of “Mr. Bean” was put on hold. It was finally—and quietly—uploaded in November 2010.

In this digital world, however, you do not need to fly PAL to see “Mr. Bean” who is now also seen in YouTube and has recently been shared across popular social networking sites. Like the dancing FAs, the reviews were mixed; there were those demanding that the Filipino language should have been used, men who preferred the dancing FAs to “Mr. Bean,” those who think airline safety was not fit for comedy and those who appreciated PAL’s trashing of the old boring video in favor of this one.

And by the way, some pretty FAs also played a supporting role to “Mr. Bean.” Without dancing, that is.—Doris C. Dumlao

Postponed

THE widely anticipated confirmation hearing of Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima before the Commission on Appointments on Wednesday has been postponed for reasons yet unclear.

According to our sources, the confirmation hearing of President Aquino’s top economic manager has been reset to an as-yet unspecified date in May, along with all other pending confirmation hearings for the remaining Cabinet appointments.

Could this be a sign that something is amiss in the process? (We’re told that Internal Revenue Commissioner Kin Henares has resisted some lawmakers’ requests for the appointment of local allies to key BIR posts in the provinces, leaving the Bureau of Customs holding the bag.) Not enough horse trading perhaps?—Daxim L. Lucas

Un-complicating the complicated

TWO lawyers are embarking on the daunting task of making the legal aspects of the energy sector more easily understandable. Long-time industry collaborators Antonio Ver, an independent director of Philippine Electricity Market Corp., and Elsa Divinagracia have teamed up to come up with the first books on energy law.

The launch of the three-volume set, which will be funded by the University of the Philippines College of Law’s Textbook Fund, will coincide with the centennial anniversary of the state law school in November. The grant was approved during the UP College of Law Centennial Commission’s meeting last month, following a motion by Supreme Court Justice Flerida Ruth Romero.

The first of the three books will be a basic energy law textbook, tackling energy laws and jurisprudence. The second in the series will delve into pleading, practice and procedure in energy law, while the third will deal with the national energy policy, featuring an analysis of the crises and successes that the local energy industry has had over the years.—Abigail L. Ho

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