BOC staff: Alvarez threatened to give me hell for not promoting ‘unqualified’ employee

The chief of staff of Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon has claimed that House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez — through an assistant— threatened her when she refused to promote an "unqualified" employee of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) who the Speaker was allegedly lobbying for.

Faeldon's chief of staff Atty. Mandy Anderson made the revelation after she earned the ire of some legislators' over the now infamous Facebook post where she branded the Speaker as an "imbecile." The post later became the center of a House tirade that saw congressmen, including Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas of Ilocos Norte, reprimanding her for her actions.

Anderson criticized the Speaker in her post over the latter's threat to "dissolve" the Court of Appeals for ordering the House of Representatives to release local government employees of Ilocos Norte or the "Ilocos 6," who were being detained at the time at the Batasan Pambansa in Quezon City for alleged fund irregularities.

In a radio interview, Anderson said her conflict with the Speaker actually started even before his  "threat" against the CA over the "Ilocos 6" controversy, when she was tasked to process the promotion of a BOC employee back in May.

"Nag-start 'yan nung may hiningi siyang (Alvarez) appointment or promotion ng taga-BOC. Tapos ako 'yung parang naging middleman, nakikipag-communicate sa staff niya," she said.

"So 'yung hiningi niya 'yung promotion, chineck ko kung qualified ba para ma-promote. Ang nangyari, hindi qualified. So in-inform ko po 'yung mga staff ni Speaker. Nangulit pa. Pinatawag ako sa opisina niya, pinagalitan ako," she added.

Anderson pointed out that it was wrong to appoint an unqualified individual to a position.

But after the Speaker's request was not granted, Anderson said she started receiving "threatening messages" from his staff.

"Tinawagan ako sa cellphone ng head executive assistant niya. 'Yung marching orders niya [Alvarez] is to [give]  me and the Commissioner [hell]," she said.

"Sabi ko, I'm just the Commissioner's staff and I do what I'm told. Kung mali talaga, we won't do it," she added.

GMA News Online is still trying to reach Alvarez's camp for comment.

During a joint inquiry on Wednesday on the P6.4 billion worth of shabu recovered in warehouses in Valenzuela City last May, Fariñas chided Anderson for her scathing FB post against Alvarez.

"You believe, as a government official, that you can call the fourth highest official in the land an imbecile?" Farinas told Anderson.

For his part, Deputy Speaker Miro Quimbo of Marikina City said Anderson could be disbarred for her actions, even as he moved to give the BOC a zero budget unless the matter is cleared.

While invoking her "freedom to express" her opinion on elected officials, Anderson still ended up apologizing for her post.

"I would like to apologize to the body and to the other lawmakers who are not here. That was not directed to you and I did not think of you when I did that," she told Fariñas.

Anderson, however, shared the lesson she picked up from the whole incident.

"I will be careful, of course. I guess mali rin na na-post ko 'yun in a medyo public forum," she said in the radio interview.

"Pero at the same time, medyo private naman 'yung Facebook ko. So, I was purposely being watched," she added.

She likewise said that she would stay as chief of staff as long as Faeldon wants her to. — MDM/KVD/BAP, GMA News