Veteran’s son shepherds bill to legislation

SAN FRANCISCO – Whatever the outcome of the veterans equity bill, one man is likely to take credit – or blame – for it. Eric Lachica is probably the most visible lobbyist and spokesperson for the veterans. He is executive director of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans (ACFV) headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, reputedly the largest lobby group in the equity benefits movement. This veteran’s son is also the loudest and most colorful. He led a picket line in San Francisco, and yelling into a megaphone, called for the resignation of Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson, who is trying to block passage of the bill citing budgetary reasons. “That was a very, very bad mistake," Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba remarked wryly in a private meeting with veterans. “A tactical mistake." He felt that public display of antagonism towards Nicholson did nothing to advance the cause Filipino veterans have been fighting for the last 61 years. But throughout his advocacy work, Lachica has done almost everything – short of tying himself to a tree – to get attention for the Filipino veterans who fought side by side U.S. troops during World War II. The Filipino veterans who were honored, praised and promised emolument for their services have been facing a wall of indifference from the U.S. government. Until now. The Filipino Veterans Equity Bill (HR 760), authored by Rep. Bob Filner, seeking equity benefits for about 18,000 Filipino veterans has just been passed by the House Veterans Affairs Committee and would soon be reported to the House for deliberation. This is the farthest this piece of legislation has gone, concedes Filipino American leaders. Lachica’s tactics may be questionable to some, endearing and effective to others. Hogging the headlines is always in his bag of tricks. His position along with that of ACFV is to get the bill passed even if it meant a scaled-down pension package for veterans residing in the Philippines. “I am a realist, not an idealist," Lachica tells Philippine News in an interview. His lobby work consists not only of pressing lawmakers to pass the bill but also to convince the Filipino community of the merits of a scaled-down pension package for Philippine-based veterans. Critics of this position say it projects mendicancy and dishonors not only veterans, but also the Filipino people as a race. Critics? God knows Lachica has plenty. Recently, a paper published out of San Diego released a disturbing report pitting Lachica against Bob Filner, the author of the bill. The paper claimed Filner had called Lachica a “scammer" who solicits money from the veterans, but fails to provide accounting of funds he has collected. The piece of information rattled the community for a while because it took some time for Filner to distance himself from the quotes attributed to him. As the blog was spreading like the proverbial wildfire, Lachica and Filner were posing for photographs with other veterans. Filemon Mordeno, president of the San Francisco-based Filipino American Veterans Spouses, Widows, Sons, and Daughters Inc., wrote Filner demanding a retraction. “What was reported in the news is an affront to us all and to have a member of Congress attack a Filipino who is helping us correct the injustice of the Rescission Act is unprecedented," Mordeno’s letter said. “To label Mr. Lachica as a scammer is at best disingenuous." A week later, Filner made it official. He allegedly told reporters who hounded him about the controversial news article, “I may have strategic and tactical differences with Mr. Lachica, but I didn’t say those words." Before leaving the informal media meeting, Filner posed with Lachica for a photo-op, exclaiming, “With Congressman Issa and Lachica, we can win the equity bill." He would also tell PN’s correspondent in Washington D. C.: “Most of the words I saw in that article, I never said them myself. I have disagreed with Mr. Lachica over the approach we do to the equity bill, but I have never questioned him personally on his ethics. So I don’t know where these words came from. But they were not mine." A community leader told PN that Lachica indeed collects money from veterans, but has yet to provide a transparent accounting of how the money was being spent. “ACFV is an open membership, not a charity, organization," Lachica said. “It relies on membership dues and private donations for survival and for sustaining its successful operations in lobbying for the best interests of our veterans." Members who pay their dues, according to him, in turn get an identification card, ‘patriotic’ tie, scarf (for widows), pin, or a video in DVD on the equity campaign. The decade-old organization claims to have about 4,000 members categorized as individual, family and lifelong members. ACFV’s list officers include Patrick Ganio, president; Maurese Owens, vice president for administration, Franco Arcebal, vice president for membership; Ning Aguila Bizek, treasurer; Avelino Asuncion, San Diego, CA; Faustino Baclig, Los Angeles, CA; Alfredo Diaz, Jersey City, NJ; Guillermo Rumingan, Arlington, VA; and Filemon Mordeno, San Francisco, CA – board members; and Eric Lachica, executive director. It was incorporated in Maryland on March 19, 1997 as a non-profit organization. Lachica said the Clerk of the House and the Senate’s Political Public Office can establish ACFV’s legitimacy as a congressional lobby group of good standing. ACFV reports are with these offices as a matter of public record, he added. “We are not, however, bound by law to open our books to just about anybody, especially our critics, or to provide accounting of our funds." Lachica snapped. “Only ACFV members are welcome to review and examine our financial records." Nonetheless, he promised a full accounting of funds and an official statement that would provide closure to allegations of scamming contained in the San Diego paper. It will be available shortly after the board approves these in the meeting scheduled for last Sunday, July 21. Lachica confirmed that as the sole paid staff of ACFV, he draws a salary in consonance with its by-laws, but whose amount depends on funds availability. “I’m supposed to be getting $3,000 a month," he confided, “but on average, only $2,000, often less, is always available. At times, it’s only $1,000." Even so, Lachica said he does not keep possession of ACFV checks. The vice president for Administration, herself a volunteer, issues him his pay checks, as well as payments for official and documented expenses that he has to make. “Eric works hard for the veterans. I am surprised that he was attacked," Jon Melegrito, co-chair of the National Alliance for Veterans Equity (NAFVE), told PN. Melegrito also serves as spokesman of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations or NaFFAA. War Memorial commissioner Rudy Asercion found it suspicious that the release of the controversial article coincided with the ‘markup fever’ that gripped the community at the time. “This has to be the handiwork of individuals or groups out to steal the credit from Eric Lachica for bringing the equity movement this far after 61 years," Asercion lamented to PN. Most of the time, Lachica said, he has to dig into his personal money, earned from his professional photography services and sale of photos to “non-veteran-related publications only." “This is a difficult hand-to-mouth existence, but it’s a fulfillment of my promise to my father before he died in 2002 that I will help his fellow war veterans secure the benefits that he did not live to see," he said. - Philippine News, with a report from Rita Gerona Adkins