The Politician

2008-10-23T23:35:00.004+08:00

Philippine National Police -- A Big Disgrace!

Philippine National Police should be ashamed of itself! The recent circus that they maid in Russia yet again placed our beloved Philippines in the ridicule of the international community. The "Euro-Generals" went to Russia for the the 77th Interpol General Assembly, there is no problem with that. HOWEVER Mr. Eliseo De La Paz was apprehended for carrying an unexplained sum of money amounting to 105,000 Euros which they say it is a contingency fund and later change to cash advance.

PNP Chief and even the DILG secretary cant explain how they were able to withdraw that kind of money. Senator Miriam Defensor was correct in his commentary about the Philippine National Police having trouble getting funds to get new equipments and yet here are the Euro-Generals having the time of their life in Moscow with 105,000 Euros in their pocket. If they say that indeed the money was legal then how come they did not declare the cash in papers so as to be transparent. Also, one thing to be noted here is that the amount recovered in the possession of Mr. Eliseo De La Paz were alarming large, way larger than the amount given for allowance for our delegates. I hate to think about it but I think one reason why this sum of money was not declared is because that if they got away with it then it'll be another money added to their fat wallets.

If the higher ups of Philippine National Police is committing this disgraceful acts then what would you think of those lower ranking police? YES! recently, there is a drug bust/operation in the region of Pampanga here in the Philippines and guess what? A member of the PNP was also caught in the operation. tsk tsk If these are the kind of person who are said to be your protector against crimes then would it be better if you just armed yourself? Also if i were the criminals they are apprehending or they have apprehended especially those who have committed these questionable conducts then i would think "what's their right arresting me when they themselves are doing criminal things"?

Also, Mr. De La Paz recent change of mind of not submitting himself to the senate for questioning raises yet again another eyebrow. If he will do what he told the public will do (submit himself for questioning to rid himself of any doubts) then why is he hesitating now? And how dare him say that the tribunal will not be impartial? He still have the audacity to say this things after what he has committed, from the way i see things, he has no right to say such things because first and foremost it is he who had committed this disgraceful act.

This is yet again another challenge not only for the Arroyo Administration, Ombudsman and other Government Instrumentality to prove that those who have committed violations will be punished and that Philippines is a Land where Law and Justice Prevails.........

2008-06-26T00:09:00.002+08:00

Tragic WeekEnd..

Sulpicio Lines Inc, owner of one of the largest shipping vessel in the country is quite disappointing in their performance when it comes to managing the family of the victims of MV Princess of the Stars. Apparently, many of the people is still waiting for their relatives, dead or alive in Sulpicio Lines Office here in Manila. I really feel for the families of the victims because first and foremost, the company wasn't able to at least show their faces in the early days of the tragedy. Ngayon lang sila nagkalakas ng loob to face the victims of their shipping vessel. In the first days of the tragedy, i dont know but it seems like the management is cowering inside their office not even having the courage to face the families of the victims. It doesnt matter if they dont have the exact news about the whereabouts of the victims, they should have faced the people immediately to show at the very least that they are man enough to face them and tell them that they would take full responsibility of the incident.

Another thing that i noticed is that, it is as if they dont have a concrete plan on how to deal with the situation. I mean, i understand that they dont have the resources to immediately take those families who would like to go to cebu or romblon to personally check the bodies if it is their relative, at the very least, they should have taken photos of the cadavers and show it to families of the victims so they can immediately identify the bodies because if you prolong this, the bodies will rot and eventually it wont be recognizable for the families.

Ano ba naman yung picturan mo lang tapos send mo sa computer in their office at manila pier then show it to the families. Sa tagal ng action, malamang DNA na ang kelangan para ma-identify yung bodies and that would even cost more for the company which i believe the company dont want to happen.

2008-05-13T20:17:00.004+08:00

Never ending impulsive decision....

Recently, there has been a grave disaster in China, where a big earthquake killed nearly 12,000 people (according to yahoo). Almost immediately our president made a decision to send a medical team to china. I dont mean to belittle this decision made by our super president but i think she is forgetting the fact that china is one of the big economies of the world and that it has all the resources to help its citizens in this disaster. It has, as of the moment, dispatched 50,000 of its soldiers to help its citizens affected by the tragedy. Why did our president made this impulsive decision when in fact we have our own problems at bar. Is she forgetting that visayas region is also under calamity and experiencing flash floods? Why not send the medical team there and help those people, why? because one problem in evacuation areas is that people there will, in a matter of time, be sick because of the environment.

Quoting the words of Golez from ABS-CBN news "Every time we have disasters in the country, all you have to do is count the hours and China's support is always there". And our people is grateful for the help China is bringing. I am not being selfish nor self-centered but one of the job of the government and a reason for its existence is to help its people. There is a saying that you must first help yourself before you can help others, certainly, this is not on the vocabulary of our super president. This maybe is one of the reason why so many Filipinos dislikes its own president. It cares more for others then its own citizens. Here is an irony, when i am visiting my beloved province of Pampanga, i always see the slogan of our super president that she cares, "GMA cares...." i think they forgot to include the word "others".

Analyzing the bold diplomatic move of the president, maybe, she is thinking that china will help Philippines in coming weeks, because its already the rainy season and floods will again "flood" the Philippines, literally. Its like planting the good old seed of kindness, so that later she can reap these seeds to help its citizen because our government is to a certain point inutile in helping its own people. Why? Because money to help is being pocketed by our beloved officials, its sad to think that Philippines cant help its own citizens due to rampant corruption.

2008-05-10T00:26:00.003+08:00

OIL PRICE HIKE.....again!

apparently, earlier today there has been another oil price hike by the big oil companies such as shell, etc... i dont know if they are playing with us but from my point of view i think there is a fluke in the way they are increasing the oil prices. Apparently, from the way i understand the news reports, almost instantaneously, these oil companies raises prices from the moment the oil in the world market increased. I mean, the government should look into this event with the eyes of an eagle. Companies should not instantly react to the prices in the world market because obviously, they are not importing oil everyday. Companies such as these order/buy in bulk.

If for example these companies ordered by BULK in April 20, 2008 with an oil price of $97/barrel, and the price in the world market the day after increased by $2, oil companies should not instantaneously say that they would increase their price for in fact they were able to oil at a price of $97/barrel. They should not impose the $2 dollar deferential on the people just because from the time they would be able to sell the oil they ordered, price of oil in the world market have increased. Again, they should not account immediately for the $2 difference. This is just plain cheating! Plus, if again for example, the price in world market of oil increased again 2 days after its previous increase, companies cannot increase their prices still simply because they still have oil stored in their depots that was bought at a price of $97/barrel last April 20, 2008.

For government: They should have a monitoring system at the very least to know the price of how much the oil was bought by the oil companies and the projected period of how long the import will last in the market because obviously, these can be exploited by the oil industry as a loop hole that can be use to take advantage and to gain more profit. By doing so, government can minimize if not remove the doubts in minds of the citizen, just like me that the increase is indeed legitimate.

2007-08-19T23:53:00.000+08:00

MILF and other terrorist groups...

Recently, there has been another turmoil brewing in the south of the philippines particularly in the Sulu and Basilan region. Many of our soldiers died in the ambush orchestrated by the run away group of MILF. Bodies have been mutilated and disrespected by decapitating and even going to the extreme of cutting the male portion of the corpse. Philippine Army have mourned over the lost of their comrade and so too will the fate of these terrorist! I do not generalize the Muslim as a whole but there are really extremist like the one reported clamoring for the teaming up of all Muslim to take over the Philippines and make it as an Islamic State. I've had friends who are Muslims but they do not act the same way, its a shame that because of these guys that the muslim are being branded as terrorists.

One thing that is baffling my mind is that aren't the Philippine Government having a peace talk/agreement with the MILF forces? There have been talks to prevent the bloodshed but still there are a lot of terrorist attack claims coming from the side of the MILF, coming from run-away group of MILF. Is the MILF hiding their primary tactics saying that these horrible act were acts by extremist in their group who are not willing to negotiate but in fact the MILF is the one who ordered it? If so, is the government wasting its time and effort on negotiating and trying to win them back to return to the government? One thing that i liked about the previous administration is its all out war policy with the terrorist groups in the south. I mean, government should not be the one begging for mercy and trying to win people back. Government should be stern in irradicating these pests that threatens the peace and order that the people wants to enjoy.

If the government should persue these negotiations with regards to this group, i think a provision that should be included in the agreement is that MILF should be the to castigate or reprimand their own people. if not done, their whole group will be subject to reprimand as well. I mean, this is to assure that they are not really the one who puppets these break-away groups. Also, they should be the one in front of the battlefield again for the reasons of assurance as said above.

"Reconciliation should be accompanied by justice, otherwise it will not last. While we all hope for peace it shouldn't be peace at any cost but peace based on principle, on justice." -Corazon Aquino

2007-07-19T02:16:00.001+08:00

The MOST powerful branch of Government!

The Government is an important element of the state. It follows the doctrine of 'Parens Patriae' or better understood as 'Guardian of the Rights of the People. A government like that of the Philippines has 3 major braches namely: Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary.

The question that i would like to take and answer in this blog is "Which branch of government is really the most powerful?". Before I answer this question, I will first lay down the basic job description of each branch.

First is the Executive, the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines was specifically drafted to reduce the power of the Executive branch of the government for fear of another Marcos to come. Basically, Executive branch from the word itself deals with the 'execution' of laws or enforcement of law. In the simplest definition, Executive is the 'Police' that ensures the proper administration of the law to the public.Second is the Legislative branch which deals with the enactment or creation of the laws. Anyone in the country can pass a bill which can be heard in the congress provided that they will have a sponsorship from any Representative of the House. Legislative branch of the government basically is responsible for most laws that we have today. Lastly, Judiciary is branch that aplly the law. They are the one who interpret the laws created by the Legislative branch. Judiciary is also responsible for settling disputes of many individuals.

In summary, as Isagani Cruz puts it in his book Philippine Political Law "Legislature is generally limited to the enactment of law and may not enforce or apply them; the Executive to the enforcement of Law and may not enact or apply them; and the Judiciary to the application of laws and may not enact or enforce them". This is done for the purpose of checks and balance in the government.

Now, which do you think is the most powerful branch?

My answer? For me it would be the JUDICIARY. Maybe many would be surprised with my answer because many would think that it would either be the Legislative or Executive who is the most powerful but I think otherwise. My reason for choosing the Judiciary is the ACCOUNTABILITY element of each brach. Clearly, Executive and Legislative is accountable to the people and there are several institution that makes sure these two branch will function honestly like the Office of the Ombudsman, Philippine Anti-Graft Commision and to some degree Commission on Human Rights. These institutions are there to assure as that these to branches would function properly in the light of public interest. It also shows a concrete plan in dealing with misbehavior or corruption of any officials in this branch. Plus the fact that these two branch also has the power to check each other for any signs of corruption or whatsoever.

Judiciary on the other has no ACCOUNTABILITY. The fact that what the Supreme Court say is considered as FINAL and EXECUTORY means that no one else can dispute what the Supreme Court had ruled. Example: In the case of Santiago VS COMELEC, in this case of People's Initiative, if hypothetically the SC had ruled otherwise saying that RA.6735 is enough to be considered as an enabling law to the provision in the constitution, Article 17 Section 2, then for all we know we are now in a parliamentary form of government years before and even if people would disagree in this decision, like what is said earlier, the words of SC is FINAL and EXECUTORY.

Is there an institution that can re-checked the works of SC? As far as i know there is none. From being the weakest branch of government in the years of Marcos, SC became the most powerful in present. The only thing that Justify the decisions of Supreme Court is thinking that "Supreme Court decisions is perceived as Constitutional".

YOU, what do you think?!?

DISCLAIMER:
I am not saying that philippine system is flawed in creating Judiciary as the most powerful (at least for me).

2006-12-07T23:20:00.000+08:00

GARAPALAN to the MAX!!

Nitong mga nakaraang araw tila minamadali ng house of representives ang pag-pasa sa amiyendang gusto nilang gawin sa konstitusyon. wala naman problema sakin kung magpapasa sila ng resolusyon o kahit ano pa man para maipalitan o mabago ang konstitusyon, ang bagay na nakakainis lang sa mga nangyayari ay ang GARAPALANG pagpasang ginagawa nila. Ito na ang tinatawag kong sumosobra na ang pag-gamit sa kapangyarihan. Hayaan niyong ilagay ko dito ang mga puntos ko kung pano sila naging GARAPAL sa paningin ko.

una, ang pinagtatalunan nilang depinisyon ng "congress" sa constitution article 17 section 1(1) sabi dito "any amendments to, or revision of, this constitution may be proposed by: The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members". Maliwanag naman na ang depinisyon ng "congress" dito ay ang BUONG CONGRESS or THE CONGRESS. Ngayon ano nga ba ang congress sa isang simpleng depinisyon, simple lang, sabi ni webster dictionary ang "congress" daw ay "the supreme legislative body of a nation and especially of a republic". Maliwanag na ang nakalagay ay ang supreme legislative body of a NATION ngayon ang house of representatives lang ba ang sakop ng mining ng NATION? maliwanag naman na hindi, kasama rito ang senado. ngayon ang ipinipilit kasi ng mga tuta ay ang house of representatives lang ang tinutukoy ng congress. hindi ba't malaking kalokohan ito? bakit niyo ine-echepwera ang senado? napaka-duming maglaro ng mga taga-administration lalo na ang mga lider ng mga grupong ito.

pangalawa, hindi ba't sinasabi ng malacanyang na magkakaron ng botohan next year? alam ko na kung ano ang botohan na ito, ito ang botohan sa plebesitong gagawin para ma-amyendahan ang konstitusyon. oh diba, ang galing nilang manloko, ang sinasabi nila, magkakaron ng botohan tulad ng gusto ng publiko, pero anong klase ng botohan ito? botohan sa plebesito pero hindi ang inaasahang botohan para mag-upo ng mga bagong opisyal ng bansa. may tawag dito sa ingles DECEPTION, teka sino ba ang magaling sa deception?.... sirit?.... e di DEMONYO!

pangatlo, sino sino ba ang mga nagsusulong nito? marami sa mga nagsusulong dito ay ang mga patapos na ang termino at naka-tatlo ng termino sa house of representatives ibig sabihin hindi na sila makakatakbo uli ayon sa batas. ano ibig sabihin nito? simple lang uli, wala namang mawawala sa kanila e, tapos nanaman ang termino nila kaya pilit na nilang isinusulong ang "pagbabago". isa pang dahilan dito, dahil sa tapos na ang kanilang termino, ayon sa batas, matatapos ang serbisyo nila sa susunod na taon bandang mayo o hunyo, pero ano pa ang ipinapasa nilang proposal? ayon dito hahaba pa lalo ang termino nila ng mga 5 o hangang 6 na buwan matapos ang plebesitong gagawin nila sa nobyembre sa susunod na taon. o diba maliwanag na power grabbing at maliwanag na ayaw nilang bitiwan ang pwesto nila? dahil hangang sa huli pinahaba pa nila ang kanila termino.

pang-apat, ewan ko lang ha, pero si JDV, yung pilit na nagpapapalit ng constitution, numero unong promotor, ano ba ang makukuha niya dito? well simple lang ang nakikita ko, pangarap niya kasing maupo sa pinakamataas na pwesto, ano koneksyon? hindi niya kasi kaya sa pamamagitan ng presidential form. alam niyang wala siyang pag-asa pag-dating dito kaya pilit na gustong palitan ang constitution para madali makaupo sa pwesto.

payong kaibigan lang sa mga kababayan nating nasa "congress", huwag kayo masyado GARAPAL, nakakaintindi at nakakaramdam si Juan dela Cruz, baka maging mitsa ito ng pag-bagsak niyo sa pwesto.

2006-10-22T23:57:00.000+08:00

Thanks to the increase of remittances of our beloved OFWs, our currency –Philippine Peso, is steadily becoming stronger against US Dollar. As the Banko Sentral Analysis goes, it is the peak quarter wherein remittances of OFWs are strongest.. Not only this, because of the weakness of the US Dollar in the last few weeks, it also made a strong impact on our currency. It further heightened the growth of Philippine peso.

The question now is that, is the growth and strength of Philippine Peso good for all Filipinos and for the country?

Lets first go to the good effects of the growth of PHP. With the growth of PHP, Philippine Government saves billions of pesos paying our debts to foreign lending institutions. This means that there is more budget for Education, Service and Infrastructure. Second, Inflation Rate would slow down meaning, price increase of commodities like food etc, will slow down and will not hurt Juan dela Cruz swiftly. Third, imports would be cheaper. Oil that is imported mostly from the Middle East will be cheaper because the buying power of PHP has risen. And there would be rollbacks on sold gases. These three are the major good points of having a strong currency.

Now lets go to the downside of PHP becoming stronger. First that would be affected here is the families of the OFW. This is simply because their money now can buy fewer things as compared to before where exchange rate is over 50. Having said this, families of OFW are at the losing end because even though they are feeding the economy of our country, they are losing because their remittances is becoming smaller and smaller over time. Second, even though there is the fact that imports are way cheaper now unlike before it can trigger a negative side just like what happened in the years of former President Ramos wherein imports flourished in the country and it killed a lot of small businesses. Plus, even though there are roll backs in the prices of gasoline sold in the market, still the fare doesn’t roll back. It is kind of unfair in the part of the commuters because once PUV raises their fare, it will be for good. There is no roll back in fare of PUVs. Third, going to the previous argument, commodities in the market would still be at the present price and sellers would not lower their price even though the price of gasoline have lowered. One reason for commodities to rise is because of the rise of gas for transportation and other stuff that needs gas. Fourth, there is the fact that a lot of money is saved from paying debts with the increase of PHP’s power, still, this theoretical “surplus” in the budget is not felt or even seen by the people. Maybe because someone, some groups, or whatever is putting this surplus in their pocket.

Over all, at the end of the day, having a good and strong currency is a plus for one's country. The problem here lies within the government on how they would make certain key actors in the community like the PUVs cooperate and lower their prices. Also, there should be control over imports that are coming in the country for it will just be a deja vu of the past.

This is a new challenge not just for the government but also on the people. A new opening has come for our people and we must work together and set aside our personal interests, set aside our selfish goals and Philippines will make it back to the top.

2006-09-27T09:04:00.000+08:00

Urgent info! Sigaw ng Bayan Irony…

Can the people clamor for change in the Constitution if they feel that it, in their time there are “inappropriate” “entries” here? The answer is YES! According to Article 17, sec 2 of the 1987 constitution:

“Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition of at least twelve per centum of the total number of registered voters, of which, every legislative district must be represented by at least three per centum of the registered votes therein. No amendments under this section shall be authorized within five years following the ratification of this Constitution nor oftener than once every five years thereafter.
The congress shall provide for the implementation of the exercise of this right.”

According to this, amendments in the constitution can be done through signature campaign, which was already done by the Sigaw ng Bayan.

This afternoon, Supreme Court held an open forum or an open argument to whether or not they should pursue the proposal of the Sigaw ng Bayan about the change they want to happen in our society.

10 years ago, a landmark case, a similar event took place. PIRMA, a group similar to Sigaw ng Bayan through Sen. Denfensor Santiago filed a proposal on the Supreme Court to amend the constitution by invoking the use Article 17 sec 2 of the constitution. To cut the story short, the decision of the Supreme Court was NO!

Supreme Court said that the Article 17 sec 2 of the Constitution was inadequate or insufficient meaning this section of the Constitution needs an enabling law for it to be used. After this, the court told the Congress to pass an enabling law but unfortunately or fortunately the congress didn’t pass any law. Until now, there is no present enabling law to this Article 17 sec 2 of the Constitution. In addition to the decision and advice of the Supreme Court, the SC also issued a permanent injunction to this article of the Constitution and told COMELEC not to entertain any INITIATIVES that will be passed by any groups or what so ever.

Now going back to the present time, we can say that Sigaw ng Bayan’s clamor for change is invalid because of the previous decisions of the Supreme Court to a similar case.

For further discussion of the validity of the Sigaw ng Bayan, let us differentiate what is Revision and what is Amendment. Revision in Legal term, to make it simple, is a series of amendments that in turn can do an overhaul of the entire constitution, which can change the “system” itself while amendment is just an improvement of a section/s of the constitution without changing the entire system.

Remember the first word of Article 17; Sec 2 of the constitution is Amendments and not Revision. Now what does the Sigaw ng Bayan is proposing? They are proposing that we change our present system; from presidential to parliamentary and from bicameral to unicameral. This proposal in legal term is revision and according to Article 17 sec 1 of the constitution, only Congress can do revisions in the constitution.

In addition to what have been said earlier, the Supreme Court adopts the principle Stare Decisis that means that if a present case is similar to a past case, the judgment that must be done must also be similar. Now the question here is, will the decision be the same?

Now, here is the catch, read it carefully, (this is only a rumor, or opinion). In line with the decision making of the Supreme Court, remember that there are 15 member of SC and 13 of which are appointed by el presidente and 2 are already there even before the 2004 elections. Not only this, next year, reshuffling of the Supreme Court leader will take effect.

I don’t wanna say anything but I think after saying the catch, more or less you already know what will happen. I maybe wrong, I maybe right, will it be “in the bag” or not but who knows; only time will tell if the hints that I’ve written here will come true.

2006-09-20T11:03:00.000+08:00

Nursing Board Exam Scam

In the past few weeks, Nursing Board Exam was rocked by controversies that questioned its integrity. It was said that there was a leakage in the last exam and unfortunately it was proven true by individuals who gave testimonies on the alleged cheating. This event sadly will make Filipino nurses all over the world “belittled” and in fact there are recent evidences that the last batch of Filipinos who took the recent nursing board exam were having difficulties in finding jobs. Big hospitals in the countries are now according to reports not complacent to the last batch of nurses because of the said incident. This is the reason why some of the nurses in the last batch are having a hard time finding jobs.

Even the NCLEX that is locally available for Filipino nurses who aspire to work in the United States is now on “hold” because of the controversial issue. Many may argue that the leakage in the Philippine Board Exam specifically the nursing wont matter because even though you passed it or not you will still have to take the NCLEX exam but I say this assumption is wrong. Because credibility is a very crucial issue that is in question here. I mean, still, if you manage to pass the NCLEX there will still be the stigma that Filipino cheated their way in their local board exam so how come they wont do that here in NCLEX.

For me, to be able at least to save the names of the Filipino nurses in the world, or the future nurses, PRC and other department should take the initiative to say that “we will void the last exam, and we will have a retake…” I know many would now argue that what about those who didn’t cheat in the last board exam, well I think its just a matter of bad luck. They were unfortunate enough to be able to join the batch of the, for lack of better words, “cheater”. I mean, mediocre nurses were sent out to public in the last board exam, those are the people who cheated.

I mean, if I were a hospital and I wanted to hire new nurses, I wont hire nurses who came from the last batch because how can I be sure that they are of competitive caliber. Given the fact that they cheated in the last exam, PRC and Board of Nurses removed some parts of the exam making it easier to pass it, this is mediocrity as its prime!!

How can you distinguish nurses who didn’t cheat from those who did? The way to avoid mediocre nurses that came out, I know many would react to this if they will be able to read it, is NOT TO HIRE the last batch of nurses.

Come on, mediocre nurses has no place in the highly competitive industry today especially now that Globalization is taking its place.

This is one of the reasons why Philippines have stagnated; we are very complacent with mediocre things in the society, mediocre politician, mediocre economist, and the latest –mediocre nurses!

2006-07-25T21:11:00.000+08:00

Political Killings

Political killings, abduction, assassination what ever you may want to call it have been very rampant in this administration. There have been more than 600 cases of political killing that happened during the 6 year stay of our president. In just a small amount of time it was able to surpass the political killings in the Marcos Regime. There have been many demands to stop political killings just like what we’ve attended last Thursday.

One of the latest cases of political abduction was the forced abduction of two Students of University of the Philippines. They were kidnapped because of the mere allegation of being connected to the leftist group. This administration is desperate as I may say because they are accusing even the students and small farmers that may have “link” to NPAs and other groups that are planning to rid this country GMA.

In the candle lighting ceremony for the Political Victims, I have seen different kinds of participants ranging from political professors, students and even my former professor in RELSONE. I never thought that even Catholicism as a whole joins this kind of protest to stop political killings.

I asked my former professor in RELSONE why is he participating in such very political gathering and he answered me “Life is given by our Lord and it is very sacred, we must not do something that will hurt of even kill the life that was given to us”. Now I understand why the Church wants to end this kind of mischief.

2006-03-25T02:37:00.000+08:00

“Remembering People Power and the Declaration
Of Proclamation No. 1017”

Freedom is something that our people wanted for over many centuries. Freedom is something that we were stripped off for more then 3 centuries. Freedom for our people is very important because it makes us, a person whole.

Democracy is a concept that individual’s freedom is cherished. Because of democracy government came into power due to popular mandate on democratic election. But as soon as people had established their power, people often always forget about the fundamental freedom of an individual. This happened in the days of Marcos Regime. After his election to office, many crimes were done under his administration, people’s right have been trampled. Two decades ago, we were once again victorious in regaining our freedom from the vile hands of Marcos –the dictator.

EDSA I sparked the new wave of democracy just like what Fareed Zakaria was telling in his writing “The Next Wave”. As what the speaker told last talk about remembering people power, EDSA I or commonly known as People Power is not just an event that people revolted against the government. This event was rooted in the concept of popular sovereignty meaning power of the Government from to top to bottom resides from the people, just like what democracy is telling us.

We’ve been talking too much of democracy, but what really is democracy? Democracy literally means rule of the people. Even in the ancient time of Greeks, scholars have already formulated the concept of popular sovereignty.

I believe in what the speaker told us about us living in a very interesting time. He said this because we have the power to shape our history because of what is happening now. We can either participate or sit still and watch our fellow Filipino citizen shape our course through time. For me this was the striking lesson in the whole forum because it really is true that it is in the hands of the next generation that the future of our country is in. For me, what I’ve learned the most is to not repeat the mistakes of the past and use it as a pivoting event to leap forward.

2006-02-26T09:58:00.000+08:00

"State of Emergency" ---my ass!!!

Last Friday, February 24, 2006, Miss Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo with no hesitation declared our country the Philippines in a State of Emergency. She said that this Proclamation No. 1017 was in aide of the national interest and that it would protect the "elected government" at hand. My only response here is "yah right!" in the first place his position is still questionable due to the fact that there was an evidence of her cheating the May 2004 Election and now they're saying that this proclamation of a State of Emergency was in fact needed to protect the duely "elected" government. Our present government is now cowering behind the technicalities of laws. For me, to be able to have the right to declare a state of emergency, one prerequisite of this is a non-questionable ruler.

Our government as of now is throwing away our rights to air our opinion. This is for me the sickest thing that a government can do. it is like living in a wide open prison that all of your rights are suppressed but much worse because we're in this prison without any reason. We can now compare this present regime to the dark days of Martial Law. One of their reason also is to protect the "national" interest. Well for me, what they're saying national interest is the interest of one person, that is Miss Arroyo. If we're going to ask what is the national interest to the common tao, our national interest would be the ousting of the present regime.

2006-01-15T22:06:00.000+08:00

Ang Pamumulitica ni Gloria

Sa tingin ko, hindi dapat nagtatagal ang ating pangulo sa kanyang kinanalagyan sa malacañang dahil sa mga bagay na nangyayari sa ating lipunan. Siguro mas makakabuti sa kanya ang tanggapin ang payo ng Unibersidad ng La Salle na "supreme sacrifice". Nasabi ko ito dahil sa hindi naman na siya nakakatulong sa ating ekonomiya. Madalas sabihin ng malacañang na ang pag-taas ng ating GDP ay isang senyales na pag-angat ng ating ekonomiya ngunit ito ay isang malaking pang-ga-gago sa mga taong bayan. Sa tingin ko sasang-ayon ang mga ekonomista sa aking sasabihin na ang ibig sabihin lamang ng GDP ay ang dami ng nagawang produkto sa taon na iyon, kung dumami ba o kumonti ayon sa porsyento nito. halimbawa, sasabihin ng malacañang na umangat ang GDP natin ng 4.3%. Ang ibig sabihin lamang nito ay dumami lang ang produkto na nailabas ngayon pero ang presyo ay hindi pa rin bababa. ibig sabihin din nito na ang mga mayayaman lang din ang mga umuunlad ang lalong napagiiwanan ang mga mahihirap nating mga kapatid. Pano ko nasabi ito? Simple lang, ang binibilang kasi ng GDP ay ang mga na-i-labas o nagawa na produkto, e sino ba ang gumagawa ng produkto na ating binibili, hindi ba't ang mga mayayaman lamang? kaya para sa akin ang ibig sabihin lang ng GDP ay ang pag-unlad lang ng mayayaman.

Pangalawa, bakit ba nasa MMFF awarding night ang ating mahal na pangulo, gawain niya bang i-criticize ang mga ginawa ng pelikula?? hindi naman d'ba? isa itong malaking pamumulitika!! bakit hindi nalang siya matulog para kumpleto pa ang kanyang tulog at baka pag-kumpleto ang tulog niya ay gumanda ang lagay ng ating bansa. buti sana kung artista rin siya at meron din siyang "entry" sa MMFF kaya siya umatend. kaso hindi naman, kalokohan talaga..

Niloloko tayo ng harap harapan ng pangulo sa mga ginagawa niya d'ba? mas mabuti pa kung hindi nalang sa magpakita sa mga lugar na wala naman siyang gagawin o kinalaman. nakakapang-hinala tuloy diba? nakakainis na kasi e, kunwari pa siyang hindi apektado sa mga atake sa kanya tapos siya naman puro "counter-pabango" naman ang laban niya sa mga ito.

kaya ako ang hiling ko ngayong bagong taong, sana mawala na si Gloria sa malacañang at isama niya na ang pamilya niya na lagi siyang dinedepensahan na huling huli naman ang kamalian.

2005-12-19T18:37:00.000+08:00

hey, to all readers of my blog, i've noticed that there are gramatical error in my "works" so please bare with me... ill correct it soon... :D

2005-12-05T11:42:00.000+08:00

Responsible Journalism

Family Murdered! Husband killed his wife! Car nap gang strike again! These are some of the headlines that are present in our papers and news events. I wonder why is the topic always like this? Is it because it is the kind that sells? Or it is sensational and the public loves this kind of news?

Is this the thing they call responsible news casting? Probably, maybe because this is the real deal that’s happening in our country today but don’t you think this is too much? Almost everyday this is the kind of news that coming out of their mind. I, myself, am fed up with this kind of news. Always the negative news and very minimal positive points that is happening in our environment. I couldn’t blame the foreign investors why they don’t want to invest here in our poor country. It is because of this degrading news that’s why they are hesitating.

Come to think of it, this is also the kind of news that is being launch in TFC and other Filipino channel abroad. Therefore even the common individuals abroad can access this news.

I think media has one of the most important role in our society. They have the power to beautify one’s image or even ruin it if they want to. For me, it's unfair to broadcast this news most of time for the Filipino people. I mean its ok to tell the people these things once in a while but too much of it can “spoil the broth”.

If you think deeper on the reason why other leaders are protesting in the current SEAGames today, I think it is due to the fact that bad things are happening in our country and these are being broadcast all over the world. Because of this, negative connotation is being attached to Filipino people and that’s very unfair for us.

Journalism has a gives big powers, and with power comes great responsibility

2005-12-05T11:38:00.000+08:00

Shall we dance with ChaCha?

Charter Change? I think Charter Change is not the real issue here. The real issue or question is that why is it advocated now? As you can see our present administration is being hampered by so many controversies like the famous Gloriagate CD which they got from tapping the conversation of PGMA and Garcillano.

Let’s take it one step higher. If PGMA really wants our system to be change, why didn’t she advocated this change when she got elected through EDSA II. From the way I see it, Gloria only wants to divert our mind from the real issue which is the legitimacy of her presidency. I mean, I know she has the capabilities to run the government, but the implication of this to world is very serious. Views of other countries to us can be hampered. The integrity of our government is in deep SH*T.

Yes, charter change maybe good but if it is inevitable to change our government, I think ChaCha is the “EXTREME” way of changing our present system. For me the best why is to retain our system and just do revision in a form of amendments like the way US does it. I agree that there are certain provisions in our constitution that is not applicable in our present time so we must undergo revisions.

2005-11-12T07:30:00.000+08:00

Are We Self-Interested Utility Maximizers?

First, let's clarify what i mean when i say "self-interested utility maximizers". What i mean about this is that all of us humans tend to do things that are only in our best interest, if not, we tend not to do anything about it. in short, we are selfish beings. but the question is, are we?

Just like in the game theory that people will most likely pick the one that will make them won or near victory or have the best plan for that matter. According to this theory, we, as rational beings will most likely play the most efficient strategy to win. one big example of this is the prisoners dilemma where 2 prisoners choose whats best for them.

BUT, for me, i think the creator of this idea forgot to mention about something. That is that, yes we are rational beings but we also have emotions and this is the one thing that the author of this theory forgot. Yes i know that in some cases the theory does works but most often than not it is the opposite. He forgot to take note that we, as humans do have emotions and this emotions is i think the "safety net" for be selfish individual. Like for example, in the LRT, a pregnant woman came and stands in front of you, now the best possible strategy here that would benefit you the most is that you do not stand and offer your seat. but your emotions tells you other wise --to stand and give your seat to the pregnant lady and eventually you follow will follow your feelings.

This is what i am talking about, the theory quantifies that all of us humans are selfish and will do everything that would benefit ourselves. The truth is, maybe some individuals or maybe 40% of the human population will do this but it is unfair to quantify ALL humans to act this way. this is my view of the self-interested, utility maximizers. i hope you do too.

2005-10-12T14:56:00.000+08:00

Can 1,200 Filipinos able to represent the entire population?

Polling stations like SWS and Pulse Asia have been around for more than a decade now. They are already present in the time of Marcos but i think its only now that it had become famous.
Polling stations studies the behavior of people and uses different methods in statistics to measure the popularity or anything that they wish to survey.

-33% is the popularity rating of our president GMA, now how did they come up with this figure? SWS and Pulse Asia surveys only 1200 of the population of the Philippines in different parts of its region. It is less than 1% of the entire Filipino people; the question is -- is it enough?

Yes, it is enough! The logic behind it is that it is like the beauty pageant “binibining pilipinas” in their search for a female to represent our country. Only one female can represent the country in this prestigious event. Contestants will undergo to some rigorous pain staking event just to be the representative. It is the same with polling stations; they conduct surveys with techniques in hand. The credibility of the survey will lie only to the methodology used by the polling stations if its result is questionable.

2005-10-05T14:36:00.000+08:00

What’s Political about political science?

Political Science is a course that can help everyone given that they have taken the course understand politics better that a pedestrian crossing a street. Many reviewer of this course criticize it. According to the book Understanding the Political World by James Danziger, there are 4 criticisms of this course and the bottom line is –“There is no Science in Politics”. One thing I’ve learned from the past 4 terms of my stay here in La Salle is that, we can in deed formulate theories that can predict what’s going to happen in the realm of politics.

Yes, your analyses of most of the issues in politics are biased because of your political knowledge and socialization. But it doesn’t mean that we can’t formulate ideas that can help in the progress of politics. They say we cannot devise an idea that can really encapsulate politics because it is very complex and ever changing but I think they’re wrong! People engaging in politics have habits and from this habits we can generate ideas on how they will react in this world.

To everyone whos saying that there is no science in Politics – “tara usap tayo!”

2005-09-25T19:16:00.000+08:00

What is Politics?

Politics now a day has been perceived negatively especially here in our country. We always hear this connotation "Namumulitika lng yan!” to a politician if he is doing something good. I think we should go back to the basic meaning of politics, which is the interaction of two or more individual. For me, politics is neither positive nor wrong. It is only in the contemporary times that politics is perceived as negative.

As I have said earlier, politics is neither good nor bad. It’s up to the individual if he/she will make politics good or bad. But after reading the works or ideas of Thrasymachus, Antiphon and other philosophers about justice and applying it to politics, there is a bigger tendency that an individual will use their knowledge in politics for their own good. To oversee this potential tendencies, society as whole must come up with counter-measures or balance that will make sure that common good can be achieved.

[Unlike what’s happening here in our country today. Government has failed to give checks and balance to itself.]

As for me, Politics is a tool to reconcile differences with each other. Individuals can use this to compromise. BUT when it comes to managing one’s country, I think there must be no compromise for the welfare of the citizens must come above all.

2005-09-19T15:20:00.000+08:00

Is it time for a Charter Change?

charter change, the proposal of our ever dearest president gloria macapagal arroyo, former president FVR and jose de venecia and other politicians. are you in favor of this? parliamentary form of government may sound very appealing but as for me poses a greater threat than relief in our present time. we are only rookies compared to other developed countries like US of A and other european countries when it comes to managing one's country.

are we ready for this?

i think not, reasons are:
first, it is not an assurance that this will save the country from the corruption IN the government and other mistakes that are present in the country. second, we are currently experiencing financial crisis, this is only a luxury for us and luxury is least that we can do right now. [i think it would cost us $75000/month just to arrange the new constitution(im not sure)] third, there is a more pressing matters that must be attended than debating on this inside the congress like problems on oil price hike. fourth, is that i think this could foster another dictator like the one that we've ousted 2 decades ago. (i say this because if you control the parliament[like the one done by our president in her impeachment precedings] you can be seated here for us long as you like) this is how i view the cha-cha.

now, what do you think?

2005-09-15T23:25:00.000+08:00

Reminder:
To everyone who's reading my blog account here. Feel free to comment on my views... as you can see this is my first time to do this...