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Month: January 2010

Ang 20% ng mga senior citizens

Kumambyo na ngayon ang Malacañang at pipirmahan na raw ni Gloria Arroyo ang batas na nagbibigay ne exemption sa mga senior citizens sa 12 per cent na Value Added Tax. Pipirmahan na raw ni Arroyo ang btas sa susunod na linggo.

Noong Miyerkoles kasi ng ipinasa ng Kongreso ang batas, sinabi ni Deputy presidential spokesman Gary Olivar na baka raw i-veto ni Arroyo ang batas dahil mga P54.4 million raw ang mawawala sa pamahalaan.

Dios mio, naman walang patawad itong administrasyon ni Arroyo sa huthuthutan. Pati ba naman ang mga matatanda, hindi na pinapalampas. Ano ba naman ang P54.4 milyon sa P1.54 TRILYON (“T”yan ha, hindi Bilyon or Milyon) na kanilang budget.

It’s politics, not ethics

This is another view on the C-5 controvery:

by Rene B. Azurin
BusinessWorld

More credibility, probably, would attach to the Senate committee report on its so-called “investigations” into the C-5 road project controversy if senators — most politicos, actually — were not widely perceived as being distinctly unshy, brazen even, about using their considerable power to influence government decisions on public works and procurement. That said, I would certainly give great weight to the C-5 allegations being leveled at Senator Villar if I were satisfied that they were true. I am not.

On an issue precisely of ethics, objective observers must wonder how senators — like presidential candidate Aquino’s Liberal Party partymate Mr. Pangilinan — can first affix their signatures to one resolution clearing Mr. Villar and then about-face 180 degrees to affix their signatures to another one censuring him, just because “it’s the party stand.” Well, that, at least, is an explicit admission of how “honorable” senators define ethics.

Although Mr. Villar has actually already made a point-by-point rebuttal in the Senate itself of the charges of “ethical misconduct” against him and has clearly taken pains to make available to the public — through media — documents supporting his answers to each allegation, he is, alas, simply not media’s darling. Thus, media outfits whose bias for his rivals is obvious to observers constantly detail the allegations against him in their stories on the controversy and formulaically just include his denials but not his specific answers to the allegations. Such is life in these politico- and elite-dominated islands.

Bikers pedal vs cervical cancer

There’s no letting up for “Tour of Hope” bikers in informing the public that there is a way to defeat cervical cancer.

If last Wednesday’s launch is to be an indication of this year’s Tour of Hope, participants are in for an exciting, enjoyable, meaningful cycling event once again come March.
cecap staff with TJ manotok jenna lopez and kids cecap staff with abbygale arenas david with dr llave
Tour of Hope is a cycling event which aims to increase awareness of cervical cancer premised on the belief that being informed is being armed and empowered to fight the disease which is the second most common cancer worldwide (first is breast cancer).

This year’s Tour of Hope which has adopted the theme “Fighting Cervical cancer in Full Circle” will traverse Tarlac, Dagupan, La Union, Dagupan and Baguio on March 20 to 24.

‘Ganito kami noon, ganito pa rin kami ngayon’

Malaya editorial

Our favorite “pa-pogi” guy in government, Arthur Yap of the Department of Agriculture, is at it again. In the face of soaring prices of sugar, he directed the National Food Authority to make available 150,000 kilos to poor families through NFA’s “Tindahan Natin” outlets in Metro Manila.

The volume of 150,000 kilos translates into 150 tons of sugar. At an estimated nationwide consumption of 6,000 tons a day, the volume the NFA has been directed to inject into a market represents 2.5 percent of consumption. The volume will last about half an hour assuming people buy sugar round the clock during a 24-hour day.

(And, yes, we know that in doing the pencil-pushing exercise above we might be accused of intentional misrepresentation. The 150,000-kilo infusion is limited to Metro Manila, hence, we should not have used the nationwide consumption figure as the denominator. But we deliberately did so to show the silliness of Yap’s announcement given the obvious gap in demand and supply situation.)

Tunay na kulay

Kahit na pangit ang nangyayari ngayon sa Senado, mabuti na rin dahil lumalabas ang tunay na kulay ng marami sa kanila.

Kung hindi sila nagbabangayan, di hindi sana natin nalaman ang mga behind the scenes na ginawa ni Sen. Manny Villar katulad ng pakiki-usap kay Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile na parang ang dating daw ay nag-aalok ng tulong kapalit ang favorable na report tungkol sa C-5 road extension na proyekto.

Nalulungkot lang ako sa nangyari kay Sen. Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. na malaki rin naman ang kontribusyon sa ating demokrasya sa kanyang paglaban sa diktaturang Marcos.

A conspiracy to continue illegitimate governance

Gloria Arroyo must be the happiest person today.

While the people are pre-occupied watching the Senate circus and other political entertainment, she is laying down the infrastructure for what looks like her last try to stay in power beyond 2010.

The group that calls themselves Former Senior Government Officials (FSGO) has information of a sinister plot by Arroyo and her allies that will spell the death of democracy in this country.

The FSGO issued a statement that warns of “A Conspiracy to Continue Illegitimate Governance.” Let it not be said that we were not warned:

Tensions run high in C-5 showdown

by JP Lopez
Malaya

Tension ran high yesterday as Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile reported out to the plenary Committee Report 780 censuring Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. for allegedly using his position to realign the C-5 road extension project that will benefit his and his family’s real estate firms.

Villar, who never showed up at any of the committee’s deliberations to answer the accusations against him, was a virtual no-show, arriving at the session hall only after the session was adjourned.

Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. tried to delay the sponsorship speech of Enrile by questioning the Senate procedure on treating committee reports and resolutions.

Pati simbahan nangangamba sa automated election

Mabuti naman at nagsalita na rin ang Simbahang Katoliko ng kanilang pangamba tungkol dito sa automated election sa Mayo.

Sa kanilang annual general assembly noong Sabado, sinabi ni Bishop Nereo Odchimar, presidente ng Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines na marami tanong tungkol sa ‘reliability” (maasahan ba?) at integridad ng mga makina na gagamitin sa eleksyun ay hindi nasasagot ng Commission on Elections.

Katulad ng dati, ang sagot ng Comelec, okay lang daw lahat at hindi ra mangyaayri ang “failure of elections” na kinakabahan ng marami.

Three critical turnovers

There are three changes that would be happening in May and June that should be a cause of concern for the Filipino people.

No, we are not talking about the presidency. It’s not the replacement of Gloria Arroyo after June 30, 2010 that we are worried about. It’s more of she might be replacing herself.

The most discussed impending change is in the judiciary, when Chief Justice Reynato Puno retires on May 17.
Article VIII, Section 4(1) of the Constitution states that any vacancy in the Supreme Court shall be filled within 90 days of the occurrence. Gloria Arroyo’s minions say that she can appoint Puno’s replacement because he term ends on June 30.
However, Article VII, Section 15 of the Constitution prohibits midnight appointments . It states that after two months immediately before the next presidential election and up to the end of his/her term, a President or acting President shall not make appointments except temporary appointments to executive positions when continued vacancies will prejudice or endanger public safety.