Author: Ellen

Why Gloria Arroyo is not worried

Published by Ellen on May 11, 2014

Broadcaster Noli de Castro, former vice president, visited Gloria Arroyo.

A friend shared this tidbit about his meeting with Elena Bautista-Horn, a Gloria Arroyo loyalist, in a mall last year. He asked how they, referring to the Arroyo camp, were doing.

When Bautista-Horn replied, she looked unworried. “We survived three years. Three more years to go,” she said.
That was last year. Now, there are only two years and three weeks left of the Aquino administration.

Arroyo, despite her spinal and other ailments, has good reasons to look to the near future positively. Last week, the Ombudsman cleared her of involvement in the P728 million fertilizer fund scam.

The case was filed by former Solicitor General Frank Chavez, who passed away last year.

The case was about the misuse of funds for fertilizer to be distributed to the farmers. Investigation showed that through fake projects and ghost deliveries, money supposedly for the farmers went to the pockets of politicians and pork barrel operators. The notorious Jenny Napoles participated in that scam.

Bolkiah’s draconian decree violates ASEAN Declaration

Published by Ellen on May 8, 2014

Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah announces implementation of draconian Shariah Law.

Two years ago in Phnom Penh, Cambodia , Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and nine other Southeast Asian leaders signed the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration which provides that,“No person shall be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

Last week, the Sultan of the oil-rich Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, announced the start of a new criminal code based on sharia law that will impose barbaric punishments like amputation and stoning for offenses that includes being gay and pregnant outside of marriage.

A Los Angeles Times news report said “Under the first phase, fines and jail terms were introduced Thursday for offenses that include failure to attend Friday prayers, indecent behavior and pregnancies outside of marriage.

EDCA: a mockery of the Constitution

Published by Ellen on May 6, 2014

From Dennis Garcia's FB wall — From Dennis Garcia’s FB wall

In the Facebook wall of Dennis Carcia, musician, advertising executive, painter and Abante columnist, there’s a picture of Obama signaling something with two fingers.

Dennis captioned it: “EDCA:I can summarize the agreement in two words- NO RENTAL. “

The post elicited a comment from Noy Dy-Liacco: “I can do it in one: FREE!

The banter is a spoof of the TV musical game show “Name the Tune.”

EDCA is Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, a document so detestable it makes a mockery of the Philippine Constitution and ridicules Philippine sovereignty.

How not to conduct an interview, Kris Aquino style

Published by Ellen on May 4, 2014

Kris Aquino talked about herself in interview with Andrew Garfield.

I’d like to thank Kris Aquino for giving me very good materials for our training of journalists.

Nothing beats her interviews with the stars of The Amazing Spider-Man2 for an example of “How not to conduct an interview.”

An interview is important when doing a story because that would enable the writer to present to the readers the person he would be writing about with first hand observations. Through well thought-out questions, he would be able to draw the interviewee to talk about his views which in the first place made him worthy to be interviewed.

Del Rosario engages in disinformation re coverage of MDT

Published by Ellen on May 1, 2014

Del Rosario: desperately clinging to Uncle Sam.

The day after U.S. President Barack Obama left Manila, Foreign Secretary Albert Del Rosario issued the following statement:

“Under the Mutual Defense Treaty, the United States will come to the assistance of the Philippines if our metropolitan territory is attacked or if our Armed Forces are attacked in the Pacific area.

“In 1999, in a diplomatic letter, the United States affirmed that the South China Sea is considered as part of the Pacific area.”

Del Rosario is pathetic. What is abhorrent about this is, he is resorting to disinformation. Either that or his geography is faulty: The Spratlys, the contested islands in the South China Sea, are not in the Pacific.

Obama shatters delusions of many Filipinos

Published by Ellen on April 29, 2014

U.S. President Barack Obama’s candid answers to the two questions from Filipinos reporters whether the United States will come to the defense of the Philippines in case of an armed conflict with China over territorial disputes in the South China Sea disappointed a lot of Filipinos who expected him to say that the American soldiers who will be coming under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement will be side-by-side Filipinos in blocking China’s expansion in South China Sea.

Obama didn’t say that in his joint presscon with President Aquino in Malacañang Monday. Instead he reminded the public that the United States and China have a “constructive relationship.”

“ There is enormous trade; enormous business that is done between the United States and China; a whole range of issues on the international stage in which cooperation between the US and China are balanced,” he said.

He said: “ So our goal is not to counter China.Our goal is not to contain China” but “ to make sure that international rules and norms are respected, and that includes in the area of maritime disputes.”

Two letters

Published by Ellen on April 28, 2014

There are two letters seeking to two powerful persons who will be making their historic meeting today.

One is from the longest-held political prisoner in the country Juanito Itaas, suspect in the killing of Col. James Rowe, to visiting U.S. President Barack Obama.

The other one is from Edith Burgos, mother of Jonas Burgos, who has been missing for seven years, to President Aquino.

Rowe, a member of the elite Green Beret in the Vietnam, was the chief of the Army Division of the Joint RP-US Military Advisory Group (JUSMAG) when he was ambushed and killed on April 21, 1989 in Quezon while he was on his way to his office. His driver, Joaquin Vinuya, survived the ambush.

Nakakaduda na ang kilos ng pamahalaan sa kaso ni Napoles

Published by Ellen on April 26, 2014

Hindi naman siguro tanga si Justice Secretary Leila de Lima para hindi niya maisip kung bakit pilit na gusto makipagkita sa kanya si Janet Napoles at gusto kumanta.

Maraming pagkakataon si Napoles na magsabi ng buong katotohanan tungkol sa panloloko at pagnakaw ng bilyun-bilyon na pera sa taumbayan ngunit hindi niya ginawa. Nang dumalo siya sa hearing ng Senate Blue Ribbon Committtee, wala siyang sinabi. Puro wala siyang alam samantalang nanumpa siya na magsabi na buong katotohanan. “Nothing but the truth,” sabi sa kanyang oath.

Iba na raw ang kuwento ni Napoles nang binisita ni De Lima sa Ospital ng Makati. Nagdawit pa raw siya ng maraming senador at congressman. Merong may nagsabi na 19 na senador daw ang sa kanyang affidavit, meron namang nagsabing 12.

Ngunit hindi raw nila pinag-usapan ang pagiging state witness ni Napoles.

Sinong tanga ang maniniwala na kakanta si Napoles na walang kapalit? Konsyensya daw.

Fight vs online libel goes to the UNCHR

Published by Ellen on April 24, 2014

Lawyer Harry Roque files motion for reconsideration vs Cybercrime law.

Last Tuesday, while in Baguio City for their summer session, the Supreme Court denied all the Motions for Reconsideration on Online Libel which it upheld in its Feb. 18, 2014 decision.

It will be recalled that in its Feb. 18 decision, the High Court struck down as illegal the authority given to the Department of Justice) to restrict or block access to any online post which it deemed violating the law without any court order.

But it upheld the constitutionality of the online libel that increased the penalty twelvefold. From a minimum punishment of six months imprisonment under the Revised Penal Code, the Cybercrime Prevention Law increased it to six years. The maximum punishment was doubled from six to twelve years in prison.

The other side of Palawan

Published by Ellen on April 24, 2014

Mention Palawan and what comes to mind are Underground River and El Nido in the northern side of this richly-blessed province from its capital, Puerto Princesa.

'We return the favor by replenishing the soil and replanting the trees, shrubbery, and grass to restore the natural habitats of the flora and fauna and recreate God's creation as it is meant to be.'- Nickel Asia — ‘We return the favor by replenishing the soil and replanting the trees, shrubbery, and grass to restore the natural habitats of the flora and fauna and recreate God’s creation as it is meant to be.’- Nickel Asia

Three weeks ago, we went to the southern side- in Rio Tuba, where Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation is.

This is my second time to visit RTNMC and it was good to note that the road was better and the trip was shorter by two hours. Five hours (including a lunch stop in Narra) this time compared to seven hours two years ago.

It shows how fast development in Palawan is. I was reading “Jewels of Rio Tuba,” the coffee table book on RTNMC and I was fascinated by anecdotes about Rio Tuba in the early 70’s. There were no roads. To go to Rio Tuba from Puerto Princesa, the pioneers of RTNMC travelled by land to Brooks Point and from there, a four-hour boat ride to a landing along the river.