The joint seismic study agreement the Philippines struck with China in 2004 preparatory to oil exploration in the disputed Spratlys covers an area that laps the western shores of Philippines, Malaya was able to establish yesterday.
by Victor Reyes
Wives of military officers implicated in the alleged attempt to grab power in February 2007 are complaining against the lack of conjugal visits to their husbands who are detained at a facility at the Intelligence Service of the AFP inside Camp Aguinaldo.
The complaints were relayed to the media by Gina de Venecia, wife of former House Speaker Jose de Venecia, who had a dialogue with the accused officers inside Isafp. She was with a group of Commission on Human Rights officials led by Commissioner Wilhelm Soriano.
She said her visit, timed for Women’s Day, was prompted by the soldiers’ wives asking for her help.
Statement of Rep. Roilo Golez (Parañaque):
Former Speaker Jose de Venecia should tell everything that he knows about the origins and background of ther Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking inthe Agreement Area in the South China Sea signed March 14, 2005 especially his role in the initiation, negotiation and signing of the agreement and who else in the hierarchy of the government had a hand in the Agreement.
by Anthony Ian Cruz
Malaya
The Arroyo administration’s much-touted “highest economic growth” is “among the most inequitable” in the region, according to a new report of the Asian Development Bank which also said government corruption continues to hamper development in the country.
In an 83-page study “Philippines: Critical Development Constraints,” the ADB downplayed Malacañang’s declarations of an economic take-off, saying that “while growth has picked up in recent years, with the economy in 2007 posting its highest growth of 7.3 percent in the last three decades, both public and private investment remain sluggish and their share in gross domestic product has continued to decline, raising the question of whether the current economic momentum can be sustained.”
by Ashzel Hachero
Former Armed Forces chief Roy Cimatu yesterday testified before the Makati regional trial court in the coup d’etat trial of the Magdalo soldiers that there was indeed a gentleman’s agreement forged between the government negotiating team and the Magdalos that led to the bloodless resolution of the July 2003 Oakwood mutiny.
Cimatu said he had been given orders by then Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo to lead the negotiations with the Magdalos led by then Navy Ltsgs. Antonio Trillanes IV, James Layug, Marine Captain Gary Alejano and Army Captains Gerardo Gambala and Milo Maestrecampo who were holding out at the Oakwood Premiere Hotel in Makati.
Statement issued by detained Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV today. It was in his own handwriting:
“
I am supposed to testify as a defense witness today in connection with my coup d’etat case at the Makati RTC. However, after much reflection, I decided to forgo my testimony and write this letter instead.
“There are few undisputed facts in this case: 1) That on July 27, 2003, I, together with 300 other officers and men, spoke the TRUTH; 2) No person was harmed; 3) No property was damaged; and 4) Not a single shot was fired. Yet, after almost five years in detention, we still stand acused of committing a crime that could have us incarcerated for life. Is this just? No. Did I ever regret my actions? No.
Anak ng Diyos pala ito si Mike Arroyo.
Sinabi niya sa Ombudsman na hindi siya pwede kasuhan dahil hindi naman siya public official. “”I do not meddle in governmental affairs. I do not know all the antecedent, contemporaneous and subsequent events surrounding the NBN project. I cannot be indicted for bribery simply because I am not a public officer. I can neither be indicted for corruption because there is not even an allegation, much less proof, that I ever offered any public officer any gift by reason of his or her office.”
Hindi raw siya nakiki-alam sa mga transaksyon sa gobierno. Hindi raw siya pwedeng kasuhan dahil wala raw pruweba ang mga paratang sa kanya.
We are still trying to get a copy of the reported directive of Education Secretary Jesli Lapus banning Rodolfo Noel Lozada, former president of Philippine Forest Corporation and star witness in the NBN/ZTE deal scandal and former Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos, one of the principal personalities involved in the deal from attending fora in public schools.
We, however, are getting reactions. One came from Sen. Francis Pangilinan:
With news of DepEd’s instruction to ‘insulate’ students from politics in light of NBN ZTE witness Jun Lozada’s campus rounds to gather support, Senate Majority Leader and Independent senator Kiko Pangilinan today scored the “Worsening suppression of our freedoms.”
1.President Arroyo revoked today Executive Order 464, which bars top government officials from testifying in legislative inquiries without express permission from the President. “Effective immediately,…
Statement of former senior government officials:
We are former senior government officials who have served the government in the administrations of Presidents Marcos, Aquino, Ramos, Estrada and Arroyo. Today we see how the institutions of government are being manipulated, weakened, and corrupted. We are committed to help rebuild and strengthen the government institutions in which we worked to serve the public good rather than personal and partisan interests.
Our people can only trust a government that governs with truth. We grant government so much power over our lives, resources and shared future because it governs with truth. When there are serious doubts about government’s adherence to truth in matters of vital public interest, no real peace or substantive unity is possible until such doubts are resolved. We cannot move on without the truth.