Category: Politics

My opinion on politics-related events

The Delikadeza of Grace Padaca

She had a warrant of arrest for graft and malversation of funds. Her political enemies filed the case against her. She said she will not post bail and authorities were free to arrest her. She said she’s not hiding from law and the reason her warrant is not being served is because no one is arresting her.

Last week, PNoy appointed her as Comelec commissioner. Last week, PNoy gave her bail money. Last week, LP president-on-leave, Mar Roxas accompanied her to post the bail. Now she holds office at the Comelec.

What’s wrong with the picture?

Grace Padaca suddenly found herself to have a very public role. She’ll be in the plain sight of authorities and the public; of both supporters and critics alike. If she will not post bail the authorities have to arrest her. How will she perform her role then?

PNoy promised her bail money. Mar Roxas accompanied her. For her, this was vindication that they believed she was not a corrupt official. She accepted their help.

In an interview I watched in ANC’s Prime Time, with voice cracking and hinting on tears, she said she had no choice but to accept the President’s offer since she doesn’t have the money on her own. She claimed it will not affect her integrity. She will remain objective in her post.

Granted she is an honest woman; granted she is truly a public servant with good governance at heart but with her actions isn’t it just expected that the public will become wary of her and subsequently the President and his tuwid na daan advocacy? Doesn’t she know that credibility is one of the fundamental qualities of a good leader? Granted her intentions were good, granted the accusations against her were shrouded with political malice, but the actions of PNoy placed her in a bad light.

With PNoy having a senatorial line up of politicians who were before from other sides of the fence but gaining high survey approval ratings at the poll, one can’t help but think that PNoy is merely trying to cast his influence far and wide to assure him of solid support in his undertakings. He is making sure that all of those who can possibly win are part of his ticket.

I would have been supportive of this if only he is also able to show us that the bills that are fair and just are the ones able to pass into law. I know that it is very hard for a leader to get things done if faced with so much opposition. I can understand the need to have unanimous support in the legislature and the judicial branches. But signing the Cybercrime Act into law while continuously belittling the need for the Freedom of Information Law is a sign for me that he is not just and fair. For me, it’s a sign that the interest of the public is not utmost in his mind. For me, it’s a sign he can be influenced and he has his own interest too.

Appointing Grace Padaca as Comelec commissioner and posting her bail may have vindicated Padaca’s innocence but for me it’s a clear sign of PNoy’s one more step in ensuring majority support in the legislative branch. Further, it undermines PNoy’s sense of fairness and equality. Ms. Padaca is accused of the same crime as that of Ms. Arroyo and Mr. Corona. But while the latter two were tried and convicted respectively and upon heavy insistence of PNoy, Ms. Padaca is being defended by the President. Where is the sense of fairness and equality in that? Even if it is clear to the public that she did nothing wrong, she should still have stood trial.

If I were Grace Padaca, I would have stood my ground and demanded fair trial. I would have done it a long time ago. If I knew I was truly innocent, I would have nothing to fear or hide. I would even come forward willingly to clean up my name. I would not let things come this far.

That way, the public would, to this day, retain their trust to the President and his tuwid na daan. That way we can continue to hope that change is possible and is starting in this country. Unfortunately, it seems we’re still on the same old rot hole we were in years ago. The promise of change remains as elusive as a fleeting breeze on a hot dry summer.

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Dignified Silence and Public Service

 

There is an invitation for former DILG USec. Rico Puno to attend a Senate hearing to be conducted by Sen. Miriam Santiago. Despite the earlier fears by Santiago that the hearing might be sabotaged due to non-conformity of the attendance of fellow senators and Puno, himself, it seems that as of press time, the probe will continue.

Most of the people invited to attend the hearing have confirmed attendance. At least one senator, of the 11 invited, said he will attend. Yet some of the key people who could shed light to the many questions Santiago promises will be answered have opted not to attend and wondered about the entire brouhaha of the situation.

Puno’s daughter has expressed her sentiments. About how her father chose to remain silent – a dignified silence – despite the many allegations and speculations surrounding his government service. She said all her father wanted to do was carry out the task that the President has entrusted him with. He is there only to serve – nothing more, nothing less. His lifestyle has been the same as when before he entered government service. He choose to simply brush off the intrigues surrounding him instead of defending himself – something that has prompted his daughter to speak up on his defense.

Yet I wonder. Do public servants really have the luxury of dignified silence when their service to the public is in question? When their actions are subject to speculations and intrigue, do they have the right to remain silent? Or, as servants concerned about the welfare of the public, isn’t it their duty to speak out and clarify the issues surrounding them? After all, remaining silent will merely increase public mistrust of such individual.

I believe when one enters public service, part of his duty is to constantly assure the public that their trust in him is not misplaced. That the public can trust him no matter what. This is greatly true especially if that public servant has been elected by the people. If he has been appointed by the person the public elected into office, then all the more should he protect his public image because whatever he does is a reflection of the prudence of the official who appointed him.

Hence, to my opinion, Puno should speak up and end his “dignified silence” which at this point in time, has no place anywhere and is totally uncalled for.

 

Update: Puno is attending the Senate inquiry. Let us see how he will respond to Santiago’s “sound and fury“.

 

PNoy: Lonely at the Top?

It hasn’t been a week since Jesse Robredo was buried when news sprang of how DILG Undersecretary Rico Puno tried to gain access to his office and condo unit to secure confidential documents. It wasn’t a secret that Puno has been deemed untrustworthy by majority of the people. His constant flaws and the means by how the President brushes through them has earned the ire of many. His questionable credibility as part of the DILG has been part of the news every so often. His apparent rift with the late DILG Secretary, Jesse Robredo has been observed time and again. Hence, his actions at the time when majority of the government’s agency were still under “search and rescue” mode raised a lot of eyebrows.

Many asked why he had to secure the documents at the time when Robredo was just missing, still presumed to be alive. Many wondered why his snooping around raised alarms in Robredo’s household prompting his wife to ask for official security to guard her husband’s properties. Many speculated what those documents were. It was no secret Robredo was unto something and that he was investigating certain things to which many speculated involve Puno.

Yet all this brooding ill feelings remained largely at bay. Until the President decided to speak up in defense of his shooting buddy. The President said he ordered Puno to secure the documents at Robredo’s office. The President said he was prompted by DeLima about it.

But digging further, we see that it was Atty. Leni, upon learning of Puno’s attempt to enter the condo unit, who urged DeLima to protect her husband’s properties. DeLima came into the picture after the fact that Puno tried to access Robredo’s office and living quarters.

Also, we see that the President’s orders were for Puno to secure Robredo’s office. Yet Puno went a step further and tried to secure the latter’s condo unit. Foremost in everyone’s mind was the question: Why Puno? The public was not so fond of him. He had his differences with Robredo. Robredo’s family and household apparently mistrust him judging by their actions. So why did the President pick him? Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said that it was logical since he was the undersecretary. But is that reasonable given everything that is known about him?

This issue is far from over. As Puno prepares to face a Senate inquiry to which Sen. Miriam Santiago promises there’ll be “sounds and fury”, I cannot help but wonder how committed PNoy really is to his vision of tuwid na daan. It’s such a shame because I can see he is making progress. It’s such a shame because I believed in him and trusted him despite the negative publicity he receives every so often. It’s such a shame because his success will be pulled down by his so-called friends.

In any leadership position, there will always be tough decisions to make. Whether you are a class president or the president of a nation, at some point in your reign you will make difficult and unpopular choices which may or may not favor your friends and even your family. Such is the cost of leadership. True leaders know how to make decisions that would be for the benefit of the common good even if it disfavor the people close to them. Because of this, they say that it is lonely at the top. Indeed, it is.

For PNoy, the path he chose for himself is no easy one. He has decided to veer away from the traditional notions of politicians as corrupt and selfish individuals. He promised the entire nation that during his reign, he would make it possible for true public service to shine through the government. He basically promised to restore our trust in the institution set forth to govern us. This is a tough call for anyone. With this promise, there will be many toes which he will step on. Some toes may belong to his friends, perhaps even, family members.

Yet to truly usher in the transformation he promised this country, he needs to be the tough leader who favors no one. He must learn to stand firm by his words exempting nobody. He cannot make excuses for the people he holds dear to his heart. Rather, he must practice impartiality to everyone. If it comes to the point that the people he holds dear to his heart are proven guilty of wrongdoing, he must be strong enough to exact punishment. It is harsh but it has to be done. Only then can the people see his sincerity to lead them through the tuwid na daan.

This impartiality called forth from him will assault his heart. Along the way, his friends may become enemies and his loved ones might find themselves punished for crimes they thought they could get away with. These decisions will be tough on his part but he has to do it. It will be very lonely at the top for him. But that is the price he has to pay.

That is why, true servant leaders are hard to find. They put the welfare of the people they serve first above their own interest, even above their own relationships. They do not leave unpunished the ill doings of even the people they care about. They are ready to make tough decisions even if it means breaking their own heart.

In this regard, much as I admire PNoy, his constant defense of his long time friend, Puno, shows me that he is not the servant leader I have longed for to become our nation’s president.

(Breaking News: Puno has just resigned from the DILG. This does not exempt him from the Senate probe, however. The question that now hangs in my mind is: will PNoy re-appoint him to some other government agency?)

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The Scarborough Shoal Standoff: Unite instead of Divide

This morning, as I was scrolling through my tweet feed for early morning news before I start my day, I stumbled across Sandra Aguinaldo’s tweet saying that the bilateral meeting between Pres. Aquino and Chinese Pres. Jintao will not push through due to scheduling conflicts.

Screenshot of @sandraguinaldo’s tweet at 8:54AM Sept 9, 2012.

PNoy was in Russia these weekend together with other world leaders for the APEC Summit. Apart from the many world issues they discussed, the government hoped that PNoy and Pres. Hu Jintao will meet to discuss the territorial disputes happening over the Scarborough Shoal located in the West Philippine Sea, also known as the South China Sea. Over the past months, China has been adamant about keeping the disputed territories as part of their own despite its apparent distance from mainland China. Up to now, no resolution has been successfully achieved from both parties with the Philippines also claiming the disputed territories as her own.

Yet it seems, China is also in no hurry to make amendments or peaceful talks regarding the matter. As shown in this comic strip, China “appears” to be content in “bullying” other nations to submission.

Source: KAL’s cartoon from The Economist

Yet the way I see it, whichever country lays claim to these islands, the call to preserve them remains the same. I know these countries are all after the resources that they can get from these islands. Yet to mine/gather these resources will be tantamount to disrupting the precarious sustainability of our planet. To me, the real issue here is not sovereignty over these islands but rather preservation of them. It is true that these islands contain vast amounts of resources which could promise wealth to the nation who owns them, but it has also been shown that because of man’s greed to harvest resource after resource, the planet is slowly dying.

Continue reading “The Scarborough Shoal Standoff: Unite instead of Divide”

Once Again Tito Sotto?

 

Comparison of Sotto’s Speech in Senate dated Sept. 5, 2012 and Kennedy’s Speech during the Day of Affirmation in 1966 in South Africa. Photo grabbed from: When In Manila FB Page.

Today, he made a fool of us once again. Today, he mocked the citizens who trusted him enough to elect him into office. Today, he showed the world that Filipinos are – at best – copycats.

When Sen. Tito Sotto was first accused of plagiarizing a blogger, I must admit, I was a bit sympathetic to him. Being a blogger myself, I take pride in my work. But I also understood the awkwardness it would present if he quoted so many “according to’s” in his speech. To me, at that point, so long as he presented the facts straight, so long as he got his point across, then wherever he got his information, properly cited or not, was ok. He did made a disclaimer that the facts he presented were not his own. For me that was enough. He was presenting facts after all.

But today, he presented opinion. Today, he tried to be poignant in closing his series of turno en contra. Yet, instead of being inspiring, he became irritating. Netizens quickly realized that the last parts of his speech were translated from parts of Kennedy’s speech in 1966. When asked about this, he replied:

“Marunong magTagalog si Kennedy?…Para nga safe, tinagalog ko. Meron ba silang alam na pinanggalingan na Tagalog noon (ng speech ko)? Marunong pala managalog si Kennedy ah!” (Kennedy could speak Tagalog?…To be safe, I translated it to Tagalog. Do they know where I got the speech in Tagalog? I didn’t know Kennedy could speak Tagalog.) – Rappler.com

I read that copying was accepted in the Senate. That bills that were not passed into laws in the past were recycled, sometimes copied word for word, then are debated once again. This, apparently, was an acceptable practice. It seems to me, piracy is evident not just in torrent movies and music or DVDs sprawled across the streets but also in the halls of our Upper and Lower Houses.

And thus, it seems, that copying speeches or perhaps translating them, word for word, into another language is acceptable as well.

Does this mean that we are a breed of copycats? Does this mean that we cannot fathom words or concepts of our own? When I was in college, it was known that most of our answers to our lab experiments would be lifted from books and other journals. But we were never taught to copy them word for word or even merely paraphrase them. We were taught to read through their context, derive our own understanding from them and then put into paper our very own analysis of what we just learned.

Isn’t this what we also should demand from our lawmakers? That they themselves, when crafting laws or echoing great speeches from the past in hopes to inspire, should first try to understand the contexts of such past materials then translate them into their own words based from their own understanding. By translate, I do not mean literal translation word for word.

There is no crime in patterning one’s thoughts from others. In fact, we can always share the same thoughts, the same opinions & the same views even if these were ages or miles apart. But even so, we have our own unique intellect, our own unique words, our own unique ways of communicating those very same thoughts, opinions & views. And when we do communicate them, it should be imperative that we do so in our own unique ways and not by mimicking the words of others.

What Sotto did has raised irate responses from fellow vigilant citizens. To those who don’t know any better, his speech might have been inspiring. But to those who know the truth, it was nothing but rubbish. Even if his points were valid, the way he communicated them diminished their worth. And denying that he did anything wrong only added insult to injury.

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Naga: What happens now?

Jesse is dead. He is gone. That is the harsh reality of things. He was gone too soon. Naga will feel his loss more than anything else. And not just in the upcoming Penafrancia Fiesta where he won’t be joining the voyadores. He will also be missed in the upcoming elections as Naga starts to feel the dread of what will happen to his legacy.

When he left, it wasn’t clear to whom he passed his baton to. We hoped he will somehow be our leader for a longer time. We had faith in his reforms in the national government. We saw him as a beacon of light – a shred of hope in the hopeless Philippine political situation.

Yet now, we can only pray that the current political line up of Naga will follow through Jesse’s legacy. We can hope. But what if they don’t? Already, “epal” tarpaulins are on the streets. And a lot more similar messages. Already we know of vultures waiting in the fringes for the right time to swoop down and get their spoils. It seems they saw their opening now with Jesse gone.

Do we need a constant reminder who he is?

The real dread has just begun. Perhaps it’s not as clear now since we are all wrapped up in grief and in strangled cries of continuing the legacy he left. But to what will this amount to when 2013 rolls in? When the vultures begin their descent? When political ambition overpowers selfless public service?

Yes, Jesse set an example. He showed leading a town to prosperity was possible without resorting to traditional politics. Yet he was able to do so because he was not greedy for either power or riches. He was not after his own personal ambitions. He was after genuine service to the people. He really was there to serve. Can we say the same to those in power we have now? Honestly, I doubt it. I’ve had my close encounters with them and none came close to what Jesse would have done had he been alive and in the same situation.

Do not blame me for the bitter tone in the middle of everyone’s sweet memory. I am but basing my opinions on experience. I fear for my city just as I’ve always feared for my country. I can’t help the skepticism that flows through me now.

And who paid for this truck? Wasn’t it tax payers’ money?

Yet I dare hope. I take a step of courage as I write this, hoping it springs some sense into our public servants. I try to be brave as I seek to call out the glaring inconsistencies of public servants’ practices with the oath they swore and the legacy they vow to continue. I pledge to remain vigilant in observing their actions.

For me, hope is no longer enough. I’ve hoped for such a long time. Now is the time for action. Jesse may be gone but he set the bar and example for everyone. And if I have to suffer dire consequences for my vigilance, then I’m afraid democracy would have failed us and Jesse’s memory would have been nullified.

Of all the greetings for Sec. Jess I saw around the city, it was only in this tarp that the name of an individual appeared.
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Where is PNoy?

With everything happening in our country now, one wonders where is the President in all this? It’s almost Christmas – the time for merrymaking before the year ends but there will be no rounds of holiday cheers in devastated Mindanao – particularly Cagayan de Oro. The place has been ravaged by Typhoon Sendong to the point that funeral homes are now faced with the dilemma of burying the almost 500 casualties. Aside from the usual call for relief goods, there is a plea for additional coffins, formalin and body bags.

It is indeed devastating. The country is left grieving at such destruction so close to Christmas. And amid all these turmoil, where is the President?

In a tweet by a celebrity, he is allegedly enjoying himself at a night of party laughing candidly at said celebrity’s jokes. In a follow up tweet, the celebrity apologized if her earlier tweet was deemed insensitive. She claimed that the President did has his duties to his employees and that enjoying a party didn’t mean he was not thinking of ways to help out the devastated parts of the country. This statement was made amid the issues created by such tweet.

Indeed I cannot blame PNoy for wanting to enjoy the holiday cheer. I can just imagine the stress he’s in and the pressure being a President has put on him. In fact, I do not doubt if he is regretting being president right now. He was not so keen after all to run for President during the 2010 elections. He was more like forced into it by the death of his mother.

This is also not the first time PNoy has been accused of being inactive in the face of a national crisis. There’s the Quirino Grandstand Hostage Taking which people felt PNoy could have done better; there’s the devastation by Typhoon Pedring and Quiel where PNoy visited the sites – after the devastation was over. He doesn’t like being showy about his support. He doesn’t even like photo shoots.

PNoy has his own brand of governance which many perceive to be laid back. He has even been called lazy by some. He simply doesn’t like being in the thick of things. He is not like past presidents which immediately travel to devastated areas, surveying the damage and rallying the supports. That simply is not his brand.

The question though is – does he have the liberty to run the country in his own style? Is he taking too much liberty in running it the way he wants to? I do not question his cleaning up the government – impeaching an Ombudsman and a Supreme Court Justice – if that is the way for his tuwid na daan to push through. I do not question his putting a higher priority in eliminating corruption over improving the country’s economy. But I sincerely question his action in the face of adversity – or the lack of it.

Given that he, in his own private ways, away from the lenses of cameras, is deliberating ways to help out the calamity stricken citizens. Given that to somehow lessen the stress and pressure he is feeling, he went to an official party (it was his employees’ Christmas Party after all) and enjoyed his evening. He is doing something after all and de-stressing is simply part of the deal. But the public needs his presence more than anything else.

In a time of nationwide crisis, apart from the behind-the-camera work he is doing, what the public needs is his image – surveying the damage and rallying the troops. He was elected into office not just to lead the country and serve the people but to also inspire and give them hope. Just like the kings of medieval times whose presence are needed in battles to give the soldiers hope, our country’s President, to become effective, need to also make his presence felt. Of course he need to work on real concrete and effective solutions but then he must also be visible and public.

Once he embraced the life of a public servant, specifically that of the highest rank in the land, he forego most of his privacy and lived his life in complete service to the people who placed him in office.

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Sidenote: The celebrity also has her share in the blame. As they say, think before you click. She should have thought out the implications of her tweet before sending it to cyberspace. However, the public would have been more forgiving and understanding of PNoy’s behavior if his behavior is one of active involvement instead of laid back action.

Arroyo: No Where To Turn To Now

After finally arresting former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and successfully detaining her in a public hospital despite her alleged serious medical conditions, the administration makes doubly sure she can’t get away with a ruling in her favour by the current supreme court justice. Although the Palace denies it, everyone seems to think that the reason why the congress so hastily voted to impeach Supreme Court Justice Corona is because of the President’s allies in the Lower House. Indeed, it’s a Merry Christmas  Pnoy and 2012 can expect back-to-back trials during it’s first months’

But what can we really expect from a justice who was a midnight appointee by the former president who is now expected to be tried by him. Will objectivity really still prevail given the fact that he owes his position of power to the person convicted? GMA was wise but the current administration proves to be wiser. If anything, their accomplishment this year may not so much be a felt improvement of our economy but rather they stuck true to their promise of pursuing the “tamang daan” no matter how dark and hard it is. whether this temporary setback in a glorious economy proves to be better in the long run, only time will tell.

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This blog post is made possible by my Samsung Galaxy Y.

Philippine Government: A Lopsided Democracy?

A Supreme Court Justice has been impeached. A former President has been arrested. Earlier, an Ombudsman head has been sacked. The former COMELEC Commissioner has also been detained. What else is next?

176 Signatures From Congress Gathered within a Day for Corona's Impeachment

In the past months, the Aquino administration has indeed made it a point to eliminate from any seat of power people who had ties with the former administration. In the pursuit of a “tuwid na daan” the seats of power has been cleansed and purged despite the threats of economic meltdown. (A robust economy is apparently not the priority). I guess pursuing after the right path comes with a cost.

There are those that say that the speed by which Corona has been impeached clearly marks the influence PNoy has on Congress. With the SC Justice gone, there is the possibility that the Supreme Court would also come under PNoy’s influence. Some fear the democratic government which enjoyed equality of the 3 branches would fall into a silent autocracy with 1 branch having pronounced influence in the other 2.

But haven’t it always worked that way? Of course in each branch there are those labelled as opposition thus balancing the act but isn’t it that in the end, the more powerful branch, usually the Executive, is able to get away with what he wants irregardless of the opinions of the other 2 branches? Case in point: GMA and her various criminal allegations gone unpunished and unquestioned until now when the tables has obviously turned against her favor.

Frankly, I don’t feel any remorse for the Chief Justice who was the one who left the Vizconde massacre unsolved despite the 20 years of elusive justice. I don’t feel any allegiance to a Chief Justice who is labelled as a Midnight Appointee of a former president now being tried for her crimes. I don’t trust a Chief Justice who would allow an obvious escape plan of a highly suspected criminal to be put into motion i.e. issuing a TRO against GMA’s watch list order.

Corona: GMA's Midnight Appointee?

But then, I also don’t have much respect for law makers tasked to come up with laws that are supposed to put the country in a more progressive state but really has contributed more to its demise. Case in point: Duwang Camarines. (The Congress has voted in favor of it). Dynasty Rule. (No one has really come up with a law against it).

What I do respect and believe in is justice. Justice, in her own mysterious ways above the powers of man, making her presence felt. It’s about time GMA is tried and punished for her crimes. Her husband would come next. Her cronies and allies are already one by one being arrested. As they say, those who side with evil are eventually punished.

It may be a rough and dark “tuwid na daan” (what could we expect really?) but if it comes down to cleaning the present political scenario of the country or at least proving to jaded Pinoys that this country really has a shot at a clean politics, then I guess it’s worth it. Just so long as whatever skeletons in the closet the present President has must also be dealt accordingly and fairly (paging Hacienda Luisita Issue). Bias must not play a part in any way for any party.

For me, prosecuting those who are at fault and serving real  justice is enough accomplishment for PNoy’s 1 1/2 years in office. But it doesn’t end there. Cleaning up the system has a long way to go and eventually other aspects of society – economy, basic necessities, etc. would be crying out for attention – “tuwid or baku-baku na daan” alike.

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