The What ifs of the May 10, 2010 elections

I was'nt able to update my blogs for a while, too busy to even think about what to write.

First, I don't have a topic in mind. I was thinking about the "revelation" by SMARTMATIC-TIM and the COMELEC that they expect only 65% of automated machines to work come May 10, an indirect admission that they intend to subject 35% of other areas of the country to manual counting.

If that's the case then, that's one helluva story. Such a scenario would create chaos and confusion. 

Imagine May 10, with 2,000 voters clustered in precincts, not knowing if their names are surely there. I've been studying the election statistics and found that that 50.3 million who registered were not "purged" by the Comelec, another indirect admission that the poll body allowed spurious votes or names in the official registry. I checked the National Statistical Coordination Board and if you look at their projection for 2010 (those who are allowed to vote because they have or will reach majority age of 18 years old), the figure is just nearly 49 million. So, there is about 1 million or so ballots extra.

And if my hunch is correct, the poll body will allow 40 million to vote if the administration bet or that pseudo-oppositionist masquerading as a poor man reaches strategic stalemate status with the rapper politician. If they don't catch up, then its back to the 38.7 million expected voters (actual votes).

So there, if 38.7 million voters will have the chance to actually cast their votes, that would actually be 387,000 precincts.


Anyway, what is worrisome is not the voting itself but the counting. Here in this country and in any other place in the world, the counting is the cake itself, not the icing. You'll know if those 17 weeks you spent campaigning were all worth your while. Counting is where the fraudulent and scheming leeches work their magic. 


So, you only have 65% of counting machines working, that is already a cause for any presidentiable or senatoriable to question the electoral results and go to the tribunal for relief. You ask---so what you're saying is, there will be that possibility of a no-proclamation scenario? Yes. 

Imagine a Villar screaming and crying foul and filing a case before the Supreme Court questioning the poll results. 


Imagine a Gilbert Teodoro not conceding and saying that there should never be a proclamation of the winner since the 35% of the results are not in.


And imagine a Noynoy crying to high heavens because of the poll violence in the provinces and chaos in Metro Manila due to massive disfranchisement of voters.

If this automation fails, its a triple whammy for the Filipino People, and the only people laughing all the way to the bank will definitely be the Smartmatic-TIM people who got 12 billion pesos from us. And obviously, that illegal squatter living in the banks of the Pasig City will definitely have her victory. 

Funny, no one's laughing.

An Open Letter to Senatoriables Satur Ocampo, Liza Masa and Col. Ariel Querubin

Dear Satur, Lisa Masa and Col. Ariel Querubin:

Mabuhay!

A few entries ago, I included your names in my Magic twelve. For I believe that you are candidates of the highest integrity and with genuine love for the Filipino people.

Now, I am informing you that I am withdrawing my support for your candidacies. And I will enjoin others to do so.

Why?

I cannot support people who blindly follow a corrupt and degenerate man such as Senator Manny Villar who refuses to heed the call of the People for him to "come clean" and face his accusers in the chamber of the Senate.

I cannot support people who will just gloss over this mockery being inflicted by Villar upon our democratic institutions. I cannot support people who will just close their eyes to the very stark reality that they are sharing the same stage with someone who reportedly stole 6.2 billion pesos from our hard-earned taxes.

Call it politics. Call it whatever you like. But the fact remains--Villar refuses to heed the calls, the proddings of the Filipino People for him to say his piece and for him to present or rebut the strong pieces of evidence being heaped against him.

Villar is mocking not just his colleagues in the Senate, but the very people who pay their salaries with their hard-earned labor.

Ka Satur and Ka Liza Masa--I have known both of you to be of a different stock. You have struggled for years, fighting the Cause at the frontlines and even sacrificing your very lives for the People.

Are you now telling me that you are prepared to sacrifice your very integrity in support of a candidate who stole money from us?

Are you now saying that you are ready to close your very ears and ignore the growing shouts of the People against this pretender?

And are you now saying that you believe in your hearts that this C-5 senate probe is all about politics and not about evidence? That you are ready to ignore reading the report for the sake of organizational unity or solidarity with the Nacionalista?

We need people that really aspires for change.

We need people who will not compromise principles with party solidarity.

Thanks and good luck.

Respectfully yours,

Patricio Mangubat

Manny Villar, censorship and the Jud`asses' of our Age

What is wrong with our country, tell me? Is it abject poverty? Is it oppression and disrespect of rights? Or, is it the loss of our souls?

Manny Villar has unleashed his dogs of war to fight those who questioned his so-called unethical conduct in relation to the C-5 road insertion controversy. Villar and his rabid defenders have thrown all caution to the wind, sacrificing even the very integrity of the institution which they vowed to respect and protect.

As they say, Villar and his co-horts are ready to even destroy democracy just for 6.2 billion pesos. They are ready to sacrifice even their integrities as legislators in exchange for gold. Ah, these Judases of the modern age!

They do not want Villar censured for a glaring faux pas which is an act that reflects more of his weakness as a human than a legislator. The problem lies with Villar--he does not want to admit that he erred, not on the side of Reason but of Greed. That he probably thinks he is above reproach; that it is but normal, as what his spokesperson Gilbert Remulla admited over DZMM, for someone with an official title in his name to get "patongs". 

Who is really being censured in this C-5 road insertion controvery, please tell me? Is it the one named in the committee report of the Senate Committee of the Whole? Or those Senators who defended the accused and tried to hide the truth from us, the tax-paying public?


Who is really being censored in this C-5 road scandal, which, according to the report, cost Filipinos 6.2 billion pesos? Are these Senators who signed the committee report for release being censured? Or that man who met the one named in the report in Makati Shangri-la a few months ago?

As it stands, the accused has stubbornly refused to face his accusers, but has faced members of the media and used his resoures to get his ads across. My daughter asked–what is so different between the media and the Senate? By choosing the media, Senator Manny Villar probably thought that journalists are more gullible than his colleagues at the Senate. Villar, having been accustomed to the ways of this world, probably thinks that he and his handlers can manage the public sphere more effectively than his not-so-gullible colleagues led by Enrile etal. That Enrile refused that indecent offer shows principled politics, while Villar probably thinks that media could succumb to his millions.


Yet, like the rest of us, journalists are also standing up against Villar. Many radio commentators have said their pieces in public and Villar is being portrayed as a villain instead of an oppressed dog like what his supporters want us to believe.


Villar does not want to be censured but he, himself, is doing censorship. Who among us does not want to know te truth? Who does not want the public to read the Committee report? Is it not Villar?


For me, this is the end of the line for the esteemed Senator. Villar thinks that he has effectively dodged this issue. Woe to us, Filipinos, if we elect someone with an ethical case hanging like a Damocles sword above his head. Woe to us that we now have someone who thinks that it is of no consequence if a member of the Senate refuses to follow the rules and thinks that it is his right to get concessions for being in public office. And woe to us that we now have a man who chose not to face his detractors, his accusers and for thinking that he is above all of us.


The poor, the class which I belong, are not schemers nor robbers. We have a code. We only have our honor and our integrity to latch on. We don’t consider those who steal, who cheat and those without the will to face the consequences of his immoral acts as a member of the society of the poor and of the oppressed.


Anyone can claim that he belonged to the poor. Let his actions speak for itself.

The dirty face of Transactional Politics

It's like this in Philippine politics. And we, the People, should end this in the May 10, 2010 elections.

The case of Senator Manny Villar, his life story and how he conducted himself during the course of the C-5 road extension project is a typical story of a poor man's (he claims to be poor) meteoric rise to wealth and power. Villar claims that it was "Sipag at Tyaga" that made him rich, and many people, including me, don't doubt that.

What everybody knows, and I think Senator Manny Villar refuses to acknowledge it, is the role of transactionalism in his rise to wealth.  That Villar played the game of the "big boys" is known throughout the industry which he belonged.

That the main reason Villar became what he is today is the result of playing the "favors and exchange game

Senator Juan Ponce-Enrile today revealed that Villar tried to bribe him. Enrile said that Villar wanted to convince him to render a favorable decision in the C-5 road extension project. Obviously, being a part of this traditional "big boys club" himself, Enrile refused. For Enrile, that is not the way to play the game.

CBCP head Archbishop Quitorio lamented the incident, saying that senators should be playing the game of "principled politics" and not of transactional politics. What Quitorio, however, failed to say and this is much desired, is for these senators to denounce transactional politics. This is divisive and destructive. The Church has the moral responsibility to denounce this trapo tactic.

For me, this very issue of the C-5 road insertion controversy and the conduct displayed by Villar, bolster earlier fears and apprehensions about the Nacionalista party bet. That he will use his enormous powers and influence to benefit his businesses.

There is now, a new face of transactional politics and this is Senator Manuel Villar and his cohorts in the esteemed halls of the Senate.

The Power of Hope: Stepping Out, Creating Change

In small things, there is greatness. That is true in the universe. All of these things we see now as "reality" actually began 13 billion years ago from a tiny speck of light which burst forth and created everything. In an instant, the universe was born from a collision of atoms.

And when one, obeying the rules of this universe, plays it small, the potentials of greatness comes not by a hefty price but just a sum of all tiny steps leading into a big burst we call change. And change starts with just one small step.

When Andres Bonifacio started the Katipunan, he started by stepping out of his hamlet and gathering his friends. From a small group, the Katipunan eventually became big, bigger than what Andres Bonifacio had in his mind.

When Mahatma Gandhi started his silent resistance movement against the British, he did so by stepping out of his house and started walking. He walked miles and miles until he reached the salt mines, a symbol of Indian slavery. Gandhi's small steps led to the eventual liberation of his Nation.

When Mao Tsetung began his revolution, he started by stepping out of his faculty room. Mao led thousands of Chinese in building the Chinese Communist Party. That party eventually started what we now know as the Long March, a March which consisted of small, tiny steps made by those whose hearts are bigger than their minds.

This is where greatness lies.

When a man comes out of his comfortable house and starts building people, he spurs a liberation movement.

When a man starts taking small steps towards reforming himself and eventually, the ones that surround him, his tiny revolution becomes big, bigger than himself and that guns a revolution which he himself did not really plan.

And when a man, frustrated by what he sees and hears, began writing his small thoughts and distributing these small seeds of inspiring things to his fellow men, he already started a revolution, a revolution without killing or murdering some one.

Revolutions are handiworks of farmers. They are sustained by fishermen and fought for by orphans and widows.

Revolts start small. For greatness lies deep beneath.

The Cory Aquino Legacy: Cory's weaknesses were our strengths

Many people criticize Senator Noynoy Aquino for harping on the accomplishments of his dearly departed mother, Cory. Many say that the administration of the former president (who is celebrating her 77th birthday today) was fraught with violence, instability and economic turmoil. That it was not necessarily an administration above scrutiny and above reproach.

Many people, in fact say that Cory's administration was marked with human rights violations, economic instability, political troubles and restiveness in the military. The only bright spot, so to speak, of Cory's administration was the restoration of democracy.

It is unfair for one to peer into history and say that Cory failed in her time as our Leader. For one, her administration came shortly after the fall of a monolith. Cory's task was not easy. Every one knows that dismantling the tentacles of a twenty year dictatorial regime takes a gigantuan effort. It takes someone with a big heart to fight the counter-revolutionaries of that age.

Cory fought against the entrenched elites who fed from the hands of a dictator. Cory struggled against a military with a different mindset. Cory fought hard against the big and well-established cartels and syndicates which were nurtured by the regime. And Cory did that in such short a time.

Cory did her job as a citizen---she stood up against a Giant and won. With the help of God and those who bravely stood up beside her, Cory did what no other president accomplished---she steered the country safely amidst choppy waters.

For a housewife whose only desire was to live comfortably with her husband and children, Cory's sacrifice was an act beyond compare. Who among us would have the strong will and the fortitude to go against an establishment at the risk of putting her entire family's life in extreme danger?

Who, among us, would have the strength to fight the minions of a discredited regime armed only with rosaries and a phalanx of nuns, priests, laborers, fisherfolk and youth?

Who, among us, would have the gall to sacrifice everything, even the sanctity of her family, just to fight for love?

Cory did what she was supposed to do as a Filipino citizen, more than what Jose Rizal did in his time. Rizal never sacrificed his own family. Cory did. Rizal died without seeing the dawn. Cory was blessed by God to see the fruits of her labors.

More than this though, Cory did all of these things because she loved Ninoy. Her enormous love to the good senator gave her that strong will to do what was Right and Just.

Just think---instead of taking care of her children, Cory took care of us, unknown souls. Instead of just retiring from public life after the death of Ninoy and like her cousin, Danding, just went to business and probably build something out of her stature as an elite, Cory treaded the path least taken.

Cory decided to follow the love of her life. Cory decided to love those whom her husband loved. Cory Aquino decided to follow the destiny of those who truly love God.

Cory Aquino sacrificed her family for the Nation whom her husband loved dearly, with all his life.

Noynoy is not in the business of necro-politics. No.

Noynoy is proud of his parents simply because they gave their lives to the service of the Motherland. What better way to honor their sacrifice than continue what they fought for?

Yes, Cory has her faults. Like the rest of us, Cory has her failings and weaknesses. Yet, her weaknesses and faults are our strengths. And her strength, simply our weaknesses.

Cory's strength lies in her unflinching desire to put things in order and her willingness to sacrifice her life and her family's personal comforts for the sake of the many.

Cory's faults and weaknesses lie in her forgiving character, a trait which opens the possibility of corruption. In corruption, in most of us, this is our strength.

Lastly, let me share you something very personal.

During that time, days after the EDSA Uno revolution, I remember everybody smiling and talking freely inside jeepneys and buses. I was then, a high-school student. Every one was in high spirits, even talked with strangers and shared their experiences in EDSA.

This kind of experience never happened again. Fact is, no one right now even talk inside jeepneys and buses. See those faces. The smiles have faded.

Let us put those smiles again.

Let us revive that Spirit again.

I do believe in my heart that after this May 10, 2010 and whatever happens, the Pinoys will again smile, the Pinoys will again chatter with one another and the Pinoys will definitely be proud of his heritage again.

For the past nine years, we have lived like direction-less souls, trying to survive against a very harsh environment.

Let us write a new page in our Country's History.

Isulat natin ang Bagong Istorya ng ating bansa ngayong Mayo 2010!

Other Naging Mahirap lyrics

Filipinos are really very creative. I've been receiving tons of "Naging Mahirap" lyrics courtesy of our friends from the mainstream and UG. Here's another one...

" Laging Mahirap"

Version 1.0 from Ratsky

Nakaligo ka na ba sa tubig ng kubeta

Naranasan mo na bang mag-divert ng kalsada

Yan ang tanong namin

Tunay ka bang senador na mahangin...

Naranasan mo na bang tumira sa Camella

tutulungan tayong mag-ipon ng sweldo

at plano niya'y

gumawa ng casino...

Si Villar ang tunay na pahirap

Si Villar ang tunay na pa-sakit

Si Villar ang may kakayanan

na magkamal ng pera sa lansangan..

Si Manny Villar ang magtatapos ng

ating kinabukasan.

"Naging Mahirap"

version 2.0 by Camellagirl.gmail.com

Naranasan mo na bang tumira sa Camella?

Nakadaan ka na ba sa bitak-bitak na kalsada?

Yan ang tanong namin,

isa ka ba sa naguyong tulad namin?

Alam mo na bang ninakawan ka nya?

Tutulungan tayong 

magkarun ng bilyong piso

at gagamitin nya ang palasyo

bilang bangko.

Tayo ang tunay na hihirap

Tayo ang tunay na magkakasakit

Tayo ang may kakayanang

magwaksi ng kalokohan.

Si Manny Villar ang

magtatapos ng ating kabuhayan.

" Naging Addict"

version 3.0 by TambayTondo

Nakaligo ka na sa sa tubig ng kubeta

nakachongki ka na ba sa gitna ng kalsada?

yan ang tanong namin

tunay ka bang drug addict tulad namin?

nakasuka ka na ba sa loob ng kubeta

tumulo ang laway 

dahil bangag hanggang umaga

at downer isang stick ng marijuana...

ang chongki ay killer ng mahirap

ang shabu ay killer ng may-yaman

ang drugs ay may kakayanan

na patayin ka habang kabataan...

drug addiction tigilan

dahil yan ang tatapos 

sa ating 

kinabukasan.

"Naging Cono"

version 4.0 by politiksan.yahoo.com

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng daming pera?

Nakatira ka na sa magarang ala-Vista?

Yan ang tanong namin

tunay ka bang cono tulad namin?

Nakaranas ka na bang sumakay ng mazda

bumibili ng designer clothes sa mall ng ayala

at kumakain ng buffet

sa manila peninsula...

cono ka bang hindi naghirap?

cono ka bang mukhang may sakit?

cono ka bang ang tanging dahilan

ay gumawa ng pera at yumaman

cono ka nga

kung wala ka talagang

kinabukasan.

Comelec should better shape up

The one who will stand up and lead the Nation after a tumultuous May 10, 2010 elections will inherit Malacanang.

The end-game will not be decided by the billions of Villar nor the idealism of Noynoy or the high-flying campaign of Gilbert Gibo Teodoro. This elections will be decided on the conduct of Comelec election officials who will handle the counting, be it manual or automated.

These officials will decide what direction with which this country will take in the next ten years. Will it remain the same, old decrepit and hopeless blight in Asia? Or will it be the shining example of hope for democracy in the world?

Comelec chairman Jose Melo brushes aside broadside attacks of certain sectors against the elections. Melo said these "negative" attacks are not doing us any good. It is heightening tensions and creating panic among the people.

Mr. Melo, no Filipino desires to be a critic of another and no one wants to destabilize the polls. It is YOUR COMMISSION which is creating anxiety to all of us, with delays of deliveries and the lack of information dissemination on the use of these optical counting machines.

This space already wrote many weeks ago of an apparent plan by anti-democratic forces to delay the delivery of these machines and push the elections back. This is, unfortunately, happening right now as we speak. Smartmatic only delivered 28,000 machines, short of 2,000 more for the first delivery. Comelec expects to use 82,000. And teachers are still clueless on how to operate these damn and darn gadgets!

Mrs. Gloria Arroyo has committed herself and vowed before US President Barack Obama that she will spearhead the move to have a smooth elections this May. Like her promise to lead the Nation in climate change, Mrs. Arroyo is yet again compromising the stability of democracy in this country by not taking charge and allowing these dark minions of hers time to compromise the integrity of these polls.

This space has warned those who will trifle with our very democracy of the dire consequences of their actions should they persist on their dastardly plan to prolong the agony of the People under this illegitimate rule of Mrs. Arroyo.

The People will not stand idly by while the rapacious elites under Mrs. Arroyo trample and mock the processes of democracy in this country. Nine years are more than enough for the people. Patience is running thin and like this space warned some months ago, aggression will rise among the very masses and will eventually destroy the very levers of this State until a legitimate People's government rise from its ashes.

Mr. Melo and all the rest of the Commissioners must see to it that they do their jobs well to avoid the stark possibility of them being lynched by an irate and impatient mob.

Many people are thinking if these delays are caused by an internal misunderstanding between Smartmatic and Comelec, or a pre-planned move by Smartmatic-TIM. Whatever this is, the main point is this---people should recognize that this is beyond them. That the very futures of our generation and those of the next hinge on how we conduct ourselves in these forthcoming polls.

Let there be no doubt about it---every one will lay down their very lives to protect what is Right and denounce what is definitely wrong.

Santiago admits Nacionalista asked her to boycott Senate session on C-5 road report

Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago admitted that the Nacionalista asked her to boycott last week's Senate session and avoid deliberating on the C-5 road controversy report authored by no less than the Senate president Juan Ponce-Enrile.

Santiago said that the Nacionalista said the "censure" is "too harsh for a fellow colleague who is running as president."


May I ask the good senator---which is more hurtful? The 6.2 billion pesos involved in the C-5 road project or the censure that the twelve senators who signed the report want to impose on Villar? 

This is plain and simple trapo-ism which the oldies of the Senate are    bvvxcz

Oust Enrile move is dirty face of traditional politics

Calls for the ouster of Senator Juan Ponce-Enrile is being spearheaded by Nacionalista party bet Manny Villar and with him, are Senators Aquilino Pimentel and Alan Peter Cayetano. What is quite disturbing is these men are using the argument of the constitutional line of succession in justifying their coup d'etat against Enrile.

We all know that Villar has been hurt by the Senate report linking him to the anomalous C-5 road controversy. And Enrile was the one who recommended that Villar be censured and for Villar to return the 6.2 billion pesos his companies took from the government coffers.

Villar, including his allies at the Senate, refuse to give back the monies they reportedly stole from the public coffers.

Villar and his allies planned a coup last week which fizzled out.

And who is the Senator whom Villar wants as Enrile's replacement? It is no other than Senator Edgardo Angara, the one who brokered the Villar-Legarda merger.

If the Villar bloc really wants to safeguard and assure a smoother transition, then, they should not push for Angara since we all know who Angara supports as president. Everyone knows that Angara is one of Villar's most trusted associate.

I would withdraw my opposition if Villar will only promise to give back that 6.2 billion pesos which he got from the C-5 project.

Mam Rest Ka na and the Covenant for Peaceful Elections

Aside from the usual verbal fireworks among the six presidentiables in Cebu, what was more important was the signing of a covenant for clean and honest elections. All of the presidentiables swore to protect the integrity of the forthcoming polls.

This is a very good indication, bolstered by the promise of Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of a smooth transition of power by June 30, 2010.

Seemed like we are expecting a fine year this year.

Nonetheless, a group calling itself June 30 Movement, aims to see Mrs. Arroyo fulfill her promise of a smooth transition period. The Movement led by Jun Lozada and his army of nuns want to "make it happen."

I just want to say something to Mrs. Arroyo.

Mam, your stay there in Malacanang is past over due. But since we can't really oust you other than what is legal and constitutional, please, make your exit as smooth as possible, just like you promised.

Mam, namamatayan na rin po kayo ng mga kapanalig dyan sa palasyo. Cerge Remonde just left you. Jocam also. Dami na hong namatay. In Feng-shui, signos yan of things to come.

Mam, I noticed that your eye bags became bigger when Cerge died. Maybe you had some reflections? That human life is but a fleeting moment here? I hope you did. Para it would be easier for the Nation and for you also.

Lastly mam, our life here on earth is just a moment's notice. Anytime, puwde tayong ma-dedo, like what happened to our friend Cerge. Mam, rest ka na. You did your best. 

Laging Pahirap

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?
Ako hindi dahil hindi ako bura-ot.
Okey lang yun sa akin,
dahil praning lang maligo sa Pasig.

Nalaman mo na bang ninakawan ka nya?
umupo sa Senado para magkarun ng bilyong piso?
at kanyang plano'y
bumili tayo sa Camella.


Si Villar ang tunay na pahirap.
Si Villar ang tunay na may dalang sakit.
Si Villar ang may kakayanan
na gumawa ng bilyon sa lansangan.

Si Manny Villar
ang maghahakot ng ating
kayamanan.

"Naging Pahirap" part 3, courtesy of Erap Village in Tanay

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?
Ako hindi dahil di sira ang aking bait.
Pero, okey lang yun sa min,
dahil praning lang maligo sa Pasig.

Nalaman mo na bang
kinitaan ka nya?

six bilyong piso ang nakurakot nya sa senado
tutulungan ka nyang magka-trabaho
mag-ipon at bumili ng bahay sa Vista.

Si Villar ang tunay na pahirap.
Si Villar ang tunay na may kapit
Si Villar a-yaw humarap
sa Senado para linisin ang
kanyang pangalan.

Tiyak kong
si Manny Villar
ang maghahakot ng ating
kayamanan.

"Naging Pahirap" part 2, courtesy of Taga-Payatas

I'm sick and tired of hearing and viewing this commercial on television. That's why I wrote this. Pasensya na sa mga suporter in Villar. Laro lang ito. Pati, narinig ko itong kinakanta sa Payatas.

"Naging Pahirap"
(sung ala Manny Villar's "Naging Mahirap" television commercial)

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?
Ako hindi dahil
hindi ako tatanga-tanga
Okey lang yun sa 'min,

dahil wala namang tubig sa amin.

Nalaman mo na bang ninakawan ka nya?
Tutulungan tayo
para magka-trabaho
Mag-ipon at plano'y
bumili tayo sa Camella.

Si Villar ang tunay na pahirap.
Si Villar ang may dala ng maraming sakit.
Si Villar ang may kakayanan
na gumawa ng village sa kabundukan.

Si Manny Villar ang maghahakot ng ating kayamanan.

(BTW, thanks to RJ Marmol's site adayinthelifeofrj.com for the lyrics.)

"Naging Mahirap" lyrics courtesy of Taga-Parola

"Naging Pahirap"
(sung ala Manny Villar's "Naging Mahirap" TVC)

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?
Ako hindi pa dahil masama
yun sa kalusugan.
Okey lang yun sa amin,
dahil praning lang maligo sa Pasig.





Nalaman mo na bang mapapag-aral ka nya?
Tutulungan tayo para magka-trabaho.
At kanyang plano'y
bumili ka ng bahay
sa Camella.


Si Villar ang tunay na pahirap.
Si Villar ang tunay na pasakit.
Si Villar ang may kakayanan
na gumawa ng pera sa lansangan.

Si Manny Villar ang maghahakot ng ating kayamanan.

Destabilizing the Senate: Manny Villar and the controversial C-5 Senate report

“We are not angels! What are we in power for? When Jesus Christ died on the Cross, he made the distinction between a good crook and the bad crooks. We can prepare to be good crooks"

Did'nt you notice? All our departments are being weakened considerably and this is not a very good sign of a healthy democracy. I'll call my friend George Soros and report this. This is insanity. This is plain and simple disservice to the toiling Filipino masses.

We have a president, Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who can't seem to shake off the wanderlust of power. Four presidentiables have asked her not to tempt fate by appointing her candidate for the Chief Justice post and should stay her hand on the selection of the next AFP Chief of Staff and just extend the incumbent's stay in office. These issues affect the workings of Justice and of State Power.

And now this.

Gone were those times when Senators respect the very institution they have sworn to protect with their lives. Gone were the days when Senators respect the judgment of their peers.

I once interviewed former Senate President Jovito Salonga. He said that the Senate chamber in the 50's and 60's were composed of luminaries who were gentlemen at the same time. There were civility. Most importantly, there were respect among peers.

Senator Manny Villar is not the only one censured by the Senate. There were many others before him who violated the basic laws of the land and were censured, even expelled by the chamber.

Yet, he is the only one afraid of presenting himself before the very chamber that accused him of impropriety. All the others debated themselves to the very last, which just showed you how beautiful democracy is. Reason dictates that if you are being accused of the body which has jurisdiction over you, you will definitely defend yourself to the death. We are talking about integrity here. We are talking about honor, not politics.

The Senate as a revered institution and one of the pillars of our democracy, rests on its credibility to exists. Politics is a minority issue here.

How would the people respect this institution of fine gentlemen if one or at least nine of them do not respect it? How would this impact on the workings of democracy?

The legitimacy of the Senate ends when the people loses trust on the institution.

How would the Senate be able to enforce the full length of its powers if some of its members continue making a big mockery out of its rules?

How would the Senate stand before the other departments of government and confidently say that it is the most credible and enjoy the same powers as the others exercise?

If the Senate cannot enforce its rules, if its hands are tied because of the actions of one of its members and if its very credibility is at stake here, this a sign of weakness, of being a toothless and useless department of government.

Imagine, a billionaire taunting a former implementor of martial law, a man whom many respected and feared at the same time.

Now, the tables have been turned---the billionaire acting in a contemptuous manner, like a dictator and a manipulator of the highest of stakes, while the former showing and trying to defend the democracy of the institution he leads in the finest example. The beneficiary of democracy is acting like a spoiled brat while the former promoter of a dictatorial regime defending and acting like a true-blue democrat.

This is more than just politics. This continued mockery of Senator Villar and his allies on the very rules of the very institution they swore to be members of, is a direct affront to the power of the Senate.

This is a mutiny, a destabilizing act being committed by the very same ones expected to protect the institution.
--Senator Jose Avelino

The Center is mocking Senator Loren Legarda

Ed Malay, a publicist (meaning PUBLIC RELATIONS MAN) should stop sending media results of his alleged "surveys". The Issues and Advocacy Center or just dubbed "The Center" is making a big mockery out of the research profession.

He just issued a survey result showing that Nacionalista party bet for Vice president Loren Legarda has already whittled down Senator Mar Roxas' lead to just four points. Roxas is reportedly at 32% while Legarda stands at 28%.

Malay did not give any explanation whatsoever. Malay natin what kind of survey tools were used or the margins of error or even the methodology used.

Basta, Malay wants us to believe that Loren is making a big headway against Roxas, an obvious PR stunt.

Unknown to Malay, he is hurting the chances of his candidate, who happens to be Ms. Legarda because he is trying to manipulate the minds of the public and accept the possibility that Legarda is gaining big points against Roxas.

Legarda does not deserve such a treatment from Ed Malay. Legarda will lead Roxas eventually but not this way. This is Ed Malay's style, that of doing a "hinog sa pilit" kind of thing.

Fact is, with Malay's surveys, the people are getting a very different reading on Loren. People are saying that Malay's outfit is the "pakawala" of the "tabako" trying very hard to prop up Legarda's chances.

Ed, you are hurting Loren instead of helping her. Why not stop these ridiculous surveys since you are not really credible. You have zero credibility in this department. Just continue your press release style since you thrive in that.

Villar is mocking the Senate: Where is Lacson, Legarda and Pangilinan?

Where were Senators Panfilo Lacson and Loren Legarda in yesterday's Senate session? They were supposed to support Senate president Juan Ponce-Enrile. Legarda and Lacson were at the forefront of the Senate attempt to probe Villar's unethical practices. Yet, they were not around when the Senate was supposed to take up that report.

Mr. Lacson, what gives? And Ms. Legarda--where is your loyalty? Is it to Villar or to the Nation?

And how about Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan who signed the report written by no less than Senate president Juan Ponce-Enrile? Was Pangilinan asked by his friend Villar not to attend yesterday's session?

Where is your loyalty, Mr. Pangilinan? To Villar or to the Nation who suffered?

Senator Manny Villar should not mock the very institution which professes to be the last bastion of democracy in this country. Villar should not hide behind the "alibi" of political propaganda and face the accusations like a man. Why is Villar so afraid of facing his colleagues before the Filipino People? 

Like what a judge said, guilty people, they are those who usually make the wrong excuses.

Villar is trying to weaken the very institution which took care of him for so many years and which, allowed him to get 6.22 billion pesos from the public coffers, the very same monies he is now using to get to the top spot.

Villar should be man enough to admit that he erred or at the very least, acted in an unethical manner.

If you look at it, this C-5 report serves as the final nail to seal Villar's campaign for the presidency. Senator Jamby Madrigal wants Villar charged before the Ombusman and Madrigal should be supported by the People.

This C-5 probe will serve as the Damocles sword hanging above Villar's head even if he wins the May 10, 2010 elections. This will forever haunt him and will mar his administration, if he wins.

And this is a very bad thing for us, the Filipino People. We do not deserve someone with a graft case again sitting as president.

A computer for every home, says Joey de Venecia III

There should be a computer connected to the internet in every Filipino home to give everyone access to livelihood and educational opportunities and bring the country firmly into the Information Age , IT businessman Joey de Venecia III said yesterday.


"This is not an impossible dream, but rather a realizable goal," he said, as he called for the next administration to make this and information technology education a sustained part of the national government budget.

De Venecia said a personal computer, internet access and information support will have an immediate and dramatic impact on Filipino families. This would give them enhanced educational and livelihood opportunities that are only available from IT, and a means for OFW families to re-integrate with their loved ones working abroad by commuting on the cyber-highway.


"Students will have the entire world as their library and they will hone up on the skills we need to become truly competitive in the 21st century. All OFWs abroad can be involved in the day-to-day lives of their families back home, while families can engage in IT businesses like e-commerce and delivery of providing out-sourced services from their own homes," he illustrated.


One of the country's pioneer IT businessmen, de Venecia said that because the cost of PCs have gone down drastically in the last few years, they should be a standard part of every household, much like TV sets, electric fans and gas stoves.


Between the country's three major telcos, internet connection is also available just about everywhere in the Philippines, de Venecia added.


"Being the biggest of the telcos, Smart alone could well provide internet connectivity everywhere," he added.


De Venecia said that he had high hopes for the continued growth of the IT industry in the country.


In business circles, he is known as the Father of the Philippine Call Center industry. When he set up the first call center in the country in 1997, little did the public know that this segment of the IT industry would soon become the fastest growing business. Today, there are some 600,000 Filipinos employed in the call center industry.


De Venecia said it was possible that employment in the IT industry could be in the millions in a few short years, given enough incentives by the government.


"What we do not have yet here in the country are home-based call center workers. If there were a PC with internet connection in every Filipino home, imagine how many millions could be part of online commerce," said the ZTE-national broadband network whistleblower.

One hundred percent penetration is not impossible or improbable, according to de Venecia. One of the country's Asean neighbors, Singapore, is close to attaining the goal of all households having PCs.


There are so many wi-fi connections in Singapore that there is a "cloud" which allows everyone to access the internet anywhere in the city-state.


De Venecia said connectivity to the internet did not have to be by PC, either. Even cell phones are now internet-ready. De Venecia said he agreed with the observation that many kinds of devices now in the market or soon to hit the market will make access to all the information in the internet available to all.


"The need for information, especially among our students, is a part of modern life," he said.


A leading senatorial candidate under the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino, Joey de Venecia III represents the IT sector, the business community and even the youth in his first try at politics.


He became known nationally as a graftbuster who singlehandedly stopped the corruption riddled ZTE deal worth P16 billion from pushing through in 2007. De Venecia has consistently fared well in the national surveys on senate bets, always landing in the winners' circle.

De-fanging Mrs. Arroyo And the Issue of Succession

Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is being de-fanged. There are two critical issues which confronts Mrs. Arroyo---a suitable replacement for the soon-to-be retiring Supreme Court Chief Justice and of course, the post of the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Two critical posts, too little time yet too destabilizing to say the least.

If you look at it, these symbols of democracy are now being put to the supreme test. We speak of Justice here and of the symbol of State Power, two pillars which democracy rests.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno will be retiring five days after the May 10, 2010 elections. The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has started the process of selection. However, there are two (2) opposing views, which all rest on just one (1) proposition---whether or not to allow Mrs. Arroyo to exercise her executive prerogative on the choice of Puno's replacement.

All four presidentiables---Noynoy Aquino, Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro, Manny Villar and Richard Gordon--all opposed the proposition of the president exercising her powers on this one. All these fine gentlemen know that this will surely destabilize the current political situation.

As we speak, people from all persuasions are convincing the Chief Executive to desist from appointing a new Chief of Staff. Two months from now, AFP Chief of Staff General Victor Ibrado will be retiring and this brings to light certain accusations that Mrs. Arroyo's favorite lapdog, AFP vice chief General Bangit is being groomed to replace Ibrado.

These issues actually rest on just two choices for Mrs. Arroyo. The first choice is will she act like she's still in power by forcing these issues and showing the Filipino People that she's still a force to contend with? Or really accept the fact that she's now a lame duck president and everyone is just waiting for her to retire?

If Mrs. Arroyo exercises her powers and makes a wrong decision, meaning, force the issue of naming an interim Chief Justice and appoint her man to the top AFP post, this will send a wrong signal to all political forces and even foreign observers whom I just happen to know and met several occasions in the past---that Mrs. Arroyo intends to still play politics and flex her muscles inspite of the lack of adequate force and power.

This will surely re-activate all forces who suspect Mrs. Arroyo's real intentions of not really and seriously making herself scarce and inevitably, destabilize the entire political situation.

Seriously, Mrs. Arroyo's time as a serious political player has all but lapsed. Time has caught up with her.

If Mrs. Arroyo makes a wrong move, she will weaken not just the Institutions of Justice and of State Power but of the Office of the President itself. She has mocked these institutions for nine years and definitely, with the elections just four months away, people will not allow her to continue her ways.

If she commits a wrong move, Gloria will not be able to recover and it will even justify an extra-constitutional move against her, since she still poses a direct threat to the very institutions of Philippine democracy.

More than this though, this highlights the grave problem of succession.

Unlike other countries, we do not have a very clear policy on succession. This grey area in our Constitution creates a self-destabilizing situation.

Nicanor Perlas and the Dreams of an Ordinary Citizen

Thomas Paine, an American patriot once said that “an army of principles can penetrate where an army of soldiers cannot.” And what force do people with principles use to conquer the old world? It is the force of compassion and of Reason.



We, ordinary human beings, are always in constant search for the sublime. We often wonder why our reality is worse than others and we often aspire to take that grain out of someone’s hand.


Ah, principles! Such are those who often blind those who have perfect sight. Friedrich Nietzsche once wrote how we abolish old ideas and transform them into new ones only to realize that by abolishing the true world, we have destroyed the apparent one. Principles are things which the pauper does not understand. For him, that constant struggle for the next morsel of food has deprived him of the luxury of creating abstracts out of nothing. For those deprived or forced into a life of poverty and wants, abstracts do not exist, and principles are just promises from a crazed mind.


It is this realization that I fear for the worst for such brave, honest and patriotic men like Nicanor Perlas. Perlas is running for the presidency. Perlas is running for the highest post of the land, armed only with Reason and of genuine compassion for the poor and the oppressed.


Hungry souls know no philosophy—it is only those whose bellies are filled who understand the causality of things. When someone as honest and as principled as Perlas preach to them about Right and Wrong, it always lead to one question—how will Right or wrong fill satiate my hunger?


Beyond the thickets, Perlas saw how misery has degraded the human condition.


An ordinary citizen whose father was victimized and falsely accused by a greedy dictator, Perlas was forced to swim into the dirty lake of politics for one reason–to disprove that dictator who saw himself as an ubermensch.


Perlas fought for truth and justice yet in all of his life, Perlas devoted most in reaching for the sublime. For thirty years, Perlas dedicated his life making our world a better place to live. Perlas lived like that Prophet of 3,000 years ago who was praised by others, not of his own country. The whole world knows his struggles, but only a few million Filipinos know of Perlas’ advocacy.


In a society where the first question to a politico is “how much?” or “how would you be able to help me?” Nicanor Perlas cannot offer anything more but his life.


How can he explain that the reason why less people die of tuberculosis is because of his environmental advocacy? How will Perlas explain to the people that the reason why they are able to breathe more easily now is the result of years of struggling against Big Business by lowering carbon emissions?


Perlas is not a billionaire like Manny Villar; yet he is richer than the real estate magnate because he knows the human condition. Perlas was born with a proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, yet his heart is more proletarian than Villar’s who claims to have been born among the poorest of the poor. Villar stopped being poor when he got his first billion. Perlas became one of the poor when he helped his first thousand.


Perlas sees the world like Noynoy Aquino does but unlike the scion of the country’s top political brand name, Perlas struggled hard to carve his own. Thousands believe in Perlas because he lived and breathe what he preached.


Millions share his vision because they see, and feel it. Perlas is someone crying out in the wilderness and asking people to come to him and share his vision for the Nation. Perlas wants to unite people and fight against poverty. Perlas wants to eradicate graft and corruption. Perlas will exercise strong political will to fight the forces that weaken the Motherland. And Perlas will see to it that those who have committed grave injustices against the People are put behind bars.


There is something terribly wrong when people like Nicanor Perlas who once lived peacefully in their rich hamlets are suddenly seen in the streets, preaching the Gospel of Salvation from poverty and wants. When people who hate politics are suddenly going around town, preaching of “New Politics”, that’s surely a sign that things have turned for the worst.


It just means that the exploitation, the degradation, the immorality, the amorality, the misery of the human condition, has seeped into the comfort zones of those who are not of the hungred kind.


And I laud Blogwatch.ph and the Vibal Foundation for allowing me to partake of Nicanor Perlas’ vision even for an hour. Meeting him just makes me realize that the end is definitely not near, because there are still a few good men left who will sacrifice everything, just so that others may live better lives.