Prices of goods skyrocketing: call in the National Army

Food prices are spiralling out of control. I went to the market and found that a kilo of potatoes cost 120 pesos, while a bunch of petchays cost 200,000. 200,000? err...sorry...it's not Prospero Petchay's LWUA party I'm talking about. I was referring to, err, Pichay. Pechays cost 60 pesos.:-)

The DTI imposed a price ceiling, a very nice move on the part of government. And they are thinking of imposing a ceiling to gasoline prices, a very, very good move indeed! Not if Energy secretary Angelo Reyes is to be asked. He wants his cut. And he can't do it with a price ceiling.

How about imposing a price ceiling for medicines? A nice idea, don't you think? Will government do it? I hope they do because people desperately need those medicines since huge portions of Metro Manila are plagued by dengue and other water-borne diseases.

Rice, that precious commodity rose by about one to five pesos, depends on where you buy yours. Mine, I buy it either in Makro (now SM Hypermart) or Puregold. If you buy it from an NFA dealer, you'll buy it two pesos higher. But, that comes with dirt.

Some businessmen would surely take advantage of the situation and either hoard some stuff or rationalize higher price tags. These people should be arrested pronto, paraded and shot in full public view. That will make profiteers think twice before they even do something.

What government should think about is this--this situation has the potential of igniting food riots. People have no money, especially those who lost both their homes and their pieces of property during the storm. And desperate times calls for desperate measures to most people. Remember the social aggression theory? Riots are indeed possible during these critical times, and for government, that means a national security issue.

If government wants to avert such a scenario, they need to act fast. The situation is slowly slipping from their hands. This is an opportunity rarely missed by Leaders with true Machiavellian characters. Anybody with a rifle will surely see this as a chance to make History. Or remake one.

The LWUA Scandal

LWUA (pronounced Luau) n. the Filipino version of a Hawaiian feast at the height of a calamity.

I took the liberty of blog surfing today and found this very interesting article written by good friend, the Pedestrian Observer. He wrote a very good article about the LWUA ala Le Cirque party, which LWUA head and former Petchay sa Senado candidate Prospero Pichay says was a "reasonable celebration." Remember friends that at the height of public outrage against the LWUA (pronounced "LUAU"---the Hawaiian feast given to guests, hehehe!), Pichay castigated his detractors, saying that the party was not an expression of insensitivity; rather those who criticized him are insensitive, seeing that he, Pichay, merely wanted to treat his president, tired from doing all those relief operations.

Now, as what Pedestrian Observer noted, Pichay fired two of his PR handlers. For Pichay, these two guys did not do their jobs of controlling those scathing tirades against him. Of course they did, since columnists did not even mentioned that LWUA party in their columns and nay did we even heard it over the radio. Those who criticized were mostly online journalists.

Surprising huh, since those two guys were not entirely responsible for the LWUA scandal. But, for Pichay, it's all a media matter. Kung hindi makikita ng media, hindi masama.

Remember---this is not an issue of delicadeza, but an issue of tadah! discovery of media.

The Fourth Hoarseman: The LWUA Party

Last 2007, I remember one candidate who appealed to the public to plant petchay in the Senate. And since people failed to grasp what he's talking about, seeing that the Senate does not have enough loam soil for Senate staffers to use in planting the nutrient deficient plant, he failed to get what he wanted.

I'm talking about former Congressman Prospero Pichay, the man petchay of Lakas-KAMPI CMD. (By the way, the Comelec just approved the merger of the two parties).

Pichay, by the way, is a confidante of Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. He is also close to her husband, First Gentleman Mike Arroyo.

IN 2008, Pichay was appointed administrator of the LWUA, which means Local Water Utilities Administration. His appointment was low-key, the post befitting a man whom many call a political operator.

Pichay's appointment was not opposed by anyone, seeing that Pichay deserves to have a government post. He's a treasured asset of any government because he's intelligent and friendly. And he happens to be my friend since his days as a publisher of a tabloid.

And in all his life as a public servant, there were only one controversy against him---his former life as a publisher of a tabloid, which some describes as a smut publication pretending to be serious. Pichay, to be fair, was never involved in any graft case.

Now, he's embroiled in another, this time, playing host in a lavish dinner while millions wallow in extreme distress and hunger. This dinner is one version of the extravagent Le Cirque and Bobby Van dinners of his principal, Mrs. Arroyo. (see the entry of my friend Ding Gagelonia over at Midfield)

Pichay's agency just celebrated their 36th year anniversary, with a lavish dinner. LWUA spent close to half a million (some estimates) just for this. LWUA ordered 500 reservations for cocktails and 250 reservations for a seven-course dinner, attended by no less than Mrs. Arroyo.

Of course, I fully understand Pichay's penchant for a lavish dinner, seeing that his friend and boss, Mrs. Arroyo, will be gracing the occasion. Maybe Pichay thought that Mrs. Arroyo will not settle for a hamburger nor fish balls since her palate calls for French and American gourmet.

It's understandable that Pichay would use a one-name catering services for this costing P 200,000. Imagine, Mrs. Arroyo ate at the exclusive Bobby Van's and Le Cirque--she deserves catering from Henry's complete with live band.

While many portions of the metropolis were deprived of water services, drinks flowed profusely in that party. The menu consisted of baked mussels with olive oil and garlic as appetizer, “sinigang” soup, and roast pig.The main course included “kare-kare,” chicken barbeque, squid “salpicado,” spinach with chicken and garlic, “pancit” sotanghon (or canton guisado) and steamed jasmine rice. Desserts included fresh seasonal fruit platter and “buko pandan” salad. Assorted sodas, “guinumis” and home-brewed iced tea were also served.

Honestly, a 200,000 peso catered dinner is not that expensive especially since Pichay will be running again for the Senate and this amount is nothing compared with millions of pesos to be spent in electoral campaigns.

Yet, what is very disturbing is the fact that, a few meters away, scores of people were suffering due to the onslaught of Ondoy. Many impoverished people still, living below the LWUA office in Katipunan, those near the Marikina river, lost both their homes, their loved ones and were hungry. They can't afford to even eat a morsel of rice, while 400 employees of LWUA feasted in baked mussels as appetizer and Jasmine rice.

Such is our misfortune that many of our officials lost delicadeza already and they have left the people to the fates already.