Category: politics

blog ‘n’ brawl

well, we are certainly getting a taste of blogger power.   for sure nayanig ang pangandamans, father and sons, by the virulence and volume of the blogging community’s outrage over the alleged mauling of the de la paz father and son, as witnessed and blogged by daughter bambee.

not surprisingly the brawl has spread out to the blogosphere where some commenters — admittedly few, but consistent and persistent — dare rain on the parade of the many who are on “people power” mode and screaming for the heads, so to speak, of the dar secretary and his mayor son.

blogger brianb, commenting on a post in filipino voices, calls it “unprincipled advocacy”, the way that blogger friends of, and friends of friends who sympathize with, the de la pazes are so quick to jump on the bandwagon.

Concerned citizens cannot keep doing this, running to the aid of persons who get victimized by politicians. There’s no progress in this sort of unprincipled advocacy. The blogosphere shouldn’t be used as an extension of your family connections and friendship networks… not that I forbid people but in my thinking this can be a more powerful medium, something that will actually change policies and attitudes.

When the politicos were going after the poor, their lands and their rights, what did themiddle class do? Nothing. When the politicos went after the press, what did the middle class do? Nothing. Now they are starting to come at you and your previous apathy has made you as weak as (a) puking baby.”

oo nga naman.   besides, as he suggests in another comment, we still have to hear the side of the pangandamans.   not that he condones, nor do i, the violence allegedly perpetrated on the de la paz father and son, but he does question, as do i, the rush to judgement (as usual) before we get the whole story.

… I think the case is based on a few omissions of facts and rallying behind this ON A PERSONAL level is a total waste of our time. I doubt if the politicos were totally unprovoked and GMA reports there were a couple of older sons who went to aid the family with baseball bats, which is why the guns were pulled out. Moreover, a few brave souls may be bullied to take this to the next level, but then what? Will these bloggers go public with it? After the first bluster, wala na. Maybe they finally realized who they’re dealing with. So I don’t think you can trust these people who are very vocal now to commit.

My take is very simple: public servants with armed bodyguards should not physically engage the public. This is the larger ethical arc, of which this case should’ve been a good example.”

interesting though how personal blog(ger)s turned political just like that.   too bad it’s not sustainable.   yet.

do not delete (economic provisions)

verrrry interesting that it took that angry (complete with expletives) december 12 multisectoral anti-chacha rally to provoke former leftist now gma apologist-loyalist alex magno into revealing the real score behind the arroyo administration’s kulit campaign for charter change.   apparently, suko na siya (sila), sort of.

Yesterday’s march was an event of bigotry. It was undertaken in the spirit of rejecting even a mere discussion of proposals for Charter change. It is act trapped in the presumption of malice. It does not enrich our democratic culture.

I did say, in one televised interview, that I have lost hope constitutional reform will ever happen in my lifetime. A freshly-elected administration has no incentive to surrender its electoral victory to Charter change. A sunset administration, when it does initiate a constitutional reform process, will always be suspect.

We saw that in the case of Pirma at the end of the Ramos period. We see that today.”

so.   ang solusyon ni propesor magno?   kalimutan na ang change from presidential to parliamentary, kalimutan na ang ambisyon ni gma na maging prime minister, gayon din ang ambisyon ng mga representatante na maging members of a unicameral parliament.    pero, wow, huwag na huwag kakalimutan ang economic provisions na dapat daw i-delete na from the constitution.

In one recent public forum organized by civic groups sympathetic to constitutional reform, I suggested that if there is anything that is politically feasible it has to be narrowing down the debate to only the economic provisions in the 1987 Charter.

Forget about reforming our institutional arrangement. That will always be divisive because there will always be vested interests finding themselves on opposite sides of any political question. The Senate will always oppose any shift to a unicameral assembly. Oligarchic interests will always oppose a shift away from the presidential system because any other option will be a lot harder for them to control.

The only possible aspect of the constitutional reform agenda where some amount of consensus may be forged is that section that “constitutionalizes” our nation’s economic policy.

That section is anomalous to begin with. A constitution should never prescribe economic policy. Economic policy ought to be an evolving thing, shaped by the continuing process of legislation and policy-making.

In the scenario I propose, the House majority could simply pass a resolution deleting the provisions in the 1987 Constitution that preempt economic policy-making. With a limited scope, the Senate has to agree with the revision. No one, except the ideologically blinded, wants our economic policy to be fixed like religious dogma.

I call this the “Delete Option.”

Because the provisions to be removed will not be replaced, there is no need to debate wording. The debate on economic policy, henceforth, will occur where it must: in both chambers of Congress.

It is a simply, surgical operation that will not disturb the institutional arrangement. It will not endanger the political ambitions of those who now so vociferously oppose constitutional reform.

One might call it Constitutional Appendectomy.

The necessary reform of our economic architecture has been delayed because deleting the economic provisions has been tied up with the other messy political issues in the Charter change agenda. There is an immediate benefit in liberalizing the economic architecture the soonest to help us cope with the global recession.”

it’s a whole lot of crap, the assertion that deleting the economic provisions will help us cope with the global recession.   hindi totoo.   it will only open us up completely and absolutely to the free-market kind of speculative capitalism that brought down wall street and the american economy with it, and we are expected to lie back and enjoy it.

and who really stands to benefit from magno’s delete option?   why, the arroyos of course.   check out patricio mangubat’s “The fiefdom of A“:

Sources within the palace told me that the real reason behind the lifting of these economic provisions is not to really grow the economy. No. In fact, if we think about it, the reverse would happen. If we allow foreign ownership of land and property in the Philippines, the profit that they will be getting from using these lands would definitely be taken outside the country anyway. The local economy would not benefit from it. It would just be like what Mike Defensor did when his Chinese-owned mining company bagged that multi-billion contract to mine a mountain full of gold in Zambales.

The real story is the purpose of the establishment of a Hongkong-based holding company. Allegedly, this holding company which is named after a reputable historical figure “Ashmore” is owned by the First Golfer and his associates. Ashmore is an off-shore investment firm which was built solely to be the conduit between foreign companies wanting to own lands in the Philippines and a real estate firm called “Alphaland”, which, again, is owned by a hotelier associate of the First Golfer.

The insider said that what the First Golfer and his associates intend to do is, make profit selling Philippineproperty to these foreigners using Ashmore and that Alphaland will be the authorized seller of these properties. They intend to get billions out of this.

What the First Golfer and his associates intend to do is monopolize the selling of prime Philippine property (including agricultural lands) and make a quick buck from it. Bad? Not entirely except that this smucks of bad odor and immoral since most of those behind this scheme are living inside the palace.

And you know who is helping the First Golfer and his associates build a veritable fiefdom in the Philippines? Reportedly, that person is Roberto Ongpin. (Ongpin used to be an associate of the late Ferdinand Marcos. His brother, that Ongpin during Cory’s term, reportedly committed suicide because he’s ashamed of what his brother did).”

so please, utang na loob, kalimutan na for good yang pagbabago ng economic provisions ng saligang batas.   the restrictions have been there since quezon’s time at least.   even marcos did not have the heart to delete them, knowing that to do so would not bode well for the country.

besides, foreigners are already doing good business here.   they can lease land for 50 years, extendable for another 25.   but why are we still poor?   among other things, because foreigners are allowed to repatriate all profits home.   nothing is plowed back into the economy, which says a lot about our economic fundamentals.    i’ve said this before in a letter to the inquirer editor published back in july 2005 and i’m saying it again:

There’s nothing sound about our economic fundamentals.  Nothing sound about the endless borrowing.   OFW remittances are the only thing that’s been keeping the economy afloat for many many years now, at such cost to our families, marriages, the children.  That’s fundamentally sound?  What would be sound would be if the elite, the rich, who invest their millions in China, Vietnam, the U.S., start investing here at home.  What would be sound would be if the elite were to start plowing back business profits into the local economy instead of piling it up in foreign banks or behaving like foreign investors quick to pull out their money at the first sign of unrest.”

professor benjamin diokno agrees.    invest heavily here, he urges big business.

FILIPINO businessmen should invest heavily in the country in order to generate jobs and not wait for the government to shield the country against the ill effects of the global economic meltdown, economist Benjamin Diokno said over the weekend….

He said many Filipino businessmen have invested heavily in neighboring countries and even deposited their money in Switzerland and the Cayman Islands.

Instead of letting their money sleep in the banks, Diokno said they can use at least the interest of their money to put up business in the country and help fellow Filipinos to get a decent job as well as keep the economy working.”

only when the rich-who-say-they-love-their-country start putting their money where their mouths are will this country have a hope of making it through the global slump.

unsettling times

believe in astrology or not, it should be impossible to ignore the co-incidence of pluto’s transit from sagittarius (where it was for the last 12 years) into (the next sign) capricorn at 9:03 a.m. thursday morning and the bloody mumbai terrorist attack that started wednesday night and blasted on for some 60 hours, killing almost two hundred and wounding more.

. . . the city was taken just as Pluto was in the last arc minute of Sagittarius; literally hours before it entered Capricorn. . . . Whoever orchestrated this attack, reasonably described in today’s Daily News as an invasion of the city, fancies himself a master of the universe. If the psychological warfare implication of staging the attack the day before Thanksgiving is not apparent, take a look; because we are all connected by the nervous system known as the media, this is a worldwide event, and it will weigh on the mind of everyone taking a day with their family today.”

the planet pluto has always been associated with upheaval and transformation, and the sign capricorn with hierarchies and structures including governments and business corporations as well as religious institutions.

When it was discovered as a pinpoint of light on a photographic plate on February 18th 1930 , the world was in upheaval – financially because of the Wall Street crash, and politically because of the rise of fascism in Europe . Scientifically, early work on splitting the atom led to the development of the atomic bomb, ultimately threatening the survival of humanity. Psychologically, demons that had been conveniently projected onto the devil and all his non-Christian works were unearthed within our own psychology as a part of our nature.”

Pluto orbits the sun about every 250 years, so a quarter of a millennium elapses between its passes through Capricorn. The last time it was there was from 1762 to 1778, during the American Revolution. The time before that, 1516-1533, Martin Luther’s Protestant revolt created a religious and political crisis for Emperor Charles V and the Catholic Church. No matter how far back we go in recorded history, Pluto in Capricorn periods correspond with revolutionary changes to the existing world order.

The powers that be, however, never go down without a fight. Pluto and Capricorn do have some things in common – they both love being in control, for example – and so we can expect more of the “Big Brother” style surveillance and invasion of privacy that are already spreading through the United States and other countries such as Great Britain. . . . Government will seem to believe that, in order for freedom to be kept safe, it must be locked away.”

Capricorn energy is about creating a solid foundation for all endeavors. Anything lasting and worthwhile requires dedication and effort. Pluto in this sign will destroy anything failing to meet these standards, in order to birth something better. Gone is the instant gratification era of Pluto in Sagittarius (1995-2008). Capricorn rules all hierarchies and structures. Pluto in Capricorn will lift the veil of secrecy, exposing what’s really going on in government and corporations. The bigger and more bureaucratic the entity, the greater the need to transform – or die.”

Pluto in Capricorn will test the durability and regenerative resources of leaders and governments across the globe, as well as business and the corporate world. Old or staid structures will collapse or come apart at the seams if they cannot redefine their nature and cope with changing conditions and needs. The renewal or discarding of traditional practices or beliefs will play a part in this for Capricorn draws from inherited wisdom and practice. Those traditions that find new life will serve to guide modern leadership while those that are uprooted or outmoded will pass into oblivion. . . . No doubt, Pluto in Capricorn will bring us a new breed of leaders and administrators, noted for determination, practicality and organizational ability. Some of these will offer useful service where others will be ruthlessly ambitious and materialistic.”

Pluto transiting Capricorn thus promises radical changes in social and political organization, financial management and social perspective on finances, ideas about fame, celebrity and social strata, and a stern look at our management of collectively owned resources.

We might learn how to manifest more gracefully, to end world hunger, to share resources wisely. On the other hand, we may see an even sharper split between the haves and have-nots. There will be substantial changes in the ways we organize money – financial institutions we thought were solid will falter, prices and exchange values will be all over the place, and both personal, corporate and national wealth will change, both up and down. The ways we relate to resources of all kinds will be questioned, changed, and reorganized.

. . . During this phase we may discover something that will make life on earth more abundant. We may also have something we thought was deeply necessary taken away.”

dito sa atin, walang patayan tulad ng sa mumbai, at wala ring matinding protesta laban sa gobyerno tulad ng sa bangkok, subalit di dapat isipin na porke’t walang malawakang manifest outrage ay hindi iniinda ng bayan ang nagaganap na mga drama ng gobyerno — lalo na sa executive and legislative branches — na malinaw namang selfish and vested interests of the few ang namamayani instead of the interests and wellbeing of the many.

di dapat isipin na balewala sa taongbayan ang nagaganap na pagbasura sa impeachment complaint sa mababang kapulungan (how baba the pigs).  dahil ikaapat na ito in as many years, paulit-ulit lang naman daw, say ng isang representante ni gma, so therefore ay walang katuturan.  say ko naman, nadadagdagan ang impeachable offenses ni gma every year, so therefore it’s never been just same-old same-old.  everytime it’s something old, something new, something buried, something true.

di rin dapat isipin na balewala sa taongbayan ang testimonya ni joe de venecia, kahit too-late-the-hero, tungkol sa personal involvement ng arroyo couple sa nbn-zte deal, gayon din ang lagayan blues to kill last year’s impeachment complaint.  di rin balewala ang bolante hearings sa senado dahil palinaw na nang palinaw ang pasikot-sikot ng fertilizer scam.  lalo nang di balewala ang pagtulak ng charter change by hook or by crook, at ang pagpigil ng simbahan sa reproductive health bill kahit ano pang pananakot ng mga obispong nakapalda, gayon din ang walang katapusang jet-setting ni gma, at kung anuano pa niyang kapabayaan at kasalanan sa taongbayan.

sa palagay ko the collective mind of the pinoy is neither asleep nor overcome by apathy.  who knows, it may be quietly absorbing and assimilating lessons learned over the years since edsa ’86 and gearing up, slowly but surely, for an issues-oriented electoral show of people power in 2010.

for those of us who were part of edsa ’86, indeed nakaka-nostalgia the current bangkok version flying yellow colors and featuring massive throngs of people (rather than politicans a la edsa dos).  and then, again, tapos na tayo diyan — we’re done with picnic-type revolutions and short-term cosmetic changes.  time to move on to a higher level of mind and action for deep-seated change, if not at the polls, then in another improved edsa.  trapos, beware!

audacious intervention

intervene – to become a party to a legal proceeding begun by others in order to protect an alleged interest in the subject matter of the proceeding [merriam-webster’s dictionary of law]

intervene – Law. to interpose and become a party to a suit pending between other parties  [dictionary.com_unabridged]

i’m not sure it will work, i’m not sure the house of representatives is capable of rising to the challenge posed by bloggers manuel l. quezon III, marck ronald rimorin, richard rivera, arbet w. bernardo, edwin lacierda, jeremy gatdula and maria abella jose et al, but yes the current impeachment complaint is certainly made more substantial by the inclusion of the MOA-AD.   unlike the rest of gma’s alleged impeachable crimes, the MOA-AD has already been found unconstitutional on multiple grounds by no less than the supreme court, and how can the house of representatives ignore that and remain credible in the eyes of the nation and the world.

i love the audacity and the creativity of the move — the bloggers are not “amending” but “intervening” — in the hope that a different attitude will beget a different response.  why not indeed!