DIE HARD III
Herman Tiu Laurel
07/16/10
Even to doubting Thomases on PeNoy’s abilities to lead the nation, my title for this piece might come as a shocker. They’ll think, “Incompetence, yes; hypocrisy, certainly; but plunder? Is he capable of that?” To PeNoy’s admirers from the Yellow army, such a suggested intent to plunder will most likely elicit remarks such as “Sobra na yang si Tiu Laurel; sobra na (He is going overboard)!’’
But as I have listed several of PeNoy’s 180 degree-turns on his campaign pledges the past two weeks, such as his reversals on the budget deficit and on cutting the “pork barrel,” as well as, his dilly-dallying on his anti-corruption and anti-jueteng drives, the July 14 report of a loyal PeNoy paper, The Philippine Star, rings all the plunder alarm bells. The following are its salient points:
“Privatization of Pagcor eyed, by Delon Porcalla... President Aquino yesterday hinted at turning over the Pagcor to the private sector, saying the government has apparently been shortchanged on the revenues generated by the state-owned gaming firm. Mr. Aquino said the privatization of Pagcor would possibly end corruption in the agency by some officials who make it a milking cow. Pagcor earns an estimated P30 billion a year in revenues for the government. ‘We have uncovered several anomalies in Pagcor amid allegations that the government is not really getting its share of the revenues,’ Mr. Aquino told reporters during a dinner late Tuesday. Mr. Aquino said it would be more practical to sell Pagcor and have it run by the private sector. He said private entities would be more professional in running the firm that would also translate to more profits for the government.”
Sure, sure: Privatize Pagcor so its P30 billion revenues go to private pockets. Privatize it to his uncle with whom he partnered for the security agency that cornered all government security contracts, or to the other uncle who set up the jueteng coalition called the Northern Alliance — all during his mother’s tenure. Or maybe privatize Pagcor to the Malaysians who have raked in billions from operating lotto in this country at the expense of the government-run sweepstakes lottery which has lost a sizable chunk of its market, thanks to the second Yellow government of Fidel Ramos.
If there has been corruption in Pagcor under the previous regime, then start prosecuting Gloria Arroyo and Efraim Genuino. Follow through by looking into the management systems and correcting the flaws that lead to corruption. PeNoy should also took into his own culpability for supporting Arroyo through five years of her illegal reign. But why privatize?
Too often have we heard these same old lame excuses for privatization and subsequently, the abject failure of most if not all privatization projects. These should help us all wise up to the malicious, duplicitous and larcenous intent of those proposing these privatizations.
Maybe that is why a close buddy and classmate, Bong Naguiat, is being appointed to Pagcor instead of someone more objective and beyond reproach as Erap did when he appointed the venerable Alice Reyes.
Pagcor is the crown jewel of all the government gaming operations that produce billions for government’s social projects and programs. The nation’s poor should not lose the Pagcor revenues as the PCSO (Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office) beneficiaries did when the Malaysians’ lotto raided PCSO markets.
PeNoy’s statements on the corruption in Pagcor parallel his most recent pronouncements on jueteng — all bemuddling, hypocritical and insidious. As several earlier Tribune op-ed pieces have shown, underground jueteng is the root of corruption. Yet PeNoy is still hedging on the issue of its immediate eradication by giving instructions to the Department of Interior and Local Government and Philippine National Police to go after jueteng while at the same time declaring it as a “low priority” because (a) the PNP is preoccupied with peace and order and (b) he wants to prepare alternative livelihood for the many poor people who will be displaced by his drive.
PeNoy is thus admitting that Erap is correct. That jueteng is an important livelihood. Why not legalize it then rather than prevaricate?
As the 25 years of its practice in the Philippines shows, privatization is plunder. We have seen it fail to provide competition, lower rates, and satisfactory supply and service — whether in electricity generation, transmission, and distribution, water, toll ways, or telecommunications. We have also seen it happen in the privatization of the election voting and counting operations in the Smartmatic AES (Automated Election System) where the country was gypped of at least P7.2 billion (some say up to P15 billion) with nothing left to show — not even the cog, screw or chip of a voting machine — except for a severely questioned election process.
The privatization of Pagcor will without doubt reduce benefits to government and its most needy recipients, and only fatten the rich corporate predators. The signs are there. The “P” in PeNoy could very well stand for plunder.
(Tune in to 1098AM, Sulo ng Filipino, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.; Destiny Cable Channel 21, Politics Today, Tuesday, 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., with replay at 11 p.m.; also visit our new blog, http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com)
Friday, July 16, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Ministro ng Dilawang Panlilinlang
Richard James Mendoza
Ika-12 ng Hulyo, 2010
Ang “Ministro ng Impormasyon” ay isang ministro sa isang parlyamentaryong pamahalaan na inatasan sa pagsusubaybay ng daloy ng impormasyon na ipinapakita sa publiko. Masasabi na kaparehas din ito ng ABS-CBN, GMA7, Inquirer at iba pang kaparehas na kompanya na pagmamay-ari ng mga oligarkyo. Itu-ito rin ang mga kompanya na isinara sa administrasyong Marcos pero ipinamigay ni Corazon Aquino nang siya’y naging pangulo.
Noong rehimen ng unang Aquino, maadalas na ipakita sa mga pahayagan mga papuri para sa nakaupo. Ang magkatunggaling pananaw ay halos hindi ipakita o iparinig. Matatandaan natin na sa panahon ni Corazon Aquino ay nagsara ang isang pahayagan na kilala bilang oposisyon. Matatandaan din natin na sa panahon niya ay naitanggal sa mga “bookstore” ang librong pinamagatang “Sainthood Postponed”. Kinasuhan ni Corazon Aquino ang isang mamahayag ng libelo dahil sa akusasyon niya sa kanya na “nagtatago sa ilalim ng kama” nang maganap ang kudeta.
Hindi ko masasabi na natatandaan ko ang pamamahayag ng mga dilawan sa administrasyong Ramos subalit hindi ko makakalimutan ang kanilang pamamahayag sa administrasyong Estrada. Imbes na iulat ang mga nagawa niya katulad ng paglago ng ekonomiya noong “Asian Financial Crisis” at ang mga bagay na may kinalaman sa pambansang interes ay pinagtuunan nila ng pansin ang kanyang personal na isyu na wala naming halaga. Isang halimbawa ay ang di-umano’y mga mansion niya, ang “Boracay Mansion” bilang pinakakilala sa mga ito. Isa pang halimbawa ay ang tinatawag na “Jose Velarde account” na di-umano’y pagmamay-ari ni Pangulong Estrada subalit ang totoong may-ari nito ay ang negosyanteng si Jaime Dichaves.
Katulad sa mga buwitre na pinagkakaguluhan ang nabubulok na bangkay, patuloy pa rin ang pangdedemonyo kay Pangulong Estrada pagkatapos ng “pagpapakitang-litis” sa Sandiganbayan. Masasabi ko ng buong katiyakan na isang pagpapakitang-tao lamang ang ginawang paglilitis kay Pangulong Estrada sa Sandiganbayan dahil alam ng lahat na hinatulan na siya na may-sala bago pa man pormal na ihain ito sa kanya. At patuloy parin ang kanilang paninira sa kanya sa pamamagitan ng pagbanggit ng hatol sa kanya ng Sandiganbayan sa halos lahat ng ulat tungkol sa kanya. Nang manumpa ng labag sa batas si Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo bilang Pangulo, pinabanguhan ng midyang dilaw ang bastardong pangulo ng mga papuri pero kumambyo nang nagsilitawan ang iba’t-ibang iskandalo at iskam, ang “Hello Garci” bilang pinakatanyag na halimbawa. Kahit na kumambyo ang midya kay Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ay magaan pa rin ang kanilang pagbalita sa kaniya.
Nagsimulang kumalat ang baho ng mga dilawan noong ipalabas nila ang isang “music video” ni BSA III na isang halatang pagtatangka sa pangangampanya bago ang panahon ng halalan. Ito’y maituturi na mas malala sa mga ipinalabas na patalastas ni Manny Villar na dati pang ipinapalabas. Pinagtatakpan din nila ang mga pagkukulang at pagkakasala ng COMELEC at SMARTMATIC (na tinatawag ring “SMARTMAGIC”) nang magsilabasan na ang ebidensya. May kasabihan na ganito ang pagkakadating: “Walang mas bulag sa mga ayaw na tumingin”. At ganito na nga ang kanilang istilo pagdating sa panlilinlang ng halalan (electoral fraud). Sinasadya nilang hindi intindihin ito o binabaluktot ang katotohanan.
Ngayon at Pangulo na (raw) si BSA III, babalik sa dating gawi ang dilawang midya na ginawa nila noong panahon ni Corazon Aquino. Wiwisikan nila ng mumurahing pabango ang isang “drag queen” o sa kasong ito, isang PENOY. Ang bango ay mapapalitan din ng baho na kasama sa kanyang illegal na pagkapangulo.
Ang totoong giyera ay hindi ang pagpapalitan ng putok ng armas kundi ang sagupaan ng “mainstream” na impormasyon at ang alternatibong pananaw.
Ika-12 ng Hulyo, 2010
Ang “Ministro ng Impormasyon” ay isang ministro sa isang parlyamentaryong pamahalaan na inatasan sa pagsusubaybay ng daloy ng impormasyon na ipinapakita sa publiko. Masasabi na kaparehas din ito ng ABS-CBN, GMA7, Inquirer at iba pang kaparehas na kompanya na pagmamay-ari ng mga oligarkyo. Itu-ito rin ang mga kompanya na isinara sa administrasyong Marcos pero ipinamigay ni Corazon Aquino nang siya’y naging pangulo.
Noong rehimen ng unang Aquino, maadalas na ipakita sa mga pahayagan mga papuri para sa nakaupo. Ang magkatunggaling pananaw ay halos hindi ipakita o iparinig. Matatandaan natin na sa panahon ni Corazon Aquino ay nagsara ang isang pahayagan na kilala bilang oposisyon. Matatandaan din natin na sa panahon niya ay naitanggal sa mga “bookstore” ang librong pinamagatang “Sainthood Postponed”. Kinasuhan ni Corazon Aquino ang isang mamahayag ng libelo dahil sa akusasyon niya sa kanya na “nagtatago sa ilalim ng kama” nang maganap ang kudeta.
Hindi ko masasabi na natatandaan ko ang pamamahayag ng mga dilawan sa administrasyong Ramos subalit hindi ko makakalimutan ang kanilang pamamahayag sa administrasyong Estrada. Imbes na iulat ang mga nagawa niya katulad ng paglago ng ekonomiya noong “Asian Financial Crisis” at ang mga bagay na may kinalaman sa pambansang interes ay pinagtuunan nila ng pansin ang kanyang personal na isyu na wala naming halaga. Isang halimbawa ay ang di-umano’y mga mansion niya, ang “Boracay Mansion” bilang pinakakilala sa mga ito. Isa pang halimbawa ay ang tinatawag na “Jose Velarde account” na di-umano’y pagmamay-ari ni Pangulong Estrada subalit ang totoong may-ari nito ay ang negosyanteng si Jaime Dichaves.
Katulad sa mga buwitre na pinagkakaguluhan ang nabubulok na bangkay, patuloy pa rin ang pangdedemonyo kay Pangulong Estrada pagkatapos ng “pagpapakitang-litis” sa Sandiganbayan. Masasabi ko ng buong katiyakan na isang pagpapakitang-tao lamang ang ginawang paglilitis kay Pangulong Estrada sa Sandiganbayan dahil alam ng lahat na hinatulan na siya na may-sala bago pa man pormal na ihain ito sa kanya. At patuloy parin ang kanilang paninira sa kanya sa pamamagitan ng pagbanggit ng hatol sa kanya ng Sandiganbayan sa halos lahat ng ulat tungkol sa kanya. Nang manumpa ng labag sa batas si Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo bilang Pangulo, pinabanguhan ng midyang dilaw ang bastardong pangulo ng mga papuri pero kumambyo nang nagsilitawan ang iba’t-ibang iskandalo at iskam, ang “Hello Garci” bilang pinakatanyag na halimbawa. Kahit na kumambyo ang midya kay Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ay magaan pa rin ang kanilang pagbalita sa kaniya.
Nagsimulang kumalat ang baho ng mga dilawan noong ipalabas nila ang isang “music video” ni BSA III na isang halatang pagtatangka sa pangangampanya bago ang panahon ng halalan. Ito’y maituturi na mas malala sa mga ipinalabas na patalastas ni Manny Villar na dati pang ipinapalabas. Pinagtatakpan din nila ang mga pagkukulang at pagkakasala ng COMELEC at SMARTMATIC (na tinatawag ring “SMARTMAGIC”) nang magsilabasan na ang ebidensya. May kasabihan na ganito ang pagkakadating: “Walang mas bulag sa mga ayaw na tumingin”. At ganito na nga ang kanilang istilo pagdating sa panlilinlang ng halalan (electoral fraud). Sinasadya nilang hindi intindihin ito o binabaluktot ang katotohanan.
Ngayon at Pangulo na (raw) si BSA III, babalik sa dating gawi ang dilawang midya na ginawa nila noong panahon ni Corazon Aquino. Wiwisikan nila ng mumurahing pabango ang isang “drag queen” o sa kasong ito, isang PENOY. Ang bango ay mapapalitan din ng baho na kasama sa kanyang illegal na pagkapangulo.
Ang totoong giyera ay hindi ang pagpapalitan ng putok ng armas kundi ang sagupaan ng “mainstream” na impormasyon at ang alternatibong pananaw.
The Yellow Ministry of DIS-Information
Richard James Mendoza
July 12, 2010
A “Ministry of Information” is a ministry in a parliamentarian government which is tasked to control the flow of information being shown to the public. The same can be said to ABS-CBN, GMA7, Inquirer and other similar entities that are owned by the oligarchy. These are also the same entities that were shut down during the Marcos administration but were practically given away from free when Corazon Aquino assumed the presidency.
During the first Aquino regime, most of these publications reported nothing but praises for the incumbent. Opposing views were almost unheard of. It can be remembered that during this period, an opposition broadsheet was shut down and a book entitled “Sainthood Postponed” was deshelved from bookstores. It is also on record that that a certain journalist was sued by Corazon Aquino for libel when he accused her of “hiding under the bed” during the coup.
I cannot claim to remember the coverage of the yellows during the Ramos administration but I cannot forget the coverage that they did during the Estrada administration. They were demonizing him up until his last minute of his short-lived term. Instead of reporting about his achievement of an economic turnaround during the Asian Financial Crisis and other items of national interest, they focused on his personal issues that did not really matter. An example is his reported mansions, the so-called “Boracay Mansion’ being the most famous. Another example is the so-called “Jose Velarde account” which is purportedly owned by President Estrada when it is in fact owned by businessman Jaime Dichaves.
Like vultures feasting on a rotting corpse, the yellow media kept on demonizing Estrada even after the Sandiganbayan show trials. I can say with certainty that the Sandiganbayan trials were nothing but show trials because it is well known that Estrada was already convicted even before the verdict was formally handed. And they continue to defame him by mentioning his verdict in the show trials in almost every item about President Estrada. When Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was illegally sworn in as president, the yellow media perfumed the illegitimate president with nothing but praises but started backtracking when various scandals and scams started to show up, most notably the “Hello Garci” scandal. Although they backtracked, so to speak, they still treated her with a kid’s glove.
The yellow’s stench started to spread when they presented a music video of BSA III in an obvious attempt at pre-election campaigning. It can be considered as worse than Manny Villar’s ads shown sometime before. They were also covering up the faults of COMELEC and SMARTMATIC (or as they call it, SMARTMAGIC) when the evidences started to appear. There is a saying that goes around like this: “None are blind as those who do not want to see”. And they were just like that when it came to electoral fraud; either deliberately ignoring it or twisting the facts.
Now that BSA III is President (supposedly), the yellow media will go back to the same tactics that they used during the first Aquino regime. They are going to spray cheap perfume to a drag queen or in this case, an unhatched egg. Then the fragrance will eventually be worn off by the filth that has come with his illegal presidency.
The real war is not the exchange of gunfire but the battle between mainstream information and alternate viewpoints.
July 12, 2010
A “Ministry of Information” is a ministry in a parliamentarian government which is tasked to control the flow of information being shown to the public. The same can be said to ABS-CBN, GMA7, Inquirer and other similar entities that are owned by the oligarchy. These are also the same entities that were shut down during the Marcos administration but were practically given away from free when Corazon Aquino assumed the presidency.
During the first Aquino regime, most of these publications reported nothing but praises for the incumbent. Opposing views were almost unheard of. It can be remembered that during this period, an opposition broadsheet was shut down and a book entitled “Sainthood Postponed” was deshelved from bookstores. It is also on record that that a certain journalist was sued by Corazon Aquino for libel when he accused her of “hiding under the bed” during the coup.
I cannot claim to remember the coverage of the yellows during the Ramos administration but I cannot forget the coverage that they did during the Estrada administration. They were demonizing him up until his last minute of his short-lived term. Instead of reporting about his achievement of an economic turnaround during the Asian Financial Crisis and other items of national interest, they focused on his personal issues that did not really matter. An example is his reported mansions, the so-called “Boracay Mansion’ being the most famous. Another example is the so-called “Jose Velarde account” which is purportedly owned by President Estrada when it is in fact owned by businessman Jaime Dichaves.
Like vultures feasting on a rotting corpse, the yellow media kept on demonizing Estrada even after the Sandiganbayan show trials. I can say with certainty that the Sandiganbayan trials were nothing but show trials because it is well known that Estrada was already convicted even before the verdict was formally handed. And they continue to defame him by mentioning his verdict in the show trials in almost every item about President Estrada. When Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was illegally sworn in as president, the yellow media perfumed the illegitimate president with nothing but praises but started backtracking when various scandals and scams started to show up, most notably the “Hello Garci” scandal. Although they backtracked, so to speak, they still treated her with a kid’s glove.
The yellow’s stench started to spread when they presented a music video of BSA III in an obvious attempt at pre-election campaigning. It can be considered as worse than Manny Villar’s ads shown sometime before. They were also covering up the faults of COMELEC and SMARTMATIC (or as they call it, SMARTMAGIC) when the evidences started to appear. There is a saying that goes around like this: “None are blind as those who do not want to see”. And they were just like that when it came to electoral fraud; either deliberately ignoring it or twisting the facts.
Now that BSA III is President (supposedly), the yellow media will go back to the same tactics that they used during the first Aquino regime. They are going to spray cheap perfume to a drag queen or in this case, an unhatched egg. Then the fragrance will eventually be worn off by the filth that has come with his illegal presidency.
The real war is not the exchange of gunfire but the battle between mainstream information and alternate viewpoints.
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