WHEN POWER CORRUPTS

Great are the temptations when one gets into power. That is why it is said power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. And so we need to choose very well who we elect into power and... support those we entrust not to fall.

Ricky Xavier, Movement for Hope


Temptation Print by Gary Patterson

IN PRAISE OF COMMITMENT

I am new here..but I'm so much impressed by the sooo many profound emails that I read about our members' efforts and concern for good governance.

I laud your excellent ideas, efforts, and achievements.

I am proud to forward your emails to my friends and highschool alumni yahoogroup.

God bless you..those who are involved in politics now. May your efforts not be futile!!!

Ms. Mila O.Marzo
Panapaan4,BAcoor,Cavite


Picasso, Dove of Peace

Sunset of Democracy in Korea

A former Asian head of state is laid to rest. He was a champion of democracy and should be considered as an icon of bravery in a country divided by ideology. 29

May 2009. The funeral procession for Roh Moo-hyun, the South Korean president who committed suicide, left Bongha, the village to which he retired, for the journey to Seoul.

As the hearse arrived in the capital, tens of thousands of supporters wearing yellow - his campaign colour - lined the streets.

The funeral was held at a former palace. Delivering the eulogy, Mr Han said Mr Roh had "spent his life fighting for human rights, democracy and the end of authoritarianism".

"We will strive to follow your last wishes for reconciliation, unity and a better nation," he said.

Crowds watched the service on a huge television screen. Then a public memorial rite was held at a grassy plaza outside City Hall.

"I am so sad. He was a president of the common people," Gum Young-Don, a 32-year-old accountant, told AFP news agency.

"Even if I did not support all his policies... he made great efforts to take care of the underprivileged and destroy authoritarianism in every corner of government."

"I think the former president was hunted by conservatives," said another mourner, housewife Lee Ae-ran.

Mr Roh's body will be cremated and his ashes taken back to Bongha.

Mr Roh - a human rights lawyer - came from a humble farming family but rose to the highest office on a platform of clean government and reconciliation with North Korea.

Last month, he was questioned over allegations that he had taken more than $6m in bribes from a wealthy shoe manufacturer, Park Yeon-cha, who was indicted in December on separate bribery and tax evasion charges.

The former president later apologised for the scandal. But last Saturday he threw himself from a mountain near his home after leaving a suicide note.

ROH MOO-HYUN
2003 - elected president
2004 - suspended by MPs, then reinstated by court
2008 - leaves office
Apr 2009 - quizzed for alleged bribery
23 May 2009 - dies while mountain climbing

BBC NEWS

CONDOLENCES TO THE KOREAN PEOPLES.
Photographic Print of trees silhouetted at sunset in Korea

POWER CORRUPTS

Great are the temptations when one gets into power. That is why it is said power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. And so we need to choose very well who we elect into power and... support those we entrust not to fall.

Ricky Xavier, Movement for Hope


Temptation Print by Gary Patterson

HANDS TOGETHER

The country is being heated up by various issues: from the sex videos of a medical doctor and his victims, to the merger of two political parties, the bidding for the machines that will automate the 2010 elections, and then the revelations of corruption - with Jun Lozada being freed from the suit filed against him by Mike Defensor who had charged him with perjury, and now the Navy woman who squealed on the squandering of the funds for the Philippine-US Balikatan exercises.

The pressures to read, analyze and listen to the various issues seem to be getting harder and harder. What future holds for us in this country? Are we going to have an extension of a corrupt era or eras or are we going to carve a new future for ourselves, our children and the coming generations?

One solution is for us to strengthen the voices in the third force movement -- those clamoring for Good Governance, Righteous Governance. We need to raise the standards for the qualifications of people who will hold or continue to hold the various positions in the government.

This can be done if we ourselves police our ranks, pray and insure that everyone is involved in the issues and are willing to sacrifice a bit of their personal lives to attend to the details of running a movement.

HOW TO CREATE A MOVEMENT FOR A CAUSE

by Wilhelmina Orozco

Abroad, when westerners create a movement they really go out of their way to meet and talk to people. When the campaign against nuclear disarmament was still a hot issue in Europe, the youth and the elderly worked together to make the world know the dangers of having nuclear arms. So they sent out flyers, demonstrated in the streets and even held an arms-together chain around a camp in England to dramatize their opposition.

In the United States, the American people are now joining critical debates on almost every issue that arises in their Congress. Steve Bouchard, Campaign Manager, of the Repower America movement which aims to have a green society, doing away with all pollutants that cause the black hole in the ozone layer and which is how the temperature here in our country has approximated that of the deserts, told how one Congressperson remarked to the media that "we had been 'very effective in the process, talking with members and encouraging support for the bill' and another explained how she had never been contacted by so many of her constituents before. 'My telephone has been ringing off the hook,' she added. Both voted for the bill."

Besides tapping Congress, he said the members "attended numerous town halls, sent more than 100,000 petitions to Congress, wrote more than 30,000 letters to newspaper editors, and made thousands of calls to Congress."

It's time to move the Filipino people. It's time to make our voices be heard and our feet tapping on the streets as we drum up support for 2010 clean and honest elections.

Picture by Terri Froelich

TWO POWERFUL MEN PRAISE A WOMAN

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco US President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have written the American people through Organizing for America, a socio-political movement to support their nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. A copy of their letters have been sent to my email address too and it is elating to find that the two highest positions in the country that once colonized our own and now considered one of the most if not the most powerful nation should be standing up for a Latina mayor and a woman at that. Judging by her credentials as stated by VP Biden, she seems to have a great edge over all other nominees. How we wish that the women lawyers of our country could approximate if not equal her qualifications and rise up to the highest posts, proud to be of service to the Filipino people and willing to fight corruption and extinguish it forever in our society. Here is the description of Judge Sotomayor by VP Biden:

Born to a Puerto Rican family, Sotomayor grew up in a public housing project in the South Bronx. She was an avid reader from an early age, and was first inspired to pursue a legal career by the Nancy Drew mystery novels. Driven by her mother's belief in the power of education and her own relentless work ethic, she excelled in school. She won a scholarship to Princeton University, graduated summa cum laude, and then went on to attend Yale Law School where she served as an editor of the prestigious Yale Law Journal.

Like President Obama, Sotomayor passed up many more lucrative opportunities after law school to put her degree to work for the public good. She served as an Assistant District Attorney in New York, tackling some of the hardest cases facing the city, including robberies, assaults, murders, police brutality, and child pornography. Her growing reputation for fearlessness and legal brilliance prompted her first nomination to the federal bench, and she's only continued to soar.

If confirmed, she would start with more federal judicial experience than any Justice in a century, more overall judicial experience than any Justice in 70 years, and replace David Souter as the only Justice with firsthand experience as a trial judge. She has participated in over 3,000 panel decisions and authored roughly 400 opinions, expertly handling difficult issues of constitutional law, complicated procedural matters, and lawsuits involving complex business organizations.

In her years on the bench, Judge Sotomayor has earned acclaim from legal scholars and experts from both sides of the aisle for her intellectual toughness, her probing oral questioning, and her ability to issue decisions that hold both factual details and legal doctrines in equal measure. And she's never failed to apply a steady, common-sense analysis of how the law touches our daily lives.

Her story is incredible. Her qualifications are undeniable. And her judgment will serve us all well on the highest court in the land.

PHILIPPINE HEALTH CARE: A LONG WAY TO GO

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

Everyday, I hear Doctor Duque, Philippine Health Secretary talk about the swine flu or the H1N1 virus which causes colds, cough and fever or just influenza among people. It is a good way of communicating to the public how the government is attending to epidemics that could come our way. However, this is only one among so many that are afflicting the general populace. The worst disease we have here is tuberculosis, especially in the urban poor and rural areas where burning dried ricefields in preparation for next planting season occurs regularly, and where cigarette smoking is deemed a normal habit. Also, the illnesses of the elderly are hardly talked about, like back pains, arthritis, although a lot of advertisements for herbal supplements that address these diseases are aired over the radio and tv constantly.

Yet if we look at the state of health care in the United Kingdom, we can see that we are still very far off from truly being called nurturing of the people's conditions. There, the patients get free health care and can even have varied choices for a disease like low back pain. They can be offered accupunture, massage or exercises, all these for free.

Women who want to check if they have AIDS or not after having a night out with their lovers can have themselves checked and get medicines all for free. Female parents enjoy also allowances per child.

So in the coming elections, let us check which presidential candidate will be able to say and stick by his or her word that the health care of our country shall be at par with that of the UK and all other developed countries. Let us not lower the bar for the qualifications of people in this highest position of the land.
NEWS

Patients with persistent low back pain should be offered acupuncture, massages or exercises on the NHS, says guidance.

It is the first time the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has explicitly backed the use of complementary therapies.

The rationing watchdog said evidence suggests they help and will be cost effective if doctors stop providing less proven back services like X-rays.

The move was welcomed by some charities and experts but criticised by others.


Patients whose pain is not improving should have access to a choice of different therapies including acupuncture, structured exercise and manual therapy

Professor Peter Littlejohns of NICE


Do you agree?
Low back pain is a very common problem affecting one in three adults in the UK each year, with an estimated 2.5 million people seeking help from their GP.

For many people the pain goes away in days or weeks. But for some, the pain can persist for a long time and become debilitating.

NICE says anyone whose pain persists for more than six weeks and up to a year should be given a choice of several treatments, because the evidence about which works best is uncertain.

Complementary therapies

In addition to painkillers and regular advice to stay active and carry on with normal activities as much as possible, patients, together with their doctor, can decide to opt one of three complementary treatments.

This includes up to eight exercise sessions or 10 sessions of acupuncture over 12 weeks, or a course of manual therapy, which includes up to nine sessions of spinal manipulation, mobilisation or massage.

BBC NEWS 26 May 2009 00:05 UK

Painting: Modigliani, City of Drawers

WHO'S WHO

Senator Manny Villar is the richest senator while Senator Sonny Trillanes is the poorest. At the House of Representatives, Las Piñas Representative Cynthia Villar, better half of Sen. Villar held on to her title as the richest and only billionaire member of the House of Representatives.

Anakpawis Representative Rafael Mariano was the poorest congressman with a net worth of P55,501.72.

"The price of apathy towards public affairs is to be ruled by evil acts of men."

posted by Francis Oca

QUESTIONS TO PRESIDENTIABLES:

Nina Terol has some questions to presidentiables:


How will you make the economy less reliant on overseas remittances?

Will you be willing to declare the full extent of your campaign fund sources and expenditures?

What is your stand on decriminalizing marijuana, to be in the same classification as tobacco and alcohol?

What is your stand on divorce? (And I don’t mean, “Let’s follow Church doctrine.” Even Italy has divorce laws.

Will you go after Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, her husband, their cronies, and all those who ought to be punished post-2010 (e.g., Virgilio Garcillano, Benjamin Abalos, Romulo Neri, etc.)?


Here are some questions for specific presidentiables:

For Chiz Escudero: Aside from producing great soundbites, what have you really DONE throughout your entire political career? Why should we trust you?

For Loren Legarda: You wept when the second envelope was not opened in 2001, and then you joined the opposition’s camp in 2004? Why should we trust you?

For Jejomar Binay (“Dito sa Makati…”): How do you plan to produce “the Makati effect” in provinces and regions that have a very low revenue base? How will you encourage investment and tourism and enable tax collection in fifth- and sixth-class provinces? How will you ensure equitable distribution of resources across the country? And you are going around the country with a former president who was a womanizer, a gambler, and a plunderer. Why should we trust you?

For Mar Roxas (“Padyak”): If you weren’t seeking higher office in 2010, would you be proposing to Korina Sanchez at all?

May 25, 2009 Email to CesarLumba

SORRY DAY FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Leila Wenberg, age 58, is one of Australia's "stolen generations." When she was 6 months old, she was stolen from her indigenous family. National Sorry Day is commemorated annually.

BBC News 26 May 2009

FREE AUNG SAN SUU KYI

US President Barack Obama has called for the "immediate and unconditional" release of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

In a written statement, Mr Obama said he strongly condemned Ms Suu Kyi's house arrest, which has lasted for most of the last 19 years.

She is being tried for violating the terms of her detention in a case which has drawn widespread condemnation.

The Nobel laureate faces up to five years in jail, if convicted.

"Aung San Suu Kyi's continued detention, isolation, and show trial based on spurious charges cast serious doubt on the Burmese regime's willingness to be a responsible member of the international community," Mr Obama said in a statement.

"It is time for the Burmese government to drop all charges against Aung San Suu Kyi and unconditionally release her and her fellow political prisoners," he added.

Ms Suu Kyi, 63, had been due for release on Wednesday after her latest six-year detention, but was re-arrested this month after a visit to her house by a US man who had not been invited.

She took the stand for the first time on Tuesday to tell the court that she was not immediately aware of the late-night visit but was informed later by her assistant.

WITH DEEP CONDOLENCES

From Reggie of LASALLE GREENHILLS HS 82, DLSU GS 78

Batchmate, Ramon Eugenio (restaurant owner of Myron's at Rockwell and Greenbelt 5) lost his youngest son, his mother and a nephew in a tragic capsizing of a boat that left Puerto Galera, 23rd of May 2009. The eldest son is still in critical condition.

Details of the accident: MB Commando 6 sank at about noon near Verde Island, 85 miles (135 kilometers) south of Manila on 23 May 2009.

Chief Supt. Luisito Palmera, police chief for Region 4B (Mimaropa), said in a text message to reporters that the boat had sunk when one of its outriggers broke.

The Coast Guard in Manila said there were 57 survivors, including five crew members.

As of 3:59 pm, the last count of fatalities was 12, including two young boys, one young girl, seven adult women and adult men, and that one of the dead victims was a Japanese tourist, said Palmera.

Relatives of Reggie include: Daisy Eugenio, Quezon City; Franco P. Eugenio, 3 years old, White Plains, Quezon City; and Anton Cruz Eugenio, 2, White Plains, Quezon City.


NOTA BENE:

Sometime during the first years of the millenium, I traveled to Puerto Galera and back. On my way home, I found the same overcrowding on the boat which was the cause of the capsizing and drowning of the above relatives of Mr. Ramon Eugenio. The seas became rough after a few hundred meters from the island. So I asked the pilot and his mates to distribute safety devices to the passengers, especially the children. The boat mates and the crowd just looked at me, and no one acceded to my suggestion. It was as if I had said something out of this world. I told them, I would report it to the marine authorities in Batangas, but someone said that it is a useless exercise. Anyway, I did and to this day, I have not received a reply.

As these deaths have occurred, five marine officers of the government agency in the area, according to reports, have just been sacked for allowing the number of passengers to exceed by 20, 60+ instead of 40 only.

May these deaths be not in vain. Philippines for Righteous Governance extends our deep condolences to Mr. Eugenio and all the relatives of those who had drowned.

FR. REUTER LOVES THE FILIPINO PEOPLE AND THE PHILIPPINES

FR. JAMES REUTER who has taken our country as his own writes his last column in the newspaper and has a lot of good things to say about the Filipino people...


I
am ten days away from my 93rd birthday. God has been kinder to me than
I deserve, giving me such a rich life, in such a beautiful country,
among such gentle people. He has blessed me with so many kind,
affectionate, generous loving friends.
I found that the best time
for me to write was 3:00 A.M. My mind is clearer, my heart is warmer,
and I am overwhelmed with the goodness of the people God sends to me.

…

I have tried to give .... to give
the only thing I have to give ... Myself. I have tried to share my
thoughts, my feelings, the wonderful holiness that I see in the simple,
gentle people that God sends to me.

As soon as I came to the
Philippines I realized that the Filipinos were the loveliest people in
the world. It was a gift of God, a special blessing, that He sent me
here.

I have been thanked for giving my life to the Philippines.

Thank you .
* for your gift of friendship through these many long years
* for reading "At 3:00 A.M.." from the time I started writing my column
* for your reactions through letters and phone calls when you liked or
did not like what I wrote
* for sharing your stories which inspired me to write them so they
could inspire others
* for your love and concern
*for your prayers which comfort me and which I need.

…
What
I have found in the Philippines is union ....union of hearts and minds
... It is marked by sharing .... The simple, gentle Filipino is willing
to share all he has, with everyone.

That is holiness ... That is sanctity ... That is being like God.

CALLING ALL OFW VOTERS: HOW THE SWISS SAFEGUARD VOTES

In a Swiss magazine, a brief description of electronic voting is explained which was instituted in order to encourage the Swiss people wherever they are in the world to vote during elections. So all voters need only to open a computer and follow the steps mentioned below. This particular method of e-voting would be applicable to all the Overseas Filipino Migrant Professionals and Workers found in the different countries who would be voting in 2010. However, the date of the magazine is 2003 and many changes could have been made already to provide more measures to keeping the vote safe from hackers. Due to pressures of time, we are not able to update news about this. However here is how the safeguarded e-vote operates:

Every voter receives a personal 16-digit code along with documents for voting.

Any hacker without an ID number would have a one in 5 billion chances of succeeding.

Then another form appears on screen. The voter enters his/her date of birth, where a secret 4-digit code appears in an area in the voting documents.

Then upon entering the voter's domicile the ballot appears and the voter can fill it out.

Vote counters and party representatives are also assigned several passwords for accessing the virtual ballot box of e-votes.

- Geneva City Chancellery
Swiss Review #2, April 2003



-Reported by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

WOMEN IN DISTRESS

PHILIPPINES: First Grade Nancy Gadian's life is under threat for having told about the anomalies and corruption in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Lt. Gadian accused retired Lt. General Eugenio Cedo, then chief of the Western Mindanao Command, and other senior officers of misusing the P46 million intended for the RP-US Balikatan exercises in 2007.

MYANMAR OR BURMA: Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is being tried for breaking the terms of her house arrest, when she allowed an American who swam to her house to rest. She had told a court she committed no crime, her lawyer says. BBC News.

Commentary on Carp Extension: FARMLANDS, YES; SUBDIVISIONS, NO

LET US INSURE THAT ALL THE BENEFICIARIES OF THE CARP AND CARP EXTENSION RESOLUTION SHALL MAINTAIN THE FARMLANDS AS FARMLANDS, NOT AS SUBDIVISIONS. CARPLANDS ARE SUPPOSED TO PRODUCE FOOD, FRUITS AND VEGETABLES FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE FILIPINO PEOPLE, NOT SHELTER WHICH REQUIRES ANOTHER SPACE IN THE LAND.

IN THE SIXTIES AND SEVENTIES, WE COULD STILL VIEW ACRES AND ACRES OF GREENLAND FROM MANILA TO UP NORTH. BUT NOW, THE LANDSCAPE HAS CHANGED TO CONCRETE BUILDINGS, HOUSES AND WHAT-HAVE-YOU.

LET US RESPECT MOTHER NATURE WHICH IS THE BASIC PRINCIPLE BEHIND THE CARP. DISRESPECT OF MOTHER NATURE RESULTS IN HUNGER AND FAMINE. LET US PREVENT THAT FROM HAPPENING NOW, IMMEDIATELY.

WILHELMINA

FOR CARP EXTENSION

"Given that millions of Filipino families subsist on farming and continue to live in poverty due to the high rental expense that they pay their landlords, a genuine land reform program will go a long way towards uplifting their lives.

Thus, I believe that the real challenge for our Presidentiables, some of whom come from landed families, is being able to go beyond lip service and lead the initiative to ensure that CARPER is passed before June 5, 2009.

It is always easy to say that you pro-poor and that you understand their plight. But it is harder to stick up for your convictions when your own personal interest and that of your supporters are at stake.

Many civil society groups including Kaya Natin’s local government leaders and the Catholic Church have already expressed their support for CARPER. My unsolicited advice to the Presidentiables? If you truly are for the poor then now is the time to show it, support and actively campaign for CARPER.

The Ateneo School of Government (ASOG) is currently working with the Award-winning Director, Ditsi Carolino for a red carpet screening of her documentary entitled, Lupang Hinarang on May 28, 2009 at the Ateneo de Manila University. This by-invitation only event aims to gather different leaders from government, civil society, business, academe, media, youth and the Church in support for the passage of CARPER. For more information on this, please contact Cristyl Senajon at (02)426-5657."

by Harvey S. Keh, Director for Youth Leadership and Social Entrepreneurship at the Ateneo School of Government (ASOG). harveykeh@gmail.com

SUCCESS

I owe my success to having listened respectfully to the very best advice, and then going away and doing the exact opposite.

G.K Chesterton (1874-1936)
English poet, essayist, playwright, short story writer

Rethinking the launching of the SILENT SOCIETY

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

The Silent society was launched yesterday, May 19th at the Christ the King Compound in Quezon City. The aim of the group is to empower the voters by making them hold sacred their votes. Keep them secret.

This move, is harnessing that "creative force to transform the nation and manifest goodness in all segments of society including government through the pwoer of silence, armed with a tool for goodness called the Katapatan card." The card makes the individual reflect and pray on goodness.

The objectives of the group are laudable, to hold the vote sacred. But to keep quiet as to who one will vote is defeating the very essence of democracy, to my mind. Democracy means gathering collective effort at bringing about a society free from hunger, thirst, and ignorance, among others. To keep mum as to who would be the best person/s or even party/ies that can help attain that, is to be defeated already in the polls.

Maybe the group has to rethink its core values -- exercising suffrage cannot be purely meditative, nor reflective. Reflection can only come about for about 30%. To realize the desired effect of having leaders who will guide us to prosperity, freedom and better understanding of our life and this world, is to interact with everyone, to debate, discuss, and to analyze, such activities so necessary for shaping a society.

So elections 2010, cannot be an exercise in meditation or reflection alone, but also engagement with groups that are working for the same objectives that will benefit the majority of the Filipino people.

Suffrage is exercising the mind, the spirit and the body (which includes emotions) that will take action.

LESSONS FOR LEFT-LEANING GROUPS

by Emma S. Orozco

In our country, leftist groups exist and so far their number has not increased in the house. Their supporters in the Senate have turned somersault in their stand vis-a-vis the present administration. It would be good for them to look for lessons from the experiences of the leftists, now having problems of dwindling numbers in the parliament in West Bengal, India. Following is an excerpt of the news of BBC. With deep apologies for having shortened it to fit into this blog.

Bastion of Indian communism crumbles

For decades it was a fortress for the Left, but now Indian voters have radically reshaped the politics of West Bengal. The BBC's Subhir Bhaumik, in Calcutta, considers where it all went wrong for a once untouchable political force.

Anti-incumbency has finally caught up with the ruling Left coalition in the Indian state of West Bengal, which has been in power for 32 years. On Saturday, the coalition could only manage to win 15 of the state's 42 parliament seats.

The opposition alliance of Trinamul Congress and Congress swept the thickly-populated state, where the Leftists had pioneered land reforms and institutionalised local self-government to build up what appeared, until not so long ago, an unbeatable political support base with the rural poor at its core. The fiercely anti-Left Trinamuls won 19, the Congress won five and a smaller socialist ally won one seat.
…
Some say the use of organised muscle-power by the CPI(M) to take over the fertile croplands, especially in the embattled southern enclave of Nandigram, dented the party's pro-poor image.

"The police firing that killed 14 peasants at Nandigram two years ago, the terror struck by armed CPI(M) cadres on rows and rows of motorcycles donning red neck scarves, and the defence of peasants by the opposition supporters were all captured live on television, " says Bengal Left-watcher Ashis Ghose.

"The whole state saw the face of Red Terror for the first time in three decades and that turned even the urban middle class against them."

Even the highly-respected Bengali intelligentsia - some of India's best writers, playwrights, poets , film-makers and artists - turned against the Left coalition and took to the streets demanding political change.

The Nano, the world's cheapest car, was to have been made in West Bengal.

"In Bengal, the intelligentsia commands huge respect. They are generally anti-establishment and have been largely with the Left, but no longer ," says Basu Ray Chaudhuri. Bengal's leading psephologist.
17 May 2009

QUOTE FOR THE DAY

Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.

by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862, died a year after Jose Rizal was born. He advocated for the idea of simple living and environmentalism.)

MAN OF GOD: AMONG ED WILL RUN

Among Ed Panlilio will run for president according to Patrick Pantaleon, one of the prime movers among La Salle alumni.

They have just come from a sortie in Mindanao where they met with potential supporters for the political campaign.

More information will be given about this early announcement of Among Ed among the participants to the Philippines for Righteous Governance meeting on the 21st of May 2009 in Makati City.

Leaders of non-government orgazations are invited to attend.

For further information, please call Patrick at 7285416.


Painting 'Creation of Adam' by Michelangelo

SHOULD HE RUN OR NOT?

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

Why are some people wary of Estrada running for office? Are they afraid of his winning the game? Why can't some people just allow anyone to run; after all everyone is entitled to serving this country.

Actually, the COMELEC has stringent requirements for anyone running for a position especially for the higher positions. Question: what makes the COMELEC the arbiter for judging who can run and not, is it not the people?

As soon as Estrada was freed from prison, he regained all his fundamental rights as a citizen. So if Jalosjos and Mario Hulog ng Langit can run, so can all the other ex-prisoners do. This is a free country, and everyone is entitled to becoming a public servant.

What a lousy and boring life of sacrifice, if construed in its true meaning.

Three Key Requirements for a New Concept of Winnability

Excerpts from Nicanor Perlas' Views on "Winning An Election the Non-Traditional Way"


"In an earlier article, we detailed the contradictions and the dangers of assessing the potential of candidates for positive politics using traditional political concepts of winnability. (See “The Trap of Traditional Notions of Winnability”.)

One of the tasks of new innovative politics is to reframe old notions of winnability and put it in its proper place, and not to have old winnability concepts dictate the future of new politics.

So, if we are NOT going to rely on money, organization, reputation, and endorsement as BEGINNING criteria for winnability, what shall we rely on?

And how will we ensure that candidates running under the banner of new positive politics will ultimately win electoral contests and be able to govern effectively?


First we have to determine whether the potential candidate for positive politics has the necessary qualifications, track record, integrity, vision, and strategic agenda to run for public office.

Second, if there are other qualified new politics candidates for the same office, then let us design a process to determine which one would be the best to carry out the vision and strategy for positive change. Let qualified candidates debate each other in non-partisan assemblies and determine which one is the best.

And, third, create massive support for the qualified candidate(s) where none existed before...."


Van Gogh "Starry Night" Painting

PEOPLE'S JURY

Dear Bro. Patrick:

How about setting up a special "People Empowerment Meeting" and seek joint sponsorship by all alliances for good government for the enactment by the initiative process the "People's Jury Initiative" and make it effective by the end of this year. By arming the people with Grand Jury and Trial Jury, they will have the clout and strength to send to prison any arrogant grafter and corrupt TRAPOS who may be elected to office.

Guaranteed imprisonment by the INDEPENDENT decision of the common people in justice through the jury is, I strongly believe, the only rule of law that can force any public official, regardless of whether he is a president or not, to respect the people's sovereign power. Once corrupt powerful public officials start seeing their own kind go to jail by the jury decisions of the people, I think, they will finally come to their senses to behave they way they should. What is Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution for if we do not implement the exercise of the people's supreme power in it? Just for constitutional decoration only? Let us not, the common people, remain the underdog in justice. Let us not remain beggars of justice. Government authority emanates from us - not from TRAPOS. That is what the constitution said. Let us obliterate our defeatist mentality.

Regards.

Marlowe Camello

Emailed 16 May 2009

Painting, "Bastille" Clive Uptton

The unity of freedom has never relied on uniformity of opinion. -- John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Petroglyph Art Print by Whitefeather

MEETING

PRG calls a meeting on May 21, 6pm, in Makati city. Please contact Patrick through cellphone numbers 09158761537 or 09204712452. Potluck please.



Reflets bleus, Artprint by Pierre Doutreleau

Challenge to Discipline and Punish

How quickly the British punish the erring ministers with regard to their parliamentary expenses. Note:

“The Daily Telegraph said Malik had claimed 66,827 pounds (102,000 dollars, 75,000 euros) on his London home over three years, while paying less than 100 pounds a week on a house in his constituency he designated his main residence.(British junior justice minister Shahid Malik is stepping down pending the outcome of an investigation into his parliamentary expenses, Prime Minister Gordon Brown's office said Friday.)

On Thursday, a former minister and lawmaker from Brown's ruling Labour party, Elliot Morley, was suspended after claiming thousands of pounds for a non-existent mortgage.

Also Thursday an opposition MP, Andrew MacKay, who is married to a fellow Tory MP, resigned as an aide to Conservative chief David Cameron after it was revealed that he had claimed for mortgage repayments on both the couple's homes." (culled from AFP 15 May 2009)

If only similarly erring officials could be readily disciplined or punished then there would not be many applicants for jobs abroad in our country.

THE TIME IS NOW .........FOR LIVE-OUT MIGRANT DOMESTIC HELPERS

Too many Filipina domestic helpers have come home, some crippled, a few raped, others flown in in boxes, and a great number in a daze or have lost their minds. Why so? It is because they have been cooped up in the homes of their strange employers, mostly from the Middle East whose views of women probably border more on objectifying them. Hence, Senate Bill No. -2493 was filed by Senator Jinggoy Ejercito-Estrada on July 29, 2008, defining the need for them to have separate homes from their employers and to render what is universally approved as 8 labor hours daily with excess to be given payment as well. The bill was proposed by the Diwata Society of Women in Philosophy and Education, whose members include Drs. Celeste Ordas-Botor, Aniceta Manuel-Ortinero, Mercedes Adorio, Perlie Polestico and Wilhelmina.

PLEASE WRITE TO ALL THE SENATORS AND CONGRESS REPRESENTATIVES TO URGENTLY EXPEDITE THE PASSAGE OF THIS BILL,AND SO UPHOLD THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF OUR DOMESTIC HELPERS GRAVELY DESPERATE AT HELPING THEIR FAMILIES EKE OUT A LIVING, IF NOT OF SURVIVING IN THIS WORLD.


Senate Bill No. -2493: Living Quarters for Migrant Domestic Workers
An Act Defining the Working Hours and Providing for the Establishment
of Living Quarters for Migrant Domestic Workers in All Major Cities
and Localities of Their Countries of Destination.

Painting Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus by Peter Paul Rubens

"let us continue to expand this internet horizon from the
mainland and those who are in foreign countries that we register our intent to
be one voice in Jesus name. Let it be known that we are indeed a true and
dedicated Christian country because the time is near and we cannot
afford to be left behind. We are a gifted people of the Light and we
can be one in love and harmony to show the world of our quality as God's
children...."

-Bart Bartolome, 12 May 2009

ATONING FOR HIS CRIMES

BBC: Demjanjuk facing Germany charges

Alleged Nazi war criminal John Demjanjuk is in jail in Munich, facing charges of being an accessory to the deaths of 29,000 Jews in World War II.
The frail 89-year-old arrived in Germany on Tuesday morning after being deported from the US.
He is now in Stadelheim prison, say prosecutors, where he will undergo a medical check and then have his pages-long arrest warrant read out to him.
He denies accusations that he worked as a guard in the Sobibor Nazi death camp.
Mr Demjanjuk, who settled in the US in 1952, says he was captured by the Germans in his native Ukraine during the war and kept as a prisoner of war.
“I am not as naive as to believe that he [Demjanjuk] will spend even one day in prison - but we will get a discussion about justice in post-war Germany, ” according to Stephan Kramer, general secretary of the Central Consistory of Jews in Germany


BBC NEWS 12 May 2009 12:23

MEANWHILE IN GERMANY...


Hitler waxwork attack man fined
The controversial waxwork of Hitler in Berlin
The Hitler waxwork had only just gone on display when it was attacked

A court in Germany has fined a man 900 euros (£800, $1,200) for ripping the head off a waxwork model of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

Frank Lachner, 42, damaged the model after pushing past guards when it was displayed at a Berlin museum last year.

Mr Lachner, an ex-policeman, said he had been protesting against the presence of the waxwork 500m (500yds) from a Holocaust memorial.

The museum said the waxwork portrayed a key historical figure.

Now restored, its is back on display behind a glass wall.

It had provoked strong debate in Germany even before it went on display.

Some critics said it was tasteless to put a replica of Hitler on show.

In Germany it is illegal to display Nazi symbols or artworks regarded as glorifying Hitler.

Correspondents say the decision to allow the waxwork was seen as the latest move in the gradual easing of official sensitivity over the Nazis more than 60 years after the end of World War II.

IS WAR ALWAYS THE SOLUTION?

"...At the heart of Obama's approach to the war (in Afghanistan) is his view, shared by senior commanders, that military power alone will not lead to success — and that stability in Afghanistan is not possible without stability in neighboring, nuclear-armed Pakistan, where the radical Taliban movement has been on the rise.
That means Obama will look to General McChrystal to find more effective ways of linking military action with an accelerated effort to build workable Afghan government ministries, to expand and improve Afghan security forces, to promote Afghan reconciliation with more moderate elements of the Taliban, and to improve the U.S.-led coalition's ability to overcome remarkably effective propaganda efforts by the Taliban and al-Qaida.

It also means that turning around the war in Afghanistan will require changes beyond Obama's control — perhaps most importantly a more effective Pakistani government response to the Taliban insurgency in Pakistan...."

By ROBERT BURNS, AP National Security Writer –May 13, 2009 BBC EDITOR'S NOTE — Robert Burns has covered national security affairs for The Associated Press since 1990.

BOTO MO, I-PATROL MO

"Our most successful project was in the 2007 elections, when we turned our CITIZEN PATROL to a campaign that won top international awards - BOTO MO, I-PATROL MO. We took the immense power of traditional media – print, tv, radio, cable - and combined it with new media – the Internet and mobile phone technology – to create the first instance globally where a news organization called on citizen journalists to come together to patrol their votes and push for clean elections.

The idea for Boto Mo, I-Patrol Mo was simple: get the people to care and to take action. It’s people power with new technology! If you see something wrong or something good, tell us about it. If you see someone trying to buy the votes, snap a picture on your cellphone and send it to us. If you see a town mayor using public vehicles for his campaign, shoot video with your cellphone and send it to us. If you see violence, tell us about it, and after a verification process, we will put it to air. Two months into the 4-month campaign, we received reports from the provinces that Boto Mo, I-Patrol Mo helped level the playing field where incumbents were running after we ran a story with the cellphone picture of city resources used for campaigns. So cellphones became effective weapons!

The sheer volume of messages we received – about 500 a day leading up to elections and 1 a minute on election day – showed us not only the public’s distrust for our institutions and the electoral process, but also more importantly, it highlighted their hunger for change and their own individual battles for integrity.

culled from write-up by Maria A. Ressa, Head, ABS-CBN News & Current Affairs; Managing Director, ANC 05/10/2009 4:26 PM

Quotable quotes from 5 presidential aspirants

Chiz Escudero: “I don’t accept campaign contributions from those I don’t know,” he said, adding that about 100 contributors pitched in to fund his campaign budget of about P64 million.

For a nationwide presidential campaign, he said he would just spend P15 per voter, as allowed by law, and not P3 billion as previously mentioned by a peer in the Senate.

Dick Gordon: “What is important is leadership by example,” he stressed, adding that constituents only follow what they observe a president does. “A president should be hands-on. You cannot move [a nation] just by yourself. It should be both inspiration and perspiration.”

He also mentioned during the interview that he is not amenable to media advertisements. “They show an image that you want people to believe about you.”

Currently, Gordon faces an ethics complaint at the Senate for his dual position as a concurrent chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross.

Among Ed Panlilio, the priest: He said, “what the country needs now is a leader who does not compromise.”

He cited how this quality enabled his administration to collect P380 million from the quarry operations. That represented a drastic 800 percent increase from the collections of his predecessors, implying that the difference went to the pockets of politicians, not to the constituents.

Mar Roxas: “Our nation today is on a platform of sand. We are not standing on a strong foundation of morality and justice,” he said.

Gilbert Teodoro: “He said that while a parliamentary form of government is good, “Filipinos are not likely to accept a president they did not elect.” He said he favors a presidential and unicameral form of government. “This will allow regions to decide for themselves how they want to develop, even hold local elections as they see fit.”

culled from ABS CBN News - Philippines ANC Forum
Filed by Lala Rimando, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak
Created 05/12/2009 - 01:35

PRG MEETING WITH AMONG ED

May 9, 2009. A meeting was held between Among Ed Panlilio and the various groups networking with Philippines for Righteous Governance. The presidential candidate mentioned that he is willing to be subjected to scrutiny by the public once the primaries are conducted, wherein all the presidentiables will be asked to debate or discuss in public their positions on various issues and problems facing the country.

Present were convenors, Brother Carmelo Go, Patrick Pantaleon, Vic Barrios of the Global Filipino Nation, Samuel Ferrer of PAX, Lanie Aquino, Cita Dinglasan, brothers Mano and Lingoy Alcuaz, Atty. V. Dabu legal staff of Among Ed, and Ricky Xavier of HOPE, among others.

Vic and Ricky expounded on the concept of primaries, drawing from the experiences in the United States and how these will be implemented in the final selection of the presidential and other official candidates that the various governance movements, shall endorse to the nation. Meanwhile, Lingoy mentioned that the term "third force" had been used even as early as Manglapus time in Philippine politics but it did not take off.

The afternoon proved to be fruitful in terms of knowing the positive response of Among Ed Panlilio to clamor for his candidacy to the highest post of the land. Cita mentioned that in the US, where she is currently based, the Filipino-Americans have mentioned him as the best possible contender for the post although he had not yet given his final assent to the urgings to run.

But last Lenten season, Among Ed mentioned that he had a retreat and after three days he came up with the decision that if God wants him to be a candidate then he will have to accept it.

He also mentioned that under his governance, the quarrying fees more than multiplied compared to the previous administrations. Then two of the people working under his administration have been cited by an awards-giving body for excellent services, the very first time that the local government had ever received in its many years of existence.

He rued the many problems he had had to face in running a bureaucracy that is steeped in corruption, where 60% commission is the standard rule in public projects but which he had whittled down. Hence, if a public road used to cost P1 Million to be paved, it now only costs P400,000.00. Atty. Dabu also said that the public works engineers are now made to account for their being employed– reporting on what they had done to justify their salaries. “Whereas before they were used to working at 10% efficiency only, now because of us, they have to work at least 75% and we can’t dismiss them if they don’t because they have security of tenure.”

Mano Alcuaz of PRG mentioned that comparing local and national governance is not in order because so long as a president is democratic, relying on capable people to run the administration, then the people can be assured of good governance.

The meeting was observed by writer, Nina from the Inquirer, while the GMA tv group came a little earlier to shoot a few footages of Among Ed.

Report filed by Emma S. Orozco

TRANSPARENCY LESSON: SEPARATE AUDIT GROUP FOR UK PARLIAMENT EXPENSES

"We will... create a new body, a different body that will be separate," Sir Stuart - a member of the Commons Estimates Committee, told the BBC.

"I would hope that once this body is created and is up and running it will then be hived off to the private sector to another firm, so there is an entire arm's length between members of Parliament and those who are dispersing amounts under allowances."

He said MPs had "lost the confidence of the public and we need to get that back".

Northern Ireland Secretary Shaun Woodward, one of the richest men in the cabinet who does not take his full ministerial salary, reportedly claimed £100,000 in mortgage interest over four years.

'It's embarrassing'

He told the BBC: "I think the public look at us right now, think we have all got our noses in the trough - our profession looks shameful - it's embarrassing.

"Right now if I try to make almost any defence of our collective position - or my position - it looks terrible."

He said MPs' expenses had to be looked at - but other public bodies, like the BBC, should also release their expenses details.

"Right now if I try to make almost any defence of our collective position - or my position - it looks terrible."

He said MPs' expenses had to be looked at - but other public bodies, like the BBC, should also release their expenses details.


If the reports are in all cases correct, then there clearly are instances where MPs have lost contact with the difference between right and wrong

The Sunday Telegraph published a series of new revelations about MPs, including nearly £500,000 claimed by Sinn Fein MPs, who do not take their seats in Parliament.

Sinn Fein MP for West Tyrone Pat Doherty said they were "only claiming what we're entitled to".

"We're transparent and we're open. In fact we're the only party that publishes annual financial accounts so we have nothing to hide in all of this," he said.

It also reports that the Conservative former minister John Gummer claimed more than £9,000 a year for gardening - and £100 to have moles removed from his country estate.

Mr Gummer said he had not claimed for mortgage costs or food or furniture and had only claimed "the relevant proportion of the costs of necessary maintenance and repairs of an old rural property".


Communities Secretary Hazel Blears also faced questions about the sale of her designated second home - a London flat on which she claimed expenses - after it emerged she had not paid capital gains tax on the sale.

Properties which are considered a main residence by the Inland Revenue are not subject to 40% tax when sold. Her spokesman said there was "no liability" for the tax on the flat.

Speaking outside her Salford home, she said she had "complied with the rules of the House, the rules of the Inland Revenue" but added: "I understand entirely why the public hates this. The system is wrong, it needs to be changed."

Meanwhile Mr Miliband told the BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "What we are seeing this weekend... is a challenge and a wake-up call to politicians about the systems that we have in place."

He said: "Of course it needs to be reformed. I take my responsibility as an MP that we didn't reform it earlier."

For the Liberal Democrats, Chris Huhne said: "If the reports are in all cases correct, then there clearly are instances where MPs have lost contact with the difference between right and wrong.

"I think we need to make sure we're saying that loud and clear because, frankly, the voters are not going to be at all sympathetic if we don't."

BBC NEWS: 15:40 GMT, Sunday, 10 May 2009 16:40 UK

ANC hosts leadership forum on May 11

The ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC), and the Ateneo School of Government will be bringing together four senators, a Cabinet Secretary, and a governor--all said to be eyeing a run for the presidency in 2010--at a leadership forum on May 11, a year before the scheduled May 10, 2010 presidential race.

Anchored by Tina Monzon-Palma and Ricky Carandang, the two-hour forum will be held on Monday, 7 p.m. at the Leong Hall of the Ateneo de Manila University, Katipunan, Quezon City.

It will be aired live on ANC.

The ABS-CBN news website, www.abs-cbnnews.com, will also be hosting a live chat during the event.

The confirmed guests as of May 8 are: Senators Francis Escudero, Richard Gordon, Panfilo Lacson, and Mar Roxas; Pampanga Gov. Ed Panlilio; and Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro.

As of posting, ANC is still awaiting confirmation from Vice President Noli de Castro, and Senators Manuel Villar and Loren Legarda.

The anchors will have a short one-on-one with each of them. Then the guests will be asked questions from a list submitted by ANC’s content partners and viewers who emailed and texted the issues that they want addressed.

The ANC Leadership Forum is part of ABS-CBN's multi-platform launch of "Boto Mo, I-Patrol Mo: Ako Ang Simula," the countdown to the 2010 presidential elections.



abs-cbnNEWS.com | 05/08/2009 8:09 PM

WHICH PRIMARY SHOULD WE CONDUCT?

Which is the best primary for us - closed, semi-closed, open, semi-open or run-off. Here are their definitions:*

• Closed. People may vote in a party's primary only if they are registered members of that party. Independents cannot participate. Note that because some political parties name themselves independent, the term "non-partisan" often replaces "independent" when referring to those who are not affiliated with a political party.
• Semi-closed. As in closed primaries, registered party members can vote only in their own party's primary. Semi-closed systems, however, allow unaffiliated voters to participate as well. Depending on the state, independents either make their choice of party primary privately, inside the voting booth, or publicly, by registering with any party on Election Day.
• Open. A registered voter may vote in any party primary regardless of his own party affiliation. When voters do not register with a party before the primary, it is called a pick-a-party primary because the voter can select which party's primary he or she wishes to vote in on election day. Because of the open nature of this system, a practice known as raiding may occur. Raiding consists of voters of one party crossing over and voting in the primary of another party, effectively allowing a party to help choose its opposition's candidate. The theory is that opposing party members vote for the weakest candidate of the opposite party in order to give their own party the advantage in the general election. An example of this can be seen in the 1998 Vermont senatorial primary with the election of Fred Tuttle for the Republican candidate.
• Semi-open. A registered voter must not publicly declare which political party's primary that they will vote in before entering the voting booth. When a voter identifies their self to the election officials, they must request a party's specific ballot. Only one ballot is cast by the voter. In many states with semi-open primaries, election officials or poll workers from their respective parties record each voter's choice of party and provide access to this information. The primary difference between a semi-open and open primary system is the use of a party-specific ballot. In a semi-open primary, a public declaration in front of the election judges is made and a party-specific ballot given to the voter to cast. Certain states that use the open-primary format may print a single ballot and the voter must choose on the ballot itself which political party's candidates they will select for a contested office.
• Run-off. A primary in which the ballot is not restricted to one party and the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation. (A run-off differs from a primary in that a second round is only needed if no candidate attains a majority in the first round.)
There are also mixed systems in use. In West Virginia, Republican primaries are open to independents, while Democratic primaries were closed. However, as of April 1, 2007, West Virginia's Democratic Party opened its voting to allow "individuals who are not affiliated with any existing recognized party to participate in the election process".

*Wikipedia

Sunday Times Editorial: IF WE HAD THE PRIMARY

If we had the primary


IF Filipinos had the US primary system, we would have a complex but interesting presidential contest.

For a change, the voters would go around the political parties and choose the party’s (or coalition’s) nominee directly.

In the 2010 presidential race, a primary system would send presidential candidates Mar Roxas, Manny Villar, Noli de Castro and Bayani Fernando scrambling around the country way ahead of the May election.

Every province would want to have the honor of holding the first primary, so the parties and the Comelec devise a system for that purpose. In our scenario, Catanduanes gets the privilege, and the presidential candidates campaign in Virac to win the first-ever Philippine primary.

To Catanduanes fly the campaign teams of Mar (Oras Na!) Roxas and Manny (Sipag at Tiyaga) Villar for the opposition, and Noli (Magandang Gabi, Bayan) de Castro and Bayani (Pink na Pink) Fernando for the administration.

The Philippine media cover the first primary in full force. The world press takes interest. The combined force of the presidential campaigns and the media outnumber the Catanduanes population. Floating villages are built to house the newcomers.

The candidates address the issues of the day: rising oil prices ($150 a barrel), the strengthening peso (P25.50 to the US dollar), constitutional change (allowing a naturalized citizen to run for the Senate), privatization (turning the Bilibid prison over to private business) and urban development (the importance of pink-colored sidewalks).

Roxas wins the primary for the opposition and de Castro for the administration. Villar and Fernando vow to move on.

The next primary puts Biliran on the map where the previous winners repeat their victory. Analysts say Villar and Fernando should withdraw, but they persist.

From single-state primaries, the process moves to the “Super-Tuesdays” where groups of provinces and cities vote. The candidates continue their fight in the MIMAROPA (Mindoros, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) region, the CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) provinces and the SOCKSARGEN region. CAMANAVA (Cavite, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela) leads the primaries for the big cities.

Later, the administration party formally proclaims its candidate at a national convention at the Mall of Asia while the opposition convention announces its standard-bearer in Cubao, Quezon City.

The scenario is incomplete without our equivalent of the US Electoral College. In such a system, a candidate may win the popular vote but would not be proclaimed president without the electoral votes. So please stop asking why the Filipinos, great imitators of most anything American, will never have the primary, the electoral college, the jury system and probably a federal government.

FROM SUNDAY TIMES EDITORIAL, January 13, 2008

Graphic: African Road Poster, AllPosters

Please post your comments on the above editorial in the blog, in the group emails of LaalLahatNa, or send them to miravera2010@gmail.com. We will publish all of them. Please note: we are putting up this service to generate discussions for everyone to participate in politics. So let us write positively, on how we can have genuine, truthful, honest elections, although you could use satire, irony and any other figure of speech.

If elected, Panlilio will prosecute Arroyo

Salvador Dali Prints by AllPosters.co.uk

Juliet Labog-Javellana
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Publication Date: 29-03-2009


If and when elected president of the Philippines in 2010, Governor Ed Panlilio of Pampanga province said, he will not declare the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos a hero and will see to it that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is prosecuted for corruption.
Panlilio, a priest who made history by running for public office and beating well-entrenched politicians in Ms Arroyo’s home province in 2007, made these statements on Thursday (March 26) night before potential supporters who wanted to know about his platform should he run for president in 2010.
But Panlilio clarified to the group calling itself Philippines for Righteous Governance that he had not made up his mind regarding the presidency, and that he would rather be a convener of ethical and reform-minded leaders who would seek the top posts in the government.


The group gathered at the house of businessman Patrick Pantaleon in the upscale subdivision Forbes Park in Makati City and called on Panlilio and other “nontraditional politicians” to join forces to win the presidency against Arroyo administration and opposition candidates. The names of preachers Bro. Eddie Villanueva and Bro. Mike Velarde, Chief Justice Reynato Puno, and even detained Brigadier General Danilo Lim were mentioned.
Panlilio agreed to talk about his possible platform on Pantaleon’s invitation.
Will ‘definitely’ prosecute
While professing reluctance to run for president, Panlilio candidly answered questions thrown at him by the group that gathered to “get to know” him.
When asked if he would prosecute Ms Arroyo, he said: “Oh yes, definitely. Definitely.”
To the question of whether he would declare Marcos a hero if he were asked by the dictator’s widow Imelda to do so, Panlilio was also categorical. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I will not declare Marcos a hero. My conscience would not permit that.”
When asked after the meeting to elaborate on his stand on Ms Arroyo, Panlilio said the President could be prosecuted for plunder after the end of her term in 2010.
“There are so many accusations against her, ill-gotten wealth, so many cases,” he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
He said these cases were the reason Ms Arroyo wanted to stay in power through moves of her allies to amend the Constitution and install her as prime minister under a new parliamentary government.
“That is why she wants to run for Congress - to impede” the possibility of being prosecuted, he said.
‘Like a school’
Pantaleon said it was Panlilio’s character and moral leadership that drove the Philippines for Righteous Governance (PRG) to start mobilizing support for him as Ms Arroyo’s possible successor.
“He is running Pampanga like a school where lying, cheating and stealing are not allowed,” Pantaleon said in introducing Panlilio to the group.
Pantaleon and Pastor Melo Go said the group, alternately called PRG or “the third force,” was seeking like-minded organizations to align with in the search for nontraditional politicians to run for president and vice president in 2010.
Pantaleon said the PRG was loosely composed of his group and a group called “Ateneo at La Salle at Lahat Na,” which consists of alumni of Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University.
Also present at the meeting were representatives of Ateneo’s Movement for Good Governance, the Philippine Alliance of Ex-Seminarians, the workers’ group Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, the activist youth group Samahang Demokratiko ng Kabataan, the Sanlakas party-list group, the political party Partido Lakas ng Masa, and urban poor groups.
“We are looking for people who practice good governance,” Pantaleon said.
“The purpose of our meeting with Among Ed is to get leaders like him together,” he added. “We will converge with other groups because we have to unite somewhere.”
“There is a phenomenon going on in our country now - there is a call for righteous leaders,” Pantaleon said.
“There are many groups who want to know the good leaders, and hopefully we will meet. And by November, we will come up with one leader” who will run for president, he said.
David against Goliath
Go, who presented the group’s “statement of unity,” said that only by joining forces could nontraditional politicians beat administration or opposition candidates.
“If four or five nontraditional candidates give way to each other, they can gather bigger votes, and Malacañang is afraid of that. If four or five candidates unite, it will be a battle of David and Goliath. We will win,” Go said.
Harping on the same theme, Panlilio said there were now “islands of hope” in a country beset by corrupt leaders.
He cited the trailblazing feats of Gov. Grace Padaca of Isabela province, Mayor Jesse Robredo of Naga City and Mayor Sonia Lorenzo of San Isidro town in Nueva Ecija province — his fellow members of Kaya Natin!, a movement formed by Ateneo’s Harvey Keh to promote good governance.
“If bad politicians can get together with their bad intentions, why can’t good politicians get together and make a difference?” Panlilio said.
He recalled how Pampanga residents weary of corruption in their province mounted a virtual People Power movement to install him as their leader, and noted how certain forces were now trying to remove him.
Panlilio remarked that he always went to work in a polo shirt and denims. “I don’t wear barong,” he said. “Because when I wear barong and I go to Malacañang, they give me P500,000.”
Panlilio was the first to confirm the distribution of paper bags containing P500,000 to local officials summoned to a meeting with Ms Arroyo in October 2007, when she was facing impeachment in the House of Representatives.
‘As a last resort’
After his speech, Panlilio was quizzed about his possible platform.
“I just want to clarify that I have not decided to go for national office,” he said, adding that his priority was still to return to priesthood.
Panlilio was suspended from performing priestly duties when he became governor of Pampanga in 2007.
“But I am open as a last resort. If there is someone who is better, more competent, I’m willing to support that person. I will convince people to gravitate to that person,” he said.
Panlilio said he saw himself more as a convener of alternative candidates for 2010. He said potential presidential candidates should be “willing and humble enough to undergo the process” of selection.
Panlilio said he met the previous night with Bro. Eddie Villanueva, leader of the Jesus is Lord movement, to discuss the need to field a common reform candidate.
Villanueva was preparing to launch his renewed bid for the presidency Saturday at the Araneta Center in Quezon City, Panlilio said.
But later, Panlilio said, Villanueva remained “open to dialogue.”
“We said we will go our own ways now but we will see after a few months [if] we might merge,” Panlilio said.
Basis for unity
Asked if he was also considering Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim — who is detained and being tried in military court for trying to mount a coup against Ms Arroyo—Panlilio said the latter could be one of the alternative leaders.
“But our priority now is to lay down the basis for unity, to set a vision for the Philippines, make our stand on land reform, human rights, the reproductive health bill, and the qualities we are looking for in a president,” he said.
Panlilio was scheduled to meet with Sen. Mar Roxas after the Thursday night meeting at Forbes Park.
He said he had been invited to meet with the senator, one of the contenders for the presidency. But he added that some members of Kaya Natin! were opposed to tapping Roxas because Roxas was considered a traditional politician.
State of decay
In its statement of unity, the PRG said the Philippines was in “a state of moral decay perpetrated by our present leadership who have shamelessly displayed the absence of morality in governance, integrity, justice and love of country.”
It added: “Our nation is tainted with crimes against God and humanity where human rights are systematically violated, resulting in the disappearance and death of over 1,000 Filipinos.
“We cannot anymore stand as mere spectators of dismal and flagrant display of historical failures to bring genuine social and economic reforms.
“The Philippines today needs genuine social and economic reforms that will be mustered by nontraditional politicians and a few exceptional politicians at all levels of public governance from the presidency down to the ‘barangay’ [village] level.”
819.02.51

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of one person is considered to be endangering all mankind...

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• Closed. People may vote in a party's primary only if they are registered members of that party. Independents cannot participate. Note that because some political parties name themselves independent, the term "non-partisan" often replaces "independent" when referring to those who are not affiliated with a political party.
• Semi-closed. As in closed primaries, registered party members can vote only in their own party's primary. Semi-closed systems, however, allow unaffiliated voters to participate as well. Depending on the state, independents either make their choice of party primary privately, inside the voting booth, or publicly, by registering with any party on Election Day.
• Open. A registered voter may vote in any party primary regardless of his own party affiliation. When voters do not register with a party before the primary, it is called a pick-a-party primary because the voter can select which party's primary he or she wishes to vote in on election day. Because of the open nature of this system, a practice known as raiding may occur. Raiding consists of voters of one party crossing over and voting in the primary of another party, effectively allowing a party to help choose its opposition's candidate. The theory is that opposing party members vote for the weakest candidate of the opposite party in order to give their own party the advantage in the general election. An example of this can be seen in the 1998 Vermont senatorial primary with the election of Fred Tuttle for the Republican candidate.
• Semi-open. A registered voter must not publicly declare which political party's primary that they will vote in before entering the voting booth. When a voter identifies their self to the election officials, they must request a party's specific ballot. Only one ballot is cast by the voter. In many states with semi-open primaries, election officials or poll workers from their respective parties record each voter's choice of party and provide access to this information. The primary difference between a semi-open and open primary system is the use of a party-specific ballot. In a semi-open primary, a public declaration in front of the election judges is made and a party-specific ballot given to the voter to cast. Certain states that use the open-primary format may print a single ballot and the voter must choose on the ballot itself which political party's candidates they will select for a contested office.
• Run-off. A primary in which the ballot is not restricted to one party and the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation. (A run-off differs from a primary in that a second round is only needed if no candidate attains a majority in the first round.)
There are also mixed systems in use. In West Virginia, Republican primaries are open to independents, while Democratic primaries were closed. However, as of April 1, 2007, West Virginia's Democratic Party opened its voting to allow "individuals who are not affiliated with any existing recognized party to participate in the election process".

happy mother's day

madre, by diego rivera, mexican painter

IS THERE NEED FOR 2010 COMPUTERIZATION?

Only by end of May will we know for sure if the computerization of 2010 Philippine elections will be pushed through or not. This is the statement of Director Jaime Jimenez, Comelec director over a DWIZ radio program. He told the hosts, Jarius Bondoc and Marissa that the 7 bidders who applied were all disqualified during the hearing this week but have been given a chance to apply for reconsideration. Some of the reasons for disqualification were lack of necessary papers, among others. Rumors are rife though that the disqualification could be going towards two things: 1. go for a negotiated contract meaning to say there will be no more biddings to be done but only negotiations for the activity of computerizing the elections (which could also mean that this would be costlier than bidding it out); and 2. a return to manual voting and counting of ballots.

The bidding was observed by groups like the Transparency International, Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting or PPCRV, Procurement Watch, and the government agency, Commission on Audit.

Consequences of having no computerization are: 1. election cheating through miscounting or "dagdag-bawas" and 2. corollarily, installing fake officials; 3. more work for the judiciary to resolve election protests;AND 4. another era of repeated poor governance of public coffers and poor implementation of programs and projects for the poor, the marginalized and disadvantaged sectors of our society, especially the senior citizens, the children, women, and disabled.

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco with data culled from the RADIO PROGRAM: "SAPUL" hosted by Jarius Bondoc and Marissa, Saturday, 10 May 2009, aired between 8:15 to 9 a.m.