REMEMBERING NINOY

ABRAKADABRA

Visit Ricky Carandang’s blog and find out why there’s someone who’s a far greater magician than David Copperfield. 

The question, however, remains:  was there really a 12-0 sweep by Team Unity in Maguindanao?  Atty. Lintang Bedol swears to his god (with a small g) that the outcome was real.  The strong showing of Mrs. Arroyo’s puppets, he says, could be attributed to the fact that the people of Maguindanao voted even prior to election day, with teachers and minors filling out the ballots with the names of Chavit Singson, et. al. 

I say there was none, judging from various reports gathered by media and by the few brave souls who dared to expose the electoral chicanery of local political warlords in cahoots with some members of the Comelec, led of course by Provincial Election Supervisor Atty. Lintang Bedol. 

Naturally, the warlords denied the charges.  But as the following video clips would show, the denial is nothing but a pointless defense of the indefensible: 

  

  

On a related note, Koko Pimentel remains confident he would still win, although only by a small margin or by a mere 120,000 votes over 13th placer Miguel Zubiri. 

Bedol and company by the way are expected to appear before the Commission today, possibly bringing along with them the municipal COCs and the SOVs intended to disprove allegations that the electoral exercise on that part of Mindanao was a sham. 

Haha.  Bedol thinks we are that gullible to believe him. 

BLOG UPDATE:  Maguindanao teacher who exposed election irregularities shot dead!  Read Inquirer news article here. 

SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE

The ghost of the 2004 elections have not scared these clowns one bit. The urge to cheat is so hard to resist that even without Garci, they still managed to manipulate the results in their favor. I nearly fell off the edge of my seat when Abalos just shrugged off as chismis allegations of massive cheating in Maguindanao and Sharif Kabunsuan. He was already poised to canvass the COCs from the Province of Maguindanao if not for the conspicuous absence of the Provincial Election Supervisor, Atty. Lintang Bedol who is required to be present during the canvassing. This man was said to be the operator of Virgilio Garcillano in Sultan Kudarat and Cotabato City during the May 10, 2004 elections as mentioned in the Hello Garci tape. It is a surprise that Atty. Bedol is still around, this time in Maguindanao, despite his alleged participation in the conspiracy to deprive the late Fernando Poe, Jr. of the Presidency.

What I find amusing is Abalos’ verbal threat to file charges against the whistleblowers for maligning the integrity and conduct of the elections in the affected provinces. He challenged them to come out in the open before he tinkers with the idea of declaring a failure of elections in Maguindanao. Well, witnesses are starting to surface on national television. Shall we still wait and see if the Comelec Chair will remain true to its word in really conducting a full-blown investigation? Don’t expect the high heavens to come to our rescue and enlighten the judgment of this man. The outcome is an obvious whitewash.

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I agree with the observation of Senator Rodolfo Biazon. Not only was he an eyewitness to the dagdag-bawas scheme in the 2004 elections, he was precisely the victim of electoral sabotage by his co-K4 candidate who tried to dislodge him from the 12th place. With respect to Trillanes and Pimentel who currently hold the 11th and 12th spots respectively as of the last counting, there’s that real possibility that the same fate would befall on them. One does not have to have first hand information before he or she can say that cheating is in the works to put Recto, Zubiri and Pichay in the magic 12. As reported in the major TV networks, people are starting to reveal the brazen attempts of some politicians in connivance with scalawags in Comelec to disregard the people’s will. Of course, this is not to say that Zubiri and Recto are part of the conspiracy. All I’m saying is that these people have a lot of explaining to do why their votes are the only ones being systematically padded.

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I’m beginning to think that we have become a nation of cheaters and fixers. “Paulit-ulit na lang”, says Senator Biazon in a chance interview by ABS-CBN. Same areas, same cheating strategy and same faces are involved. As to why the Comelec can’t even do something about it, the answer is simple. And that’s because they are part of the cheating machinery. They legitimize what is illegal and make winners out of sore losers.

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Sadly, while there are quite a number of ordinary citizens, watchdog groups and lawyers who have risked life and limb to ensure an honest and orderly election, it may not be enough to eliminate the virus that has infected the moral values of many of our countrymen. Their continued indifference in the face of political chicanery is what makes these crooks cheat even more.

THE CIRCUS IS OVER

But the clowns, particularly the losing ones, are not about to give up that easily. Although there are candidates who have conceded to their rivals as early as the day after the elections, there are those who have cried foul over the way the canvassing was being done. They probably have a reason to be wary. Just like the previous ones, the 2007 mid-term elections have been marked by incidents of vote-buying, ballot box switching, intimidation, harassment and other forms of violence. 

What really got my goat was the news about a teacher and a pollwatcher from Taysan, Batangas who got burned to death after a group of scalawags suddenly barged in and deliberately set fire on the ballot boxes which eventually led to the burning of the entire classroom. The PNP heirarchy at first laid the blame on the NPA but it was later found out that the suspects were policemen from the so-called PNP Regional Special Operations Group. It looks like politicians these days are now making goons out of inept and corrupt members of the PNP who are more than willing to carry out their orders for a price.  Then there’s also the news about two pollwatchers of Ang Kabataan Party-list who disappeared last May 15, only to be discovered lifeless in Brgy. Mataqui, Capalonga, Camarines Norte. The military later issued a press statement on the killings, saying they were caught in the crossfire between NPA guerillas and the AFP in Bicol. It is quite illogical and absurd to believe the latter’s claims because these pollwatchers had no reason to be in the place where they have been found dead. It is very likely that they were abducted and salvaged by the butcher’s military adherents because of their affiliation with the said party-list group.
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However, the electoral exercise also proved that not all have succumbed to the dark side. Initial election results have shown that majority of the GO senatorial candidates are in the magic 12, with a 7 (GO) - 3 (TU) - 2 (IND) standing as of the latest NAMFREL count. Even those in the TU who are among the magic 12 are not Mrs. Arroyo’s lapdogs. They are perceived to be independent-minded Senators who do not always say “yes” to the President’s whims and caprices. On the other hand, Mike Defensor, Prospero Pichay and Chavit Singson are nowhere near the winning circle, as it is quite obvious that their close association with Mrs. Arroyo was what pulled them down. 

The biggest surprise of the season is detained Navy Captain Antonio Trillanes IV who might yet get a Senate seat if the votes in his favor continue to pour in. His possible victory is seen as a surprise because he practically was not able to conduct a campaign sortie, banking heavily on paid TV advertisements which are few and far between. This is in stark contrast to Prospero Pichay’s all-out campaign, spending hundreds of millions of pesos wooing voters to include his name in their ballots. Unfortunately, his itanim sa senado slogan fell on deaf ears while Trillanes’ (or GO’s) isang boto lang po laban sa nakaupo battlecry sounded like a glimmer of hope for those who are fed up with the current dispensation.
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At the local level, the opposition seems to be having the upper hand with respect to the hotly contested positions. Darlene Antonino-Custodio knocked-out Manny Pacuiao by a wide margin. Fr. Ed Panlilio effectively doused holy water on the so-called “quarry” King and “jueteng” Queen and promised to exorcise the demons of gambling and corruption that have plagued Pampanga for years. In Makati, Jejomar Binay clobbered proxy candidate Lito Lapid, the real opponent being the lady occupant in Malacañang.
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Lastly, while it cannot be denied that the administration has enough allies in the Lower Chamber to thwart any attempt to impeach Mrs. Arroyo, the 2007 mid-term elections have nonetheless shown that sovereignty still resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.

ARROGANCE TO THE NTH POWER

I would have wanted to refrain from writing a commentary against Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez not because I do not have anything to say but because I find his verbal antics too juvenile to even merit a discussion. In fact, they have become a source of entertainment for journalists who scamper around the old man trying to get a “scoop” on what he has to say on a particular news item. The arrogance with which he expresses his views greatly adds cinematic effect to his otherwise shallow opinions.

But his latest brouhaha over his purported plan to provide monetary incentives to barangay captains in Iloilo who can deliver a 12-0 vote for Team Unity in their respective jurisdictions did not only show how desperate he has become in trying to ensure victory for the administration but also showed how he has been using his position to achieve his personal political goals.

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As the country’s chief persecutor… err… prosecutor, prudence dictates that he should not have discussed his campaign strategy on national television, firstly because he has no business talking about it considering it is not part of his job description, and secondly, because it might give the impression that it is perfectly okay to circumvent the rules precisely prohibiting vote-buying. He conveniently uses the word “incentive” as a euphemism for vote-buying since it cannot be denied that the barangay captains will use every means — fair or foul — including offering voters with money just to get that P10, 000.00 “incentive” from the Honorable Justice Secretary. WHAT CANNOT BE DONE DIRECTLY CANNOT BE DONE INDIRECTLY. This principle is elementary and self-explanatory. Unfortunately for Raul Gonzalez, he opens his mouth too fast without analyzing the legal implications of his statements.

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The Justice Chief says he is merely being true to himself and that no one can stop him, not even the President, from expressing what is on his mind. Wow. That’s what you call arrogance to the nth power. SHAME.

WINNING BY HOOK OR BY CROOK

The signs are showing. Despite publicized efforts by the Comelec to assure the electorate that cheating is a thing of the past, one cannot help but agree to what GO senatorial candidate Antonio Trillanes said when interviewed by Korina Sanchez in his detention cell a few days ago. It seems the administration is hell bent on doing what it does best – manipulating election results. Indeed, the possibility of having a hostile Senate come May 14 is what keeps Mrs. Arroyo trembling.

She and her minions have practically thrown all sorts of tricks to make sure the opposition won’t get enough seats in Congress. First, the Arroyo “dynasty” is very much alive in the House of Representatives with both Iggy “Jose Pidal” Arroyo and frustrated actor Mikey Arroyo in the heat of their reelection bids in their respective districts. Then there’s Dato Arroyo who is also running for Representative in Bicol, although it is not denied that he is actually from Pampanga. Second, legitimate partylist groups are up in arms over another scandal – the partylist scandal, so-called because of the revelation by some quarters that Malacañang is blatantly violating the spirit and letter of the law establishing the partylist system by fielding its own partylist groups masquerading as marginalized and underrepresented sectors. The intention is to neutralize the growing number of anti-Arroyo partylist groups like Bayan Muna, Anakpawis and Gabriela that are committed to impeach the most unpopular President this country ever had. Third, they are slowly conditioning the public mind about a sweep (12-0) by Team Unity of the senatorial elections. Of course, no person in his right mind would believe such a horrendous crap. But who knows. In this day and age and with Garci still alive and kicking (and even running!), the 12-0 fairy tale might yet become an awful reality.

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Despite recent surveys showing the Genuine Opposition senatoriables lording it over the magic 12, the administration need not despair. According to a study, the opposition can only produce more or less 57 warm bodies in the lower House, short of the magic number of 79 or 80 necessary to forthwith send an impeachment complaint directly to the Senate. The implication is that even if the Genuine Opposition gets majority of the Senate seats, the same will be rendered useless if Gloria continues to hold her dark influence over the rest of the members of the House of Representatives.

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It is almost certain that the administration will bring home the bacon as far as local elections are concerned mainly because the issues involved in local politics are markedly different from the issues tackled at the national level. This was the reason why I strongly objected to the idea floated by One Voice several months ago about local elections being a referendum of sorts for the sitting President. Congressmen get elected not so much for their stand on national issues (i.e. pro or anti-Arroyo) but whether or not they have fulfilled their parochial promises to their gullible constituents. As a matter of fact, siding with Gloria Arroyo might turn out to be even more beneficial. It translates to more campaign funds and having the electoral machinery at your disposal. The perks and privileges of being in cahoots with the most powerful person in the country are too hard to resist for wannabee “honorables” whose principles are obviously for sale to the highest bidder.

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Simply put, Mrs. Arroyo cannot afford to lose in this political exercise. Virtually at stake is her hold of the presidency which she intends to continue beyond 2010.

ACRONYMS

I was hopping from one blog to another until I stumbled upon this funny but interesting entry from The Purple Phoenix. She was able to produce an acronym for the Genuine Opposition based on the first letter of either the given name or surname of the candidates. Taken together, the following words surprisingly come out:

Pimentel III
Legarda
Aquino III
Nikki (Coseteng)

Alan (Cayetano)

Roco
Escudero
Villar
Osmeña
Lacson
Trillanes

The Purple Phoenix seemed to prefer a less intriguing acronym: PLANT A LOVER. I think this sounds a little awkward. You do not “plant a lover”. You find one. And yes, you “plan a revolt” in order to increase its chances of success.

As to why the opposition officially chose the latter, as she said so, is anybody’s guess. Maybe Adel Tamano and company just want to avoid being accused of planning a terroristic act, if we go by this blogger’s definition (LOL). Seriously, a revolt — peaceful or otherwise — may not be a farfetched idea if Gloria Arroyo and her bunch of vindictive generals continue to suppress whatever is left of our civil and political rights.

I don’t know if the acronym was her original idea but inventing one for the senatoriables sure is a cool strategy especially during the campaign season. Be that as it may, I’d like to assure her that regardless of the acronym, I’m inclined to vote for the majority of the candidates of the Genuine Opposition, Chiz Escudero included.

Since The Purple Phoenix obviously doesn’t want to, I tried to come up with an acronym for the senatorial candidates of the administration and this was what came out:

Defensor

Pichay
Edgardo (Angara)
Sotto
Tessie (Aquino-Oreta)

Montano, Magsaysay and Miguel (Zubiri)
Arroyo
Recto
Kiram
Singson

Sounds a little awkward too but I couldn’t think of a better, more palatable combination. Can you help me out? The word pest though is already an apt description.

(image courtesy of PCIJ blog)

DESPERATE DOUBLESPEAKING KANGAROOS

DOUBLESPEAKING KANGAROO

In a speech at the Manila Hotel, Mrs. Arroyo was reported to have said:

“The Philippines is the most democratic country in the region. I don’t have tolerance for human rights violations.”

Yeah. That’s what you call doublespeak. A president who says one thing but does exactly the opposite only shows her insincerity and hypocrisy in dealing with the problem of extrajudicial killings. This recent declaration of hers is no different from her SONA last year when she said:

“And we will end the long oppression of barangays by rebel terrorists who kill without qualms, even their own. Sa mga lalawigang sakop ng 7th Division, nakikibaka sa kalaban si Jovito Palparan. Hindi siya aatras hanggang makawala sa gabi ng kilabot ang mga pamayanan at maka-ahon sa bukang-liwayway ng hustisya at kalayaan. In the harshest possible terms I condemn political killings. We together stopped judicial executions with the abolition of the death penalty. We urge witnesses to come forward. Together we will stop extrajudicial executions.”

After more than eight months since praising the now retired General, the unexplained killings have increased, indicating she merely paid lip service to her supposed condemnation of the atrocities. I cannot and will never subscribe to the foolish idea that the murders are being perpetrated by the communists themselves, even if in the past they admitted to having committed purges against suspected spies. To believe otherwise would be an insult to common sense considering that Gen. Hermogenes Esperon has already made pronouncements virtually equating hardline leftist groups in the same category as that of the CPP-NPA.

This latest hulabaloo of our dear President is another futile attempt to assuage the international community that she is taking steps to solve the problem. Besides, how do you expect a criminal to investigate his own crime? You need not have a bleeding heart to notice the inconsistency.

KANGAROO COURT VS. KANGAROOS IN UNIFORM

The People’s Permanent Tribunal (PPT) in the Hague, Netherlands recently pronounced a GUILTY “verdict” on the Arroyo Administration for gross human rights violations committed against members of the Left. Naturally, as can be expected, the government dismissed it as pure hogwash coming as it is from what it calls a kangaroo court. For the anti-communist cold-blooded fanatics out there, it is indeed very convenient to adopt such a propaganda line because it likewise discredits whatever political propaganda the leftists hope to achieve by the findings. Kangaroo court or not, there’s still no denying that the international community has grown skeptical of this government’s resolve to end the killings once and for all.

What about those kangaroos in the AFP who are allegedly undermining the integrity and independence of the judiciary? Are they any different from the leftists they accuse of setting up a biased tribunal as a means to further their political agenda? You be the judge.

On a related note, here is Alston’s report to the UN.

DESPERATE KANGAROO

The hostage taking incident was clearly an act of desperation by a man whose only intention, it seems, was to demand for free education for the children of the Musmos Day Care Center. Ironically, this is the kind of desperation that exudes positivity, in that we see here a person who was desperate not for himself but for the welfare of others. But sad to say, the very children he cares so much about were used by him as human shields in making known his grievances against the government.

There is another kind of desperation though. And this is the kind of desperation that has led to the deaths of more than 830 people. This is the desperation of one woman to stay in power at all costs.

THE ABSURDITY CONTINUES

As if the previous post was not enough, here is again a list of highly irregular and/or patently illegal actions the government has been perpetrating in recent weeks:

1. The arrest and botched transfer of Rep. Satur Ocampo to a detention facility in Leyte. What we have witnessed and will continue to witness in the coming days is not the prosecution of the beleaguered representative before the bar of justice but his persecution before a group of heartless, vindictive and arrogant men of power who think that by harrassing the Left, they can get away with their own crimes. I pity both the prosecutor who filed the case and the judge who issued the warrant. I’m pretty sure that the fear of reprisal was what pressured them into doing what they had to do under the circumstances. Just last year, a prosecutor friend confided to me that he was literally scolded by one of the higher-ups in the Department of Justice (you frequently see this guy on TV) for dismissing a complaint for rebellion filed by the military against an activist suspected of being a member of the New People’s Army. I bet the same thing could have happened had these people defied the caprice of the powers that be.

2. Joselito “Peter” Cayetano’s inclusion in the final list of senatoriables. The only reason given by the Comelec Law Department for including Joselito was because he was supposedly nominated by the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL), the political party founded by President Ferdinand Marcos who might resurrect anytime now if only to show his disgust for lawyer Oliver Lozano.

It appears that the once dominant KBL has become a repository of nuisance candidates. Even the late dictator’s son, Bongbong Marcos, has disowned the party’s senatorial line-up, practically calling it an embarrassment to the legacy of his father. How the Comelec arrived at this absurd and incredible conclusion is too obvious to even mention. If we go by their line of reasoning, all other nuisance candidates will not be declared as such so long as they are nominated by an accredited political party, in this case the KBL.

So what if a street vendor who goes by the name “Mike Defensor” is nominated by the Genuine Opposition, will the Comelec uphold the namesake’s candidacy? Nah, I don’t think so.

3. Ang Ladlad nalaglag! While the so-called government party-list “fronts” were given outright accreditation, Danton Remoto’s group was rejected in a rather unceremonious way by the macho men of the Comelec, who may have fears that their sons and grandsons might come out in the open and announce their intimate affiliation with the LGBT group. This is the only rationalization I could think of as to why hunk wannabee Benjamin Abalos, Sr. dismissed the group as not having met the qualifications required of a party-list group under Republic Act 7941. Section 2 of that law however belies this lame excuse offered by Abalos. It reads:

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State shall promote proportional representation in the election of representatives to the House of Representatives through a party-list system of registered national, regional and sectoral parties or organizations or coalitions thereof, which will enable Filipino citizens belonging to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors, organizations and parties, and who lack well defined political constituencies but who could contribute to the formulation and enactment of appropriate legislation that will benefit the nation as a whole, to become members of the House of Representatives. Towards this end, the State shall develop and guarantee a full, free and open party system in order to attain the broadest possible representation of party, sectoral or group interests in the House of Representatives by enhancing their chances to compete for and win seats in the legislature, and shall provide the simplest scheme possible.

Is the LGBT community underrepresented? Yes. Not only that, they are likewise being subjected to ridicule by a discriminating society.

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Does the LGBT community lack well-defined political constituencies? Yes, because of the absence of a “traditionally identifiable electoral group, like voters of a congressional district or territorial unit of government”.

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Can the LGBT community contribute to the formulation and enactment of appropriate legislation that will benefit the nation as a whole? But of course! Especially anti-discrimination laws designed to provide equal opportunities for all regardless of sexual preference.

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For a better understanding of what the party-list system is all about, click here.

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4. What? Jovito Palparan cleared of human rights violations in Central Luzon? This is probably the ultimate absurdity of all. No less than the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) fact-finding team has exonerated the retired general of possible criminal culpability to the spate of extrajudicial killings in all his areas of assignment, as it found no concrete evidence linking him to the crimes. Since the said findings will still have to be reviewed by the Commission en banc, we could only hope they live up to the mandate expected of them.

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The butcher must be in high spirits these days ready to take on his role as possible party-list representative of ANAD, the anti-communist “front” organization of the AFP.

SEASON OF THE ABSURD

What is it during elections that makes people, including media, focus more on the ridiculous and the absurd rather than on the real and substantial? A time where insanity prevails in the minds of those whose only motivation is to get the nod of unsuspecting Juan de la Cruz? Here are some silly events that have caught my attention these past few days:

1. The candidacy of Joselito “Peter” Cayetano. Out of nowhere, a man who goes by the nickname similar to that of Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano’s suddenly bursts into the political scene ready to wreak havoc on the latter’s senatorial bid. Every sensible person knows that this man is merely being used by Alan’s enemies in order to spoil his votes. Will the Comelec, known to condone cheating and stealing, declare this poor guy a nuisance candidate?

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The answer may be found in the premise of the question itself.

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2. The prevalence of turncoats. This is common to both sides of the political fence. Whereas not so long ago, they were at the point of crucifying Mrs. Arroyo for saying “I am sorry”, now all we hear from them are praises left and right for the alleged economic achievements of her administration.

Did I hear Mrs. Arroyo sing the ASO jingle: How much is that doggie in the window? Arf! Arf!

3. The hypocrisy of candidates. When you get to see them in their political ads on television, they appear and sound as if God sent them down from heaven to bring the good news. To me, however, they are like demons sent from down under to spread lies and deceit to the Filipino people every now and then.

Itanim sa senado? Dapat sa kanila ibaon sa lupa. Back to where they should belong.

4. The conceitedness of showbiz actors and actresses. This is not to generalize the entire members of the movie and television industry but there are simply those who should not run for public office. Worse, they are being wooed by veteran politicians — brainwashed at that — who would not have included them in their slate if not for their perceived popularity.

Heard the latest news about starlet Angelica Jones running for provincial board member in the province of Laguna? I think her campaign slogan will more or less run along this line: “Please vote for me because I’m not G.R.O.!”

5. Manny Pacquiao’s decision to run for Congressman in the 1st District of South Cotabato. This is the one thing that he will surely regret for the rest of his life. As to how he arrived at such a preposterous decision is a combination of a number of factors, including the insidious words and machinations of those who salivate at the prospect of getting the lion’s share of the guy’s campaign kitty.

Seems like incumbent Rep. Darlene Antonino-Custodio will be the one to deliver the knock-out blow which Mexican boxer Erik “El Terrible” Morales was not able to do.

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To the people of South Cotabato: You can help Manny by not voting for him.

6. Faulty electrical wiring. This is the best argument that the Comelec can never ensure HONEST and ORDERLY elections, although Abalos was quick to point out that the fire that gutted one of its buildings will not affect the conduct of the May 14, 2007 elections.

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Hello Gar… este Abalos! (picture taken from comelec.com)