Month: October 2007

‘Abnormal times require extraordinary actions.

Last week journalist Jarius Bondoc wrote in his column in the Philippine Star some of the things that Romulo Neri, former chief of the National Economic and Development Authority, had told him in confidence about the controversial National Broadband Network-ZTE deal, the latest anomaly shaking the Gloria Arroyo’s shaky presidency.

It will be recalled that when Neri appeared before the Senate, he revealed the “Sec, may 200 ka dito” bomb that did in Comelec chairman Benjamin Abalos. But when the trail reached the doorstep of Gloria Arroyo, he invoked “executive privilege” which is defined as in the Supreme Court ruling on EO 464 as “the right of the President and high-level executive branch officers to withhold information from Congress, the courts, and ultimately the public.”

I perfectly understand the outrage of Filipino-Americans over the racist quote of the character of Susan Mayer (played by the lovely Teri Hatcher) in the hit series in the United States, “Desperate Housewives”.

In the premiere episode of its fourth season aired last week, Mayer asked for the credentials of the gynecologist who examined her and told her that she was approaching menopause. She said, “Can I check those diplomas ‘coz I just want to make sure that they’re not from some med school in the Philippines.”