Governance – Page 11 – ellen tordesillas

Aquino accepts SC decision on DAP, submits supplemental budget

Published by Ellen on July 29, 2014

By Ellen T.Tordesillas, VERA Files

President Aquino asked Congress approval of a supplemental budget Malacanang is submitting in what many see as compliance to the Supreme Court ruling of the Disbursement Acceleration Program as unconstitutional, a departure from his earlier combative stance.

Related story:

People’s SONA: Boss ‘fires’ PNoy

In his 5th State of the Nation Address Monday, President Aquino said they had had to suspend a number of projects “to make certain that we remain in accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision on the Disbursement Acceleration Program, or DAP.”

“This is why: We are proposing the passage of a supplemental budget for 2014, so that the implementation of our programs and projects need not be compromised,” he said.

Aquino pays tribute to Abad’s creative genius

Published by Ellen on July 27, 2014

The speech of President Aquino during 75th anniversary of the Department of Budget and Management on April 25, 2011 has become relevant amid the controversy generated by the Disbursement Accelerated Program or DAP, the brainchild of Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad that got unqualified support from President Aquino.

This is what Aquino said:

Stem cell research and many more in DBM list belie urgent reason for DAP

Published by Ellen on July 21, 2014

When a combative President Aquino addressed the nation Monday last week defending his Disbursement Accelerated Program or DAP which had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, he made it appear that the projects funded by DAP were cases that bordered between life and death.

To underscore the purported urgent nature of the DAP projects, Aquino shared a text message he got: “On this note, allow me to share a text message I received in the last week. It reads: “The politicians are making fiesta regarding DAP; but to our simple non-legalistic mind, it is like a motorist who parked in a ‘no parking zone’ because he had to rush to save the life of an accident victim, which has more value. I’m praying hard that these people will see the good of the people rather than their own ambition.”

“To this I replied: I think the situation now is similar to what you mentioned, and it might be even worse. I am after all being arrested for parking in an area that up to now hasn’t yet been declared a no-parking zone. Is this reasonable?”

Aquino’s DAP: lethal mix of ignorance and arrogance

Published by Ellen on July 15, 2014

President Aquino takes on the Supreme Court.

President Aquino’s belligerent stand against the Supreme Court’s decision declaring his pet initiative, the Disbursement Acceleration Program, unconstitutional was not at all surprising considering his defense of Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, Jr. last Friday.

Reading and listening to his speech was not only appalling. It was disturbing.

It showed the lethal combination of ignorance and arrogance.

The issue is his usurpation of Congress’ power of the purse which is a violation of the Constitution and he talked about parking zones!

Aquino’s DAP doctrine: good intentions superior to Constitution

Published by Ellen on July 13, 2014

Finally, President Aquino will speak to the people of the Philippines on the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program or DAP today (July 14),Malacañang announced.

Today is exactly two weeks after the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision declared as unconstitutional Aquino and his Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad pet project.

Malacañang sources said Aquino was stunned by the voting (13-0. Not even his appointees especially Chief Justice Lourdes Sereno sided with him!) he threw tantrums. He wants to wage war against the Supreme Court justices.

Wonder no more why House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr. wants an investigation on the Judiciary Development Fund being administered by the Supreme Court.

Last Friday Aquino gave the public a preview of what he is going to say today. During the cabinet meeting on the 2015 budget, Aquino announced that he was rejecting the resignation of Abad. “I have decided not to accept his resignation. To accept his resignation is to assign to him a wrong and I cannot accept the notion that doing right by our people is wrong.”

Yesterday Abad, who was silent the past two weeks issued a statement taking responsibility for the illegal DAP which was the reason, he said, he tendered his resignation. But there was no apology or remorse for making a mockery of the budget process with the juggling of P374 billion.

Ayun sa doktrina ni PNoy, basta maganda ang intensyun, walang batas-batas

Published by Ellen on July 12, 2014

Basta tama ang intensyun ko, walang mali. Anong unconstitutional?

Ngayon na klaro na ang doktrina ng Tuwid na Daan galing mismo kay Pangulong Aquino, pwede na natin gawin ang gusto natin gawin, basta lang maganda ang intensyun, pasado lahat yan.

Sa cabinet meeting noong Biyernes, inanunsyo ni Aquino na hindi niya tatanggapin ang resignation na inihain ni Budget Secretary Butch Abad kahit sinimplang sila ng malakas (13-0, unanimous, walang nag-disagree) ng Supreme Court sa hindi naayon sa Constitution na Disbursement Acceleration Fund o DAP.

What’s wrong with the picture?

Published by Ellen on July 12, 2014

The picture we are referring to is that of Interior Secretary Mar Roxas hoisting a sack of NFA rice residue during an inspection of a rice warehouse in Muntinlupa.

Some say that picture, which has gone viral, is photoshopped. We had the photo analyzed by professional photographers and they said it’s genuine, not digitally tampered with.

They explained that the reason Roxas hoisting of the sack looked effortless was because the content as indicated in the sack was not regular rice but “broken rice residue” or darak used for animal feed.

PAGCOR vs Colmenares

Published by Ellen on July 5, 2014

PAGCOR Chairman Cristino "Bong" Naguiat — PAGCOR Chairman Cristino “Bong” Naguiat

Last week Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares together with Archbishop Oscar Cruz, fellow Rep. Carlos Zarate, former Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño, BAYAN Secretary General Renato Reyes and COURAGE President Ferdinand Gaite, filed a letter of opposition to the reappointment of the whole Philippine Amusement and Gaming board led by

its chairman Christino Naguiat before the Governance Commission for Government-Owned or Controlled Corporation.

Colmenares said among the among their complaints was PAGCOR‘s non-payment of P5.14B tax.

Worse, he said, PAGCOR paid for the income tax of big time casinos like Travellers International Hotel Groups, Inc., MCE Leisure (Philippines) Corporation, Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels Inc. and Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment, Inc.

This is against its mandate “to help the poor and the needy,” he said.

The incredible Dennis Cunanan

Published by Ellen on March 5, 2014

Dennis Cunanan, the deputy director general of Technology Resource Center (TRC), said of the some P600 million PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) or pork barrel that passed through his office and ended up in the pockets of three senators and Janet Napoles, he didn’t get a single centavo.

Incredible! As incredible as Cunanan, a college undergraduate, getting appointed by Gloria Arroyo as executive director of the Commission on Higher Education.

Thanks Karina Constantino-David for reminding the public of that attempt by Cunanan to put one over the Filipino people.

Lost letters in Palace hint deeper leadership problem

Published by Ellen on February 21, 2014

Now we know there is a problem with Malacanang’s communication system. Whether Malacanang knows that is a completely different matter.

Two letters that later on became of national, even international, importance did not reach President Aquino. The first one was a letter from the late Jamalul Kiram III sent in 2010 in the first few months of the Aquino presidency and the other one was just last year from Maria Teresa Martinez, mother of Michael Christian Martinez, the 17-year old who, for the first time, enabled the Philippine flag to fly proudly in the Winter Olympics by making it to the finals of the 2014 Winter Olympics figure skating competition in Sochi, Russia. This, despite lack of financial support from the government.

Category: Governance