Sama-sama na tayo lahat. Thanks to Inquirer for photo.The speech of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada may not be as explosive as expected but the public is benefitting from it because we are getting a bigger and more realistic picture of how rotten the system is, and how “tuwid na daan” is being drawn with crooked lines.
Estrada is one of three senators (the two others are Senators Ramon “Bong” Revilla and Juan Ponce-Enrile) charged with plunder in connection with the anomalous use of their PDAF as allegedly operated by Janet Lim Napoles.
Estrada, in his 90 minute speech, never denied his involvement with Napoles’ scam. His complaint was, why only the three of us?
It is distressing because what we are seeing is a quarrel among thieves. But we console ourselves with the wise words of old folks that “When cattle rustlers quarrel, the farmer gets back his cow.”
Seeing nothing improper about the practice, she bragged, “Ako ang nagpapasweldo doon. Hindi ako nagnanakaw sa bayan. Part iyon ng proteksiyon sa sarili ko. (I’m the one paying them. I don’t steal money from the people. This is part of my protection.)”
She denied that President Aquino meddled in her case as alleged by the lawyer of her former husband Jed Salang. “Problema ko ito at bakit ko sila isasali? (This is my problem so why would I involve them)” she said.
Someone should tell AiAi that having a policemen as her security escorts my not be illegal but it is highly improper considering that the alarming peace and order problem in the country is attributed to the PNP being undermanned and the rise of petty crimes in Metro Manila is due to lack of police visibility.
17 years ago. The more things change, the more they remain the same.Last Saturday, I saw a front page of the Philippine Daily Inquirer on the Facebook wall of Pablo Tariman.
The headline was “Congress kickbacks:how much for whom”. There was an illuThe story was about pork barrel and there was an illustration using a lechon and how the roasted swine was being divided.
The upper fold story was “MNLF occupies four more towns in Zambo.” Another story was “Higher gas price begins tomorrow.”
I thought that was last Saturday’s issue until I noticed the initials CIA (Congressional Initiative Allocation) and CDF (Countrywide Development Fund). Those were the old name of PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund) .
A closer look at the page showed the date: Aug. 13, 1996.
Yes, the more things change, the more they remain the same.
Tracking enforced disappearancesMessages of faith and hope marked the observance of the International Day of the Disappeared in the Philippines.
At the launching of the book, “Beyond Tears and Borders” at the office of the Commission on Human Rights, Edith Burgos, mother of farmer/activist Jonas Burgos who disappeared on April 28, 2007, said in the six-year search for her son, the emotions “vacillate between hope and despair.”
She said, “no matter what you do, there will always be indifferent people. “
She said families of the disappeared have to contend with labeling. “The moment you speak about the disappeared, you become labeled.”
But she said in the agony of the search, she has found “examples of selflessness.” She said it was her son’s love for others that made him devote his life for the farmers and caused him to be disappeared.
PH can learn lesson how U.S. handling Syrian crisisThe decision of U.S President Barack Obama to get the approval of Congress before he orders a missile attack on Syria should shatter the illusion of those who believe that America will immediately come to the rescue of the Philippines in the unlikely event of an armed conflict between the Philippines and China in the Scarborough Shoal and in the Spratlys.
Obama’s decision to involve Congress in the planned retribution against Syria for it’s unleashing of chemical weapons last week that allegedly killed 1,429 people will delay the airstrikes because Congress is on recess and the senators and congressmen will resume session on Sept. 9 yet.
There is no assurance that Congress will come on board just like what happened with British Prime David Cameron who was rebuffed by the British Parliament in his decision to get involved in the Syrian turmoil.
From the FB wall of Direk Joey Reyes who thanked Maria Jovita Zarate for it.
I told her not to despair because Napoles brother, Reynald, is still out there. The reward for his capture may not be P10 million but it would still be substantial. I told her to act fast or Pnoy might beat her to Napoles kin.
Aside from Reynald Lim, there’s former Palawan Governor Joel Reyes and his brother, former Coron Mayor Mario Reyes, suspects in the murder of broadcaster doctor Gerry Ortega. Their capture is worth P2 million each.
There’s also retired Army Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, wanted for the disappearance of two University of the Philippines students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño in Bulacan in 2006. Information about his whereabouts is worth P1 million.
Communications executive JB baylon, who is also chief fundraiser for the Philippine General Hospital said there’s also a P1,500 reward for “alias Berting”, a pickpocket victimizing students along Taft Avenue.
The way President Aquino welcomed Napoles, who is being investigated for allegedly diverting P10 billion worth of government funds to her and other politicians personal funds, even accompanying her to Camp Crame and making sure that she is given a room of her own while in detention for illegal detention of business associate,Benhur Luy, should be an incentive to the Reyes brothers and Palparan to also surface. With the right connection (get a lawyer who is close to Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda) you will also get a presidential welcome.
My favorite placard in last Monday’s Million People march in Luneta was the one held by a young man which said, “Janet, here na me…where na u?”
The placard showed several aspects of the inspiring event which gathered some 400,000 to 500,000 bound by outrage over corruption in government.
The simple message, written on a cartolina was in a text lingo: “where na u? “edsa na me.” “w8 lang.” Many of us, schooled in the importance and propriety of staying and writing complete sentences and correct spelling are aghast by the text language but that’s how the cellphone generation speaks.
PNoy: all pork barrel misuse was during past administration.I will hold my applause until I see the results of the Aquino administration’s efforts to investigate the pork barrel scam which was triggered by the discovery of a Janet Napoles operations involving initially five opposition senators and has now spilled into the current administration’s territory.
President Aquino and the Senate leadership have shown that they are listening to passions online and on the ground by accommodating the call for a probe into the misuse of the multi-billion Priority Development Assistance Fund, commonly referred to as pork barrel.
After dismissing the Napoles-triggered pork barrel expose estimated to reach as high as P10 billion as not as massive as the P728 million fertilizer scam during the time of Gloria Arroyo, Aquino yesterday said he is open to the suggestion of Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano to tap former Sen. Panfilo Lacson as special independent investigator who will look into the alleged irregularities in the use of pork barrel funds by some senators.
Pope Francis July 28 mass in Copacabana beach. Photo by Mario Tama, Getty Images. From National Post online..
There is more to the size of the crowd than just numbers.
Associated Press ran a story of Pope Francis July 28 Copacabana mass that concluded his highly successful visit in Brazil. A native of Argentina, the Brazil visit that capped the 2014 World Youth day, was his first in Latin America.
Press reports, quoting official figures by Vatican, said the Copacabana mass was attended by three million.
The reports said, in the history of Papal visits, only the five million Philippine crowds at the Rizal park mass of Pope John Paul II in 1995 topped the number of assembled Catholics at the Copacabana beach.
Napoles couple in a luxury bash.Dirty tricks operators have joined the Jenny Napoles pork barrel scam controversy to make the mess messier.
The immediate objective is clearly to distract attention from Napoles and members of her family and cause confusion. Sad to say some members of media fell into the trap.
Philippine Star ran a story yesterday implicating three senators who are allies of President Aquino in the pork barrel scam operated by Napoles. The three named in the report, attributing the information to whistleblower Benhur Luy and allegedly leaked by the National Bureau of Investigation, were Senators Loren Legarda, Antonio Trillanes IV and Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who oversees the NBI, categorically denied the report.
“We are wondering where those additional names are coming from. As far as I know, those names do not appear in the docs/records currently in NBI’s possession,” de Lima said adding that “There appear to be unseen hands or elements that are trying to muddle the ongoing NBI probe.”
De Lima could be right because we have also heard of one dirty tricks operator who was active in the last election being busy again contacting media people.
