Never Mind

What can be better to a foreign policy that develops strong ties and strengthens friendly relations with a giant and powerful neighbour? Where foreign investments are promised to rise sky high to provide employment to the poor, hungry and jobless? And foreign assistance in the building of road and bridges, railways and other transport systems will come like manna from heaven?

Never mind that in exchange of all these promises  is the deafening silence of the vassal-behaving state on  the encroachment of the giant into the latter’s sovereign territory, constructing surreptitiously   military bunkers, and safe havens for the giant’s  naval warships  and air bombers.

Never mind if the  initial billion pesos  of   promised investments came in the form of smuggled  illegal drugs (methamphetamine) that has provided business opportunities to local drug lords and death-courting  employment as drug pushers to the poor and jobless.

Never mind if, as a consequence, millions of   young people’s lives are ruined by addiction.

Never mind if the eradication of the drug menace is one the centerpiece programs of the regime.

Never mind, never mind, as long as the head of the vassal state is assured of his perch in power no matter what.

So what do we get from a never-mind governance?  Nothing but promises and contradictions and more promises of an imagined paradise from its build-and-build  program. But, nothing has been built so far except those friendly Chinese military structures in the country’s Scarborough Shoals and the “eco-friendly” resort hotel  in the midst of the diminishing  forest of Boracay island. Of course in the pipeline is the Chinese Galaxy mega $500M Casino Resort Hotel that can accommodate accordingly 5000 guests at any given time which is to rise in a 26-ha island property in 2019. 

Never mind if the island is ordered closed to undergo massive rehabilitation because it already smells shit, its carrying capacity having been broached long time ago.

With the clear and imminent danger in West Philippine Sea, the worsening economy driven to the drain by the out-of-control rampaging anti-poor TRAIN, and the unsettling political atmosphere, the country is  in bad form, to say the least. But the President is not worried nor is afraid because he had solicited and accordingly got the support and assurance of bosom friend Xin Jianping that he remains in place and that China will never invade the Philippines, as if it has not done it yet.

The future is bleak. It has never been bright anyway, said some. But if our primus leader continues to waggle in the dark and is continuously egged by his millions of blind followers to push through the darkness, how far and how long can we see the glint of hope? 

Ang sabi-sabi sa kalye, my apologies to the UP baby boomer activists for the liberty:

“Kong walang kikibo, sinong kikibo.

Kong walang kikilos sinong kikilos.

Makibaka, huwag UMASA!’

One Year After: Never Again

Reportedly six proposed master plans for the reconstruction of the ravaged city of Marawi with cost estimates ranging from P 30 - 80B, had been on the table for government to choose from, as early as  December 2017, or some two months  after the conclusion of the conflict.

 Six months later, it seems the government has yet to make a choice or has to come up with another plan. Meanwhile, the 350000 displaced residents are accommodated in temporary shelters and evacuation centers exposed to the elements and at the mercy of the vagaries of the weather. Those who were not accommodated by the quick-response projects had no other option but to seek refuge in the kindness of relatives in neighboring communities while waiting for their dwellings  in ground zero and periphery to be liveable again. 

In any case, the exceeded carrying capacity of these temporary measures may spawn, if not yet already, a lot of troubles along sanitation, health, and relationship. The elderly and the infirm, the nursing mothers and their young will be the first to buckle down from poor sanitation and hygiene, inadequate food supplies, water and medicines.

In fairness though, the rebuilding of the city cannot take off until the rubbles are cleared and the hundreds of unexploded bombs that were dropped from the air are recovered from their sink holes. It’s still a long wait,  but in situations like this, safety is the best policy.

How to avoid what happened in Marawi, the decision and strategies that caused it, is something the government should seriously review in the meantime that the clearing and bomb retrieval is still in progress. Congress, both the Senate and the House, is duty-bound to conduct an investigation on the matter. It ought to eschew politics and leave no stone unturned in finding why the fighting to hunt and terminate 100- 500 terrorists (the figure kept on changing during the battle) turned into a war effort that took 153 days to complete and had effectively and outrageously destroyed an entire city.

There are other  cities and urban centers in Mindanao  that are vulnerable to terrorist incursions and propaganda efforts. The Marawi tragedy should be avoided: it should not repeat.  The cost of the war in terms of lives, human suffering and financial and material resources was staggering. If the cost in lives and consequent suffering of the populace is put in the equation, the decision in pursuing the war borders in insanity. It should not be allowed to happen again.

It is, of course, imperative for the government to preserve and promote peace. But any intervention  along this must be thoroughly calculated and put in the balance  to determine the overall cost, particularly in lives and human suffering. Here enters the thorough assessment of the political and  military strategies to employ in pursuit of  war objectives. Without this exercise, a war on terror may become unnecessarily destructive like hitting with a hammer  a scorpion on the head of a person: you crush the scorpion as well as the head of the person you wish to protect from the deadly  arachnid. That is what happened to the Islamic City of Marawi.

The Maute-ISIS  terrorists evidently lost the battles but might have won the war in portraying the government as a giant terrorist in the eyes of the Meranaw, especially in the young.

This should not be allowed to happen once more.

Never again.

The Falling Ax in the Mind

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno of the judiciary department of the Republic was axed, Out.

 Is the President that scared that the ax may next fall on him that he has to secure the assurance and support of Communist China’s  president Xi Jinping?

 But who is really after the President’s head? Is there a group with enough power and capacity to do it?

However he talks, there’s no denying that PRRD is an accomplished strategist. He has packed Congress with his lapping dogs. The Supreme Court has started wagging its tail, too. He has secured the loyalty of the armed security forces of the State by raising their salaries and other emoluments heaven high beyond  anybody’s expectation.

Meanwhile, the political opposition looks emaciated and has  not shown any meaningful activity to prove its worth. Indeed, it’s rightly called yellow. The Bangsamoro rebels have been quieted by an assurance of self-rule via federalism. The NPA can only afford a mosquito-like disturbance here and there.

The CIA won’t dare any external adventure to remove him with his good-vibes Trump around. Unless, of course, the intervention will greatly advance  the interest of the USA. It will not under present circumstances when China is flexing its muscles in West Philippine Sea.

 The  International Criminal Court (ICC)  can’t even step a foot in Philippine soil to conduct on-site investigation on EJK; the minion of trolls will surely chase its investigators  away.

 There is nothing around to fear then. So what is the Time’s strongman afraid of? 

 Nothing but fear itself, the fear  in his mind – the fear of fear.

And this is the worst kind of fear, the fear without shape or form, with no material existence. This fear is a malevolent ghost, the resident evil in the mind. This fear becomes pain that turns a strongman into a weakling. The only way to overcome this worst enemy is to take Fentanyl and be in cloud nine as he once claimed (joke or no joke).

Of course, to quell the disquieting backlash,   the assurance of friend Xi about Tay Digong's continuous stay in the Palace by the murky Pasig may soon be declared as a joke.

Declaring an unthinkable as a joke has been proven by the regime as the best way out of a quagmire.

But mind you, he that started the joke that started the whole world crying would soon find that the joke would be on him. Here’s the Bee Gees to be exact:

I started a joke which started the whole world crying
But I didn't see that the joke was on me oh no
I started to cry which started the whole world laughing
Oh If I'd only seen that the joke was on me

I looked at the skies running my hands over my eyes
And I fell out of bed hurting my head from things that I said
'Till I finally died which started the whole world living
Oh if I'd only seen that the joke was on me

I looked at the skies running my hands over my eyes
And I fell out of bed hurting my head from things that I said
'Till I finally died which started the whole world living
Oh if I'd only seen that the joke was on me
Oh no that the joke was on me

A Coup d'etat in May

May 11, 2018 will go down in history as a day of infamy in the country’s judiciary.

 On this day, the Supreme Court decided 8-6 to remove its own Chief Justice on a quo warranto petition filed by the Solicitor General of the government of the Republic of the Philippines.

We may recall that 9 out of the 14 sitting justices of the Supreme Court joined last March the detractors of CJ Sereno in demanding her resignation. Thus, in deciding on 11 May 2018, to remove the Chief Magistrate from her post, the SC cannot be said to be impartial and objective, a basic requirement in dispensing justice.          

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A judge should not only be presumed independent, impartial and objective to decide on a case but in actual behavior must be, so as not to derail due process. If from the start the majority of the justices were already after her removal by resignation, and the quo warranto petition before them was about her removal, too, then their independence, impartiality and objectivity were tainted if not compromised. This notwithstanding, they tried and decided to remove her. Due process was, thus,  blatantly trampled upon by the very authority that is supposed to protect and uphold it. It was a historic miscarriage of justice.

                                                  

The said justices could have volunteered to inhibit themselves so that the integrity of the court could not be held suspect.   Considering the power politic preceding the event, it should have been the best thing to do.

It is everybody’s knowledge that the President was mad at the Chief Magistrate when she insinuated that the Palace was behind  SG Calida’s filing of the quo warranto petition against her. The  furious President  thereupon declared  war  on the Chief Magistrate and vowed to take steps to remove her .

PRRD minced no words in expressing his anger sayings: “Ikaw Sereno, sinabi ko na sa ‘yo hindi ako nakialam (I’m telling you, Sereno, that I didn’t meddle). If you are insisting, then count me in. Count me in and I will egg Calida to do his best. Ako na mismo ang maglakad, [ka]kalaban sa’yo (I will be the one to do it, I’ll fight you,)”

What was really the beef of the President with Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno?

We may be reminded that during the witch hunting that accompanied the bloody  campaign against illegal drugs, the President pinpointed  some judges implicated in the commerce of illegal drugs.

CJ Sereno was quick to react and declared, in behalf of the Supreme Court, that the Court is independent from the other branches of government and ought to be left alone, following its procedures, in determining the guilt or innocence of any accused judges. This belligerent stand in an attempt to protect the independence of the judiciary infuriated the ball-wrecking CEO of the land and everything went downhill thereafter.

The battles were waged and raged in all fronts. The impeachment proceeding against the Chief Justice was initiated thereupon. Before it can be completed, the Solicitor General  filled the quo warranto petition against her. Along the way, some group within and outside the court worked to force her resignation.

                                 

Valid or not the grounds for her impeachment, her accusers can proceed in pursuing it because it is the constitutional remedy to remove her from office. The Impeachment Court decides her guilt or innocence. The quo warranto proceeding, other hand, came in like a coup initiated by the Executive Department. It’s foul, a blow below the belt, a no - no in a constitutional democracy. It’s violative of the fundamental law of the land.

Come to think also of it, the Solicitor General, who is under the command of the President, is the principal law officer and legal defender of the Republic of the Philippines. His primary duty is to represent the government, its agencies and instrumentalities, its officials and agents in any litigation, proceeding and investigation before the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeals.

Why then would the legal defender of the government launch the offensive of filing a petition to remove the government’s very own Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

Whatever, the President got what he wanted; his archenemy was booted out from the highest justice tribunal of the land.

The Supreme Court will never be the same again.

Reforming SK

The  Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) election which is supposed to be held every 3 years since December 4, 1992, was last held on  May 9, 2010. The succeeding elections were postponed several times and were never held on the appointed dates until Monday, 14 May 2018.

Among others, the several postponements were apparently made by lawmakers to develop corrective counter measures to observations that the SK failed as a training ground for future leaders but has become instead a breeding ground for political dynasty and corrupt politicians.

Consider this. The youth in many communities were observed to disappear in the eve of SK  elections. The young voters were herded by politicians or their leaders into resorts and other secluded areas, and were fed, wined and given allowances to secure their votes for the candidates of the  politicians’  choice, often their kids or close of kin.

Moreover, the SKs developed a poor reputation. A 2007 study by UNICEF and the Department of Interior and Local Government reported that  “The SK’s performance for the past ten years has been generally weak. This is especially true in terms of coming up with legislations, promoting the development of young people, submitting reports and holding consultations with their constituents.” It goes without saying that the 10 percent of Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) from barangay funds set aside for SK activities were not meaningfully spent or were used instead by the barangay government for other purposes.

After legislating to postpone the SK elections three or four times, Congress finally passed the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Law (RA No.14742) on January 15, 2016. The law addresses the issues that had hounded the SK, particularly of its becoming a breeding ground for corrupt political dynasty and the ineptness of the youth council to manage the affairs and concerns for young people. The law changed the age of council members from 15 -17 to 18 -30 years old and forbids individuals from seeking an SK post who are related to any incumbent elected official, either local or national, to within the second degree of consanguinity (blood relations- covering siblings and grandparents-grandchildren). RA 14742 is the first Philippine law with an anti-political dynasty restriction for elected positions, as mandated by the 1987 Constitution.

The SK  functions much like the barangay council, albeit focusing on everything that’s related to the barangay’s youth or members of the Katipunan ng mga Kabataan [KK], barangay residents aged 18-30. Under the SK Reform law, elected SK members are required to go through training programs before they can assume office. SK officials are also allowed to sign government contracts, which presupposes this time their capacity to use responsibly funds allotted to them.

 How the law improves the performance and the image of SKs is something to watch within three years.

 Suffice it to say that the anti-political dynasty restriction in the SK election may only work if COMELEC is serious and truly diligent in examining the bloodline of each candidate on the possibility of being related to any incumbent elected official in the government. But on this Monday elections, was the COMELEC prepared for the demanding task when the filling for candidacy was so close to election day?  Failure to do the bloodline examination may force the body to yield to a messy post-election remedy, that is, to petitions for disqualifications from defeated candidates. Expect quo warranto cases to rise later in more informed and capable urban areas.

On the other hand, raising the SK age qualification to 18-24 is premised on the assumption that the individual in this age range, already in the age of majority, is now mature and responsible enough to make public-affecting decisions. Thus elected SK officials can now enter into contract in the exercise of their functions. This new capacity is expected to improve performance and advance the interest of the young people of the community.

While this development is promising, it makes SK officials vulnerable to corrupt practices. Contracting for government projects are a rich avenue of corruption. This exposure will make or unmake SK officials.  This hands-on training in management  may deliver either a good or a corrupt leader. 

My Spiritual Journey

On Being Spiritual

Spirituality is often associated with religion. It need not be. I believe one can be spiritual without being stuck in religious beliefs or dogmas.

To be spiritual is to journey beyond the self, to step out from one’s comfort zone to become part of something great, noble and uplifting.

It is the passion of having, acting and being faithful to a cause, a vision, a dream to live and to cherish.

It is dwelling in the beautiful, the loveliness and the inspiring side of things.

It is being good, compassionate and caring.

It is understanding and respect for all things living in the planet.

It is about love: thinking, feeling and sharing its abundance to others to make this world a better place to live for everyone.

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       I love to learn so much such that studying for me became a passion, a cause, a pleasurable enterprise to pursue. My life, thus, as a student from college to graduate school was all fun and joy. The voluminous reading and writing assignments and examinations did not intimidate but gave me certain pleasures. Hence, I succeeded in everything I wanted to do as a learner.

I believe in change: I have spent my life working for change to happen beginning with myself and those around me.

I believe that man is basically good. It is the responsibility of those who have been enlightened to help him discover and manifest his goodness.

I was passionate as a political activist because I believe in the cause I was fighting for. I always believe that a better life is for all not just for a segment of society.

I became a practitioner in conflict resolution, in healing broken relationships: I believe that the pursuit for peace begins at home, in organizations, in the immediate community where we belong and must be secured, maintained and expanded from there to the larger society.

I gave the best of my life to teaching and to research and community work because I knew that what I was doing contributed to the fulfilment of the cause I’ve been fighting for life.

I have shared what I have, my life to others because of what I believe and was enriched not diminished by the act. God favours those who favour themselves in the side of compassion.

I was hounded by obstacles and severe difficulties in my journey. Wounded, and hurt, my enemies, nevertheless, had not defeated me.

I made the difference. I am the difference.

Life and Bike

Life is like riding a bicycle

You may lose your balance and

May fall to the ground

 If you stop moving

No matter how careful you may be

You will still one day crash and fall.

Be ready.

No biker worth his salt has not

Scraped his knees and bruised his arms

At one time or another.

Be careful.

The speed that thrills is the speed that kills.

If the downhill run scares,

Walk.