Media Influence

In yesterday’s tense situation in Makati, one can see the influence media has in reporting the news, both positively and negatively.

On the positive side, thanks to the media coverage, it was easy to get information about what was happening, considering that there were media persons inside the Peninsula. One could see just how much support the idiotic Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and Marine Danilo Lim had, which wasn’t very much. Thanks to the bird’s eye view from the media helicopter, one could see the pathetic march of Trillanes and company from the Makati Regional Trial Court to the Peninsula (what is it about Trillanes and Makati hotels?). And thanks to the live coverage, we could follow the drama (Tragicomedy? Farce?) as it unfolded. Thus, we are better informed to make judgments about the events that unfurled yesterday, and see for ourselves what an idiot Trillanes is.

On the negative side, the media seems to think that they have a right to cover everything. This, unfortunately, included the positions of the Philippine National Police (PNP) SWAT team. If Trillanes and company had enough firepower (which, thankfully, they didn’t), it would have been child’s play for them to ambush the PNP and Army forces, as the positions of the assault team were shown all and sundry on the air. This morning, on “Umagang Kay Ganda”, the lame response of one of the hosts to that charge was that the positions of the Magdalo rebels inside the hotel were also broadcast. Of course, since there were more camera men outside the hotel, the positions of the assault team outside were a lot clearer than those of the rebels inside. And, besides, the host still hasn’t answered the question: why give away positions of legitimate police officers to persons who are clearly out to sow chaos?

What I didn’t like was that, after the standoff ended, a number of the media personnel inside the hotel were cuffed and brought to the Bicutan police station for processing. Obviously, that didn’t look good on camera, and the media fallout from that is bound to be nasty. On the other hand, ABS-CBN, which issued a condemnation of the apparent arrest, should be thankful it wasn’t charged with interfering with a legitimate police action for their exposure of the assault team’s positions.

Besides, it was explained that some of the Magdalo faction posed as media in order to infiltrate the Makati RTC and join up with Trillanes, so one can understand the police’s erring on the side of caution. Still, the images, which ABS-CBN so loudly plays up, bring back bad memories of times better forgotten, of martial law and suppression of freedom.

I’m sure that media coverage of this event will continue; barring any more disturbances, there doesn’t seem to be much else to cover. I hope, though, the media will cover the event with a little more responsibility than what they demonstrated yesterday.

Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing

One has to wonder why Senator Antonio Trillanes IV wanted to get himself elected to the Senate, if all he wants to do is destabilize the government.

Trillanes, along with Marine General Danilo Lim, walked out of their trial on coup d’etat charges at the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC), and proceeded to the Manila Peninsula, where they, along with other anti-government personalities, called for the resignation of the President and for the armed forces to withdraw support for the government.

While people wait and see what comes of the tense situation, I can’t help but think about how pathetic Trillanes and his merry band made their way from the Makati RTC to the hotel. There probably weren’t more than 50-60 people walking the streets of Makati, and a good percentage of those were probably media newsies covering the event.

Looking at the list of personalities who have made their way to the hotel, I can see that it’s mostly composed of has-beens and noisemakers, the regular anti-government crowd. Is this the catalyst that will spark yet another popular revolt, such as the previous EDSAs?

I think not.

Unlike the previous uprisings, this event is coming at a time when the collective anger against the government isn’t at an all-time high; in fact, it’s merely simmering at the moment, if ever.

Unfortunately for Trillanes and company, the Filipino people have gotten tired and disillusioned at popular revolts, namely because these have not succeeded in bringing the desired effect, which is clean and effective government.

What’s more, the economic policies of the government appear to be working. The peso is rapidly strengthening, and investors appear to be more confident about the current government. Does the anti-government crowd have anything to offer to counter this, aside from media circuses such as what’s happening in Makati now?

Perhaps the answer is not in loud but empty tantrums such as what Trillanes is doing, but by continue working for the betterment of the Filipino people, within the legal boundaries. The anti-government crowd has to accept that there is nothing that can be done to unseat the President at this time; the anger is not strong enough, and the people don’t look as if they’re going to come out in droves.

As long as the anti-GMA crowd engages in empty shows, they cannot present a better alternative to what is clearly a corrupt government, and will essentially fail in their attempt to replace it.

Back Again

I don't think I've been out of posts for this long. But with exam week, a ton of backlog, and other things to do, writing for this blog has been impossible. With the end of exams, though, I'm ready to get back on track.


At any rate, the long hiatus was good for me in the sense that I've managed to rest up a little. So here we go again.

Batasan Bombing

It's been a busy week, since it's the week before the exams, and things are rather hectic. This'll just be a quick shot.

It's also been busy in the news with the tragedy involving the Saguisags, and the bombing at the Batasang Pambansa, which claimed the life of 4 people, including Basilan Representative Wahab Akbar. This morning, three suspected Abu Sayyaf members were killed during a police raid in Payatas, and the current theory, I guess, is that the Abu Sayyaf are responsible for killing Akbar.

I can't help but think that it was convenient that Abu Sayyaf members are killed only a day or two after the Batasan was bombed. I can't help but think that this smells like one of the numerous cover-ups that our government has perpetrated on us.

Traffic Stories

Yesterday’s early morning tragedy involving former Senator Rene Saguisag highlights the sorry state of traffic enforcement and discipline in Metro Manila.

Saguisag and his wife’s van was hit by a speeding dump truck at the Arnaiz and Osmena intersection; Saguisag’s wife Dulce, a former Secretary of Social Work and Development, was seated where the impact occurred, and was probably killed on impact. Saguisag and his driver suffered serious injuries, and were brought to Makati Medical Center.

Depending on whose version you listen to, either the truck driver or the Saguisags beat the red light. Looking at the extent of the damage to the Saguisag’s van, I’m more inclined to believe the truck driver was at fault; in fact, a taxi driver who was about two cars behind the Saguisags claims that the truck beat the red light.

The tragedy has brought out comments from Senators that traffic enforcement laws should be strictly followed; Senator Pia Cayetano suggested that truck drivers should undergo psychological testing before being hired.

All of this talk will simply be noise if nothing concrete is done. More likely, the talk of stricter traffic enforcement will vanish once the next big current events issue rears its head. With this government, that shouldn’t take long.

But strict traffic enforcement and driver’s license issuance would go a long way in lessening the chances of what happened early Thursday morning. All it takes is the political will. Unfortunately, with the extent of corruption going on in the national government, a mundane thing such as traffic enforcement will probably get lost in the political shuffle.

* * *

While the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is doing its best in managing the sprawling traffic problem, one road seems to have escaped its attention.

Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City is probably the widest road in the entire Metro Manila area, more than either EDSA or C-5. And yet, traffic enforcement is more or less non-existent, despite Commonwealth’s reputation as the most dangerous road in Metro Manila.

Buses and jeepneys careen down Commonwealth as if their drivers were at the Grand Prix, inexplicably take the inside lane, and then swerve suddenly to pick up passengers on the other side. In addition, it’s commonplace for public utility vehicles to take on and drop off passengers in the middle of the road, which makes the people possible targets for incoming traffic.

Motorcycles zip down the expanse of Commonwealth, their drivers and passengers often helmetless. I remember seeing a whole family of about four crammed onto a cycle, and none of the riders were wearing helmets. Considering the speed at which most of the vehicles travel, all it will take is one bad swerve, and that whole family will probably be wiped out.

The U-turns which dot the road's expanse aren't very well illuminated, especially at night, making it fairly easy for unwary travelers to smash into them, whether they were drunk or not, which is the MMDA's standard excuse for such accidents.

It’s not surprising that there’s a traffic accident along Commonwealth almost every day. Without any traffic enforcement, drivers violate the law with impunity.

Now if the Metro Manila Development Authority, the Quezon City government, and the national government got their act together, something could be done about making roads like Commonwealth safer. But will they? I wonder what it will take? Something like what happened to the Saguisags? Considering that the Batasang Pambansa, the home of the House of Representatives, that’s actually a distinct possibility.

* * *

On a personal note, I am particularly irate about the Iglesia ni Kristo’s main place of worship, which is situated right beside my parents’ house. You’d think a religion which requires its members to tithe a percentage of their income would be able to afford parking for their worshippers. But, no, the faithful park their cars along Commonwealth, often taking 4-5 lanes.

The problem here is that they often block the gate of the subdivision where my parents live, and since a good number simply leave their vehicles in the middle of the road, it’s almost impossible sometimes to get out of the subdivision. If I beep my horn at the drivers to move, they even look at me as if it’s my fault, when they’re the ones whose vehicles should be towed away.

But, then again, the Iglesia have long been inconsiderate neighbors. Their 65^th anniversary, which happened when I was in college, shut down most of Quezon City, as the Iglesia followers took over a good chunk of Commonwealth as their parking area, spilling into our subdivision as well as UP. The faithful made the surrounding area their bedroom, and, sadly for our noses, their toilet. After they left, it was a huge task to clean up. Thankfully, such an occurrence hasn’t happened again, but every time the Iglesia has its services, getting out of my parents’ subdivision takes some skill.

It should be noted that none of these illegally parked cars will ever be towed away, as politicians local and national kowtow to the Iglesia for votes come election time, which translates into political and social power. The Iglesia’s founder had something there when he required his followers to vote as one. It gave the Iglesia clout, and a certain degree of untouchability.

However, this should not be the case. The law should be applied equally and fairly.

Yeah, and, as Wayne Campbell would say, monkeys would fly out of my butt.

Unbelievable Impunity

As people step out of the shadows to reveal themselves as the source of the so-called cash gifts that were distributed to select congressmen and provincial governors last October 11, the issue gets more and more muddled, and the actual source of the funds murkier.

Twelve days after the incident occurred, two members of the League of Provinces of the Philippines (LPP) claimed that the LPP was the source of the P500, 000 cash gifts that were given out notably to the neophyte Pampanga governor, the former priest Ed Panlilio and Bulacan governor Joselito Mendoza. LPP Spokesman Palawan Governor Joel Reyes and LPP secretary general, Eastern Samar Governor Ben Evardone, said that the money was an amount normally given to first-term governors. However, several governors also claimed that they knew nothing about such a program.

Yesterday, almost a month after the incident occurred, the President’s own party claimed responsibility for the P200,000 that was given to congressmen. Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI) regional head Rep. Amelita Villarosa confirmed that KAMPI was the source of the cash gifts that were given to selected congressmen, saying that this was KAMPI’s way of helping congressmen who needed financial assistance. As to why money was given to Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante, Villarosa explained that her party “party provided assistance on a case-to-case basis, whether they were with the administration or the opposition bloc.” As to why it took so long for KAMPI to come out into the open, Villarosa said that the party did not want everybody to seek financial aid from it. She went on to say that, since the money given out came from a private fund, there was no need for an investigation.

The fact that the two admissions came out so long after the incident occurred is an indication of the effort of the administration spinmeisters to create a plausible reason for cash gifts to be given within the very halls of Malacañang. Unfortunately, the time gap between the “gift-giving” and the admission creates the impression that the LPP and KAMPI are fall guys in this mess. If there was nothing wrong with the cash giving, why did they only come out now? Furthermore, why haven’t those governors and congressmen who received cash gifts come out, if there was nothing wrong?

Considering that majority of our countrymen wallow in poverty, the cash gifts are obscene gestures if they actually came from LPP and KAMPI. These entities have that much money to throw around? Wow. Couldn’t they have used the money more judiciously, like actually assist the poor?

Supposedly, these gifts are for the benefit of the governors’ and congressmen’s constituencies. However, like the pork barrel funds, they cannot be audited, so who’s to say that the money actually reaches and benefits the people? More likely, these cash gifts are obvious symbols of the corruption that pervades our political landscape because they simply line the already deep pockets of our government officials. The fact that they are distributed openly, and that officials, notably Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and former Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, see nothing wrong with such gifts, only tells us that the corruption in the government is so bad that officials can openly say that they see nothing wrong with it.

Unfortunately, we ourselves have become so jaded and cynical about it that we simply shrug our shoulders and say, “So, what else is new?” And, since we stand by and do nothing, these officials, elected and appointed, continue their corrupt ways with impunity.

Close Call

It's two in the morning. I couldn’t sleep.

I’ve been fiddling around with my computer, playing some games, reading some files, all the while side-stepping around what I’d been wanting to put down for the past three hours.

My dad almost died yesterday afternoon.

Sunday morning found me and my family, along with my mother-in-law and niece, joining my parents and my sister on a picnic trip to La Mesa Ecopark. Once there, we had an enjoyable time.

Little did I know that my dad was already experiencing chest pains. He probably wanted to enjoy the trip with his grandchildren and family, so he didn’t say anything.

But the signs were there. He was lying down a lot while we were there, and, when we were walking back to the parking lot, he was moving much more slowly than my sister and I.

In the afternoon, he let us know about the chest pains, and my brother brought him and my mother to the Heart Center for tests.

At around 4, my mom texted me to ask me if I could bring food that she had prepared to their Catholic ministry in the Ortigas area.

At about 5:30, when I was at the Santolan-Ortigas intersection, I received a call from my brother that my dad had gone into cardiac arrest. I immediately headed back to the Heart Center, the delivery all but forgotten.

On the way back, I began wondering what life would be like without my dad. Already, I was feeling a great empty hole in my heart, as I think I’d mentioned before, I think the world of my dad; a good part of who I am is because of him. I started texting my friends, telling them about the situation, and asking for prayers.

By the time, I had gotten back to the Heart Center, my dad had been revived, and was to be prepped for an angiogram and either an angioplasty or a bypass. Words could not describe the relief I felt when I got the news.

I wound up going back to delivering the food, and, by the time I returned to the hospital, my dad had already been operated on, an angioplasty. In fact, he was sounding very much like himself, joking and teasing the nurses and the doctors who attended him.

Of course, he’s still not out of the woods yet. He'll be staying in the hospital for about 2-3 more days. When he comes out of the hospital, he’s going to have to take it easier, and it’ll definitely mean some lifestyle changes, both for him and us in the family; as my sister put it, because of our parents, we’re high-risk for some of the ailment that my parents have. Still, it’ll be a small price to pay to live a little while longer.

I realize that, eventually, my parents will pass on; none of us live forever. But, I’m glad that the moment for them to go isn’t here just yet.

Aside: When I returned from my errand for my mom, and left my ID at the counter, the guard asked for which patient I was visiting. When I said, “Dr. Tomas,” he asked if the patient was some sort of professor. He must have been a new guard, because my dad has been working in the radiology department of the Heart Center for about 30 years now.

Apparently, the attending resident when my dad was brought in didn't recognize him either, which, according to my brother, made my mom, who's a cardiologist, even angrier, considering the number of years my dad put in at the hospital.

Political Hodgepodge, November 1, 2007

A couple of interesting items came out in the Philippine Daily Inquirer yesterday.

The first one that I read was that President Arroyo was telling her critics to wait until 2010 for her to step down and for them not to take any “extra-constitutional” means to oust her.

It’s ironic considering that she originally came to power through the extra-constitutional means that her enemies are contemplating against her now. She became President initially through the ouster of President Joseph Estrada, so who is she to talk of the rule of law? She also short-circuited and made a mockery of Estrada’s subsequent plunder trial, by issuing a hasty pardon even before Estrada ever set foot inside the prison, so who is she to prattle about justice and the rule of law?

In the six years she has been in the office of the President, her administration has gone through innumerable scandals, the latest ones being the ZTE Broadband scandal and the bribery scandal that happened right inside her own official home, and, if she and her mouthpieces are to be believed, without her knowledge. The fact that she and her lackeys have stymied any and all possible means to ascertain the truth behind these scandals makes her talk about justice and the rule of law a hypocritical statement.

I’m not sure if people will be willing to wait until 2010 to see her leave, as I don’t think we’ve seen the end of corruption in her government. Any further scandal will only continue to fan the flames of dissent, and make her ouster more and more a certainty.

* * *

The other interesting bit of news was a letter the spokesperson for detained Senator Antonio Trillanes wrote to the Inquirer, which was dutifully posted in the letters column. It was a retort against the Inquirer’s recent editorial cartoon, which pictured the Senator as one who simply accuses and speaks out without thinking, as in the case of the Makati explosion a week and a half ago.

The letter castigated the Inquirer for the cartoon, claiming that Trillanes had undeniable proof, witnesses who would attest to the fact that National Security Adviser Gonzalez and AFP Chief Esperon were behind what the Senator called a bombing.

The reason why Trillanes would not reveal the evidence that he had, the letter continued, was because he didn’t trust the police body investigating the tragedy.

Of course, this is in the face of the findings of foreign experts that the blast that killed eleven people and injured more than a hundred, was, sadly, a tragic accident. Is the good Senator going to say that these experts were subverted or bribed to accede to the police findings? Why would they jeopardize their credibility?

Digression: My father had an interesting personal story to the incident. A friend of his normally parked in the basement of Glorietta, and the friend attested that the stench coming from a probably sewage leak was unbearable. The release of deadly gases looks to have created the explosion which wrecked a good portion of Glorietta 2. This, of course, spells bad news for the Ayalas, who will wind up paying a large sum of fines and indemnities, not to mention a good chunk of their credibility, if it is officially ruled an accident. End Digression.

Trillanes’ accusations have so far been without merit; up to now, he has not produced his evidence, which he should have done to corroborate his accusations. As it is, he simply appears to be exploiting the tragedy to call attention to himself. He is no hero, as Inquirer columnist Conrado de Quiros wants to believe; no one who takes hostages and threatens to blow up buildings can be one, for the end never justifies the means. He is merely an opportunist, who has exploited his detainment, and parleyed it into a Senate seat. And that is another tragedy, this time for our political maturity.