• 6 AUGUST - *1907 - Gen. Macario Sakay, one of the Filipino military leaders who had continued fighting the imperialist United States invaders eight years into the Ph...
    11 years ago

......................................................................................

The Daily Tribune

(Without Fear or Favor)

Specials:

Bulatlat.com

World Wildlife Fund for Nature-Philippines

The Philippines Matrix Project

Unacceptable then, acceptable now? EDITORIAL 07/28/2011

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Unacceptable then, acceptable now?

EDITORIAL
Click to enlarge
07/28/2011
Sometime in 2010, shortly after Noynoy became the Malacañang resident, and when the weather bureau failed to announce the occurrence of stormy weather with heavy rains pouring into Metro Manila, Noynoy publicly berated the weather bureau chief, firing him on the spot, saying that it was unacceptable to him that the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) failed to predict the stormy weather accurately and warn residents as well as the Coast Guard, which he said left the government unprepared for such a calamitous situation.
The then Pagasa chief, who was fairly respected and held in esteem by the Pagasa employees, tried to explain that the equipment they had was obsolete, along with many more explanations besides. But none of these explanations mattered. He was told to go by Noynoy, without as much as a probe.

Last heard of the old Pagasa chief was that he had left for work abroad..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com1.html

Whither independence? FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 07/28/2011

Whither independence?

FRONTLINE
Ninez Cacho-Olivares
07/28/2011
The hype over the appointment of a former high court justice was that, finally, the nation is to have an independent Ombudsman.

But by independent, as measured by Noynoy and his Yellows, is meant for one who is seen as biased against his predecessor, Gloria Arroyo.

Noynoy devotees speak of the new Ombudsman’s voting record as a dissenter in many Supreme Court (SC) decisions that favored the then administration. But what is being omitted is the fact that before the fall- out of a law firm with the Arroyos, which firm earlier served as her personal lawyers, the new Ombudsman, former Associate Justice of the SC Conchita Carpio-Morales’ voting record was certainly Malacañang-friendly, just as friendly as that of her cousin, SC Associate Justice Antonio Carpio.

Evidently, Noynoy and his Yellows see being “independent” to mean anyone friendly to him and biased against his predecessor..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com2.html

Hezbollah on edge in face of Syria revolt ANALYSIS 07/28/2011

Hezbollah on edge in face of Syria revolt

ANALYSIS

07/28/2011
BEIRUT — The unprecedented revolt threatening the regime in Syria has placed key ally Hezbollah in a tight spot and prompted the Lebanese militant group to adopt a more measured attitude, analysts say.

“Hezbollah’s margin of maneuver is currently very limited because the strategic Iran-Syria-Hezbollah axis is threatened by the revolt and this forces the group to act prudently,” said Paris-based Middle East expert Agnes Levallois.

The Shiite party, also backed by Iran, is the most powerful military and political group in Lebanon and is a key player in the new government formed last month.

But the upheaval in neighboring Syria caught Hezbollah off guard and threatens its position, analysts say..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com3.html

The nightmare of love across the West Bank barrier focus 07/28/2011

The nightmare of love across the West Bank barrier

focus

07/28/2011
JERUSALEM — When Sana, who comes from the West Bank city of Hebron, married her Jerusalem-born husband Mohammed 13 years ago, she never imagined their union would lead to a life of fear and hiding.

At first, their different residency permits — hers for the West Bank, his for Jerusalem — weren’t much of an issue. She could live with her husband in Arab east Jerusalem with a temporary permit, and movement between the city and the West Bank was still fairly easy.

But, with the outbreak of the second Palestinian uprising in 2000, travel restrictions gradually tightened until in 2003 Israel effectively stopped issuing Jerusalem residency permits to Palestinians, catching Sana and Mohammed in an impossible bind.

Without an Israeli permit, Sana can’t live in Jerusalem with her husband and children. But if Mohammed moves to the West Bank, he risks losing his Jerusalem residency and all access to the city of his birth..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com6.html

Iraqi jihadists back anti-regime protests in Syria focus 07/28/2011

Iraqi jihadists back anti-regime protests in Syria

focus

07/28/2011
BAGHDAD — Iraqi jihadists have strongly backed protests against President Bashar al-Assad even though his regime purportedly aided the militants by allowing arms and fighters to cross into Iraq.

One Internet posting on jihadist Web site Honein, a forum for al-Qaeda supporters, equated Assad’s Alawite regime to Iran’s former Safavid dynasty, in an effort to show that both are Shiite heresies.

“The Syrian Safavid regime has destroyed the country, tortured and murdered Muslims and showed no mercy to sheikhs (religious leaders), women or children,” said a posting signed Ibn Ard al Nahwi (Son of the land of courage).

The jihadists regularly invoke Iran’s Safavid past, referring to the Shiite dynasty that ruled between the 16th and 18th centuries in Persia, and conquered part of Iraq..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com7.html

Mendicant nation INSIDE CONGRESS Charlie Manalo 07/28/2011

Mendicant nation

INSIDE CONGRESS
Charlie Manalo
07/28/2011
In Noynoy’s second State of the Nation Address Monday, he boasted to high heavens of the more than a million job his administration had generated in his one year in office, the positive effects of which was immediately dismissed by analysts saying they were more than offset by a growing labor force of 1.2 million people and an 829,000-increase in underemployment.

However, almost overlooked in Noy’s Sona was his assessment of the conditional cash transfer which he claimed to have yielded positive results. But if we are to believe that his CCT, which targets 2.3 million family-beneficiaries this year, is indeed successful, along with his job-generation program, then how come his administration seeks to increase the CCT beneficiaries to 3 million families this year, almost doubling the budget for the dole outs from P21 billion in 2011 to P39 billion next year?

Aren’t the objectives of these two programs totally contradictory?

If indeed Noy is successful in his economic program (which until now has been vague) that includes job generation to be made possible by enticing foreign investors through his private-public partnership agenda, then he has no reason to increase the number of CCT beneficiaries, much more its budget..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110728com5.html

‘Pork’ dangled for swift OK of 2012 budget By Charlie V. Manalo 07/28/2011

ABAD AGAIN WITHHOLDS MANDATED IRA

‘Pork’ dangled for swift OK of 2012 budget

By Charlie V. Manalo 07/28/2011

Once again Malacañang and the House leadership are into bribery as they dangled the early release of their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) in exchange for the swift passage of the 2012 Palace-proposed national budget, which again has not included the automatic appropriation of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) due the Local Government Units (LGUs) as mandated by the Constitution.

What the bribe offer to the members of Congress translates to is that the House will not even bother to scrutinize the budget and will pass it without question and without anything slashed.

Recognizing the fact that many members of the House of Representatives are grumbling over the non-release of their PDAF, more commonly known as the congressional “pork barrel,” Speaker Feliciano Belmonte personally asked Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad to immediately release the congressmen’s pork barrel to ensure the swift passage of the P1.816 trillion proposed national budget for next year..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110728hed1.html

Migrant group hits Noy’s ‘contempt’ for OFWs 07/28/2011

Migrant group hits Noy’s ‘contempt’ for OFWs

07/28/2011
A Hong Kong-based Filipino migrant workers group yesterday slammed President Aquino for his alleged disparaging comments against overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) during his State of the Nation Address (Sona) last Monday.

Dolores Balladares, chairman of the United Filipinos in Hong Kong, accused the President of allegedly showing contempt toward Filipinos who choose to work abroad for better opportunities.

“We detest the implication that OFWs chose to serve foreigners instead of their countrymen,” she noted.

In his July 25 Sona, Aquino told Filipinos to express their gratitude to those nurses who continue to care for their countrymen when they could be easily treating foreigners for a higher salary..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20110728hed6.html

Outcome of probe vs Mariano will be submitted to Pama By Mario J. Mallari 07/28/2011

Outcome of probe vs Mariano will be submitted to Pama

By Mario J. Mallari 07/28/2011

The special investigating committee, probing Marine Col. Generoso Mariano who called for the replacement of the government, is expected to wrap up its investigation and submit its recommendation to Navy Flag Officer in Command Vice Admiral Alexander Pama next week.

Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Omar Tonsay said that the special investigating committee, headed by Marine deputy commandant Brig. Gen. Eugenio Clemen, has already convened and just awaiting for Mariano’s memorandum of his position regarding the issue.

“On Monday, he will submit his memorandum as requested by his lawyers, so the result of the investigation will be after the deliberation of the facts and the memorandum,” Tonsay said.

“But the convening of the special investigating committee is done, only the results would be deliberated for their recommendation to the FOIC (Pama),” Tonsay added..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20110728nat1.html

Hundreds of commuters stranded in Nueva Ecija 07/28/2011

Hundreds of commuters stranded in Nueva Ecija

07/28/2011
BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya – Hundreds of commuters were stranded as mudslides and debris blocked the road along the boundary of Nueva Ecija and Cagayan, especially in Puncan village, Carranglan, Nueva Ecija brought about by Typhoon “Juaning.”

According to reports, part of the national highway in Quirino province to Dipaculao, Aurora was also impassable to all types of vehicles after the road was being covered by landslides.

Likewise, residents from low-lying towns near Magat River were ordered to evacuate to safer grounds after disaster officials raised the alarm level for flash floods from Typhoon Juaning.

Townfolk of Bagabag, Bambang, Solano and Bayombong living in makeshifts along Magat River were ordered to leave their homes in advance due to the possibility of flash floods..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/nation/20110728nat2.html

Legalize annulment of marriages by religious sects, urges lawmaker 07/28/2011

Legalize annulment of marriages by religious sects, urges lawmaker

07/28/2011
A lawmaker has filed a bill recognizing annulment of marriages by various religious congregations in the country.

Cebu Rep. Pablo Garcia, author of House Bill 1290 to be known as An Act Legalizing Church Annulment or Dissolution of Certain Marriages, said under the Civil Code of the Philippines, only Muslim divorces or dissolutions of marriages are recognized by the Philippine government.

Garcia said the government does not recognize annulment of marriages by other religious sects because there is no pertinent law to allow it.

Among the religious sects in the Philippines are the Roman Catholic Church, Aglipayan Church, Mormons, Assemblies of God, Iglesia ni Cristo, Jesus is Lord, Ang Dating Daan, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, Victory Christian Fellowship and El Shaddai..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20110728met2.html

Vicki Belo loses libel case she filed vs legal rights advocate 07/28/2011

Vicki Belo loses libel case she filed vs legal rights advocate

07/28/2011
An Antipolo regional trial court has dismissed a libel complaint filed by “plastic surgeon to the stars” Dr. Vicki Belo against noted legal rights advocate, lawyer Argee Guevarra, who questioned Belo’s qualifications and professional affiliations in postings in the popular social Internet network site Facebook.

Judge Mary Josephine Lazaro dismissed the criminal libel case against Guevarra who was the former counsel for Josephine Norcio who, Guevarra said, underwent a hydrogel butt augmentation in Belo’s clinic.

Norcio reportedly nearly died as a result of the subsequent infection.

Guevarra launched a Facebook information campaign against Belo in his private Facebook account among his circle of friends, exposing Belo and describing her as “a quack doctor” and who he said is not even a member of the Philippine College of Surgeons, Philippine Dermatological Society and the Philippine Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons..... MORE

SourceThe Daily Tribune

URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/metro/20110728met3.html

Blog Archive