Has the Aquino government lost momentum in running after Arroyo?
By BENJIE OLIVEROS
Bulatlat.com
The impeachment and eventual resignation of former ombudsman
Merceditas Gutierrez, and the impeachment of former chief justice Renato
Corona last year, which resulted in his removal this year, would surely
banner the enumeration of accomplishments of President Benigno Aquino
III. The removal of Gutierrez and Corona, the principal protectors of
former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the biggest stumbling
blocks to holding her to account for her crimes against the people, are
laudable accomplishments.
However, these would lose its significance if the process falls short
of bringing Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, her family and top officials to
account for all their crimes against the people, to include plunder,
electoral fraud and sabotage, and most especially extrajudicial
killings, enforced disappearances and other human rights violations. It
is a bad enough deed for a president and his or her family to dip their
hands into the nation’s coffers; it becomes worse, if they also deny
from the people, their only means of democratic participation: voting.
Add these to the most terrible crimes of all: killing 1,026 people, and
making 206 others disappear.
As of the present, the Aquino government has been able to file a case
of electoral sabotage against Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. This, it did
shortly after Arroyo tried to sneak out of the country but was held at
the departure area. The bail hearings have just been concluded – with
Judge Jesus Mupas of the Pasay Regional Trial Court about to issue a
decision on the petition – and the pre-trial has been set on August 23.
Also graft charges have been filed before the Sandiganbayan against
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s husband Miguel and 20 Philippine National
Police (PNP) officials for the fraudulent sale of second-hand
helicopters to the PNP, which were misrepresented as brand new.
However, the wheels of justice in these cases have been grinding so
slowly..... MORE
Source: Bulatlat.com
URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2012/07/13/has-the-aquino-government-lost-momentum-in-running-after-arroyo/
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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...12 years ago
(Without Fear or Favor)
Specials:
Has the Aquino government lost momentum in running after Arroyo?
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 7:30 PM 0 comments
Big mistake Written by Ninez Cacho-Olivares
Big mistake
- Written by Ninez Cacho-Olivares
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
Why would a coalition that claims to be the opposing coalition, whether constructive or destructive, want to be allied with the administration party?
Binay who said he was not opposed to the idea of a “super coalition” between the LP and UNA, said as an opposition coalition, UNA can coalesce with the LP because it is a constructive opposition, no different from Britain’s opposition, known as Her Majesty’s loyal opposition..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/commentary/item/1694-big-mistake
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 7:00 PM 0 comments
Syria's top security ministers slain in Damascus bombing
Syria's top security ministers slain in Damascus bombing
Five key Syrian military officials including Defense Minister Gen. Daoud Rajha and Assad’s brother-in-law Assef Shawkat, who served as his deputy, were killed at the top-level meeting in central Damascus.Syrian General Hassan Turkmani – a former defense minister and senior military official – Interior Minister Mohammad al-Shaar, and the country’s intelligence chief Hisham Bekhtyar have died from wounds sustained in the blast.
A number of attendees received serious injuries, and some of them remain in critical condition, the agency reported..... MORE
Source: RT.com
URL: http://www.rt.com/news/damascus-suicide-government-wounded-458/
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 6:00 PM 0 comments
Calls for Assad to quit 'rooted in hopelessness' – Lavrov
Calls for Assad to quit 'rooted in hopelessness' – Lavrov
On the same day that a suicide bomber killed the Syrian Minister of Defense, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that supporting the Syrian opposition while demanding that President Bashar al-Assad step down will lead to an impasse.
"If the policy based on support for the opposition continues – a policy leading to an impasse, since Assad will not go on his own – and all of these mantra calls that he must step down are rooted in hopelessness,"Lavrov told reporters in Moscow.
The Russian minister warned against the temptation for outside forces to play favorites with any side in the crisis..... MORE
Source: RT.com
URL: http://rt.com/politics/syria-russia-lavrov-putin-crisis-479/
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 5:30 PM 0 comments
Shell angry at $5 bln fine demanded for spill in Nigeria
Shell angry at $5 bln fine demanded for spill in Nigeria
Nigerian regulators are demanding Royal Dutch Shell pays $5 billion in fines for environmental damage caused by last year’s oil spill at its offshore Bonga field. Shell says there is no legal basis for the fine.
The fine would be the largest Shell has ever received in Nigeria and is about $125,000 for each barrel of oil split in the Bonga field, about 120 kilometers off the coast.
The spill which was probably the worst in the area for a decade, occurred on December 20, 2011 and according to estimates less than 40,000 barrels, or 1.68 million gallons were released. .... MORE
Source: RT.com
URL: http://rt.com/business/news/shell-angry-over-demands-to-pay-huge-fine-for-oil-spill-in-nigeria-455/
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 5:00 PM 0 comments
When the waiting has been too long
When the waiting has been too long
By RONALYN V. OLEA
Bulatlat.com
I was struck by their resilience. In my separate interviews with them, Tatay Romy and Ka Bong narrated how they endured the torture at the hands of their captors. After being released from prison, it would have been easy to just forget but both chose to continue the struggle to achieve justice. They are among the 9,539 original petitioners to the class suit filed against the Marcoses in 1986.
I always saw them during protest actions of Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainees laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (Selda) demanding just compensation for victims of the Marcos dictatorship. They also attended rallies condemning extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and other human rights violations.
During my last interview with Ka Bong in March 2011, he could not believe that he was delisted from the list of original complainants. He did not receive a single centavo from the $10-million settlement agreement with a Marcos crony awarded by a district court in the United States.
Tatay Romy, meanwhile, gave me a phone call after the dialogue of Selda with House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte in January this year. He would have joined the dialogue had he not fell twice that morning.
Fr. Diony Cabillas of Iglesia Filipina Independiente, one of the leaders of Selda, captured the poignancy that comes with their death. He wrote this after Ka Bong died –
Pumanaw ka na hindi man lang nasaksihan ang maraming palakpak ng ating kasamahan at sambayanang Pilipino sa pagsasabatas ng Kumpensasyon sa mga biktima ng martial law..... MORE
Source: Bulatlat.com
URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2012/07/11/when-the-waiting-has-been-too-long/
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 4:00 PM 0 comments
Indonesia: Do not escalate sea tensions; RP: We will maintain sovereign rights
Indonesia: Do not escalate sea tensions; RP: We will maintain sovereign rights
- Written by Tribune
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
China essentially claims the whole of the South China Sea, which is believed to be rich in hydrocarbons and straddles strategic shipping lanes vital to global trade.
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims in the waters, causing regular diplomatic flare-ups.
“Short of a comprehensive resolution, the claimants must do their best to manage and contain the disputes to make sure that it does not escalate or worse lead to the outbreak of military clashes,” he told the First Strategic Review Forum in Jakarta..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/headlines/item/1700-indonesia-do-not-escalate-sea-tensions-rp-we-will-maintain-sovereign-rights
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 8:00 AM 0 comments
CCT degrades human dignity — Casiño, Cruz Written by Tribune Wednesday, 18 July 2012 00:00
CCT degrades human dignity — Casiño, Cruz
- Written by Tribune
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
Casiño told the weekly Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) forum that the CCT had been utterly useless in addressing poverty and hunger and it was not what the Filipino people want to improve their lives.
“It is degrading to human dignity. Most of all the people we have talked to about it tell us that they prefer jobs and livelihood opportunities over the CCT. They do not like this dole-out,” he said.
Casiño claimed that the CCT had not made a dent in the poverty level in the country. He said the government made it look like poverty was reduced in the past year when all it did was to lower the threshold of daily needs to only P46 per person per day from P52 during the previous administration.
“That’s pure deception, that is misleading the public. They are doing a camouflage of the real state of the people,” Cruz said..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/nation/item/1698-cct-degrades-human-dignity-%E2%80%94-casi%C3%B1o-cruz
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 7:30 AM 0 comments
BCDA chief unfazed by disbarment threat Written by Wednesday, 18 July 2012 00:00
BCDA chief unfazed by disbarment threat
- Written by
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
The CJHDC had just proposed to restructure the lease agreement to write off P3 billion arrears, change the lease to joint venture and to extend the agreement for another 40 years ending in 2061, Casanova told the Daily Tribune.
Chavez had accused the CEO and president of lying to the public for insisting that there was no offer to pay from CJHDC..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/nation/item/1697-bcda-chief-unfazed-by-disbarment-threat
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 7:00 AM 0 comments
Solon questions proposed water rate hikes of Manila Water, Maynilad Written by Charlie V. Manalo Wednesday, 18 July 2012 00:00
Solon questions proposed water rate hikes of Manila Water, Maynilad
- Written by Charlie V. Manalo
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) has approved the foreign currency differential adjustments of its water concessionaires, MWC and MWSI.
“This new round of water rates adjustment is both unjustified and unconscionable. It is outrageous for consumers to be made to pay for the risks and wrong business decisions of the water concessionaires with regard to the loans they make,” Casiño said.
“In other businesses, losses due to changes in foreign exchange rates are absorbed by the company as part of regular business risks. But in this case, the concessionaires borrow from foreign creditors without any qualms knowing that they are insulated from the risk ordinary borrowers take because they’re allowed to pass on their forex losses to their consumers. It is like having their cake and eating it, too,” Casiño said..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/metro-section/item/1686-solon-questions-proposed-water-rate-hikes-of-manila-water-maynilad
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 6:30 AM 0 comments
Gabriela-NCR holds ‘State of the Women Address’ ahead of Sona
Gabriela-NCR holds ‘State of the Women Address’ ahead of Sona
- Written by Pat C. Santos
- Wednesday, 18 July 2012
“The women’s situation under Aquino is no different from the previous administrations. It even got worse,” Gabriela-National Capital Region spokesman Ian Arevalo said.
In a prepared statement the militant women’s organization cited the ominous situation under the Aquino administration such as lack of quality and affordable healthcare system, hikes in prices of oil and basic commodities, joblessness, continuous demolitions, implementation of K+12 program, discrimination and violence against women and children, among other things.
“Instead of addressing the needs of women and children, the Aquino administration is making a recipe for destruction by being consistent in its program to privatize social services, especially public hospitals, pursue K+12 program despite protests and permit price hikes. These are but a few of the concoctions made to aggravate the already dire life of the Filipinas,” Arevalo said..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/index.php/metro-section/item/1685-gabriela-ncr-holds-%E2%80%98state-of-the-women-address%E2%80%99-ahead-of-sona
Posted by Jesusa Bernardo at 6:00 AM 0 comments
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