Friday, September 13, 2019

Retards in the Government 119

It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption and murder in Philippine politics.


https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1161481/witness-tells-senate-freedom-comes-with-a-price-tag-in-bilibid
A witness has surfaced in the Senate to testify that a good conduct time allowance “for sale scheme” exists in the New Bilibid Prison. 
Yolanda Camelon told the Senate that she had paid P50,000 to secure the release of her common-law partner, but the date kept being moved back despite payment of the bribe.
Camelon identified Major Mabel Bansil and Staff Sgt. Ramoncito Roque as the officers to whom she allegedly gave the payment. 
She said it was Bansil who first approached her in February, asking her if she wanted her husband freed through the GCTA law. 
Bansil told her it would cost P50,000 and later introduced her to Roque, who she knew as the chief of the documents section at the Bureau of Corrections. 
She was allowed to pay the amount in installment, and she did so, completing the payment in three installments within February. 
She made the first payment of P10,000 in Roque’s house with Bansil present. Her next two payments consisted of P20,000 each. 
She was told that her husband would walk out of the state penitentiary in March, but this did not take place. She was then told that his release would be done in June, but this was not fulfilled either. Next, she was told it would be in October. 
At that point, she said she shut her ears to more promises and demanded to get her money back. 
After the issue about the GCTA releases broke out, she decided to come out and spill the beans.
Messed up if true. But this is how it always works. The people play along with the corruption and willingly pay bribes until they realise they have been snookered and only then do they try to play within the rules and that only as a matter of revenge or an attempt to recoup their money.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1161665/bato-must-be-probed-over-convicts-release-dilg-chief
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año on Friday said Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa and other former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chiefs should likewise be investigated on alleged irregularities in the implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law. 
“I think so, kasi meron siyang mga nirelease, diba? So dapat lang tingnan kung may paglabag doon (because he allowed the release of some convicts, right? So I think we should find out whether or not violations were committed),” Año said. 
Dela Rosa, after retiring from the Philippine National Police, served as BuCor chief from April to October 2018. 
He said he believes that Dela Rosa can defend himself on the matter. 
“Kayang kaya naman ni Sen. Dela Rosa depensahan ‘yung sarili niya, kasi kung meron namang nag qualify doon bakit naman siya sisisihin doon (Sen. Dela Rosa can defend himself, because if the convicts did qualify for the GCTA, why should he be blamed)?” said Año. 
Dela Rosa earlier admitted signing the release orders of around 120 heinous crime convicts when he was BuCor chief.
Año says Bato must be investigated but then says he can defend himself and asks "why should be be blamed" practically declaring him innocent without an investigation! But Bato says he signed the release orders of 120 convicts which is a clear violation of the law.  Will be interesting to see a newly elected Senator on the hot seat!

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162084/drilon-i-voted-for-gcta-passage-but-didnt-realize-implications
“When Section 3 was included in the committee report in the Senate, the senators, including me, did not realize the effect of expanding for good conduct to this extent,” Drilon said at the “Saturday Forum at Annabel’s” held in Quezon City. 
Drilon was referring to Section 3 of Republic Act 10592, which mentions the adjustment for good conduct for “any offender qualified for credit for preventive imprisonment pursuant to Article 29 of this Code, or of any convicted prisoner in any penal institution, rehabilitation or detention center or any other local jail.” 
“I admit I was one of those who voted but did not realize the implications of such a more liberal grant of time allowances for good conduct,” the senator said.
If he didn't understand the law then why did he vote for it? The man is also a lawyer so it makes no sense for him to not understand the consequences of laws he votes for.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162149/duterte-wont-support-rites-marking-ph-christianization
The President then proceeded to harangue the social ills that Spanish and American colonialism brought about in the country, including members of the elite who were complicit in the process. 
“And yet, I was asked for a commemoration of the 500 years since [the Spanish] arrived here. I answered, ‘Why would I celebrate the arrival of the Spanish here? Why would I?’” the President said. 
“It was good that my cousins got mad at them and cut off Magellan’s head. That made me happy,” said the President, who claims to be a descendant of Cebu chieftain Lapu-Lapu who defeated Ferdinand Magellan in April 1521. 
Despite the rhetoric, however, the President did issue on May 8, 2018, Executive Order No. 55 which created the National Quincentennial Committee tasked with leading preparations. 
The 2021 commemoration was meant not only to mark the introduction of Christianity but also the 500th anniversary of Lapu-Lapu’s victory and Magellan’s first circumnavigation of the world.
Reacting to the President’s remarks, Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said the commemoration in 2021 would not be a celebration of Spanish colonial rule but of the Christian faith. 
“Let us therefore make it clear: What we will celebrate in 2021 is not colonialism but the Christian faith that the natives of these islands welcomed as a gift, albeit from people who were not necessarily motivated by the purest of motives. God can indeed write straight even with the most crooked lines,” David wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday.
Interesting that Duterte claims descent from Lapu-Lapu. It is not surprising that he would skip out on any commemoration of 500 years of Christianity as he has made it clear that he is a Muslim. His attendance would also likely stir up resentment among the Muslims in Mindanao.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/09/08/1950094/dutertes-anti-corruption-body-probe-all-bucor-execs-over-gcta-controversy-except-bato
The Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission on Sunday said it would investigate all Bureau of Corrections leaders involved in the implementation of the controversial Good Conduct Time Allowance law since 2014. 
PACC chief Manny Luna, however, said they would not probe former BuCor chief and now Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, a staunch ally of President Rodrigo Duterte, because they have no authority to do so. 
“Kasi walang law na pinasa ang Congress empowering the PACC to investigate a sitting lawmaker. Kahit congressman hindi naming puwedeng imbestigahan e, because of the separation of powers,” Luna said. 
(There is no law approved by the Congress empowering the PACC to investigate a sitting lawmaker. Even a congressman we cannot investigate, because of the separation of powers.) 
Luna furthered that the PACC is an executive agency while Dela Rosa belongs to the lawmaking arm of the government. 
“Under the separation of powers principle in the Constitution, bawal ho kami manghimasok sa (we are not allowed to meddle in) Congress whether it’s a senator or Congressman pero ang (but the) ombudsman may (has) power,” the PACC chief said. 
“For 2 reasons — one, mayroong batas (there is a law) — ‘yung (the) Ombudsman Act, empowering the ombudsman to investigate even those in the other departments of government,” he added. 
The anti-corruption commission is only allowed to investigate presidential appointees while the ombudsman can launch a probe even without a complaint.
What a toothless body. They should leave all this investigation to the Ombudsman.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162730/ombudsman-suspends-27-bucor-officials-in-freedom-for-sale-scandal
The Office of the Ombudsman suspended 27 Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) officials for six months as they faced grave misconduct cases for the release of heinous crime convicts using the now controversial good conduct time allowance. 
An order signed by Ombudsman Samuel Martires on Monday, Sept. 9, listed those suspended as BuCor officials Chief Supt. Gerardo Padilla, Senior Supt. Celso Bravo, SPO2 Ramoncito Roque and 24 others. 
Roque is officer-in-charge of Inmate Documents and Processing Service, who had been accused of taking part in a scheme to bilk inmates’ relatives in exchange for early release through good conduct time computations. 
The Ombudsman order said the BuCor officials were being suspended in connection with an investigation that the anti-graft body was conducting into “the alleged anomalous release of prison convicts.” 
It said the Ombudsman “finds that the evidence in the form of testimonies of witnesses and public documents” pointing to irregularities in the release of prisoners “appear to be strong.”
27 underlings and no sign of BuCor Chief Faeldon. Why not? Same thing happened at the BOC. underlings suspended and charged while the head dog gets away!


https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162750/colmenares-theres-proof-that-ejks-are-state-sponsored
“I think human rights defenders and the victims of human rights violations have laid down the basis and evidence that the killings are state-sponsored,” Colmenares, speaking partly in Filipino, told reporters on the sidelines of CHR inquiry. 
Besides direct evidence, we showed a pattern of evidence showing the government as responsible for the EJKs — such as when the government public vilifies the victims. Secondly, perpetrators committed the crime [killing] apparently without fear of the police,” he added. 
Colmenares did not divulge what the specific pieces of evidence are, although he had previously mentioned these two types of evidence, albeit in a different scenario. It was during the attacks on farmers, human rights workers in the Negros island which was correlated to the communist insurgency.
Why would he make such claims not divulge the evidence? Without a smoking gun all that is left is circumstantial evidence which the government can easily dismiss.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162965/poe-ph-needs-better-leadership-in-traffic-agencies-to-resolve-problem
“I think that a better leadership probably in agencies that have to deal with traffic is what we need,” Poe told reporters.
A lot of people are very dismissive of Poe and claim she is a do nothing trapo or traditional politician. But she is absolutely right. Giving Duterte emergency powers will only give him access to money. It won't solve the traffic problems. All the agencies in charge of traffic need to get their acts together an enforce laws and show real leadership. That won't solve everything but it will be a start.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162869/dela-rosa-believes-death-penalty-cures-everything
“Kung meron sanang death penalty, that cures everything. Pati yung mga drug lord dyan na hanggang ngayon kung meron pa mang nagtra-transact pa rin drug business sa labas, e hindi na yan makapag conduct ng drug bussiness nila dahil patay na, bitayin na dapat yan.” 
(“If there is a death penalty, that cures everything. As for the drug lords there until now if they were still transacting drug business out there, they would not be able to conduct their drug bussiness because they are dead, they should kill it. ”)
You know what else would cure everything? If Bilibid was run like a real prison and the inmates were not bribing all the guards so they can have cell phones and TVs!
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/09/10/19/barilin-niyo-ako-bato-dares-critics-to-shoot-him-if-he-was-corrupt-as-jail-chief

Dela Rosa, who served as BuCor chief from April to October 2018, earlier told ABS-CBN News Channel that he was willing to be slapped if he was really involved in corrupt practices. 
“Alam n’yo ‘di lang sampal, kahit barilin niyo ako kapag napatunayan niyo na ako’y naging corrupt sa pagiging chief ng BuCor. Sampal mababaw lang yun, barilin nyo ako," said Dela Rosa in a subsequent interview with reporters. 
(Not just slap; you can even shoot me if it is proven that I was a corrupt BuCor chief.)
Another drama queen!
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/09/11/19/duterte-says-willing-to-ignore-hague-victory-for-joint-exploration-project-with-china
President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday China wants the Philippines to ignore its legal victory in the South China Sea to push through with the joint oil and gas exploration deal in the disputed waters. 
"Set aside your claim... They want to explore and if there is something, sabi nila, 'We would be gracious enough to give you 60 percent.' Forty [percent] lang ang kanila. That is the promise of Xi Jinping," he told reporters. 
Duterte said he is amenable to the Chinese leader's request. 
"Kasi ‘yang exclusive economic zone is part of the arbitral ruling, which we will ignore to come up with an economic activity," he said.
Imagine being the hard working attorney who toiled day and night to get this ruling and the President just tosses it away like so much garbage.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162732/dilg-bjmp-back-proposed-alcatraz-like-prison
“All high-risk convicts, together with convicted of heinous crimes will be placed there,” Zubiri said during Monday’s Senate budget hearing on the 2020 budget of the Department of the Interior and Local Government. 
Año said the DILG “strongly supports” the proposal, especially since the facility aims to house convicted drug lords, rebel leaders and terrorists. 
“Right now, they are all together in one dormitory,” Año, speaking partly in Filipino, said. “Instead of being deradicalized, the more that they are getting radicalized. The prison has become like a university, a university of terrorism.
It sounds like a good idea but it would probably be another corrupt place where those who pay the most get the best treatment.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1163122/duterte-rebukes-robredo-for-disputing-him-on-gift-policy-for-cops
“Kung ikaw ang Presidente ng Pilipinas, patay. You do not even read a book.” 
President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday directed this statement to Vice President Leni Robredo after she criticized him on his remark that government officials can accept gifts of nominal value and out of gratitude. 
Duterte also mentioned Senator Panfilo Lacson but he said that he can forgive the former police chief because he is not a lawyer. 
“I quoted the very words (of) anti-graft and corrupt practices. There are exemptions, nominal and I used the word nominal and out of gratitude,” Duterte said before recipients of the Outstanding Government Workers Award in Malacañang. 
Duterte last month said there is nothing wrong with policemen accepting “gifts” from families who are grateful for their work, insisting that accepting gifts out of “gratitude” cannot be considered a violation of the law.
Robredo is not the only official to have criticised Duterte for giving permission to accept gifts. So why pick on her and why now?

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162551/palace-absolves-faeldon-napalusutan-siya-na-naman
Malacañang said Monday that fired Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Nicanor Faeldon could not be involved in the reported corruption at the agency and might have only been hoodwinked by alleged corrupt lower-ranking officials.
Their argument is that Faeldon is incompetent and stupid rather than corrupt!
https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1822648/Manila/Local-News/Former-congressman-ambushed-5-aides-killed
FORMER Pangasinan governor and congressman Amado "Ama" Espino Jr. was ambushed on Wednesday, September 11, according to Senator Richard Gordon. 
Gordon, who is chairman of the Philippine Red Cross, said Espino "is now fighting for his life in a hospital in Pangasinan."  
All his five bodyguards were killed as they "heroically shielded Espino with their bodies", Gordon said in his Twitter post.
Another politician ambushed!

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1163041/8-drug-convicts-including-pastor-linked-to-hospital-pass-scheme
Eight high-profile inmates, one of them a pastor, have been tagged in the alleged hospital-pass-for-sale scheme inside the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa. 
And even while inside the Bilibid, the inmates, most of them drug convicts, allegedly continued their illegal drug transactions, neophyte Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go disclosed on Tuesday. 
Go said he got the information about the said illegal activities of the inmates from a high-profile inmate. 
“Most of these illegal drug transactions take place in Medical Ward 3, Medical Annex and Building 14,” he said in an interview at the Senate. 
“It involves several personalities, about eight of them. Illegal drug trade continues in the NBP with the NBP Hospital as the new venue for illegal drug transactions,” he added.
With the help of hospital officials, the inmates would feign sickness so they would be transferred to the hospital and would have access to telephones, Go said. 
“I can’t give details of the transactions and their contacts outside, but they use a room to transact with someone outside by calling on a cellphone,” Go said in Filipino. 
This hospital-pass-for-sale scheme is just one of the alleged corrupt practices uncovered during the ongoing investigation of the Senate Committee on Justice.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162460/lacson-confronts-bucor-exec-allegedly-jamming-with-drug-lords
Before this, the senator lamented how senators are being lied to everytime they conduct a hearing. 
“This is our fourth hearing. Each time that we conduct a committee hearing, we’re being lied to at least once. We’re being lied to each time by our resource persons,” he said.
Schemes and liars and lying schemes in the Bureau of Corrections. The more hearings they have the more corrupt we learn the BuCor really is.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/09/11/19/caloocan-prosecutor-survives-ambush
Elmer Susano of the Caloocan City Regional Trial Court had just left a restaurant and went inside his pickup truck when 3 motorcycle-riding men shot him at close range at 2:45 p.m. 
He managed to hit one of the motorcycles while reversing his truck, security footage showed. 
The assailants, all wearing helmets, chased Susano but eventually withdrew. The prosecutor managed to flee to safety and report the incident to police. 
Caloocan City police chief Noel Flores said Susano received death threats before the incident. 
"We are looking into the cases handled by Susano as possible motive behind the ambush," he said. 
In May 2017, Caloocan City assistant prosecutor Diosdado Azarcon was shot dead outside his house in Barangay 63, Caloocan City.
He is not the first prosecutor to be shot at and he won't be the last.
https://globalnation.inquirer.net/179830/duterte-energy-deal-ok-with-china-if-ph-drops-claim
“Set aside the arbitral ruling,” the President told reporters in Malacañang, quoting Xi. “Set aside your claim. Then allow everybody connected with the Chinese companies. They want to explore. If there is something, they said, we will be gracious enough to give you 60 percent, only 40 percent will be theirs. That is the promise of Xi Jinping.” 
But Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. refuted the President’s statements on Wednesday, saying China did not attach such a condition to the proposed joint exploration deal. 
“I read everything he told President Xi. China has never made setting aside the arbitral award a prerequisite to anything,” Locsin replied to a reporter’s question via Twitter.
Locsin cited Justice Menardo Guevarra’s legal opinion that the memorandum did not compromise the Philippines’ sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea. 
“Can’t help it if traitors try to put a treasonous spin to it. But it’s [OK], one day they’ll be assassinated with impunity; indeed to loud acclaim,” Locsin said. 
After Xi’s visit to the Philippines in November last year, Guevarra vouched for the legal soundness of a joint exploration deal, saying there was no need for the Senate to ratify it because it was not a treaty. 
“There are no sovereignty issues whatsoever as the [memorandum of understanding] merely expresses a mutual desire to agree on specific cooperation arrangements within 12 months,” Guevarra said in December.
If Teddyboy is right then Duterte is a liar. But why would he lie about such a matter? And here we go again with Teddyboy tweeting out awful things such as "they'll be assassinated with impunity." His problem should not be with those who interpret Duterte's statements but with Duterte's alleged lying.


https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/257501/former-lapu-lapu-traffic-enforcer-nabbed-for-extortion
A former traffic enforcer of Lapu-Lapu City was arrested by police for extortion in an entrapment operation on Wednesday afternoon, September 11, 2019. 
Antonio Miano, 57 years old, a resident of Purok Orchids Barangay Looc, Lapu-Lapu City, was arrested for issuing temporary license plate for a motorcycle in exchange for P3,000. 
According to Police Lieutenant Colonel Mark Gifter Sucalit, Chief of the Intelligence Branch (CIB) of the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office,  Miano introduces himself as member of City Traffic Management System (CTMS) who can process and  provide a temporary vehicle license plate in exchange for a certain amount of money. 
The police learned of Miano’s illegal activity after receiving a tip from a concerned citizen who was once a victim of Miano.
If those plates are legitimate then there must be others involved. Maybe someone in the LTO?
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1163823/pampanga-mayor-suspended-for-90-days
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Thursday served a 3-month suspension order against Masantol town Mayor Danilo Guintu as the penalty for abuse of authority. 
The administrative case stemmed from a complaint by Bernardo Guevarra, a vendor in the town’s public market.
It wasn't graft at least. A nice 90 day vacation and then he's back.


Without doubt the Philippine Political Scandal of the Week is the ongoing Senate hearings on corruption in the Bureau of Corrections particularly at New Bilibid Prison. I have already posted some articles above now I will list a few more.



https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/09/12/19/24-hr-gambling-30k-tilapia-kidnapping-ex-bucor-chief-exposes-rackets-inside-bilibid
High-profile inmates at the New Bilibid Prison bribed prison officials so they could enjoy certain privileges while detained such as female entertainers that were worth P30,000 a night, a former chief of the Bureau of Corrections said Thursday.  
Another "racket" inside the prison, he said, was the kidnapping of these "wives" of high-profile inmates who had to be ransomed by the convicts. All the transactions are done inside Bilibid, Ragos said.  
The kidnap-for-ransom activities were carried out by cops who were in cahoots with the inmates. 
He said inmates also engaged in nearly 24-hour gambling inside the prison, and some corrupt jail officials were also stealing from the inmates’ food budget. Some BuCor personnel also sold cellphones, alcohol and cigarettes to inmates at steep prices, he added.

https://www.rappler.com/nation/239936-ill-prepared-bureau-corrections-list-wrongly-grants-gcta-janet-napoles
A list provided by the BuCor to the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee showed a total of 2,359 names of prisoners released because of Good Conduct Time Allowance(GCTA). 
Under a list of 1,714 names of released "in the present administration," Napoles' name appeared as one of them, even wrongly attributing the crime of rape to her. 
BuCor's documentation chief Ramoncito "Chito" Roque told the blue ribbon committee also on Thursday that they rushed the compilation of the list. 
"Mabilisan pong pinagawa sa 'min, mag-pe-press con kasi sa Palawan during that time, hindi po namin na-check nang mabuti," Roque told Senator Richard Gordon. 
(We had to rush it because we were going to have a press conference in Palawan during that time, we weren't able to check it properly.)
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1163791/money-making-rackets-inside-nbp-rake-in-up-to-p500k-a-week-ex-nbi-officer

The alleged money-making rackets inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) rake in from P300,00 to P500,000 a week, a former National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) official privy to the said schemes disclosed.



https://www.rappler.com/nation/239934-bureau-corrections-officer-bilibid-prisoner-knife-attack
The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Duty Officer Edgardo Ferrer was stabbed at around 8:40 am by a prisoner who was "suffering from schizophrenia." 
Ferrer survived the attack and suffered only a "superficial stab wound" on his lower torso, according to the DOJ's report. He is already being treated by medics, the DOJ said. 
During the probe, Senate blue ribbon committee chairman Richard Gordon floated the idea that the incident may be the result of deep corruption plaguing the BuCor. The DOJ and the police have yet to reach a conclusion.

In his Thursday press briefing, Panelo reiterated the President’s standards in appointing someone to a government post. 
“Apart from being a killer, per Senator Bong? Well, the President has only two qualifications: honesty and competence,” he said.
Honest and competent? This is the Philippines so not likely.

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Filipinos and The Movies

Filipinos love movies.  You better believe it.  They love movies so much that famous actors are elected to be Mayors and Senators. They love movies so much that national policy and laws are based on them.  Take the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Lucas Bersamin. He really loves action films. Particularly the "...Has Fallen" film series.  

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/960901/sc-justice-fears-movies-about-terrorism-could-become-reality
“How can the republic survive if there was another kind of threat worse than rebellion or invasion,” a Supreme Court Associate Justice asked Tuesday as he noted that President Rodrigo Duterte’s martial law is already emasculated compared to that of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. 
“Like what, your honor?” asked former Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Christian Monsod who was one of the framers of the 1987 Constitution. 
“Drone can be operated as far as US attacking some abandoned place in Afghanistan. That is what I see in the internet,” Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin said. 
Monsod said a drone, even a million drones cannot threaten the life and survival of the government. 
“Oh I watched so many movies like White House has fallen, London has fallen. These are very terrifying realities that could happen in a few years’ time,”  Bersamin said, adding that the framers crafted a constitution “that constricted the use of the ultimate power to actual invasion and actual rebellion.”
What if these [movies] become a reality,” Bersamin asked. 
“A thousand, a million drones cannot occupy a country,” Monsod said. 
Oh you are so confident,” Bersamin said to which Monsod responded: “I have not seen movies like that.” 
Could the plot of movies like Olympus Has Fallen and London Has Fallen ever become a reality?  IN the first movie the White House is taken over by terrorists and in the second a coordinated terrorist attack in London kills five Western leaders causing mass panic. Anything is possible but those are not likely scenarios. They sure don't reflect the reality of controlled conflicts by the global elite pulling the strings behind the scenes. And yet the second extension of marital law for the year 2018 was upheld by this man based in part on his unfounded fears which are rooted in fiction.

Bersamin is not the only one who has been watching too many movies. So has Sen. Lacson.  He recently filed a bill concerning the chain of succession in case of emergency.

If the President dies and then all of his constitutional successors are captured by terrorists, who will lead the country? 
Legislation loosely based on a popular Netflix political thriller called the “Designated Survivor” have been filed in the Senate and the House of Representatives to deal with such a situation. 
In the show, actor Kiefer Sutherland plays Housing and Urban Development Secretary Tom Kirkham, who is hidden away during the State of the Union. He was thrust into the US presidency when the Capitol building is bombed during the address, killing the president and everyone in it. 
The Philippine proposal is called the Presidential Succession Act, referred to simply as the designated survivor bill.

Sen. Ping Lacson wrote the Senate version of the bill, while Quezon City Rep. Precious Hipolito introduced the House counterpart proposal. 
Lacson told reporters on Thursday that his proposal was inspired by the Netflix series.
Again another situation that is not impossible but how likely is it that the President will die and all of his successors will then be immediately captured by terrorists? What does this scenario say about Lacson? Is he scared this will really happen? Does he believe that the very real threat of ISIS in the Philippines will get out of control? Duterte seems to think it will.


There is only one time when the government of a nation was nearly wiped out at once and that was in 2010.

The Smolensk air disaster occurred on 10 April 2010, when a Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft of the Polish Air Forcecrashed near the Russian city of Smolensk, killing all 96 people on board. Among the victims were the President of Poland Lech Kaczyński and his wife Maria, the former President of Poland in exile Ryszard Kaczorowski, the chief of the Polish General Staff and other senior Polish military officers, the president of the National Bank of Poland, Polish Government officials, 18 members of the Polish Parliament, senior members of the Polish clergy and relatives of victims of the Katyn massacre. The group was arriving from Warsaw to attend an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of the massacre, which took place not far from Smolensk.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smolensk_air_disaster
This air crash was a real disaster so why not base a bill on that? Write a bill directing that when large contingents of government officials fly overseas they be split across more than one plane so that everyone does not die if an accident were to happen.  Duterte's entourages are quite large.  There is no need for taking such a risk.

The Metro Manila Film Festival is a film festival held at the end of December every year.  December 25th to the first weekend of January. During this time no foreign films are played in any theatres throughout the country. This is kind of a weird situation and I know nothing like it. Think of all the great film festivals Cannes, Venice, Toronto, New York, Tribeca, Los Angeles these festivals are showcases for cinema from around the world and what happens at these festivals does not dictate what can and cannot be shown in the national theatres of he host country. 

But the MMFF is not a film festival for global cinema. It is only for Filipino films. What is the point? To boost the local industry I suppose. Only when it comes to film do we truly live in a global society. Take Japan for instance. Japanese films are shown and beloved around the world and not just anime. At least two of the most important directors of all time, Kurosawa and Ozu, are Japanese. The point here is that no film festival in the world, as far as I know, excludes foreign films except the MMFF and now there is a drive to have this film festival held twice a year.

https://entertainment.inquirer.net/344304/no-foreign-movies-twice-a-year-as-mmda-exec-wants-mmff-held-that-often
The proposal to stage Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) twice a year will make Filipino films more “profitable,” an official of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said Wednesday (Sept. 4). 
MMDA General Manager Jojo Garcia said the only time Filipino movies make money is when the festival is held every December during which theaters are forced to show only Filipino movies and no foreign films. 
Garcia said other film festivals are having difficulty making money because of competition from foreign films. He did not talk about the quality of movies. 
“But if we have a film festival that will not roll out foreign films? Who will benefit from it? Filipino films,” he added.
Amazing. Filipino films don't make money because of foreign competition so the solution is to force theatres to show only Filipino films twice a year! Maybe Filipino films are so bad no one wants to watch them. Maybe the Filipino film industry is comatose and out of ideas. Maybe? According to one director that is exactly the case.
This industry is on auto-pilot now. No wonder Cardo doesn’t die in Probinsyano. Until we’ve figured out how to woo the audience back, let’s just keep Cardo alive for now. 
The industry is abuzz, don’t get me wrong. Everyone seems to be working. It’s hard to put together a crew these days. If they’re not doing movies, they’re into TV or some digital series somewhere. Everyone’s working. But the work seems to be just getting by. No game changers looming in the horizon. No high concept fresh ideas coming out. Rehash after rehash. Rehashed love triangles. Rehashed May-December affairs. Cliche children stories and old age stories. Cliche boy-girl commitment issue movies. Good thing we got over with finding-the-great-one-love-in-the-world stories.  
Everyone’s into genre too. One-line premise genres . Everyone wants to discover a new genre or sub genre but there’s not much reimagining that goes into it. We mostly get fast and easy genre stories with old and told character arcs and plots. 
We are all guilty. 
This is not to say that everyone is not doing their best. That no one wants something fresh and sort of original. It’s the call of the times. It’s a calculated risk. Let’s try a different genre but let’s try the stories that sort of already worked. That’s the only thing we can afford. In this volatile industry where we don’t know if there’s an audience for any story we come up with or if it will ever see the light of day in cinemas, everyone is on desperate mode. Steady middling mode.  
Keep on doing movies. Work is work. Let’s do it fast and loose. Write it for 3 days. Yes, that’s a record writing time and studios seem to love it too whether it’s a good script or not. It’s just about content. More more content. You want content? You say every story’s been done 20 years ago? Well, so long as it’s content then anything is good. Some dumb ass browser sitting somewhere will devour this tired story nonetheless. The logline says it all no matter how shitty it all comes out, says the all-knowing producer. We can sell the logline. Let’s hope when they see it there’s word-of-mouth. 
Even our art-house has become stale. Stale. Art-house always explore the unknown whether in substance or in form. Our art-house no longer does that. They shock but it’s not groundbreaking. They gross out but it’s not visceral. They are contemplative but super boring. Art-house for the sake of art-house. 
I can’t sit still. We can’t just ride the tide and wish we end up in a good place. We’re in a state of coma now. We’ve got to find a way to move our toes on our feet to get us out of it and change the course of cinema in this country. 
https://www.facebook.com/erikmatti/posts/10156605389986446
"Even our art-house has become stale." The greatest Filipino filmmaker who resides in the art-house is Lav Diaz. His films have screened at major film festivals winning him multiple awards. But with  runtimes between 4 and 9 hours his films are unwatchable. Not in one go anyway. The average cinema goer doesn't have time for that.

Filipinos are not unlike the rest of the world in their love for the movies. Everyone loves the movies. The list of actor politicians from around the world is rather long. But I don't know of any country that has proposed or passed legislation based on the plot of a film or who's national cinema is so unprofitable that citizens have to be forced to watch domestic made films.

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Stray Dogs Are Prohibited

A neighbourhood I visited had an interesting notice hanging from a few electrical poles.



All the signs were rusty and faded which means they had been hanging for quite some time. Weather-beaten by the sun and the rain, rusted to near oblivion. Some of the placards were bent and nearly illegible. This particular sign was the best looking one.

It's about time there was a sign such as this what with all the stray dogs in the country. Might do a lot of good like when a town declares the NPA persona non grata and so they stay away forever because they know they aren't wanted. We just need to tell all those stray dogs, "You are prohibited!" Let them know they are not wanted and they will go find somewhere else to be a dog.

But when I turned my head guess what I saw!?


Two stray dogs! 

Can't they read!?

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Martial Law: Insurgent-Free

Life is a series of cycles. The seasons, the week, the helplessness of infancy and the senility of old age, such are just a few of the instances of the cyclical nature of life. In the Philippines the war against terrorism is also highlighted by cycles. During the presidency of Marcos there was martial law and peace talks with the MNLF.  Under Duterte there is martial law and peace talks with the MNLF.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/27/19/misuari-wants-to-include-oic-in-mindanao-peace-talks
Moro National Liberation Front founding chairman Nur Misuari wants to include the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in talks with the government on peace efforts in Mindanao, Malacañang said Tuesday. 
Misuari made the remark in his meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte in Davao City last Friday, where the chief executive called for a coordinating body for peace talks between the government and the MNLF. 
"He (Misuari) wished that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) be involved in the consultations, similar to the previous tripartite talks with GPH (Government of the Philippines), MNLF and the OIC, to determine the remaining compliance of the GPH in the 1996 Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF,” Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said. 
In 1996, the government under former president Fidel Ramos forged a peace accord with the Misuari-led MNLF with the aid of the OIC. The agreement earned both Ramos and Misuari the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize in 1997.
1996 may have been the year the Final Peace Agreement with the MNLF was signed but the process began in the 70's with the 1976 Tripoli Agreement. The OIC was a facilitator during these initial talks between the GPH and the MNLF.
The 1976 Tripoli Agreement was signed on December 23, 1976 in Tripoli, Libya by Carmelo Z. Barbero, representing the Government of the Philippines and Nur Misuari of the Moro National Liberation Front. The agreement defined autonomous administrative divisions for Muslims in the southern Philippines, the establishment of an autonomous government, judicial system for Sharia law and special security forces, and the observance of a ceasefire. The autonomous region was to have its own economic system, including an Islamic bank. 
Facilitators of the agreement included members of the Quadripartite Ministerial Commission of the Organization of Islamic Conference, headed by Ali Abdussalam Treki, representing Muammar Gaddafi, leader of the host country, and the OIC Secretary General, Amadou Karim Gaye. The other members of the Quadripartite Ministerial Commission aside from Treki included representatives from Saudi Arabia, Senegal and Somalia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Tripoli_Agreement
This 1976 agreement is what paved the way for the ARMM which was established in 1989. The ARMM was supposed to be the crowing achievement of the MNLF bringing peace to the region. That did not happen and now the MNLF is back at the table negotiating with the GPH and they want the OIC back at the table with them. But with the BARMM now in place implementing the provisions of the 1996 Final Agreement that would be impossible. 

Overlooking the fact that Misuari is a terrorist criminal who is out on bail and still facing trial for the Zamboanga siege in 2013 whom the government should not be dealing with it is rather striking that the MNLF is back to square one. All the fighting and talking and even the awarding of a peace prize and all for nothing. This time around it would seem that Misuari and the MNLF will be cordoned off in Sulu but Sulu is a part of the BARMM. What kind of deal the GPH and MNLF will work out is anyone's guess.

The Final Peace Agreement of 1996 provided for the buying of weapons from MNLF fighters and allowing them in integrate into the AFP and PNP.
Sec. 7. Disposition of Firearms. — 
a. Applicants who voluntarily turnover their firearms shall be compensated in accordance with the AFP Balik-Baril Project. Said firearms shall then be accounted for as government property and may be re-issued to them during training/deployment as members of separate units. 
b. All firearms still in the possession of MNLF members not integrated into the military of police service shall be subject to existing firearms laws, rules and regulations.
http://www.chanrobles.com/administrativeorders/administrativeorderno295.html
This is practically the same deal with he MILF who this week decommissioned thousands of their fighters.

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/09/09/govt-to-give-decommissioned-milf-combatant-aid-package-worth-p1m/
The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Barmm) said each of the decommissioned combatants would receive from the government “a socioeconomic package amounting to an estimated value of 1 million pesos.”  
The Barmm said the package includes P100,000 cash, health benefits, scholarships for children, housing and livelihood projects, training and capacity building, and others.
Despite the MNLF surrendering weapons and half of their force entering the PNP and AFP peace was not achieved. The ARMM deteriorated and in 2013 the MNLF captured Zamobanaga and declared the Bangsamoro Republic.  Will this be the same fate for the BARMM?  Ebrahim Murad says decommissioning is not surrendering.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1162067/milfs-murad-decommissioning-is-not-surrender
“We have not given up on our struggle.” 
“We are not surrendering. Decommissioning is not tantamount to surrendering,” said Ebrahim, who is also Chief Minister of the interim Bangsamoro government. 
“I would like to emphasize that the decommissioning doesn’t mean we have given up on what we used to fight for,” Ebrahim emphasized.
What the MILF used to fight for, the reason the group broke away from the MNLF, is the formation of an independent Muslim Mindanao. Will they continue to pursue this goal? According to Murad the answer is yes. How they continue this fight remains to be seen.

The AFP is also caught up in cycles. This week they said they are going to rid Leyte of the NPA.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1079514
The Philippine Army has vowed to work double-time to neutralize the remaining 15 armed fighters of the New People’s Army (NPA) still running and hiding in the mountains of Leyte Island.  
Brig. Gen. Lope Dagoy, commander of the Philippine Army’s 802nd Infantry Brigade said on Wednesday their goal is to completely wipe out insurgency in Leyte before he retires in March next year. 
“There are only 15 of them and it is more challenging to chase them. Now that I am in charge of two battalions, they have nowhere to go in Leyte Island,” Dagoy, a former commander of the Presidential Security Group, told reporters in an interview.
But in 2011 the AFP declared Leyte among the 24 provinces liberated from the NPA.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/119555/afp-we-liberated-23-provinces-from-npa
In a somewhat startling declaration Thursday, the Armed Forces claimed to have “liberated” 23 provinces from the four-decades-old communist insurgency, which it said lost more than 300 guerrillas in 2011. 
“The AFP through the IPSP Bayanihan liberated 23 provinces from the CPP-NPA-NDF influence, with their internal security operations turned over to their respective local government units,” the military said. 
The provinces are Apayao, Ifugao, Kalinga, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Nueva Ecija, Aurora, Biliran, Cebu, Bohol, Camiguin, Misamis Oriental, South Cotabato, La Union, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Cavite, Marinduque, Romblon, Guimaras, Siquijor and Leyte and Southern Leyte. 
AFP public affairs chief  Colonel Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. said the presence of NPA guerrillas in these provinces had become so insignificant that the military had turned over the job of maintaining security in these areas to the local government  units. 
“These are indicators that there is now unhampered progress in these provinces without major incidents of violence and extortion by the NPA rebels,” he said in a phone interview. 
“We can’t say there’s zero presence but we can say that it is no longer significant,” Burgos said. 
Only “less than 5,000” NPA rebels remain in the countryside waging their decadeslong revolution, he said.
15 rebels in the mountains of Leyte are indeed significant compared to the thousands scattered in holes and lairs across the country but significance of numbers is not the point. The point is to completely stamp out the NPA and end the insurgency once for all. Because the AFP turned over security operations to LGUs rather than go the distance and finish the job the NPA still poses problems in most if not all of those provinces.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1079409
“We also have to work harder in order to retain peace and prevent the resurgence of insurgency and terrorism,” Dolina point out.
“Cebu as the economic and political hub in the Visayas, and Bohol, together with Siquijor as top international tourist destinations in the region, stresses the importance of preventing enemy resurgence and strengthening convergence not only of the government and non-government agencies, but also the communities,” he said.
In his relinquishment speech, Baluyan noted that Cebu was declared insurgency-free in 2010, and that it is a challenge for the task group commander “to sustain the ISO gains in Cebu."
What is the real status of the NPA in Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor when just a few months ago the PNP was worried about a resurgence which the AFP is seeking to prevent.

https://www.boholchronicle.com.ph/2019/04/10/pnp-concerned-over-resurgence-of-npa-in-bohol-pnp-chief-albayalde/
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde on Wednesday expressed concern over the reported presence of New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Bohol, which has been deemed insurgency free for almost a decade.  
It was the first time that a national police official publicly acknowledged the “resurgence” of the NPA in the province. 
In July the AFP reported that the NPA in Negros had installed a new leader.

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1814059
He added that Posadas leads the rebels based in the neighboring islands of Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor.
How can Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor be insurgent-free if there are still insurgents? These areas have been declared insurgent-free at least twice including 2009 and 2018.

https://www.philstar.com/cebu-news/2009/07/13/485995/afp-declares-cebu-and-bohol-free-insurgents
“Insurgency-free”, according to Luga, means that they have received no more reports of armed men in the province. 
Insignificant level. Wala na rito ang mga armed groups,” Luga said during the recent meeting of the Regional Peace and Order Council held at the Capitol Social Hall.
Alongside the brigade, the LGUs and ordinary citizens have taken the bulk of the responsibility in ensuring that Bohol, Cebu, and Siquijor remain insurgency-free.
However, Col. Madriaga clarified that while the areas are insurgency-free, they are not insurgent-free. 
Col. Madriaga insisted that communist members are present in these areas but the conditions that drive insurgency are being addressed. 
Insurgency-free but not insurgent-free? But the presence of insurgents means there is an insurgency! The AFP's definition of insurgency-free as meaning no reports of armed men is incredibly faulty. It does not follow that lack of reports of armed men means there are no insurgents!  It's quite a lot of nonsense and because the AFP cannot be truthful even to themselves they are caught in a cycle of clearing the same areas again and again. 

The AFP's handling of intel is also cyclical and repetitive. The cycle goes receive intel, do not act on it or ignore it, problems happen. In the lead up to the Marawi siege the AFP received intel about the impending attack but they ignored it. Earlier this year they received intel about foreign fighters making their way to Mindanao.  

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/02/09/1892149/intel-shows-foreign-terrorists-arriving-mindanao
A ranking local official yesterday revealed reports of Arabs and other foreign militants arriving in Sulu and other areas in southern Philippines. 
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Gov. Mujiv Hataman cited the information gathered during a meeting with Interior Secretary Eduardo Año and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana. 
Hataman said he is revealing the intelligence information to make the public aware of the threat posed by foreign terrorists coming to Sulu and parts of Central Mindanao.
Later in the year the AFP claimed there were only 7 foreign fighters in Mindanao. Now they claim there are dozens. Maybe about 60.

https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/philippine/militant-concerns-09042019124955.html
Dozens of foreign militants have fanned out in the Philippine south to evade capture, a military commander said Wednesday, as an analyst warned that extremists could mount a large-scale attack reminiscent of the Islamic State siege of Marawi in 2017. 
Government forces should watch out for more attacks from foreign extremists who have infiltrated the southern region and are moving to radicalize locals, said Jose Antonio Custodio, a security and defense analyst at the Institute for Policy, Strategy and Development Studies, a Philippine think-tank. 
“A non-neutralization of the ISIS foreign militants will allow them to increasingly radicalize local groups and then this may lead to more Marawi-style attacks or suicide bombings,” he told Benar News, using another acronym for Islamic State and referring to a five-month siege carried out in the southern Philippine city by militants linked with IS. 
The military commander for Western Mindanao, meanwhile, said troops were searching the region for about 60 suspected foreign militants, including people from Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, Morocco and Afghanistan. 
“They are scattered in our areas. They don’t have popular support. In due time, using our capabilities, we will neutralize them,” Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana said, reiterating an earlier pledge that the foreign fighters would be accounted for by year’s end. 
He said the foreigners were believed to be in areas where Philippine militant groups, including the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), were operating.
The AFP is confident that ISIS does not have enough popular support to recruit. But why make such an assumption? They pose a problem either way and the point is to neutralise them not observe them closely. As long as the AFP continues operating the way they do these cycles will keep repeating and terrorism will never be stamped out.

Monday, September 9, 2019

Basura Run

How trashy and disgusting is the Philippines?  It its so trashy and disgusting that there is a Basura Run where runners jog around town picking up trash in a competition to see who can collect the most and heaviest sacks of trash!

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/256689/basura-run-volunteers-collect-sacks-of-garbage-from-cebu-rest-of-ph
September 7 may seemed like an ordinary Saturday for the rest of us, but for the Earth warriors who collected sacks of plastic garbage that were dumped in parts of Cebu and the rest of the country, it was a special day for doing their mission of saving Mother Earth. 
Cebu City supporters of the 5pcs Daily Habit collected at least five sacks of plastic garbage while they did their run along Osmeña Boulevard starting at 6 a.m. 
Basura run participants in Carcar City collected 14 sacks of plastic garbage.  The group also included teachers from the Carcar City district. 
Tony Galon, founder of the 5 pcs Daily Habit and Basura Run, joined a group of volunteers in Naga City. He alone collected a sando bag full of plastic garbage during his one kilometer run. 
In Cebu, at total of 14 Basura Run groups did their clean-up in the cities of Cebu, Carcar and Naga and the municipalities of Minglanilla and Cordova.  Simultaneous runs were also held in other parts of the country including the cities of Davao, Butuan and Bacolod City and Biliran. 
But their effort was not enough. 
Galon said that starting 2020, he wanted to already invite all the barangays in Cebu and the rest of the country to join their annual Basura run to expand their coverage. 
“To have a Basura Run on every barangay in the Philippines,  we need to improve the message, awareness that basura run exists,” says Galon. 
“Basura Run can’t clean a place entirely, but we can teach the people how to clean their place,” he says. 
The Basura Run is a community service by volunteers, who play the role of Earth warriors, to raise public awareness on the importance of responsible garbage disposal. The group holds an annual run where in volunteers would pick up every piece of plastic garbage that they would see along the way. 
Look at those guys smiling with their bags of garbage like wow they did a great thing. What a low when you have to resort to game theory in order to clean up the environment because there is so much garbage. It is exactly like when a parent plays airplane to get their child to eat.  You know when they pretend the spoon is an airplane and the mouth is a landing strip? That is baby stuff.

Tony Galon is the founder of the Basura Run as well as 5 pcs Daily Habit. Let's see what that is all about.
Its a habit armed to raise awareness to all the people that we need to do something for our current garbage situation not only in Cebu but all over the Philippines 

Started on January 1, 2015 as a New Year's resolution of TONY GALON, a runner, after seeing most of the runners while running just throw away their water bottles anywhere, an add up to the growing problem knowing the existing condition on our garbage not just in CEBU but all over the Philippines. 

It is an advocacy of runners and that of ordinary people that are looking forward for the future of our children by way of picking up 5 pieces of plastic daily and throw into the proper trash bin. We did this because we believe that doing so will we can convince you to NOT TO THROW TRASHES anywhere especially PLASTIC. 

We know that the 5 pieces of plastic waste shall not cleanse a city or town or even a village, but we believe that we attract notable that there is concern for the problem of litter or happen to be the main cause of FLOODS.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/5pcs-Daily-Habit-893731587366671/about/?ref=page_internal
Is this a joke? What kind of person tosses their water bottle just anywhere? I am a runner and I have never seen that. I also don't ever carry a bottle of water with me. Who does that? My average run is about 5 miles and even when I worked myself up to longer runs including half-marathons just for fun I never carried a water bottle. Are these runners so weak that they need to carry a water bottle? No way are they running so far and long that they risk dehydration. Maybe they are out in the sun? But I have gone running in the heat of the day around 2pm and still I had no need to carry a water bottle. There really is nothing like wearing yourself out and then drinking an ice cold bottle of water when you return home. Very refreshing and worth the wait.

Zamboanga had their second Basura Run in October 2018 and they gave out prizes to the heaviest bag of garbage.
The participants filled up their empty sacks with plastic wastes while they run and upon reaching the Tugbungan Elementary School, the trash collected were weighed and sorted and the groups or individuals with the heaviest trash were awarded with prizes.
https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1770924
The nature of the prizes isn't revealed. 

Well you can't fault these guys. The Basura Run is well intentioned and is a good thing. But the fact that such a run exists says a lot about the state of the Philippines. A nation awash in garbage. They even admit it!