June 2007 Archives

CHECK out this video taken by INQUIRER.net reporter Joel Guinto. For more videos, visit i VDO.

CAN the government tolerate this kind of treatment they are receiving from [Mag uindanao provincial election supervisor Lintang Bedol] Bedol? Is he more untouc hable than Garci [former Commission on Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcilla no]? Why was he in the Comelec in the first place? Bedol is the kind of person who c an mingle with the Muslim rebels anytime he wants because he will always be wel comed by them. Remember Garci's attire when he gave himself up to the government? Bedol's anti cs qualifies him to be a terrorist. A political terrorist who can do anything h e wants as long as he is tolerated and well protected by the "padrinos." -- Andy Paliguiran, Los Angeles, California (via e-mail)

DETAINED senator-elect Antonio Trillanes IV was mobbed by media and supporters on his way to his proclamation as the 11th senator. Video taken by INQUIRER.net reporter Erwin Oliva on June 15 at the Commission o n Elections office in Intramuros. For more videos, visit i VDO.

IT is a blatant display of stomping the const itutional guarantee of the freedom of choice and expression, if not displaying ignorance about it. They use the enlisted men as guinea pigs to please their master, although the m ajority would surely avail of the doctrine of secrecy. It is a calculated bullying exercise after exhaling the fumes of embarrassment and dismay that Mr. Trillanes got his way to the Senate which was a message so loud and clear of the Filipino voters' support for Trillanes' advocacy against the Arroyo regime. -- Napoleon de la Torre, Auckland, New Zealand (via e-mail)

HERE'S a video clip of Maguindanao election supervisor Lintang Bedol being mobb ed by media after his closed-door hearing with th e Commission on Elections, courtesy of our new iVDO service. Video taken by INQUIRER.net report er Erwin Oliva. For more video clips, visit iVDO, which is a partnership between INQUIRER.net a nd the world's leading portal, Yahoo! Got a video youâve made that youâd like to share with a global audience? E-mail it to inqui rerdotnetvideos@yahoo.com.ph and include a brief description of 100 words o r less. All submissions will be subject to editorial discretion. Videos should run for no more than 10 minutes and be less than 100MB. They must be in WMV, ASF, QT, M OD, MOV, MPG, 3GP, 3GP2 or AVI format, and have audio.

HERE'S a video clip from iVDO (INQUIRER.net VDO), the new online video service that INQUIR ER.net has launched in partnership with Yahoo! Got a video you've made that you'd like to share with a global audience? E-mail it to inqui rerdotnetvideos@yahoo.com.ph and include a brief description of 100 words o r less. All submissions will be subject to editorial discretion. Videos should run for no more than 10 minutes and be less than 100MB. They must be in WMV, ASF, QT, M OD, MOV, MPG, 3GP, 3GP2 or AVI format, and have audio.

I PRAISE Chairman [Banjamin] Abalos and the rest of the Comelec [Commission on Elections] for doing a good job last May election/ If massive cheating occured, then why are a majority of the GO candidates march ing their way to the Senate? Why did Mike Defensor, the most loyal Cabinet memb er of this administration, not make it to the Final 12? Why did Lilia Pineda, a known close friend of the President, fail to sit in the Capitol of Pampanga? Let us give where credit is due. We are all tired of loudmouths and baseless ac cusations that never cease to pull the country down. By the way, I like the way Chairman Abalos pronounced "senator" in proclaiming the newly elected lawmaker s.

TRILLANES would not even win as barangay chairman before Oakwood. Yes, the Philippine electorate rewarded Lt. Senior Grade Antonio Trillanes IV f or causing untold suffering to the people by bringing down the economy and wrea king havoc on the business community in co-masterminding the infamous Oakwood m utiny. He used this popularity to shortcut his way to the political arena. Why can't h e do a Lacson and a Biazon who took the long road and got out of service and ra n for public office on the merits of their accomplishments? Is he too ambitious and could not wait for his turn? Let's see if he will turn out to be like the gentlemen I mentioned or will he be like Gringo who was rewarded again after wa rming his seat in a forgettable stint in the Senate. -- Buddy Jose, Las Vegas, Nevada (via e-mail)

HERE'S Amando Doronila's take on the results of the May polls. Excerpt from his column piece "Acting as if no thing happened":

MANILA, Philippines -- The first thing the opposition did after it appeared certain that the Genuine Opposition (GO) candidates had won 8-2-2 in t he Senate election was to talk with deposed president Joseph Estrada, at his de tention home in Tanay, Rizal, about the division of spoils. Up for grabs are th e Senate presidency and chairmanship of key committees. From newspaper reports, there was nothing to indicate that the victors, in the flush of triumph, thoug ht of overhauling the national policy agenda beyond just carving up the booty. The celebration with Estrada was symbolic and symptomatic of the oppositionâs v iew of the mandate it received from the people on May 14. When the opposition l eaders met at Estradaâs rest house, they offered the GO capture of the Senate a s a trophy to Estrada and as an acknowledgment of Estradaâs view that the elect ion was a referendum on the illegitimacy of his overthrow by Gloria Macapagal-A rroyo in January 2001 and a vindication of his innocence of plunder charges. The opposition cannot be more wrong than crediting Estrada for the GO victory i n the Senate election. Some of them may like to think the GO team was handpicke d by Estrada. But this was not exactly the case: most of the GO candidates were not identified as dyed-in-the-wool Estrada partisans, and presented themselves as independent-minded persons. The only thread shared by members of the team w as that all were anti-Arroyo. The May election was anything but a rerun of the Estrada-Arroyo political vende tta. That feud was not the central election issue. The voters decided on a numb er of issues that have emerged to define the character of the Arroyo administra tion since 2001. The nation has traveled a long distance for the past six years . Consequently, Estrada cannot claim credit for influencing the 8-2-2 Senate el ection result. Much less is he in a position to call the shots in the allocatio n of power in the next Senate.

[PANFILO] LACSON wants to head the Senate blue-ri bbon committee. "I want to advance my advocacy of accountability among public officials. If onl y for it, I want to chair the blue-ribbon committee. But I won't beg for it nor exchange my vote to get that committee," he said, referring to his vote for Se nate president. Since majority of the Senate is now GO [Genuine Opposition] and they are serio us about their anti-corruption drive and putting corrupt public officials in ja il, will they prosecute Erap? Or will they go only for administration candidat es and their allies?

I TOTALLY agree with National Artist Napoleon Abueva: Manny Pangilinan for president in 2010. He is honest. Incorruptible. If he can run the Philippines like his businesses, we can expect huge success. He's deeply religious and spiritual. Like Grace Pa daca and Father Ed Panlilio, he's single and bears the sign of the cross in his person. Being a bachelor, the country need not worry about an FG [First Gentleman] like Mike Arroyo or an FL [First Lady] like Imelda, or a Kamag-anak, Inc. like the Cojuangcos or Erap's mistresses. MVP can devote all his time and energy to the country. Let's start now. Mobilize for MVP in 2010. -- Enrique Angeles, Buena Park, California (via e-mail)

I WAS reading the letters to the editor, when the article "Forget impeachment bid" by Ms Emma Requilme (Inquir er, 06/01/07) caught my attention. At last! Someone has decided to forget impeachment. I'm so tired of hearing peo ple talking about the impeachment of the president. They only look at the negat ive sides of the administration. But I think, they didn't take the time to glan ce at the positive side. I agree with the point of Ms. Requilme that we should forget about impeachment and pay attention to our hungry fellow citizens. Having an impeachment trial wo uld be such a waste of time. There are people waiting to be fed. So, the questi on would be: Which is important? The impeachment or our hungry fellow citizens? I always hear activists cry out loud "Oust Gloria!" But if you asked them the q uestion above, surely they will choose the good of our fellow citizens. Then, i f that's what they want, the good of our people, we must wait for our president 's move. So let us forget impeachment and think of the future of our people and our country. -- Jay-R Lumbo, Marikina City (via e-mail)

I LIKE best the last paragraph of your edito rial especially the second sentence: "the need for vigilance continues..." I always make it a point to read your editorial everyday when I come to work an d that line hit me hardest. You inspire your readers. I pray people like you will continue to be like you... doing their work with th e highest integrity. Thank you. -- Archimedes Pormicelle, Caloocan (via e-mail)