By DJ Yap
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–The Makati court handling the coup d’etat case against Senator Antonio Trillanes IV will hear on Friday his motion appealing the ruling rejecting his request for furlough to attend Senate sessions.

Judge Oscar Pimentel of the Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 148 will hear the arguments of both parties on whether he should reverse his decision denying Trillanes leave to perform his Senate duties while under detention.

On Thursday, the prosecution panel led by Assistant Chief State Prosecutor Richard Anthony Fadullon and State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera filed another pleading opposing Trillanes’ motion, which they said smacked of special treatment.

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GET a life, Senator Lacson!

If you want to run for the presidency, at the very least have the decency of statesmanship. Then again, you are Panfilo Lacson! The very same person who made news at the height of the investigation with regard to the deaths of the Kuratong Baleleng Gang… the very same person who had on-and-off relationship with former president Joseph Estrada… the very same person who, for his entire career as a senator in the 13th Congress, devoted himself to implicating the First Family with countless allegations, which have never really prospered to a full-scale investigation!

Now you have given breath anew to an expose, which is actually old news! Would you go so low as to bask yourself in character assassination in the attempt to put your name and face in all the news magazines and dailies?

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NO way, Mar. You are a pseudo-oppositionist.

You want to align yourself with the opposition because you feel it is the “in” thing nowadays, notwithstanding the fact that opposition contenders for the presidency is already [an] overcrowded [group].

If all of you don’t shape up, you will find yourselves clobbered by Malacanang’s annointed one.

– Wency Gunio, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (via e-mail)

THE WHOLE world saw what Trillanes had done when he and his
cohorts held the Oakwood hotel and its employees hostage to further his “convictions.”

Guts you say? The man was definitely not thinking straight when he launched his campaign of terror. Despite the noblest of intentions, his actions had consequences that so adversely affected the economy that it moved progress some years back.

Trillanes is a military man. He has no business talking the talk of civilians. How he won as senator is so beyond comprehension. Is that how the Filipino voter selects leaders, on good looks and trash talk?

– Arpee Lazaro, Makati City, Philippines (via e-mail)

By INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines–A major media organization assailed reported plans of the Commission on Elections to file charges of electoral sabotage against two media personalities the poll body accused of cooking up stories meant to discredit its reputation.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said it was “appalled” by the threat voiced by election commissioner Nicodemo Ferrer and called it “an assault on press freedom and freedom of expression.”

In a statement signed by chairman Jose Torres Jr., the NUJP called “ridiculous and outrageous” Ferrer’s reason for filing the case — to “cleanse the (journalism) profession” — and his equating the alleged false news and comments of the unnamed journalists to electoral sabotage, a non-bailable offense punishable with life imprisonment.

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I WISH to react to the news story in which the political party Lakas says it wishes to play the role of “kingmaker” in 2010.

How can Lakas be a kingmaker when it could not even manage to secure the victory of Team Unity candidates in the last elections? All over the country, TU was roundly beaten, except in places like Cebu, where no Lakas candidate won in the province.

We need not stray very far. We only need to ask the question — how did the TU fare in Pangasinan, the supposed “baluarte” (bailiwick) of Lakas, JDV being from Pangasinan? It was shameful. Certainly nothing for JDV or Lakas to be proud of.

I think all this talk of “kingmaker” is just a shameless bid for Lakas to stay relevant in 2010. Because with JDV on his last term (and no waging a respectful national campaign), Lakas will just fade away, and its members absorbed by the more viable national parties, like NP or LP or NPC, who all have presidentiables.

So Lakas should not kid itself. The best course to take now is to run for cover.

– Jorge Batoon, Glendale, California (via e-mail)