A Fresh Voice

Democracy threatens to vanish as Desaparecidos' number heightens

2006-09-11T11:22:00.000+08:00

This is a tarpauline sheet of the pictures of some of the more than 700 political activists who were either slain, or are still missing. It is during the Arroyo regime that the number of killings soared- and exceeded that of the Martial Law period.

Controversial Major General Jovito Palparan Jr., has a soft spot for his Maltese dog. Who would have thought that this same man is being tagged a "butcher" in Luzon for leaving a trail of dead and mangled bodies of political activists anywhere he went?

PGMA is aptly likened to Adolph Hitler, because in both administrations, lots of people were killed for their beliefs. Arroyo's iron hand is said to silence those who oppose her and her administration. Being her critic means being a part of her "wanted" list; and some have already suffered death as a consequence.

Militants held a die-in protest last June 27 at Gastambide Street against the rampant political killings. Activists were able to outflank the police blockade on yet another attempt to hold a rally in Mendiola.

A plethora of different religious beliefs stand as one in condemning the political killings that pervade our country. Democracy comes in many forms. Putting aside religious differences for the greater goal of stopping such unlawful killings is a show of democratic unity of the Filipino people.

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Fernandez: Blogging can definitely be journalism

2006-08-31T08:31:00.000+08:00

Rolly Fernandez, a veteran journalist currently working for Philippine Daily Inquirer-Northern Luzon, is asked to speak in a journalism class under Sir Amer Amor.

Here is an inside look at the class lecture about blogging as an online form of journalism of Prof. Fernandez.

There already is an established rapport between the speaker and the students, since most if not all, has been under the tutelage of Sir Rolly in the previous journalism classes.

Sir Rolly Fernandez, a veteran journalist, has been invited to speak to the online journalism class of Sir Amer Amor to discuss his views regarding blogging as a part of journalism.

"Journalism is being romanticized", Fernandez says. What is needed in writing as a journalist has been the same 50 years ago, today, and tomorrow. Blogging, although a different form of journalism, is still indeed journalism if the writer does not fail to abide by the training and ethics involved in it. He says that blogging is a welcome challenge for those journalists who may be lenient and unguarded in choosing news articles and facts that come from the internet. I quote, "it is a guard against garbage information", thus blogging should complement newspaper journalism.

Although Sir Fernandez acknowledges the good change brought about by blogging, he stresses that "machines cannot replace human skills and common sense". Newspapers still need reporters and editors to guard against inaccurate information. This being said, he says that those writers or journalists with proper training and experience have an edge compared to those who simply write in blogs to inform people.

Blogging is the trend of the future; but bright as it may be, Sir Rolly says that he doesn't think that "he will see the end of print journalism in his lifetime". As long as online journalism adheres to proper conduct in gathering and writing news, then blogging really is not a threat- but an answer to the clamor of presenting news in a different yet effective way as well.

Oil spill likened to Wowowee stampede

2006-08-28T09:08:00.000+08:00

The controversial oil spill that happened 2 weeks ago at Guimaras Island causes much alarm and havoc not only to the people surrounding that area, but also to environmentalist groups that fear the possible damage done to the marine life.
Petron Corporation chartered the tanker MT Solar 1 with 2 million liters of bunker fuel from Bataan to Zamboanga, but it sank in the rough seas last Aug. 11. Specialists say that the tanker is leaking 2,000 liters of oil per day. Such is the extent of the oil spill that it is said to have affected 66 sq. km. of sea and 220 kilometeres of coastlines. Because of the great damage that is continuing to ensue, the government has already sought the help of foreign agencies to help stop and clear the affected waters. PARALLELISM
What is the root cause of all this? And who are the people responsible? Investigations proved that the chartered tanker should not have been allowed to sail because their papers are already expired, and requirements are lacking.Why is it then, that the Philippine Coast Guard and the Marina allowed this tanker to sail, knowing full well that it contained very precious and potentially dangerous tons of oil? Could it be a simple matter that was overlooked? Such negligence that resulted to the pollution and death of an immeasurable number of marine life is unforgivable. What happened is not merely an accident, and there are those who are to be held responsible. The question now is, who are these people?
DOJ Sec. Gonzales hints that not only Petron should be held accountable, but the PCG and Marina as well. Not only is there criminal liability of reckless imprudence resulting in damage to properties, but also reckless imprudence resulting in deaths. As with what happened in Wowowee, it is clear who the guilty parties were, but it is unclear why until now no charges have been made- no people put behind bars. Government agencies have found to be liable in both incidents (that of which could have been avoided if only they did their jobs well- and damage could have been avoided or held at the minimum).Investigations would ensue; the harm has been done. Although there is no redeeming of the hazardous pollution caused to the environment, bringing those responsible to justice somewhat appeases those who were affected.

a SONA that foregoes the STATE of the nation

2006-07-26T07:45:00.000+08:00

President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo has delivered the much anticipated State of the Nation Address last Monday, July 24. There were no 'bloody' rallies, but her SONA is met with much criticism by the opposition and critical thinkers, albeit praises from her supporters.
A few weeks before the SONA, PGMA issued an 'all-out war' to "terrorists" that entailed the whole country billions of pesos. It supposedly is to be spent on capturing people who are tagged as doing harm to its people and its country. Point number 1: 'terrorists' is such a vague term that could lead to the abuse of power to anybody whom the government finds 'against it'. It may be the reason for the widespread killings of media people and mass leaders, but I will delve into it later. Point number 2: a billion pesos is worth more than 999 million pesos. nine hundred and ninety-nine million pesos, when spelled out, seems far greater than 1 billion pesos- and this exaggeration is meant to make the readers feel how much the government has spent on the 'all-out war' against terrorists that we supposedly have to control and stop. This same 999 million pesos could have gone a long way if instead of allocating the budget to anti-terrorism, it was placed on education. We have to keep in mind that 'terrorism' and show of displeasure by certain mass groups and organization are brought about not because they are violent in nature and wants only the disruption of our society, but because there are things that trigger them to act as they do. I believe that improper allocation of funds such as this is the fire that causes people to create more smoke. We always say that the youth are the hope of the future. Why so? because education is the only thing that can be passed on; and if the government decides to cut on the budget of education, where now is the hope of the nation? Surely the youth cannot be the best that they can be if the money so important in making them finish school is cut away from them. Surely no good jobs will be offered to them if all they finished is high school.
I have cited only a brief background of what has happened to our nation in the last 2 months, and yet it has reflected the sympathy of many against the 'selfish' actions of the government. What I have written above is but a minute detail of what is really going on in our country- that which PGMA has refused, or neglected to discuss in her SONA. The State of the Nation Address is supposed to show to its people what the state of the nation is; SONA is not the proper avenue to propose plans and changes in the country. If it were so, then it should have been PONA-Plans on the Nation Address. I believe that the obvious diversion of the president from delving into the matters of the society is clear proof that there is something wrong about our current state, that is why she chose to talk about her plans that again, may or may not be accomplished, to the detriment of nobody else but its citizens.
If I were to discuss the PONA, and if I were an optimist (such lucrative plans for the 'superregions' are far too impossible to happen), then the PONA would have been ok. Why? Because first, she was the first Philippine president to use powerpoint integrated with her speech, which proves that she also cares that the people watching and listening to her not only watch and listen, but study the map and the proposed changes that she offers. This means that she really devoted time to detail the steps needed to make an ordinary region a 'superregion'. It is notable that she devoted more than half of her time to talk about the third phase of her plan, and that is the 'superregions'. The first and second phase which are fiscal reform and social expenditures were discussed all but briefly to give way to the 'most important' part of her speech on the superregions. One has to ask, then, whether her obvious interest in the 'superregions' has something to do with her desire for a parliamentary form of government. When one notes the time and effort she devoted to talk about the superregions, one may be led to conclude that this is a subtle way of conditioning the peoples' minds that when her idea of 'superregions' have succeeded, then we are now ready to take on Cha-Cha. But the problem is, these are only plans- the more important part is the implementation which is quite impossible to push through. I do not want to sound pessimistic, but the fact that all the money needed to spend for these 'superregions' are humongous, and definitely our budget is not cut out for such spending, we may have a hard and disappointing time putting these plans to action. She said that development plans for Northern Luzon have funds already. If we take her word for it, then it is good news for Northern Luzon; but what about the rest of the Philippines?
After her well-drafted plan for the 'superregions', PGMA went on to cite the more trivial state of the nation like dominating the SEAN games, winning international beauty titles, Filipinos reaching the summit of Mt. Everest, and our boxing champions; I do not mean to say that these things have no importance to our country. Sure, we pride on them and their accomplishments, but we have to be realistic enough to see that these "time-outs and entertainments" cannot, and will never be able to make-up for the lowering quality of education, the menial jobs that overqualified graduates are forced to take in order to make it through, the lives lost of the media men and active members of mass organizations, and many more that constitute a greater part of the real state of our nation.
PGMA ended with the call for unity of the Filipino people; that instead of picking up old fights, we have to join hands. Who is against this? I don't think nobody in their right minds would not want a better Philippines. I just think that hiding the truth of our nation's state is what is keeping us from succeeding. Instead of putting off the real concerns of our country, why not attack these things head on, propose plans to better them, and then ask the people to unite in bringing about positive change? As the saying goes, a wrongdoing cannot be corrected by another wrong. People need to acknowledge individual mistakes, plan corrective action with the consent of the whole, and then, unite in bringing forth change.

Bandila slightly different from top of the hour news

2006-07-17T05:41:00.001+08:00

I am not one who stays up late; not especially if I would do it to watch news. But since it is required of us, I relent, hoping it would be worth my while. Is Bandila any different from the rest of the news that I can watch at 7pm? Not quite. Is it worth the effort of trying to keep my eyes open till the end of the show? Nope. But I guess that as different shows cater to different people, I am not the target audience of the news show Bandila. It may be especially designed for those folks who settle only in their homes at the wee hours of the night (11pm onwards).

Sure, news hotshots like Korina Sanchez, Ces Oreta- Drilon and Henry Omaga- Diaz are its anchors (but why not make use of their talents to further explain the news that they report?) For one, most of what they report in their show are the same ones which are being reported at the 7 o'clock news. So basically, save for the different time of telecast, content is much the same. So I ask, if I were to choose between watching Bandila and a news show that I could watch at 7pm, I'll choose the latter. I could find nothing special in Bandila that would make me choose to stay up late and watch it. Also, since what they do is a sort of "re-run" of the earlier news shows, I think that it would be better and more beneficial to those who have enough sense to watch Bandila if the cast have placed more effort in giving new angles to the stories, or different people to interview- those that were not previously aired in order to have a "fresh" air to it. Might as well make use of the long minutes spent to interviews- use their different statements for the sake of not being repetitive of the earlier news shows.

But then, there are some good points to the show also. For one, it is short and "chikka news" are not included. I bet that for the older generation, and for the executives, they are thankful that chismis about celebrities and other such people (who some of us really don't give a rat's ass) is not included in the genre of 'news story'. It is good that given the short time that is alloted to them, they are able to weed the news- worthy out of the dozens of available stories, thus making their short news show a bit more worthwhile. You do not have to sit through the whole show wondering why celebrity break-ups and misunderstadings are included in the news. Also, for the Friday news issue about the alleged waste of money at the dike at CaMaNaVa, they were able to devote some time to UP geological experts who explained in detail why they are led to believe that the billions of pesos spent for the dike is just being put to waste. Bandila went to the extent of giving proof to their claim that the dike is useless; they did not just make a claim and leave the people to decide on the pros and cons of it. If only Bandila does this kind of in-depth reporting to all of their news, then Bandila would become a must-see news show. But sadly, a couple more news issues down, and they already committed the mistake of leaving essential points hanging in the air. It is common knowledge that flocks of students choose nursing as their future vocation that is why Bandila should have known better than to spend such a short time regarding this issue. Bandila should have devoted more time in answering why UK plans to be stricter in issuing nursing permits; they should have answered essential points like what the effects of this news are; what made UK stricter; when is this policy going to ensue...these are some of the integral points that Bandila should have devoted their time in answering.

All in all, Bandila is not what I expected it to be- I expected a lot more from a news show who have 3 anchors who are at the "top of their league"; a news show this late should at least have made more effort in delivering news attempting to give a fresh view to each of their stories (and not just for a few)- to make it worth the peoples' time. Well, it could be that I am being more critical than required; but then again, having critical minds are what makes a good report.

Malacanang suspends Mayor Yaranon

2006-07-10T05:02:00.000+08:00

Former Judge Braulio Yaranon, currently the mayor of Baguio City is suspended from his mayorship due to "abuse of authority". The suspension was recommended by the Department of Interior and Local Government to the Malacanang Palace.
The said abuse of authority stems from the iron-hand of Yaranon regarding Jadewell matters. It can be remembered that Mayor Yaranon was, and continues to be the strongest opponent of Jadewell Parking- questions of the former about the legality of the operations of Jadewell continue to ensue.
I, for one, am thankful that Baguio has finally elected one who has such conviction to uphold that which is right and beneficial to the people. Why do I say this? because Jadewell ensued many years back, long before the tenure of current mayor Yaranon began. The solid brick wall that has been erected is hard to put down, no matter how great the fervor Yaranon has. Do money and power prove to prevail over the peoples' rights? Yaranon, who is known to be battling Jadewell and its cronies, is now facing charges of "abuse of authority" for his alleged use of power to stop Jadewell. Frankly, I do not know of any ordinary citizen who is not glad for what Mayor Yaranon is doing. He is up against a seemingly indestructible power, which is obviously backed up by DILG and Malacanang.
Where does justice come in? Is the welfare of the people not enough to determine which is right and ideal? The suspension of Mayor Yaranon clearly shows that anyone- not even a mayor-who seeks to put down the established powers here in Baguio, could prevail. I think that what is happening here in Baguio reflects the national crisis we are experiencing. Those who have only the peoples' welfares in mind are the ones who are put down and misappropriately judged. Those who have the courage to oppose evil doings are the ones chastised. I am not one to support every backfire and backlash against our government, but then again, I am for the people and against all those who try to maintain the status quo of the non-good doers at the top. Mayor Yaranon is one who tries to change that status quo, but look what has happened to him. Now, who is it that really abuses power?

Jadewell defies court order to stop fee collection

2006-07-03T06:00:00.000+08:00

Those who have private vehicles can now breathe easily because Jadewell Parking Company was issued a temporary restraining order against collecting fees for parking in public areas like Session road, Harrison road and the like- or don't we notice it? Despite the TRO administered to them last April 19, we still see men in maroon shirts, black pants and hats (that look like it belongs to cowboys) holding sheets of papers and collecting 20 peso fees from unknowing citizens that they may choose to either pay the fee or disregard these Jadewell personnels. Although people are highly encouraged to choose not to pay, citizens who do not know about the said TRO, let alone the tourists, are the victims of the scam. Why use such a strong word as "scam"?Because despite the court order commanding them to stop collecting parking fees, Jadewell is taking their chances and nagbabakasakaling makalusot. This is a clear example of the illegal acts of Jadewell, and a clear defiance of the order issued upon them.
The issue of Jadewell's legality has long started and still, without finality, we see them operating and stopping, operating and stopping. What is the issue here, really? Well, the bottom line of this primarily is the "illegal" use of Jadewell of public roads to their personal advantage. Why do I say this? Because it is clear that public roads should be used by the people of Baguio for free; but why is it that Jadewell Parking acts as if they own the place and collects fees from the people? I believe that this is the main issue here. Plain and simple. The areas where they collect fees do not belong to them, the mayor does not want them to continue their "illegel" activities and so do the people of Baguio; and yet they still fight for it in court as if they stand a chance. But they do! The fact that we again see Jadewell collectors mushrooming around the supposedly free parking areas is a clear stance that Jadewell feels as if they have the right to continue operating despite the injunction order on collection of parking fees issued by RTC Judge Pamintuan last April 19.
According to Judge Pamintuan, the contract awarding Jadewell management of the city's streets remains "one of the biggest scams perpetrated in the country". Since "the hierarchy of laws clearly indicate that streets and parks are beyond the commerce of man", then we can conclude that "Jadewell's presence in the streets also violates the constitutional right of citizens to travel any which way". Who awarded Jadewell the right to collect parking fees and the legality of that act is a different matter to be discussed, but we see here the sad fact that even though a wrong act is openly done to the detriment of the people, it takes a long time for the government to decide on it; thus again, to the continued suffering of the people.

Baguio flyover only to be half complete?

2006-06-25T16:37:00.000+08:00

All Baguio residents who pass by the rotunda of BGH, Kennon, and Marcos Highway would surely notice the road widening happening in the area. While one may be thankful for such positive changes, I would like to clarify that it merely is not a road widening project, but the start of the proposed flyover. It is puzzling as to why the Baguio government officials proposed to build it in an area where traffic is not a common thing. This area is not known for traffic congestion, that is why I believe it to be a waste of the peoples' tax money- especially when we consider that there are lots of other places where traffic is known to make peoples' heads ache with frustration. I think it to be a product of a hasty, not thoroughly thought of, and not a "people-consulted" project. Areas such as Bonifacio, Trancoville, and Session, among others, are notorious for traffic that could compete with EDSA. And what's more, the budget for the flyover construction is only P44 million. A big amount, one might think, but if we consider that the actual cost amounts to P80 million, we come to the realization that we still lack around P40 million. How are we supposed to finish the flyover project with half of the funds missing? Do we expect the government to produce the other P40 million in due time? What then happens to the unfinished half of the flyover? Surely it cannot be passable with half the road incomplete. It is not yet too late to act on it. With the peoples' awareness, the funds may be reverted and allocated to a new, more feasible and beneficial project. That which requires only P44 million.