Alleba Politics

Despite the strong peso and the growing economy, the records of the National Statistics Office (NSO) show that the gap between the rich and the poor is wider than ever. 1.74 million families (consisting 10% of the population) considered to be the richest earned 36% of the total 2006 family income. This translates to 10% of the population earning more than 1/3 of the country’s money.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Pilipino Banana Growers and Exporters Association (PBGEA) is now appealing the Regional Court’s decision on the constitutionality of Davao City’s ban on aerial spraying. PBGEA contends that the ban makes their plants susceptible to the Black Sigatoka Disease. They also argue that the ban will eventually lead to the death of the local banana industry.

Read the rest of this entry »

In her meeting with the executives of media companies, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo asked for the help of the media so that she is not distracted by politics, in order for her to focus on the economy. According to Arroyo, her three remaining years as President is time for her to build a legacy before she steps down. Arroyo promised to work on the economy so the people may eventually feel its effect.

Read the rest of this entry »

The House of Representatives has approved on the second reading the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2006. According to House Speaker Jose de Venecia, the GAA is solidly backed up by funds generated from the Expanded Value Added Tax (EVAT) and the “sin” taxes from tobacco and alcohol.

Now, it’s the Senate’s turn to approve, revise or reject the GAA.

Will 1 trillion pesos do the country good? I hope so. But I don’t think so. Money isn’t really our problem nowadays. The best we can wish for, I guess, is that the 1 tillion pesos go to where it’s supposed to go.

In the year 2000, the Philippine national government withheld a portion of the internal revenue (IRA) share of the city government of Davao in the amount of P 91 million. The following year, another P 116 million was not released. That totals to a whopping P 207 million. Therefore, the local government was deprived of such a huge amount to deliver the much-needed public services to our people for over five years now.

This money is the “just share” of our city from the collection of national taxes. The national government has no right to withhold it. Both the Constitution and the Local Government Code are clear about this. The Constitution says this just share in the national taxes “shall be automatically released” to local governments. The LGC, on the other hand, said this “shall be automatically and directly released to them without need of any further action.”

In the case Alternative Center for Organizational Reforms and Development, Inc. v. Zamora, 459 SCRA 578 (2005), the Supreme Court ruled that the setting aside of a portion of the IRA by the executive or the legislative departments of government is unconstitutional.

Clearly, the national government erred in not releasing this fund to the local governments which amounted to P 20 billion in the two years. It owes the city government of Davao P 207 million. I know of a number of banks that offer to double your money in five years. This could have amounted to over P 400 million by now!

Nyet. Well, that’s wishful thinking.

The national government allegedly has no money and so it cannot pay its debt to the local governments. But in the meantime, it continues to lick the asses of foreign creditor banks by automatically appropriating debt service under the national budget. As much as 40 percent of the national budget goes to debt service payments.

But money for local governments, nyet!

So, to pay for this withheld sum, the national government is embarking on a miracle. It is called the Monetization of IRA Collectibles for Local Empowerment (MIRACLE). Under this scheme local governments have the option to get their money from government designated trustee banks at a discounted value of 70 percent or get it in seven equal annual installments over the next seven years starting next year.

Well, this looks to me like highway robbery than a miracle.

Imagine our just share of the taxes withheld from us for over five years and now they plan to release it to us at either a discount or in installment!

What a miracle! We’re being robbed twice over!

This article was originally posted in the blog of Davao City First District Councilor Peter Laviña. Laviña also submitted this for his column at the Mindanao Times.

Here’s another something to smile about: the peso is getting stronger. Last Friday, February 10, 2006, it closed at PhP 51.48 to a dollar.

Despite the chaos, tragedies and political instability, the Philippine peso has somehow managed to stay afloat. The problem now is how to keep it afloat. Hopefully, it will only get stronger against the dollar.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is said to be gloating that RA 9337 or Reformed VAT is yielding “positive” results for the country’s economy. Fuel prices are down, the peso is up. I must concede that the economy is looking good.

But are the lives of Filipinos doing better??? I doubt it. Read the rest of this entry »

The past few days we have been reading and hearing reports on the Filipina Domestic Helper in Singapore who killed another Filipina Domestic Helper, allegedly because of jealous over a Singaporean taxi driver. Today, we read a new head on Inq7.net: “OFWs send home $885M in July, a 26% rise.” Read the rest of this entry »

Manuel L. Quezon III does a “Half time analysis“:

I. Last night on Korina Sanchez’s show, I ticked off some opposition friends because I suggested several things:

1. A People’s Court smacks of Communism and kangaroo “justice,” and won’t achieve even the bare minimum of credibility.

2. I am against street protests but not protest actions.

3. Invade the bailiwicks of the administration….

Sassy Lawyer dissects the “Intelligence of intelligence“:

Now why would the ISAFP chief claim that it was part of an anti-terrorism campaign? Obvious ba? Because it makes the ISAFP sound important. It gives the impression that a singular raid was actually part of a huge operation in a very well-publicized campaign that the Arroyo government has promised George W. Bush it would support.

Mongster’s Nest tells us to “Forget the next elections“:

Dissolving Congress after booting out Arroyo from power and installing a new government is the sweetest victory for Filipinos. But the opportunity not to vote for the lawmakers who made it impossible to impeach the President facing corruption and poll fraud charges is the next best thing.

Urbano dela Cruz, in Another Hundred Years Hence, presents a “system of down“:

# If we think of Congress as a reserve pool or buffer (i.e.-cache of politicians).
# Input can be new politicians or scions of political families.
# Output is retired politicians.

Gary of Bangketa Republique tells us “Huwag Mang-go-Gloria“:

Noel Cabangon, Gary Granada, Cookie Chua, Crazy as Pinoy and other artist friendly to AKBAYAN has come up with a copyleft CD.

JohnXXV of Republika ng Pilipinas writes about “Living Independence“:

Independence is a necessary condition of freedom. Independence is not only political, but it is also economical, intellectual, and cultural. If one is dependent, then it becomes necessary to consider the wishes of the person one depends upon. We’ve always experienced of the dilemna of what other people would think. There are many instances that our decisions are based or influenced according to the wishes of other people. I believe that choices must depend on the logical standard and the aesthetic standard that one wishes to promote, in order to be really free.

Yvonne Chua of PCIJ wirtes about “SWS poll: 79% of Pinoys wanted GMA impeached“:

The Social Weather Stations‘ latest nationwide survey shows that in the last few days of the recent House justice committee hearings on the impeachment complaint against the president, 79 percent of Filipinos wanted Arroyo impeached, 64 percent favored her resignation, and 51 percent said she should be removed by people power if the House would reject her impeachment.

Leon Kilat quips “Tikasana nimo uy, mura man kag si Gloria“:

In Cebuano, it’s “You’re such a cheat, you’re like Gloria.” I think there’s a better usage for Gloria. In Cebu, we say people are “pa Gorio Gorio” when you talk to them on an issue you are sure they know about and yet they pretend not to have a clue. Will that expression change to “pa Gloria Gloria?”

Jove Francisco says “Game on“:

Now that it’s dead, will it rise again after three days?

Well, that’s the hope of the faithful.

Everything’s up for grabs and it will be a free for all weekend.

Newsstand writes about the “Longest Day 8″:

…Escudero’s remarks during the privilege hour last Monday convinced me that he does have a genuine gift. Even more important, his colleagues in Congress think so too.

Julian Alejandro of Piercing Pens writes about the “Huwag Kang Mang-Go-Gloria Ring Tone“:

After “Hello Garci,” “Huwag Kang Mang-Go-Gloria” promises to be the next hottest ring tone in the texting capital of the world. This mp3 ring tone is from the carrier single “Values Education” of Akbayan’s protest album “Wag kang Mang-Go-Gloria”.

Luis Teodoro writes “Edsa History, Revisited“:

It is tempting to blame the vagaries of memory for his most recent statement on the 1986 People Power revolt. Juan Ponce Enrile is after all at least 80.

Having bolted the opposition a month or so ago, and now an administration voice in the Senate, the former Marcos Defense Minister recently said over national television that former President Corazon Aquino should abandon her belief that she can help oust Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from the Presidency by once more taking to the streets after the impeachment complaints against Arroyo were dismissed in the House of Representatives.

Bryant at Bryanton Post blogs about a “Sick, sick political system“:

I read with disgust the latest report of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) on how government funds, including those from the agriculture department, were used to finance President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s candidacy in the last elections.

Ricky Carandang reports on “Gary Teves’ Dilemma“:

Teves meantime argues that we cannot delay the inevitable and necessary financial adjustment needed to prevent the government from goi Read the rest of this entry »

The opposition will not bring the impeachment case to the Supreme Court.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo surprisingly appointed Philippine Armed Forces deputy Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan as Southern Command Chief. Earlier, the AFP Board of Generals recommended Maj. Gen. Samuel Bagasin. PGMA’s surprise appointment of Adan raised a lot of eyebrows.

Rep Imee Marcos admits that she was absent during the voting for the adoption of the House Justice Committee report on the impeachment cases because of her mom’s stand to side with Arroyo.

Officials in the Malacañang are apparently not aware that the national government hired a lobby firm in the United States to lobby for grants from the US Congress to support the Charter change.

Sen. Richard Gordon expresses his dismay at an alleged trade-off between President Arroyo and Rep. Eulogio Magsaysay. Allegedly, the planned revocation of an EO banning the importation of used vehicles into Subic Bay is the price for Rep. Magsaysay’s withdrawal of his signature in the impeachment cases. Gordon threatens to break off his political ties with the president (which is definitely something that the president would not want to happen). Gordon also bared that about P26 billion in tax collections were lost in the last three years due to the smuggling into Subic Bay of second-hand vehicles, tobacco products and liquor in Subic.

Meanwhile, Sec. Ermita denies that there is a plan to lift the ban on the importation of second-hand vehicles into Subic Bay.

Sen. Ralph Recto bared that the national government used the controversial road users’ tax to create “street sweeping” jobs for the first half of 2005. 370,000 of these jobs were created, which Recto pointed out, is much more than the jobs created in the agriculture sector during the same period.

As the leadership of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines changes on December 1, 2005, the pastoral stand of the group is likely to change too.

Both Shell and Caltex raised their petrol prices by P0.50/liter.

The peso is at P56.06 per US dollar.