Alleba Politics

Blogger and poet, Mikael Co, has taken a different point of view regarding political ads:

Natural na proseso ito sa isang market system. E ano kung politiko sila na may hangarin sa 2010? Hindi sila nangampanya; nagsabi sila ng opinyon ukol sa isang produkto, o nagtulak ng isang adbokasya. Malaki raw ang maitutulong ng mga naturang ad sa kanilang kampanya, sa “awareness” ng tao sa mukha at tinig nila. Ano ang mali doon? Ano ang ikinaiba nila sa lahat ng ibang celebrity na nagtutulak ng produkto– na, sa totoo lang, e makakatulong din sa awareness ng publiko sa mga artistang ito, sa “kampanya” para tangkilikin ng tao ang susunod nilang pelikula? O kunwari may isang artista ngayon na maraming ads sa TV– si Piolo, kunwari. Paano kung bigla niyang maisipang tumakbo sa 2010? Unfair advantage din ‘yun, di ba? Iba na ba ang standards na gagamitin natin para sa mga pulitikong lumalabas sa ads, mga pulitikong nababalitang kakandidato sa 2010, balitang media lang din naman ang nagpapakalat? Nasaan ang mali du’n?

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ZTE and the Youth and what is wrong with the Philippines
by Ryan B. Maboloc

Linkoping, SE
03.01.08

Manila-based Asian Development Bank reports that in 2006, 14% of the Philippines’ 87 million people or 12.18 million live on $1 a day while 30% or 26.1 million are below the poverty line. This
is despite a 20% increase in tax collection between 2002 and 2006, a GDP growth rate between 4.4% to 5.4% from 2002-06, export growth of 16%, and overseas remittances of $12 billion. The country is burdened by $57B in debts and an unemployment rate of 11%. In 2007, the country’s GDP has registered a growth rate of 7.3%, fastest in three decades. But the statistics above perplexes me. Is economic growth bad for Filipinos?

Living in a poor country where hunger is the face of many people’s state of affairs, I have seen the terrible reality of human life which truly makes one doubt whether poverty can vanish from the earth. Inequality is a hard fact of life. About 25 years ago, fish was abundant in my beloved barrio, so they put a fishing port in the 90s. More than a decade has since gone by, and all the fishes have disappeared. They said the port will make the lives of people better, but after all, Fr. Pete Lamata was right in opposing the fish port. (Pipila lang ang midato, kadaghanan nagpait gihapon). I have not understood him then. Right now I do. A lot of people in my barrio live miserable lives.

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I received this forwarded email by Ryan Maboloc, a 32-year old Filipino currently taking up Masters in Applied Socio-Political Ethics in Sweden:

From a descriptive point of view, Mr. Hadji Balahadja’s analysis of Philippine politics (The Call for Social Democracy) is right. There is corruption in government, bad leadership, the same genes are in power, etc. From a prescriptive point of view, I think the solution lies somewhere else. Not in politics. Not even in changing the system of government. Democracy is only instrumental to people’s freedom; it is not freedom in itself. Democracy, at best, in the way it is practiced in the Philippines, in our dear country, secures only, through mass protests, the negative rights of people, i.e. freedom from an oppressive government, freedom from corruption, freedom from violence, etc. But, at the end of the day, when JDV wakes up in the morning, when GMA reads “There’s the Rub” in the Inquirer, still, they’ll be sitting in their verandas, their coffees served in imported porcelain, and mind you, they won’t even touch their salamis. Now, the same is true to some wanna-be-heroes, i.e., businessmen, priests, professionals, the so-called civil society. But the real issue is, if you know where and what, is the fact that the common tao will wake up thinkin’ “unsa ug asa ko mangita ug pamahaw para sa akong lima ka anak?”.

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In a stupid but not exactly surprising move, Malacañang has opted to forgo with commemorating People Power 2. While bloggers and many other sectors are remembering the spirit and continuing the fight of the momentous People Power 2, the administrations wants nothing to do with it. Why? Allegedly, to heal the wounds the People Power 2 created. Say it with me people… “HUWHAT?!”

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Today’s SunStar Davao Editorial debunks the argument of the Philippine Banana Growers and Exporters Association (PBGEA) that the Ban on Aerial Spraying will have “dire economic effects”.

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PinoyXPat sheds light on the performance (on non-performance) so far of our Philippine Senators.

Among the current senators, it is Edgardo Angara, Rodolfo Biazon, Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Richard Gordon, Lito Lapid (surprising indeed), Loren Legarda, Francis Pangilinan, Ramon Revillar Jr., Mar Roxas, and Manuel Villar who manage to impress.

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These past weeks, one of the main issues that I have read and heard about is the depleting water supply in the Angat Dam causing a water shortage. Unfortunately, it may also cause a power shortage. This is, a lot of people contend, due to the climate change phenomenon. And I must agree. Although this is a very alarming emergency, the government and civil society should see this as a golden opportunity to educate the public and move towards a more environmentally-sound governance and public awareness and lifestyle.

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In their editorial today (July 17, 2007) the Philippine Daily Inquirer describes the Human Security Act of 2007 (HSA) as a scary law:

Its enforcement could be twisted to serve the political ends of the enforcers. Given the records of the principal enforcers — Acting Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo — there is reason to be afraid that abuses would be committed in its enforcement.

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My cousin Andrew “Alleba” dela Serna tagged me for this blog meme: What are the 3 signs you see happening now that make you say, “it feels great to be Pinoy”?

1.) I cannot be prouder of Davao City and everything it has achieved. Everything about Davao City is great: the policies, the people, the places… I can go on and on about.

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Sunstar Davao reports that the Dabawenyos have chosen Genuine Opposition (GO) senatorial candidates over those of Team Unity (TU). Curiously, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s support of TU didn’t translate into votes. There is no doubt that Duterte is very influential in the city as reflected in the results of the Davao City local elections results. But this time, his influence and support weren’t enough to deliver the goods.

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