POLITICAL SCIENCE REMINDERS 2
This article about transparency in government, as stipulated in Article II, Section 28 of the Constitution, was written long before the National Broadband Network - ZTE deal. How much more and how much longer?
“I shall make good and I shall do good for the good of all and not just for the cameras. The canvassing for public attention is over. I expect you to get up everyday to hold me accountable, in the full glare of transparent leadership. I shall wield the power of the Presidency to uphold truth and justice."
These were the exact words of the President at her inauguration in 2004.
Now, for the sake of exercising her expectation of me holding her accountable, I like to ask her to comment on the following in the spirit of transparent leadership.
1. What did really happen before, during, and after the elections?
Gloria appointed Virgilio Garcillano despite loud objections, owing to Garcillano’s reputation as a poll fraud operator. Given the background, Gloria could not have been merely his incidental “client.” Garcillano in effect acted as referee deliberately “planted” by Gloria to rig the vote in her favor. (Señeres, The Daily Tribune, December 1, 2005, p.5)
2. Did you really actually believe you won the elections fairly and honestly?
For the sixth quarter in a row, GMA’s net satisfaction ratings are down, now pegged at negative 30%. This supports the conclusion that GMA is the worst President to serve the country. A rating of negative 30% translates to a reality of political instability. The sad reality is that GMA’s ability to govern is not only impaired. It cannot be restored. Four C’s account for GMA recorded low satisfaction ratings – credibility, corruption, crime and cheating. (Maceda, The Daily Tribune, December 13, 2005, p. 5)
3. Where did Virgilio Garcillano go at the height of the tape controversy?
Virgilio Garcillano said he went underground for security reasons. He said he never left the country in the five months he was unseen and unheard from, (even if) a Department of Justice Task Force belies that claim by confirming that he left for Singapore on a Subic Air Lear jet last July 14. Now, Secretary Gonzales said that
Garcillano left disguised as a member of the flight crew and immediately announced the filing of perjury charges against the pilot. (Maceda, The Daily Tribune, December 1, 2005, p. 5)
4. Wasn’t Executive Order 464 self-serving?
Malacañang must really be desperate to engage in blackmail on the senators, to get them to stop any and all probes, by threatening to make public their expenditures of their “pork barrel.” This is of course the latest threat the Palace has employed, after Gloria’s gag order failed in stopping the Senate from questioning Cabinet officials and sub-officials under the executive department. So they refused to attend hearing, citing Executive Order No. 464. (Cacho-Olivares, The Daily Tribune, November 24, 2005, p. 4)
5. What really happened with the Department of Agriculture funds?
The controversy reportedly involves the diversion of some P2.8 billion of the Department of Agriculture’s funds intended to be used as monetary assistance to farmers across the country, for their procurement of fertilizers, to the campaign kitty of President Arroyo in the presidential elections last year. The funds were
allegedly distributed to a number of local government officials such as governors, mayors and congressmen, who were tapped by the administration to “ensure” Mrs. Arroyo won in their districts. (PNA, The Daily Tribune, December 20, 2005, p. 3)
6. Will Undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante do another Garcillano?
The former Agriculture official was allowed to make his exit to Hong Kong even as an immigration officer sounded off his flight. “There must be some powerful forces behind this man that makes him an extremely daring person to defy the subpoenas of the Senate.” (Rosales, The Daily Tribune, December 15, 2005, p. 6)
Questions, questions, questions.
It also brings to mind that lobbying contract entered into by the President through National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales with the US based Venable-LLC in the matter of getting US support for charter changes in the Philippine constitution, reshaping our form of government into a parliamentary federal system. (This particular subject is not covered by the newspaper readings from November 22 – December 22, 2005, but is equally important especially on account of this particular section.) No one knew about it, two months after it had been signed, except the President and Gonzales himself, and when the can of worms was opened to the public, it lead to Gonzales being medically treated.
What about the accountabilities of other government agencies in the disbursement of public money? For instance, the Philippine Commission on Good Government’s failure to detail the country’s advantages on the P112 million that PCGG paid for a law firm in the United States to go after the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcos family. (PNA, The Daily Tribune, December 13, 2005, p. 2).
Or, who should be made accountable for the P25 million worth of vaccines allowed to expire and go wasted in various health centers all over the country? (Surbano, The Daily Tribune, November 22, 2005, p. 2)
While I understand that certain reasonable conditions are set in order to protect confidentiality in the matters of state security, and even private citizen’s privacy, I believe I have the right to know of matters that are of interest to me as a citizen.
Will the government shed light on these matters, or keep itself mum until it has organized a well-written script that will exonerate it of its guilt, allow it to wash its hands a la-Pilate, and picture a rosy landscape clothed in nothing but stink?
It is interesting to note that Sec. 27 and Sec. 28 comes one after the other: if the state exercises honesty and integrity, it follows that it will have a policy of full disclosure in all its transactions. But a government like ours? Come on.
PS.
The truth of the matter is that, because of disenchantment with press reports about our country’s state of affairs, I have altogether stopped reading the newspapers prior to enrollment. The only reason why I resumed (with great difficulty) is because of this requirement for PL1A.
I remember that when the “Hello, Garci?” tape controversy was beginning to send shivers down the spine of the government, Chavit Singson came up with another CD professing a so-called hatched plan by former President Estrada to assassinate the President, obviously to make the public defocus from the Garci issue. It was then when I decided I have had enough of this (mis)information.
The foolish government cannot make a fool of everyone. One can only swallow so much garbage.
“I shall make good and I shall do good for the good of all and not just for the cameras. The canvassing for public attention is over. I expect you to get up everyday to hold me accountable, in the full glare of transparent leadership. I shall wield the power of the Presidency to uphold truth and justice."
These were the exact words of the President at her inauguration in 2004.
Now, for the sake of exercising her expectation of me holding her accountable, I like to ask her to comment on the following in the spirit of transparent leadership.
1. What did really happen before, during, and after the elections?
Gloria appointed Virgilio Garcillano despite loud objections, owing to Garcillano’s reputation as a poll fraud operator. Given the background, Gloria could not have been merely his incidental “client.” Garcillano in effect acted as referee deliberately “planted” by Gloria to rig the vote in her favor. (Señeres, The Daily Tribune, December 1, 2005, p.5)
2. Did you really actually believe you won the elections fairly and honestly?
For the sixth quarter in a row, GMA’s net satisfaction ratings are down, now pegged at negative 30%. This supports the conclusion that GMA is the worst President to serve the country. A rating of negative 30% translates to a reality of political instability. The sad reality is that GMA’s ability to govern is not only impaired. It cannot be restored. Four C’s account for GMA recorded low satisfaction ratings – credibility, corruption, crime and cheating. (Maceda, The Daily Tribune, December 13, 2005, p. 5)
3. Where did Virgilio Garcillano go at the height of the tape controversy?
Virgilio Garcillano said he went underground for security reasons. He said he never left the country in the five months he was unseen and unheard from, (even if) a Department of Justice Task Force belies that claim by confirming that he left for Singapore on a Subic Air Lear jet last July 14. Now, Secretary Gonzales said that
Garcillano left disguised as a member of the flight crew and immediately announced the filing of perjury charges against the pilot. (Maceda, The Daily Tribune, December 1, 2005, p. 5)
4. Wasn’t Executive Order 464 self-serving?
Malacañang must really be desperate to engage in blackmail on the senators, to get them to stop any and all probes, by threatening to make public their expenditures of their “pork barrel.” This is of course the latest threat the Palace has employed, after Gloria’s gag order failed in stopping the Senate from questioning Cabinet officials and sub-officials under the executive department. So they refused to attend hearing, citing Executive Order No. 464. (Cacho-Olivares, The Daily Tribune, November 24, 2005, p. 4)
5. What really happened with the Department of Agriculture funds?
The controversy reportedly involves the diversion of some P2.8 billion of the Department of Agriculture’s funds intended to be used as monetary assistance to farmers across the country, for their procurement of fertilizers, to the campaign kitty of President Arroyo in the presidential elections last year. The funds were
allegedly distributed to a number of local government officials such as governors, mayors and congressmen, who were tapped by the administration to “ensure” Mrs. Arroyo won in their districts. (PNA, The Daily Tribune, December 20, 2005, p. 3)
6. Will Undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante do another Garcillano?
The former Agriculture official was allowed to make his exit to Hong Kong even as an immigration officer sounded off his flight. “There must be some powerful forces behind this man that makes him an extremely daring person to defy the subpoenas of the Senate.” (Rosales, The Daily Tribune, December 15, 2005, p. 6)
Questions, questions, questions.
It also brings to mind that lobbying contract entered into by the President through National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales with the US based Venable-LLC in the matter of getting US support for charter changes in the Philippine constitution, reshaping our form of government into a parliamentary federal system. (This particular subject is not covered by the newspaper readings from November 22 – December 22, 2005, but is equally important especially on account of this particular section.) No one knew about it, two months after it had been signed, except the President and Gonzales himself, and when the can of worms was opened to the public, it lead to Gonzales being medically treated.
What about the accountabilities of other government agencies in the disbursement of public money? For instance, the Philippine Commission on Good Government’s failure to detail the country’s advantages on the P112 million that PCGG paid for a law firm in the United States to go after the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcos family. (PNA, The Daily Tribune, December 13, 2005, p. 2).
Or, who should be made accountable for the P25 million worth of vaccines allowed to expire and go wasted in various health centers all over the country? (Surbano, The Daily Tribune, November 22, 2005, p. 2)
While I understand that certain reasonable conditions are set in order to protect confidentiality in the matters of state security, and even private citizen’s privacy, I believe I have the right to know of matters that are of interest to me as a citizen.
Will the government shed light on these matters, or keep itself mum until it has organized a well-written script that will exonerate it of its guilt, allow it to wash its hands a la-Pilate, and picture a rosy landscape clothed in nothing but stink?
It is interesting to note that Sec. 27 and Sec. 28 comes one after the other: if the state exercises honesty and integrity, it follows that it will have a policy of full disclosure in all its transactions. But a government like ours? Come on.
PS.
The truth of the matter is that, because of disenchantment with press reports about our country’s state of affairs, I have altogether stopped reading the newspapers prior to enrollment. The only reason why I resumed (with great difficulty) is because of this requirement for PL1A.
I remember that when the “Hello, Garci?” tape controversy was beginning to send shivers down the spine of the government, Chavit Singson came up with another CD professing a so-called hatched plan by former President Estrada to assassinate the President, obviously to make the public defocus from the Garci issue. It was then when I decided I have had enough of this (mis)information.
The foolish government cannot make a fool of everyone. One can only swallow so much garbage.
posted by joeylgarcia at 10:44 PM
2 Comments:
.-JOEY: Es una pena que no os prodiguéis más en castellano o español por esas tierras Filipinas, que tanto en común tienen con España...
.-Saludos desde Cosas y Casos en España.
.-JOEY: It´s really a shame you, the philippin people, don´t lavish speaking spanish in the Philippines Islands, wich so common things have with Spain country, about culture, history, language...etcetera.
.-That´s what I said on my spanish comment.
.-Greetings from Spain in Cosas y Casos de Andybel.
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