Philippine Election 2010

As of March 28-30, 2010 Presidential Survey

2010-04-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

Gordon to media: Where have all the debates gone?

2010-04-13T15:18:00.000-07:00

“We should have more debates.” Bagumbayan standard-bearer Sen. Richard Gordon said on Monday that with the campaign period entering the homestretch, media companies should be organizing more debates, particularly among presidential candidates.

Bagumbayan standard-bearer Sen. Richard Gordon said on Monday that with the campaign period entering the homestretch, media companies should be organizing more debates, particularly among presidential candidates.
“The media is losing by default and our people are the biggest losers,” said Gordon.
TV network ABS-CBN was supposed to air a presidential debate live two weeks ago but this was scrapped two days before air time after some candidates backed out.
Gordon, who had confirmed his attendance at the debate, said upon learning of the cancellations: “Those who refuse to join debates show that they cannot stand the pressure of facing the people.”
On Monday, he told reporters that candidates who declined invitations to debate were “idiots.”
It is the right of the voters to question those begging for their votes, according to Gordon.
“Can’t we ask Noynoy (Aquino) what his track record is? Can’t we ask (Manny) Villar about the C-5 controversy?”
“Candidates should demonstrate not only their ability to spend money or their ability to use their family (to campaign) but also their capability (to lead),” he added.
He said the scandals involving Villar and Aquino would continue to hound them even if one of them became president.
“How could they concentrate on working if there are issues they could not answer [in debates]?” he said.
He said Aquino should explain why his family owned more than 4,500 hectares of land when ordinary Filipino families could not afford 50 square meters.
He said Villar should also explain the big loans his companies received from the Government Service Insurance System for his subdivisions that got the GSIS into financial trouble.
He asked: “Who would you rather look for jobs for our people? Who has the credibility to get business for this country –Noynoy, Villar or Gordon?”

Administration supporter to ‘shock’ nation in LP move—Aquino

2010-04-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

An administration stalwart will join Senator Benigno Noynoy Aquino III's camp next week in a move that would “shock” the people, the Liberal Party standard-bearer himself revealed on Tuesday.

An administration stalwart will join Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III's camp next week in a move that would “shock” the people, the Liberal Party standard-bearer himself revealed on Tuesday. "Next week ho ay magugulat kayo. Isa sa mga stalwarts sa kasalukuyang administrasyon ay sasama ho sa kampanya natin [Next week, you will be surprised. One of the stalwarts of the present administration will join our campaign]," Aquino said at a press conference here.
But the senator immediately asked for understanding that he could not name the administration official at this point.
When pressed by this reporter after the press conference how the entry of this person would rock the administration," Aquino said, "Kapag hindi ka nagulat, huwag mo na akong kausapin [If you won’t be shocked, don’t talk to me]."
Pressed further, the senator said, "Ewan ko kung yayanig [I don't know if this will shock them]. Siguro [Maybe] sometime by next week, alam na nila kung sino pero ako hindi ko iniexpect [They will know who, but as for me, I didn't expect it]."
Aquino said he himself was even surprised that this person is joining his camp.
Asked again if the entry of this person might result to the collapse of the administration, Aquino answered in the negative.
"Hindi naman. Hindi naman ganun kaano pero pag ika nga ...ha? Pati yan sumama sa inyo. Parang ganun ang reaction [Not really. But you'd say, 'Ha? Even that person joined you?],’" he said.
Aquino immediately defended the entry of this soon-to-be former administration supporter and other administration members into the LP against criticisms by other camps.
He said the move did not mean the administration's support for his presidential bid.
"E ito yung mga pumapalag from time to time na maski miyembro ng Lakas e. Hindi naman yung mga baluktot pinipilit maging tuwid. Itoy yung talagang napagsabihan din ni Gng. Arroyo from time to time [They are those who protest from time to time even if they’re from Lakas. They’re not those who are corrupt and are trying to be straight. They are those whom Mrs. Arroyo would reprimand from time to time]," he pointed out.
Aquino suddenly stopped, saying he was giving too many clues that might lead to the identification of this administration official.
"Baka naman ma-pressure pa yung papunta na sa amin e [He might be pressured, especially since he’s moving to us]," he further said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Former Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. reiterated his support for Aquino III and runningmate Senator Manuel “Mar” Roxas II.
"I think this is the best time to have a real change through the leadership of [Senators Aquino and Roxas]," Davide said at a press conference here.
Davide said he resigned as the Philippine ambassador to the United Nations months ahead before his term expired on June 30, 2010 because he wanted to enlighten the people in choosing the best leader for the country.
"I'm here knowing that victory is sure for Noynoy and Mar and for the entire LP," he said.
Davide's son and namesake, Hilario Davide III, is seeking a gubernatorial post under Aquino's party.
Davide was joined by his son, Aquino, city mayor Tomas Osmena, and some LP senatorial bets like former Senator Ralph Recto, incumbent congressmen Nereus Acosta and Rufino Biazon, Sonia Roco, and Martin Bautista.

Aquino widens poll lead

2010-04-06T21:53:00.000-07:00

Numbers can still change depending on local bets.

Ahead in all areas and socioeconomic classes, presidential candidate Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III has widened his lead over rival Manuel Villar, whose numbers dropped significantly over the past two months, results of a survey conducted last month by Pulse Asia Inc. show.
Thirty-seven percent of the respondents, up by a percentage point, said they would vote for Senator Aquino, Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer, had the elections been held last month.
Support for Senator Villar, presidential candidate of the Nacionalista Party (NP), dropped to 25 percent from 29 percent in February and 35 percent in January.
Aquino said he was elated by the results of the Pulse Asia survey, which he reckoned moved him closer to winning the presidential race.
He paid tribute to his allies, volunteers and supporters for helping him maintain his lead since he declared he was running for president seven months ago.
“This is proof that our people are determined to walk the road to change for the good of everyone,” he said.
He vowed to dance like South African leader Nelson Mandela if he succeeds in seeing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo leave after nearly a decade in office.
Pulse Asia’s latest survey, conducted from March 21 to March 28, used a multistage probability sample of 3,000 adults and had an error margin of plus-or-minus 2 percentage points.
Deposed President Joseph Estrada was third with 18 percent, the same level of support he got in February.
Administration standard-bearer Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro was fourth with 7 percent, while Sen. Richard “Dick” Gordon of Bagumbayan and Bro. Eddie Villanueva of Bangon Pilipinas each had 2 percent.
Other candidates had a voter preference of below 1 percent—Nicanor Perlas (0.3 percent), John Carlos “JC” de los Reyes (0.2 percent) and Sen. Jamby Madrigal (0.1 percent).
In the vice presidential race, Aquino’s running mate, Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, continued to enjoy a significant lead over other candidates with a 43-percent voting preference. Villar’s running mate, Loren Legarda, was a far second with 23 percent, while Jejomar Binay had 19 percent.
Others received 3 percent or less—Bayani Fernando (3 percent), Eduardo Manzano (2 percent), Perfecto Yasay (1 percent), Jose “Jay” Sonza (0.5 percent) and Dominador Chipeco (0.1 percent).
Nine percent of the respondents refused to name or remained undecided on their preference for president, while a similar percentage refused to name or were also undecided on their vice presidential preference.
Mandela is idol
“One of my idols is Nelson Mandela. When our brothers led by Nelson Mandela ended apartheid, he was so euphoric that he could not help himself but dance,” said Aquino in an interview with reporters. “I think I’d be euphoric, too, if we end our calvary under Mrs. Arroyo and I would dance.”
Mandela’s victory in South Africa’s all-race elections in 1994 was made memorable by his effusive celebration after giving a victory speech.
LP spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said Villar’s falling ratings showed the public’s reaction to the “Villarroyo” alliance, referring to the alleged support of Ms Arroyo and her husband for Villar.
“The people have realized that the Villarroyo tandem is no fabrication. Villar is the administration’s secret candidate. The connections are becoming clearer everyday,” Lacierda said.
Saddened
Villar, who has denied the Villarroyo alliance, was saddened yet unfazed by the survey.
Campaigning in Ilocos Norte province with the support of the children of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Villar said the “black propaganda” against him and his decision not to hit back at his accusers could have affected his survey standing.
He said “we were too kind and did not retaliate against the black propaganda that was not true.”
Villar said he had gotten used to the fluctuating numbers in the surveys, relying on the adjustments his team had made in his campaign that enabled him to narrow the gap between him and Aquino.
Adjustments
He said the latest Pulse Asia survey needed him to have those “adjustments,” which he called “strategies” that he could not divulge.
“We’ve already fixed it and the truth is there’s a latest survey that would show that [I’m] closing in,” he said.
In Bacolod City, the wife of Villar downplayed the results of the survey. “We are not worried,” said Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar when asked for her reaction to the Pulse Asia survey
Command votes
Officials of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-Christian Muslim Democrats were elated by the slight improvement in Teodoro’s rating, but vowed to work harder on the ground to get him elected.
“That’s a welcome development,” party secretary general Raymundo Roquero said.
Roquero, however, said that the party believed more in the support of local officials and their constituents than survey results.
Party vice president, Prospero Pichay, said the “command votes” of governors counted more than survey results.
Not credible
Villanueva said he did not find pre-election surveys credible because he could not believe that his ratings had not improved after several months of campaigning.
“Last year [my rating] was 2 percent and it’s the same until now?” he asked. He said by now his rating should have gone up since Bangon Pilipinas had taken the campaign to many places.
Perlas said he distrusted surveys because he felt that the firms conducting them had already “written off” lesser known candidates like him.
Perlas said despite this, his ratings had actually been on an “upward trend,” which he attributed to more personal interaction with voters through sorties around Metro Manila, the Visayas and Mindanao.
32-point lead in ABC
In the socioeconomic class ABC, Aquino got the support of 49 percent, a 32-point lead over Villar who received 17 percent.
Aquino had the support of 37 percent of Class D compared with the 25 percent for Villar. In Class E, Aquino got 34 percent and Villar, 28 percent.
In Metro Manila, Aquino received the highest level of support among the regions with 42 percent. Villar got 17 percent.
Aquino was also ahead in the rest of Luzon with 33 percent compared with 26 percent for Villar. In the Visayas, the LP standard-bearer received 41 percent and Villar, 30 percent.
Aquino was also leading in Mindanao with 37 percent. Villar’s 23 percent was even lower than Estrada’s 29 percent.
Long way to go
Roland Holmes, Pulse Asia president, said that a month and a half was still a long way to go.
“In previous elections, our last survey was done three weeks before the polls, and certain shifts were still noted between that and the earlier survey round,” he said.
Holmes said the “complexion of the campaign” had changed because the campaign period for local positions had begun.
“Now, the presidential candidates are making sure that they’re either directly in touch with the voters or strengthening their connections on the local level.”
Bias for urban areas
Legarda said Pulse Asia and other polling firms usually engaged in selective sampling of voters across the country.
She said pollsters had “bias or limitations” for urban areas, which means that the concentration of respondents were in densely populated areas because of time-constraints.

Erap camp to Comelec: Disqualify Villar over campaign ads

2010-03-29T00:29:00.001-07:00

The camp of Puwersa ng Masang Pilipino standard bearer, former President Joseph Estrada, today dared the Commission on Elections to disqualify any candidate who has violated the Omnibus Election Code, particularly the limit set on airtime for his or her campaign advertisements.

“This is an acid test for our poll officials, and if they fail this one, then the results of the May 2010 national elections will forever be put in doubt," PMP spokesman Ralph Calinisan said.

Calinisan was reacting to the report recently by the advocacy group, Pera at Pulitika, and based on the data from the AGB Nielsen Media Research, which showed that Nacionalista Party president candidate Sen. Mannya Villar has already exceeded his alloted airtime for TV campaign ads, totalling 2,054 minutes.

The report also revealed that Villar has outspent his other rivals for the presidency, shelling out P1.2-billion from Nov. 1, 2009 to Feb. 8, 2010.

“What we are seeing here is a clear case of using money not to promote one’s program of government but to purchase a quick ride to the presidency,” Calinisan said.

“The Filipino electorate can see through this, and we are all calling on the Comelec to fulfill its mandate in this regard.”

He cited Section 11 of Comelec Resolution No. 8758, which sets the duration of airtime that a candidate may avail of for his or her campaign: 120 minutes in television or cable television, and 180 minutes in radio

Davao's Duterte mum on backing Noynoy, but it’s ‘an open secret’

2010-03-27T08:28:00.001-07:00

Incumbent Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Friday declined to confirm talks that he was supporting Liberal Party standard bearer Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.

"That remains to be announced," Duterte told GMANews.TV when asked whose presidential bid he was backing.

However, his campaign paraphernalia suggest otherwise. At the proclamation rally of the Dutertes' party, Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod, Aquino's posters were plastered alongside the posters of the Duterte father-and-daughter tandem.

Duterte is running for vice mayor, a post currently held by his daughter Sara, who in turn is hoping to assume her father's current post.

The Liberal Party also held a motorcade to promote Aquino and running mate, Senator Manuel Roxas II, although the two candidates were not in Davao City.

No less than Sara Duterte's rival for the mayoralty post, House Speaker Prospero Nograles Sr., revealed that the elder Duterte was supporting Aquino.

"I am supporting Gibo [Gilberto Teodoro Jr. of Lakas-Kampi-CMD] because we are partymates. Duterte is supporting Noynoy," Nograles told GMANews.TV earlier in the day.

Locals interviewed by GMANews.TV said it was an open secret that Duterte was backing the son of the late President Corazon Aquino, whom the mayor supported during her long fight against the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. "Hindi naman tago na si Noynoy (It's not a secret Duterte is supporting Noynoy)," said a market vendor.

Davao City is the fourth-largest Philippine city in terms of population, with registered voters reaching to more than 940,000. Winning the clear support of its feisty mayor is considered a prize plum for any national-level candidate.—JV, GMANews.TV

Solon seeks a stop to Arroyo ads in Pampanga

2010-03-24T02:53:00.001-07:00

Liberal Party senatorial candidate and Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel has filed a petition with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to stop President Macapagal-Arroyo from using any mass media in her campaign to win a congressional seat representing Pampanga.

In a five-page petition, Baraquel said Arroyo has been using the government's machinery and resources in her advertisements in Pampanga.

“The use of taxpayers' money for one's vanity ads, especially if they are designed to court voters, is wrong and should be declared illegal by the Comelec,” the party-list representative said.

Arroyo's ads, she stressed, have been violating the essence of the Fair Elections law.

“That she could place multimillion-peso ads using public funds is proof that she can and she is willing to use the resources and machinery of the government to illegally influence the election,” Baraquel said.

“In an unprecedented move slammed by her political foes, Ms Arroyo filed her certificate of candidacy for Congress on December 1, becoming the first sitting President to run for a local post after serving years as the country’s chief executive,” she said.

The political opposition said Arroyo’s candidacy was just the first stage in a plot to install her as House Speaker and move for a shift to a parliamentary form of government.

Over 6M Filipinos will find it difficult to vote

2010-03-22T18:22:00.001-07:00

Over six million Filipinos who are “functionally illiterate” will find it difficult to vote in the upcoming first ever national automated elections in May, a group said on Monday.

These six million Filipinos who find it difficult to read, write, compute, and comprehend may be unable to vote effectively on May 10, according to election watch dog Compact (Compact for Peaceful and Democratic Elections).

Tomas “Butch” Africa, former administrator of the National Statistics Office, said that 16 percent of 40 million Filipinos will find it difficult to vote in the upcoming elections, raising fears of cheating.

He said that compared to manual elections, automated elections are more complicated.

“In manual elections, the voters only need to be basic literate, meaning they only need to be able to read and write,” Africa said, adding that for automated elections, one has to understand the process of selecting their preferred candidate, shading the appropriate boxes, and other technical procedures.

Africa said the Commission on Elections has failed to conduct effective voter’s education, criticizing the infomercial launched by the Comelec, which has “simplified” the voting process.

“They should have taught the voters how to do it step-by-step. They could have presented the actual scenario. They even failed to tell the voters how long the ballot really is,” Africa said during a press conference.

During the re-launch of the group Compact, its members raised fears that the lack of voter’s education could lead to a violation of the Filipino’s right of suffrage.

“Yes, the election day is drawing near, but our worst fears remain unabated. And our worst fear is, beyond the chaos and confusion come election day, the Filipino people’s democratic right of suffrage will be violated. Considerable disenfranchisement could become the norm during election day. And this is not without basis,” the group said in a statement.

National broadband network deal whistleblower Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada Jr., a member of the group, also expressed concern on the unavailability of a system that would allow voters to verify that they have indeed registered their votes.

Lozada said that come election day, voters would not be given slips of paper to verify that they have voted.

“There is no electronic acknowledgement given to voters. Other machines do it, like our automated teller machines (ATMs) and even our lotto system,” Lozada said.

“It seems like they would like our election to be ‘Lucky Pick,’” Lozada added, referring to the lotto process where the machine picks the number combination for the person.

In the case of the elections, the machine would pick the preferred candidates for each voter.

Former congresswoman Etta Rosales, the group’s convener, said that Compact was re-launched to ensure that the right of suffrage of every voter is protected.

Compact, which was initially launched in 2003 for the 2004 elections, seeks to educate voters on automated elections.

Rosales said her group would be bringing in international observers from other countries to ensure transparency in the elections.

These observers would be coming from the countries of Sweden, Finland, Netherlands, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia, the United States, Thailand, and India.

Pacquiao faces tough political fight, analysts say

2010-03-17T09:18:00.002-07:00

Boxing champ Manny Pacquiao will return home this week to a hero's welcome but his next challenge may see him go down for the count as he steps into the even more bruising ring of Philippine politics.

Pacquiao's latest victory has earned the superstar even more acclaim and wealth, but analysts warn that adulation and big spending may not convert to votes when he runs for a seat in Congress in May national elections.

“It will be a harder battle than all the battles he has waged in the ring,” said political science professor Ronald Holmes of Manila's De La Salle University.

“They (the public) might be passionate about him in boxing but this does not necessarily translate into political support.”

Pacquiao, 31, whose boxing riches have hauled his family out of deep poverty, appears to be taking his political future as seriously as his sporting career.

Soon after his weekend win over Ghana's Joshua Clottey in Texas to retain the World Boxing Organization welterweight title, he affirmed his desire to represent the southern Philippine province of Sarangani.

“Now it is time for a more serious fight for me and that is my campaign for Congress. The people of my province are among the poorest. They have been under-served for too long,” he said.

“I know how my people have suffered because I have too. That is how I grew up and because I am one of the fortunate ones to have escaped poverty, I am compelled to be a public servant for them.”

But his opponent, Roy Chiongbian, is no pushover: he comes from a powerful family that has dominated business and politics in the area for years.

Members and allies of the Chiongbian clan have long occupied many of the top positions in the sparsely populated, rural and deeply impoverished province.

“It's not easy to discount the network they have established, the support they have nurtured through the years,” Holmes told Agence France-Presse.

One key feature of the Philippines' chaotic brand of democracy is the ability of clans to hold on to power by fair means and foul, with the same surnames being seen in political posts for generations.

Pacquiao has also tasted defeat at the polls before.

Despite being worshipped by his fans, he lost his first bid for Congress in his hometown of General Santos City in 2007, also to a member of a heavyweight political clan.

For his campaign team, Pacquiao's biggest priority now is to make personal appearances in the area and make up for the time spent outside the province while he pursued boxing glory.

“Time is running out for Manny's campaign because he has been away training and he has to make up, saturate the whole Sarangani province,” said Mindaluz Gulle, executive director of Pacquiao's campaign.

Still, Holmes said Pacquiao seemed more prepared this time than he was three years ago.

“He has been planning the transfer (to Sarangani) for quite some time. He has been more generous in helping out people in many areas there,” the analyst said.

Pacquiao's wealth has soared with each boxing victory—he reportedly earned 12 million dollars for beating Clottey— and he has invested heavily in his political career by helping local communities and spending on advertising.

He also has an important backer in Senator Manny Villar, a leading presidential candidate.

Villar persuaded Pacquiao last year to join his Nacionalista Party, ending the boxer's alliance with President Gloria Arroyo and her coalition.

Villar has since been using Pacquiao to bolster his own image, playing up the theme that they are both poor boys who fought their way to prominence but whose hearts are still with the country's downtrodden masses.

“When he arrives, we will help him campaign in Sarangani just as he will do the same for me,” said Villar, who is running a close second in presidential polls behind Benigno Aquino, the son of late democracy heroine Corazon Aquino.

Nacionalista spokesman Gilbert Remulla is confident that Pacquiao can go the distance.

“Manny Pacquiao can take care of his own campaign. He has the logistics, the organization that he built up for himself,” he said.

Arroyo gov’t concocted power crisis—Estrada

2010-03-17T09:18:00.000-07:00

Former president Joseph Estrada on Wednesday claimed that the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo “concocted” the ongoing power crisis in Mindanao and expressed fears the crisis could "derail national and local elections.”

“The current power crisis in Mindanao could have been avoided,” Estrada said in a press conference.

“But the Arroyo administration not only did not take any concrete steps to avoid the calamity. It actually concocted the crisis as another means to line up the pockets of its favored cronies yet again and further savage the economy,” he added.

Estrada is running for president under the party Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino.

Particularly, Estrada slammed the proposal of Representative Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo, the president’s eldest son, to allocate P5.5 billion to lease 160 modular generators to supply 160 megawatts of power to Mindanao.

“Why are they preparing only 160 megawatts [of power], when the deficit is 600 to 750 megawatts?” Estrada said.

During a Powerpoint presentation, Estrada said that the average base load requirement in Mindanao is 500 to 650 megawatts, while the daily peak load requirement ranges from 1,200 to 1,380 megawatts.

The deficit—600 to 750 megawatts—results in eight to 12-hour daily brownouts, Estrada added.

Estrada said that according to his camp’s computations, the amount needed to lease 160 modular generators cost only P2.1 billion and not P5.5 billion.

“The cost of 160 one-megawatt generators for six months is as follows: P624 million in rent, P1.382 billion in fuel consumption, and P80 million in mobilization/demobilization,” Estrada said.

“Compute it. That will add up to only P2.086 billion. There’s an excess of P3.4 billion. Where would they spend or who will get that huge amount” he added.

Estrada went on, “Why generate only 160 megawatts?”

He also added that if the power crisis in Mindanao was left unsolved, then it could cause serious problems come election time.

“This government is not interested in solving the problem, a problem of its own making. It precipitated the crisis precisely to give them the reason to defraud the people through yet another graft scheme,” Estrada said.

“The eight-hour power outages in Mindanao are bound to be there come election day: a very dire scenario that evokes all sorts of grim projections, including a failure of elections that could trigger tragic consequences,” he said.

Teodoro, Gordon talk about health, mum on sex life

2010-03-17T09:17:00.001-07:00

Administration candidate Gilbert Teodoro served notice to the public about his health, but remained mum about his sex life.

Together with Senator Richard Gordon, presidential standard-bearer of Bagumbayan party, Teodoro faced health professionals in a recent forum in Medical City in Pasig City and answered queries on his physical condition.

But asked if he still has a sex life despite the heavy schedule of the campaign, Teodoro said, “That is within the protective sphere of privacy.”

Gordon, however, quipped, “You don’t want me to brag here, do you?”

Teodoro disclosed to the audience that he was hypertensive and has high blood sugar for which he was taking medicines. He also said he needed a checkup for his gallbladder.

“I have a good fortune of inheriting a lot of things from my parents, including hypertension and high blood sugar, for which I take maintenance medicine everyday. Aside from gallbladder that needs to be taken out as soon as I have time, I’m okay,” he said.

Gordon said he was stricken with a sore throat that he got from campaigning, but apart from this, he was physically fit. He said his doctor, who was among the audience, could attest to his physical condition.

During the forum, Teodoro also said he favored government funding for both natural and modern methods of family planning. Gordon, however, said the government should not spend money for condoms. He said the government should instead use the money for education.

Aquino scores removal of parents’ posters along Manila road

2010-03-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

DAET, Camarines Norte – Why don't they also remove "Ninoy Aquino" from NAIA?

This was the reaction by Liberal Party standard bearer and Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III to government moves to remove banners that had pictures of his parents along Roxas Boulevard in Manila because these supposedly helped his campaign.

The only son of the late Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. and president Corazon Aquino said the authorities were "stretching" the meaning of the Omnibus Election Code in claiming that the banners, put up by the city government of Manila to honor his parents violated election rules.

"That's stretching it too far. If we follow the line of argument perhaps they should remove the Ninoy Aquino in name of NAIA [the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila]...Perhaps they should change [the name] of the municipality of Ninoy Aquino," Aquino said.

"Their position is somewhat absurd," he added.

Aquino said the Metro Manila Development Authority removed the banners even as the Commission on Elections issued a statement that the banners might be helping Aquino’s campaign.

"It looks like they are singling me out. That is really unique...I know the Comelec has jurisdiction over candidates. Everything that has to do with Omnibus Election Code," Aquino said.

"Obviously the law no longer applies to deceased individuals. So I don’t see, apart from being petty and diminutive, why this should be done," he added.

He said he first heard about the removal of the banners form Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim. He said Lim was supposed to have a meeting with MMDA Oscar Inocentes.

"Mayor Lim wants to find out what Comelec resolution was used to justify this move," Aquino said.

Gordon, Fernando, Villanueva told to remove oversized billboards

2010-03-16T19:38:00.001-07:00

-The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has warned presidential bets Sen. Richard Gordon and his vice-presidential partner Bayani Fernando, and Bangon Pilipinas standard bearer Bro. Eddie Villanueva to take down their oversize billboards, lest they risk election offense charges.

Comelec Spokesman James Jimenez Tuesday said the poll body have been monitoring the outdoor advertisements of candidates and found out that Gordon, Fernando, and Villanueva have billboards that exceed the mandated size.

Jimenez said they have sent the photos of the billboards to the Law Department, which will notify the candidates to take down the posters as soon as they receive the notice.

“The clock is ticking. They should remove these billboards forthwith, otherwise, they risk facing sanctions for violating election laws,” said Jimenez.

“We have already forwarded images of posters and streamers that we feel are in violation of election laws… We gave the evidence to the law department so they can now take the proper legal action,” he added.

According to Jimenez, Gordon and Fernando's oversized posters were found along EDSA and the South Luzon Expressway. Villanueva, on the other hand, has a giant banner endorsing him near Quiapo Bridge in Manila.

Jimenez said the posters exceed the sizes provided in the Fair Elections Act. Under the law, campaign materials—whether written or printed—should not exceed 8 1/2 by 14 inches, as well as posters with an area not exceeding 2 by 3 feet.

Those found guilty of an election offense face up to six years of imprisonment and disqualification from public and government office.

If elected president, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino:Body to Probe Arroyo

2010-03-15T20:09:00.001-07:00

If elected president, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III Monday said one of his first acts in office would be to set up a commission that would investigate the various scandals that had engulfed President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
“We want to set up an office or commission that will create a mechanism that would provide closure to all the issues surrounding this current administration,” Aquino said in an interview over GMA Channel 7’s Unang Hirit.

The Liberal Party standard-bearer said the commission would be modeled after the Presidential Commission on Good Government that went after the ill-gotten wealth of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his cronies.

“If there is a crime, someone should pay. There should be a mechanism so that there would be closure for items like ‘Hello Garci,’ the fertilizer fund scam and ZTE. There should be focus on this,” Aquino said.
He said the commission “should make sure that there would be no technicalities that would cause more and more delays in resolving these cases.”
He cited as an example the Senate inquiry into the alleged involvement of First Gentleman Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo, his son Juan Miguel and brother Iggy—both congressmen—in “jueteng,” an illegal numbers game.

Sen. Manuel Villar, the Nacionalista Party presidential candidate in the May 10 elections, has claimed credit for mounting the jueteng investigation, Aquino said.
“It turns out there was not even a report about it after all those hearings,” Aquino said, ostensibly referring to speculation that Villar was secretly aligned with the Arroyos.
“We now have no (report) to use as basis for the filing of charges,” he said.

Advisory council
Aquino also said that he would convene an advisory council to be composed of representatives from the three branches of government—the executive, legislature and judiciary—to reform the country’s justice system.

“We should improve the delivery of justice so that it would not take six years, at each level of the judiciary, to resolve cases and that the conviction rate of only 18 percent would be improved,” he said. “We will try to make sure that it would not take decades to resolve cases.”
Aquino said he would also set up a group that would study whether there was a need to change the Constitution. “We want to know if there is a public clamor for that. That is what we are going to do in our first hundred days,” he said.
Palace: Scandals settled
Reacting to Aquino’s plan, deputy presidential spokesperson Gary Olivar told reporters that the Liberal Party presidential candidate “is perfectly entitled to put together whatever kind of agenda he believes is appropriate for the country.”
“(But) Senator Aquino first has to get elected before he can implement this agenda,” Olivar added.
“Do we investigate the sins of the past or do we continue what has been achieved in the past and keep on moving the country forward? That is his choice to make and if this is the choice he is offering to voters and we trust that the voters will make their respective decisions accordingly,” he said.
Olivar said the Palace had always maintained that these controversies “were already properly heard and properly settled through available due process.”
Villar’s spokesperson, Gilbert Remulla, said that if the Nacionalista Party candidate won, Ms Arroyo would be investigated properly and that cases would be filed against her.
“The next administration will not be lacking in cases that will be filed against Gloria Arroyo,” said Remulla, who is running for a Senate seat. “She will surely have her day in court.”

Aquino on Danding Cojuangco: `We're no longer enemies'

2010-03-15T08:50:00.001-07:00

Some may have accused his uncle of being behind his father's murder, but Liberal Party standard-bearer Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III has said he no longer considers his uncle, businessman Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco Jr. as an enemy.

Aquino said on Monday morning that their families had been estranged politically since 1967 but "his generation" in the Cojuangco clan had never "taken personally" their political differences.

He also cast doubts on suggestions that Cojuangco might have been behind his father's assassination.

"In truth, for us in Tarlac, in our generation, we did not take (our political differences) personally and I think we can say that we helped each other for the betterment of Tarlac," Aquino said in an interview with GMA Channel 7's Unang Hirit.

"So, are we now OK? We are no longer enemies. I think that's the closest thing that I could say today," he added.

While Cojuangco has been tightlipped over who was his bet in the presidential race, his daughter and brother Henry have come out in support of Aquino.

Danding Cojuangco was among the closest business associates of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Cojuangco, chairman of the San Miguel Corp., who was said to have used the coconut levy funds paid for by farmers to consolidate his interests in the SMC, was called the top Marcos crony due to his closeness to the Marcos regime.

He is cousin to the late former president Corazon C. Aquino, who was catapulted to power via the 1986 Edsa Revolution that toppled Marcos and exiled him to Hawaii. Cojuangco fled the country together with Marcos.

He returned to the country in the early 1990s and later regained control of the San Miguel Corp.
The issue of the coconut levy funds is still pending with the courts.

17M ballots printed for May polls—Comelec

2010-03-15T08:46:00.000-07:00

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Monday that about 17 million ballots have already been printed for the country’s first ever automated elections in May.

“Right now, we have printed 17 million out of the total 50 million ballots. The newly printed ballots are to be used in polling precincts mostly in Visayas and Mindanao and some Luzon areas,” said Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal, who chairs the steering committee on automation.

With a fifth printer set to arrive by March 20 at the National Printing Office (NPO), Comelec expects to finish the printing of all 50 million ballots by April 25—also the start of the shipment of ballots, the poll machines, ballot boxes and other election paraphernalia, said the poll official.

When the additional printer arrives, Larrazabal said they expect to ramp up production of 900,000 ballots printed daily, up from the current daily output of 650,000 to 700,000.

“When the fifth printer arrives next week, the earliest on March 20, we see production of up to 900,000 ballots per day. This would enable us to finish printing all ballots by April 25,” he noted.

Ballots to be used in Metro Manila would be printed last since shipment would be easier from NPO to municipal treasury offices compared to Visayas and Mindanao regions, he said.

In late February, the NPO printed the 1.7 million ballots for use in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and started printing the main ballot to be used in 1,600 municipalities, cities or districts nationwide, except in ARMM.

The main ballot to be used in most parts of the country measures 8.5 inches wide and 25 inches long, containing English and Filipino translations for voting instructions for both national and local positions.

The ballot security features include the custom-made 160 GSM imported paper, invisible UV ink from Comelec and Smartmatic-TIM, a regular 2D barcode, Comelec’s own security markings and unique precinct-based numbers, which can only be recognized by a specific poll machine. The main ballot has an additional UV ink marking from NPO as a redundant security measure, Larrazabal said.

To vote using the special paper ballots for automated polls, a voter must the ovals opposite the names of the national and local candidates printed on both sides of the paper shade using special permanent marking pens. After filling out a ballot, a voter will feed it to a machine for scanning and counting of the votes.

Manny Villar "Pacquiao’s victory shows importance of perseverance"

2010-03-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

Senator Manuel Villar, Nacionalista Party standard-bearer, lauded Pacquiao for the perseverance that made him the greatest boxer in the world.

In a statement on Sunday, Villar said Pacquiao’s win over the Ghanian boxer Joshua Clottey was yet another proof that with "perseverance, anyone can overcome any obstacle."

Villar’s statement tries to bring to mind his own rags-to-riches campaign message, which has been using the "Sipag at Tiyaga" (Industry and Perseverance) slogan.

"Isang halimbawa si Manny na kaya nating talunin ang kahirapan, na magaling ang Pilipino, at karapat-dapat lamang na kilalanin ng buong mundo. Mabuhay ka, Manny! (Manny is an example that we can defeat poverty, that the Filipino people are excellent and competent and they deserve to be known in the world. Long live, Manny!" Villar said.

Pacquiao is running for Congress in the lone district of Saranggani under the Villar ticket in the May 10 elections.

The boxer was a staunch ally of President Macapagal Arroyo before defecting to the NP camp.

Pacquiao had announced he would join Villar’s campaign sorties upon his return to the country after his fight.

Danding still mum on supporting Aquino

2010-03-14T08:57:00.001-07:00

CAMILING, Tarlac -- Even as his daughter and younger brother show support for the presidential candidacy of his nephew, Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, businessman Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco Jr. remains mum about the candidate he is supporting on May 10.

On Saturday night, Cojuangco, chair emeritus of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), said he would rather not be involved in politics anymore.

"Matanda na tayo, ayaw ko na makialam sa pulitika (We're already old. I don't want to be involved in politics anymore)," he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Asked if the support of his daughter, Liza Cojuangco-Cruz, who had joined Aquino's campaign sortie in Iloilo, and his brother, Henry, for Aquino was tantamount to his endorsement, Cojuangco said: "They are free to choose, bahala sila (It's their call)."

Pressed as to why his family members chose to support Aquino, the Liberal Party standard bearer, in a field of nine candidates, Cojuangco said "this is Tarlac, there are two Tarlaqueños running and they are not for Gibo (Lakas-Kampi-CMD candidate and nephew Gilbert Teodoro Jr.)."

In a separate interview, Henry Cojuangco, NPC chair in Tarlac's first district, said he has decided to support Aquino "because he is the worthwhile Tarlaqueño candidate."

Henry is running for representative in the district now represented in Congress by Teodoro's wife, Nikki.

Earlier, NPC leaders in the province endorsed the team-up of Aquino and Sen. Loren Legarda, a member of the NPC who is running for vice president under the Nacionalista Party banner.

The LP did not field any candidate in the congressional race in the first district, a known NPC bailiwick, assuring victory for Henry.

The LP has not also fielded a candidate for Tarlac governor, a post currently held by NPC bet, Victor Yap.

Know More About Senator Benigno S. Aquino III

2010-03-14T01:46:00.000-08:00

GOVERNMENT SERVICE

Senator : Senate of the Philippines

14th Congress of the Republic of the Philippines

Member : House of Representatives

(1998-2001; 2001-2004; 2004-2007)

Deputy Speaker : House of Representatives

13th Congress of the Philippines

(November 8, 2004-February 21, 2006)

Vice Chairman : Liberal Party of the Philippines

(March 17, 2006 to present)

Secretary General : Liberal Party of the Philippines

(2004 to March 16, 2006)

Vice-Pres. for Luzon : Liberal Party of the Philippines

(2002-2004)

Secretary General : Liberal Party of the Philippines

(1999-2002)

Chairman of the Board : Central Luzon Congressional Caucus

HOUSE COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

13th Congress

Banks & Financial Intermediaries

Energy

Export Promotion

Public Order & Safety

12th Congress

Civil

Political & Human Rights

Good Government

Public Order & Security

Inter-Parliamentary Relations & Diplomacy

11th Congress

Civil

Political & Human Rights (Vice-Chairman)

Public Order & Security

Transportation & Communications

Agriculture

Banks & Financial Intermediaries

Peoples' Participation

Suffrage and Electoral Reforms

Appropriations

Natural Resources

Trade & Industry

SELECTED HOUSE BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS

House Bill No. 4251 - granting annual productivity incentives to all workers in the private sector

House Bill No. 4397 - strengthening the regulatory power of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to effectively enforce consumer laws

House Bill No. 4252 - increasing the penalties for non-compliance of the prescribed increases and adjustments in the wage rates of workers

House Bill No. 3616 - extending the reglementary period for the educational qualification for PNP members

House Bill No. 1842 - providing for the codification of criminal laws

House Resolution No. 65 - inquiry in aid of legislation into the policies and processes of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) in granting rate increases to electric utilities

House Resolution No. 788 - creating a select Congressional Oversight Committee on intelligence funds to check and study the use of intelligence funds by government agencies to ensure that funds allocated therefor are utilized for the purpose they are intended

LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVE

Made the procurement of the petroleum, oil and lubricant (POL) requirements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines transparent by requiring public bidding.

EDUCATION

AB Economics : Ateneo de Manila University

(1977-1981)

Secondary Education : Ateneo de Manila University

(1973-1977)

Primary Education : Ateneo de Manila University

(1965-1973)

Legarda stands by claim Roxas offered her a deal

2010-03-13T04:44:00.000-08:00

Vice-presidential candidate Loren Legarda is standing by her claim that her closest rival, Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, had approached her with a deal to make her withdraw from the race.

Roxas has denied Legarda’s allegation, saying she was “pulling all stunts” to protect her Nacionalista Party presidential running mate, Sen. Manuel Villar.

Legarda Thursday reiterated the claim she made in a radio interview last Wednesday that Roxas had approached her in February with a proposal that her political advisers have since interpreted as an “exchange deal” offer for her to withdraw her candidacy.

Roxas, the vice-presidential running mate of Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Sen. Benigno Aquino III, leads Legarda by 17 points in the latest voter preference surveys.

Last Wednesday, Legarda revealed in an interview on dzBB radio Roxas’ supposed attempt to bribe her last February.

According to Legarda, as she passed by Roxas’ desk in the Senate session hall, Roxas told her: “If there’s any way that you can support my principal (Aquino) and me, if there’s anything you want, we can provide.”

At the time, when she had yet to find a presidential running mate, she said she did not know what Roxas meant exactly.

In a press conference in Surigao City Thursday, Roxas again denied making an offer for Legarda to withdraw.

He said: “I asked her if she could support the Noy-Mar ticket because I could not believe that she was serious in supporting Villar whom he described as corrupt, lacking in leadership qualities, always absent and always prioritizing his business interests over the country. When she did not reply, that was the end of it.”

In the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey conducted from Feb. 24 to 28, Roxas obtained 34 percent against Legarda’s 28 percent.

Legarda claimed that compared to Roxas, her ratings have been steadily improving, noting that Roxas’ acceptability to the voters had gone down by four percentage points since the last SWS survey in January.

She said the SWS survey was validated by the Manila Standard Today survey, conducted from Feb. 20 to 26, in which she got 30 percent against Roxas’ 39 percent, with the latter leading by only 9 points.

Although still leading Legarda, this was a major decline for Roxas because in a Pulse Asia survey conducted from Feb. 21 to 25, Roxas had a huge lead over Legarda of 16 points, with 43 percent for him compared to Legarda’s 27 percent.

Legarda said she was ahead of Roxas in the Class E socioeconomic class, “because I am one of them. I and Senator Villar came from the ranks of the poor, so we fully understand the plight of the poor.”

Aquino, Villar race tightens

2010-03-10T08:51:00.000-08:00

Two months before the May 10 elections, the presidential race may have narrowed down to Senators Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr., but nobody has a clear lead yet, a political analyst said Tuesday.

“You may have a lead, but it does not necessarily mean that this will be maintained. But it appears that it’s a one-on-one between the two,” Ramon Casiple said of Aquino and Villar.

In the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey, Aquino of the Liberal Party (LP) and Villar of the Nacionalista Party (NP) were neck and neck. Aquino’s running mate Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, however, continued to lead the vice presidential race by a wide margin.

Of the 2,100 registered voters SWS polled from Feb. 24 to Feb. 28, Aquino got 36 percent, while Villar stayed close with 34 percent.

The gap falls within the margin of error of 2.2 percentage points used in the survey.

With the margin of error, support for Aquino ranged from a low of 33.8 percent to a high of 38.2 percent, while support for Villar ranged from 31.8 percent to 36.2 percent. The respondents were given “ballots” that they had to mark in private and deposit in a container brought by the interviewer, according to BusinessWorld.

Other candidates

Trailing the front-runners were deposed President Joseph Estrada (15 percent, up 2 points), former Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro (6 percent, also up 2 points), Bro. Eddie Villanueva (3 percent, up 1 point), Sen. Richard Gordon (2 percent, no change), Vetellano Acosta (0.4 percent), Nicanor Perlas (0.2 percent), Olongapo Councilor JC de los Reyes (0.1 percent) and Sen. Jamby Madrigal (0.1 percent).

Acosta was disqualified by the Commission on Elections last week.

“[Aquino’s] lead is steadily getting smaller,” Mahar Mangahas, SWS president, said in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel. “That’s very clear.”

Not a tie

In the SWS surveys on Dec. 5-10, 2009, and Jan. 21-24, Aquino was ahead of Villar by 19 points and 7 points, respectively.

“We’re saying it’s a 2-point lead [in the latest survey]. We’re not calling it a tie,” Mangahas said. “To say that it is a tie is to lean toward one side. So we’re not calling it a tie unless it is the exact same point.”

SWS said the 6-point decline in Aquino’s rating since January was due to drops in all four areas across the country: 7 points in the balance of Luzon, 6 in Mindanao, 5 in the Visayas, and 3 in Metro Manila.

Villar “lost 6 percentage points in Metro Manila, 2 in the balance of Luzon, and one in Mindanao, but picked up 5 in the Visayas to trim his overall slide to just 1 point,” BusinessWorld said.

By socioeconomic class, Aquino was ahead in Class D (38 percent compared with Villar’s 34 percent), while Villar was ahead in Classes ABC (33 percent compared with Aquino’s 30 percent) and Class E (34 percent versus Aquino’s 32 percent).

Vice presidential race

As for the vice presidential race, Roxas remained No. 1 with 45 percent. This was actually a drop of 4 percentage points for Roxas from the January survey, but support for Loren Legarda, Villar’s running mate, remained at 28 percent.

Other vice presidential candidates did not gain substantially. Following Roxas and Legarda were Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay (17 percent), former Metro Manila Development Authority chair Bayani Fernando (3 percent), former Optical Media Board chair Edu Manzano (2 percent), broadcaster Jay Sonza (1 percent), former Securities and Exchange Commission chief Perfecto Yasay (0.4 percent), and Dominador Chipeco (0.4 percent).

Wild swings

The most recent Pulse Asia survey, released last week, showed Villar’s 29 percent trailing Aquino’s 36 percent.

The different results of the Pulse Asia and SWS surveys could be an indication of voters’ “wild swings,” said Casiple, executive director of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms.

“There are wild swings among the voters, and there are only a few undecided. They have somebody in mind, but their choice is affected by issues that come out in the media. That’s why the trending is not fixed,” he said in a brief phone interview.

The voters, Casiple said, had a “deep interest” in the presidential election and were closely monitoring the news coming out in the media about the candidates.

Aquino upbeat

“Their choice is affected by rumors that Villar is a secret candidate of the administration, and the issue of incompetence against the other,” he said.

The presidential race has tightened, but Aquino is upbeat. “I’m still No. 1, but it doesn’t mean we’re satisfied with that. The tightening race means that we’d just have to redouble our efforts,” he said in a phone interview.

Aquino said remaining ahead of his rivals despite what he called a “tsunami” of political ad and media spending by Villar was in itself an achievement.

“I think our message is getting to its target audience despite our lack of resources. We just make it up with our campaigns and grassroots volunteers,” said the LP standard-bearer.

LP campaign strategist Florencio “Butch” Abad Jr. said Villar had failed to overtake Aquino in the surveys despite exceeding the limit on ad spending.

Villar happy

In Davao City, a beaming Villar said: “We are statistically tied.”

Villar said the presidential contest was still between him and Aquino.

“As for me, I am comfortable with my lead and, of course, we still look to Noynoy (as a close rival) although we respect all the candidates. However, (Estrada’s) distance (or lead) from us is still far,” Villar said.

He said he was happy that “surveys have confirmed that we are responding to the hopes of the people across the country.”

“During my campaign sorties in the provinces the people have shown that they are supporting our vision to address poverty,” Villar added.

He attributed the rise in his ratings to the frenetic pace of his campaign sorties across the country since Feb. 9.

“Of course, the others who are (trailing in surveys), we expect them to get more points now because of their wider exposure,” Villar said.

Estrada elated

Estrada expressed elation over his rising rating. Told that his performance in the SWS survey wasn’t as good as his showing in Pulse Asia’s poll, Estrada said: “Whose numbers went down? As far as we are concerned, we are moving up.”

Estrada, who’s running for another term after he was forced out of office in 2001, said that if his numbers continued to go up at the rate they were going, he would have a high-enough rating to win come May.

“It’d be over for them,” Estrada said.” In 1998, I started in third place. It’s hard to be No. 1. It’s more difficult (to start) from the top (and then) going down, isn’t it?”

The camp of Teodoro welcomed his slight improvement in rating. “We’re gaining ground right in time for the presidential elections in May,” said Mike Toledo, spokesperson for Teodoro.

Aquino, Villar face pastor’s ‘divine wrath’

2010-03-10T08:47:00.001-08:00

The two front-runners in the presidential race Tuesday failed to show up at what had been billed as a major debate, and the wrath of the “Son of God” came down upon them.

Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III of the Liberal Party (LP) had excused himself, citing sinus problems, while Nacionalista Party (NP) candidate Sen. Manuel Villar was tied up in a series of meetings, aides said.

Six other candidates—former Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, Senators Richard Gordon and Jamby Madrigal, former President Joseph Estrada, evangelist Eddie Villanueva and environmentalist Nicanor Perlas—attended the presidential forum organized by the group called “Kingdom of Jesus Christ, the Name Above Every Name.”

The sect is headed by Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, a self-proclaimed “Appointed Son of God” who claims millions of followers.

No word, no honor

For Quiboloy, who still has to decide on whom his group will support on May 10, it’s all about palabra de honor (word of honor).

After reading an e-mail from Aquino explaining why he could not come, Quiboloy—obviously referring to the LP standard-bearer—told the thousands who came to hear the debate:

“You might be disappointed just like me. There is something that they say about commitment. An unknown man defined it as word of honor. When you fail to fulfill your commitment, you have no word and you have no honor.”

Noynoy’s reason

In his e-mail which Quiboloy read before the other candidates were asked to present their platforms of government, Aquino said he was advised by his doctors not to fly.

“As previously arranged, I have marked this event and was eagerly looking forward to meeting you … and to share my platform. But I was advised by my physician not to travel by aircraft for two consecutive occasions due to barosinusitis,” Aquino said.

Barosinusitis is an inflammation of one or more of the sinuses and can be aggravated by air travel.

Quiboloy cries unfair

Apparently, Quiboloy was not happy. He said that the forum had been moved to Tuesday because he wanted Aquino to attend.

“It was originally set on Feb. 11 but Senator Aquino said that he won’t be able to make it at that time. I asked him to choose the date. Aquino chose March 9 and he committed to come on this day. But on Tuesday, he called and informed me that he won’t be able to come,” Quiboloy lamented.

“All those whom we have invited came and fulfilled their commitments and they are here today. May God bless us all,” the Christian preacher said.

Although Villar was not castigated during the forum and prayer-meeting, Quiboloy told reporters later it was “unfair” that the Nacionalista Party (NP) candidate did not show up.

“I am disappointed [at] both of them because they’ve committed [to come] only to tell us at the last minute that they cannot make it,” Quiboloy said.

No endorsement yet

“Villar kept us waiting. His chief of staff kept on informing us that ‘parating na (he’s on his way’ ... but hindi pala (it turns out not). Why were we not informed? There is no explanation ... When you say something, do it,” Quiboloy added.

“It’s unfair to the Filipinos,” he said.

Quiboloy said his choice of presidential candidate would be announced next month, adding he was still “waiting for the Father’s revelation.”

Quiboloy claimed he has at least six million followers “in and out” of the country. Of the six million, at least three million are of voting age, he said.

‘A man of honor’

Villar arrived at about 11 a.m. but was unable to attend the forum because he was “held up in a series of meetings,” his party headquarters said.

It said Villar was seeking ways to meet Quiboloy “as soon as possible” and that the senator “is ready to face the assembly to explain his programs ... if he will be given a chance to do so.”

In Manila, Aquino’s spokesperson, Edwin Lacierda, said that Quiboloy’s remarks about people having no word of honor was “unfortunate.”

“Senator Aquino is a man of honor and has delivered on his commitments. Unfortunately in this instance, it is beyond his control,” Lacierda said. “We hope Pastor Quiboloy will not use this one instance to hit the character of Senator Aquino.”

Lacierda noted that Villar himself was not able to attend the forum. He also said that Aquino was still willing to meet with Quiboloy if circumstances permitted.

Borrowed plane

The forum started later than its 3 p.m. schedule.

The candidates tackled issues that had been raised in previous debates, such the energy crisis, the El Niño phenomenon, the pork barrel system, corruption, healthcare, poverty, the conflict in Mindanao, private armies and education.

Estrada, who arrived at about 4:30 p.m., caused gales of laughter when he told the crowd he was late “because I just borrowed a plane. I could not afford to buy my own private plane.”

Asked how he could win back the people’s trust, Estrada, who was convicted of plunder but pardoned later, said: “To gain the respect of our people, you must be transparent in all your transactions in government.”

Gordon advocated a 24-hour working presidency. “You can text the President anytime,” he said.

Teodoro promised “to lead with humility,” saying: “To reach out and to heal, that is the first step toward sustainable progress.”

The forum was held at the 3,000-seat cathedral inside the sect’s central headquarters.

One-vote group

Some Roman Catholic Church officials said the attention that aspiring presidents was showering on Quiboloy was more because of the votes he commands rather than because of religion.

“The Quiboloy sect apparently has a very strong kingdom vote, meaning to say they were like the previous Iglesia ni Cristo, that what the founder says, the followers will do,” said Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz.

Cruz added: “How can you violate what the son of God will say? So I presume that the flocking there of candidates is because of the solid bloc vote of, they call themselves, the ‘Kingdom citizens.’”

Santiago blames low ratings on married name

2010-03-08T17:06:00.001-08:00

Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago is very much in the race this May election. But people might not find her in the list of senatorial candidates if they will look for “Santiago” come election day.

The re-electionist senator’s name is listed instead as Defensor-Santiago in the special paper ballot that the Commission on Election (Comelec) will use in the country’s first-ever full automated election.

Saying that other married female candidates might find themselves in the same predicament, Santiago urged the Comelec to educate voters on the use of maiden names of married candidates like her.

Santiago lamented that her lower ranking in the recent senatorial survey of Pulse Asia could be because people are looking for her surname, not her maiden name.

The poll body should take “affirmative action” by educating voters that some female candidates like her have chosen to be listed under their maiden name, followed by their married name.

In the past elections, the voters write the name of candidates in the ballot. This time, however, the voters will simply shade the circles beside the name of the candidates. An electronic machine will automatically read and count the shaded circles.

And as the world celebrates the women’s month this March, the senator invoked the constitutional provision that: “The State shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of men and women.”

Since women constitute one-half of the population, Santiago said women should make up one-half of the Senate and of the House of Representatives, and one-half of the 15-member justices in the Supreme Court.

As a gender-sensitive country, the senator said, the Philippines should also have a female Senate President, a female Speaker, and a female Chief Justice.

In a recent gathering of some 5,000 barangay (village) leaders at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City, Santiago joked that the fundamental right of married women was to be loved by their husbands.

“But when you are told to love your neighbor, this does not mean that a man should love all the women in his barangay,” Santiago said, sending the crowd into gales of laughter.

Comelec seeks proof to exclude Arroyo son, Reyes from partylist

2010-03-07T07:07:00.001-08:00

The Commission on Elections urged those who want Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes and Pampanga Representative Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo out of the party-list race to immediately file a complaint against them with the poll body and present evidence that the two do not really represent "marginalized sectors" in Congress.

Election Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said they would need evidence in order to disqualify nominees submitted by the party-list groups themselves.

He said that with 187 accredited party-list groups — each submitting at least five nominees — the poll body could not scrutinize all of the names, all at once.

In order for the Comelec to reject a nominee motu propio, or on its own volition, it would need evidence or information, Sarmiento said.

“There are many nominees. And [for us to act] motu propio, honestly, we need information [and] assistance, what with the many concerns of Comelec. It will [have to] be a collaborative effort, with the stakeholders helping Comelec,” Sarmiento said.

The party-list system was created to ensure that marginalized sectors are represented in Congress.

Bayan Muna Representatives Satur Ocampo and Teddy Casiño earlier said Reyes and Arroyo were both not qualified to run in the party-list system, having come from the moneyed political class.

Reyes was the Armed Forces chief of staff before he became a member of the Arroyo Cabinet. Mikey Arroyo is the son of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The Comelec has never rejected a party-list nominee — even in the past, according to Sarmiento.

He said he recognized the need for more guidelines to ensure that the partylist voting system would be for marginalized sectors.

The 187 party-list groups have until March 26 to submit a list of their five nominees to the Comelec. Petitions against the nominees may be filed after this date.

Villar tried to buy me out of presidential race - Gordon

2010-03-03T18:42:00.001-08:00

Bagumbayan presidential bet Sen. Richard Gordon revealed yesterday that Nacionalista Party (NP) standard-bearer Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. tried to buy him out of the presidential race and promised to give him a Cabinet position of his choice if the latter is elected president.

In a one-on-one interview with broadcaster Mike Enriquez over radio dzBB, Gordon continued his tirade against Villar, saying the NP bet’s attempt at buying him, which occurred a week before Feb. 9 or during the time when Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile presented his report on the C-5 road controversy and was facing an attempt to oust him from the Senate presidency, was witnessed by his son.

But Villar immediately downplayed all of Gordon’s accusations, telling his audience in Surigao that people are out to destroy him. He said he and his entire NP team are geared for victory on May 10, and that he has no time for “negotiating” for the withdrawal of fellow presidential candidates.

Gordon, in the same radio interview, said that Villar’s camp wanted him to back out from the race and support the NP standard-bearer.

“They asked me not to attend the (Senate) session and in return they will pay me and reimburse the expenses in my preparation for the presidency, and promised to give me a Cabinet position of my choice,” Gordon said in Filipino.

Gordon’s disclosure surprised Enriquez, as it came near the end of the one-hour interview designed for presidential candidates.

Enriquez asked Gordon to identify Villar’s emissary but he declined. He, however, insinuated that he would drop another bombshell soon.

He said he was irked by the buy out attempt because it only showed the arrogance of the moneyed candidate.

But Gordon said he is unfazed and vowed to fight on.

During the interview, he also assailed other candidates’ attempt to condition the minds of voters through surveys.

The NP kicked off the Mindanao-leg of their campaign yesterday, promising economic development and improving the human development index in the entire region.

“I am running clean and I have no other intention. I respect the other candidates even if I hear comments like that. Some people probably want to besmirch my reputation. Please don’t believe in those things,” Villar said in an interview.

He noted that it is just two months before elections, and he expects that no presidential candidate would back out at this point.

He also belittled claims that he tapped Mike Velarde to ask Estrada to withdraw from the race.

The NP bet reiterated that he did not talk with any presidential candidate to offer them reimbursement of their poll expenses and promise a good Cabinet position.

Asked why all sorts of criticisms are thrown his way, Villar said it is “good news” because he is being hit since he has become number one in the surveys.

Students from the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Mass Communication (CMC) have “surprisingly and unexpectedly” picked Sen. Richard Gordon in their recent open-source mock polls.

This, even as Gordon had reportedly lambasted journalists covering his sorties.

A survey result conducted by the Department of Journalism, which was released yesterday, showed Gordon garnering a total of 139 votes, representing 37.57 percent of the 370 enrolled students of the CMC, who participated in the mock presidential polls.

The UP-CMC has 1,086 enrolled students.

Administration presidential bet Gilbert Teodoro came in second in the survey with 107 votes (28.92 percent), Benigno Aquino III was third with 48 votes (12.97 percent), and Manuel Villar Jr. placed fourth with 37 votes (10 percent).

Observers were surprised with the result of the Feb. 24 mock polls of students of the premier State University, which has always been known as a bastion of activism.

But former CMC dean Prof. Luis Teodoro believes that the changing population of the CMC could have been a factor, although the way presidential aspirants appear and answer questions in various presidential debates could have also been a significant influence to the decision of the students.

He said that while UP students consider themselves as reform-minded and pro-poor, the results of the presidential mock polls could be an “expression of protest over what is perceived to be popular.”

“The results of the mock polls showed a disconnection between the perceived perception of the students and the perceived perception of the general Filipino voters as shown in the surveys,” he said.

However, Teodoro said that the result could be a signal that candidates would have to take a different approach to convince students, as compared to, for instance, the urban poor voters.

He said students might have chosen Gordon and Teodoro for being “fluently persuasive” or “smooth, smooth talker.”

A lot of student-participants in the mock polls cited the ability of Gordon and Teodoro to articulate their respective specific platform well.

Teodoro added that Aquino’s image may have been stained by the Hacienda Luisita massacre while Villar has to work on his claims of innocence after being implicated in the C5-road extension mess.

He surmised that perhaps the students “are not buying that Villar is the only salvation of the poor or that Aquino is the last hope for reform.”

And despite the seeming bias of UP students on President Arroyo, the journalism professor thinks the students might be seeing “something else” in Teodoro other than his alliance with President Arroyo.

“Or maybe his (Teodoro) looks have something to do with it,” he said, drawing out laugher from the audience.

Nicanor Perlas came in 5th place with 15 votes, representing 4.05 percent of the voter turnout; evangelist Eduardo Villanueva, 6th place with five votes (1.35 percent); Jamby Madrigal with three votes (.81 percent); and former President Joseph Estrada with one vote (.27 percent).

Ang Kapatiran Party standard-bearer, Olongapo City Councilor JC delos Reyes, and Kilusang Bagong Lipunan presidential bet Vetellano Acosta, got zero votes in the mock polls.

Fifteen students, representing 4.05 percent of the total voter turnout, abstained in the presidential survey.

Gordon: Mediamen are useless

Good showing or not, Gordon, who usually bash Senator Villar in his sorties, has trained his guns on mediamen covering his campaign.

In a forum hosted by the students and faculty of the Union Christian College in San Fernando, La Union, Gordon started by hitting the NP standard-bearer then threw cheap shots on “embedded” journalists covering him.

Gordon was ranting on his almost “invisible” presence in the media and was apparently blaming the journalists trailing him in his sorties.

“Kunwari lang na kino-cover kami pero tinitwist nila ang istorya at hindi nila inilalabas ang totoo (They pretend to be covering us but they twist the story and does not come out with the truth),” he said.

The journalists covering him at the school’s covered gym walked out in disgust after Gordon pointed them out to the crowd of students and teachers present.

“May kasama nga akong media pero kunwari lang akong kino-cover (I have mediamen with me but they are just pretending to cover me),” he said.

It was at this point that the reporters, including Mike Frialde of The STAR, stood up and walked out.

“Ayun, iniwan na ako ng media (Now they have left me),” Gordon blurted out.

He had earlier complained about his poor showing in the media and was even quick to refer to members of the press as “Mickey Mouse mediamen” in several forums.

Prior to the incident yesterday, a member of Gordon’s staff revealed that the senator was complaining why even the most trivial of statements made by his opponents are picked-up by media networks while his statements were never picked-up.

A source close to Gordon also revealed the senator had also remarked that, “Walang silbi naman ang mga media na kasama natin, (Mediamen covering him were useless)” prior to his talk at the Union Christian College.

LP hits Villar anew

Meanwhile, the Liberal Party said the allegations of bribery and vote buying against Villar were alarming and should serve as a warning to the people about the kind of administration the NP bet would have if elected president in May.

LP spokesperson and senatorial candidate Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros said the bigger issue involving Villar was not just the handing out of scholarships and P20 but the “pattern of bribery on his part that is large scale.”

Being a senator and former Senate president, Hontiveros said it was disgusting to hear that Villar was on a “bribery spree,” given the revelations of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and presidential candidates former President Estrada (of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino) and Gordon.

“So our question is, if as a senator and as a former Senate president, he is showing a pattern of bribery that involves big (amounts) and high-ranking (officials), what can you expect but large scale corruption under the Villaroyo administration,” Hontiveros said, referring to the alleged conspiracy and alliance between Villar and the Arroyo administration.

“We have to look at the way he (Villar) has also been trying to buy this whole campaign with the amounts of money being expended for advertising, which according to the PCIJ (Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism) has breached the P1-billion mark,” said LP campaign manager Florencio “Butch” Abad.

He said the funds Villar was utilizing for the campaign could be a product of this conflict of interest and his impunity in the abuse of government authority to make good money out of his businesses.

“Bribery is corruption. There is no doubt that Senator Villar is the richest presidential candidate but for him to assume that he can buy his way to Malacañang and get away with it is severely insulting,” Hontiveros said.

Gordon hit over allegations vs Villar

2010-03-03T18:38:00.000-08:00

The Nacionalista Party (NP) slammed Bagumbayan presidential bet Sen. Richard Gordon yesterday over allegations of unpaid loans by the companies owned by its standard-bearer, Sen. Manuel Villar Jr.

Lawyer Nalen Rosero-Galang, Villar’s chief legal officer, belied the allegations of Gordon, saying the senator from Olongapo has resorted to dirty tactics.

“We categorically deny that Manuela Corporation ever obtained a loan from the Social Security System (SSS). We challenge them to present documents to prove their allegations. We dare them to substantiate their accusations with solid proof,” Galang said in a statement.

Gordon claimed on Tuesday that Villar sent an emissary and offered to reimburse his expenses in the campaign in exchange for his backing out of the race.

He also accused the NP presidential bet during a radio interview of having unpaid loans with the SSS as well as the Pag-IBIG and Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF).
“This is an ‘ancient’ issue which has been repeatedly answered not only by Senator Villar but also by the government agencies concerned,” Galang countered. “None of the Villar corporations have existing unpaid obligation or undelivered undertaking or commitment to the HDMF.”

She said Villar’s corporations have meticulously observed and complied with all the policies, procedures and documentation required by the HDMF.

Quick count is history, says Comelec

2010-03-03T08:28:00.001-08:00

The slow count that prompted operation quick counts in the past may now be consigned to history.

The country’s first nationwide automated elections on May 10 are expected to produce results in two days, the Commission on Elections said.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said media entities and other parties could still conduct their own count and call the results of the races.
But Jimenez told reporters on Wednesday that the wait for the official results to be posted on the Comelec website would not take long.
“The quick count would not be applicable because what could be faster than the official count now? The official count now would basically be the system used for the quick count in the past. The reason there was a quick count then was because there was a slow count, the one from Comelec. Now, there is no more slow count,” he said.

Jimenez also said that since the results of the polling would be posted online, there was no need to require media outfits to request permission to conduct their own quick count.

Asked whether media entities could still resort to trending or extrapolation, he said that this was not expected to be prevalent now because the results from all precincts were expected to be transmitted at roughly the same time.

But he also said that if media entities would want to conduct their own count of the votes, they should clearly state where the votes that they had tallied had come from.
Under automated elections, the votes would be recorded and tallied by counting machines in each polling precinct, and the results would be electronically sent to the canvassing boards.
There would be no need to manually tally the votes, eliminating the long wait for the results.

In Pampanga, Erap keeps up pitch to make ‘jueteng’ legal

2010-03-01T07:37:00.000-08:00

Right in Pampanga, which was once described by Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. as the “Vatican of jueteng,” former President Joseph Estrada on Wednesday reached out to students to explain why he supported the legalization of jueteng as early as his term as senator.

In a forum at the Holy Angel University here, Estrada, the standard-bearer of the Puwersa ng Masang Pilipino, told about 1,500 students that jueteng generates jobs for the poor so he supported its legalization.

Estrada was convicted of plunder but pardoned very early by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Bribes

Among the charges hurled against him was accepting bribe from jueteng lords.

In January 2001, Estrada was ousted by a citizen revolt that installed then Vice President Arroyo to the presidency.

Estrada said one of his first privilege speeches during his term as senator supported moves to legalize jueteng because he came face to face with the numbers game as mayor of San Juan in Metro Manila.

Estrada said jueteng workers asked for jobs, even as garbage collectors, but there was none available.

“That’s the social problem, a hungry stomach knows no law,” he said. “Stop jueteng, where will they turn to? They will steal and engage in kidnapping.”

Erap numbers

Citing a study that he said was conducted by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Estrada said there were 163,000 jueteng bet collectors (kubrador) and managers (cabo) in the five regions of Luzon in 2004.

To get an accurate picture of the extent of how the illegal numbers game provide livelihood to poor people, he said this number should be multiplied by four to represent the jueteng employees’ family members.

Villar slams ‘rich, landed’ rivals with no track record

2010-02-28T02:42:00.000-08:00

Nacionalista Party standard bearer and Senator Manuel Villar warned voters here against candidates for president who came from rich families and have had no track record of leadership.
Villar did not name names but obviously referred to his closest rival, LP standard bearer and Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, and the latter's running mate, Sen. Manuel Roxas II, whom he referred to as “hacienderos” in his brief speech on Saturday.
“Ang kalaban ko ngayon, dalawa pong haciendero, [may]malalaking hacienda. Pero sabi ko, hindi nyo naranasan kasi ang kahirapan kaya ganyan magsalita, kung ano-ano ang inyong sinasabi (My rivals are two landowners, they have vast estates. But I say to them, ‘You never experienced hardship and that’s why it’s easy for you to say things against me’,” Villar said at a jam-packed gym after presiding over the oath-taking of members of a local women's organization here in Villasin.
“Humaharap kayo sa tao na wala kayo karanasan, na wala naman kayong pinakitang kakayahang mamahala, wala naman pa kayong pinapakitang liderato. Humaharap kayo sa bansa na para lamang kayong naglalaro. Sinasabi ko na seryoso ang pagkapangulo (You are presenting yourselves to the people, without any experience, without proven capabilities in leadership. You are facing the nation as if you’re just playing. I say to you that the presidency is a serious business),” Villar said, referring to his rivals.
“Hindi yan puede na sino na lamang ang magsasabi na 'Gusto ko maging pangulo o ako ay dapat maging pangulo dahil ang nanay ko ay pangulo (Nobody can just say, ‘I want to be president or I should be president because my mother was president),’” Villar added, referring to Aquino, the only son of the late former president Corazon Aquino.
"Sapagkat pag nagkamali po tayo ng pili, tuloy tuloy na naman po ang kahirapan, (If we make the wrong choice, poverty will continue," Villar said, this time directly addressing the crowd.
Villar has been capitalizing on his own rags-to-riches tale in the presidential campaign, always identifying himself with the poor by injecting in his speeches sob stories of his growing up years in Tondo.
Earlier in the day, Villar, his running mate Sen. Loren Legarda and a handful of the NP senatorial candidates met with the residents of the tent city in Barangay (Village) San Pedro in Rosales town.
Some 350 families had been living in tents and makeshift homes for the last four months after their houses were washed away by floods brought by typhoon “Pepeng” in late 2009.
On a rundown stage, Villar's staff gathered some 40 children and urged them to sing the presidential candidate's hugely popular “Naging Mahirap” (I was once poor) campaign jingle.
Villar, Legarda and the senatorial bets distributed “taho” and “ice candy” to the children.

2 dead, 1 hurt in C5 road accident—report

2010-02-26T18:17:00.000-08:00

2 people were killed and one was injured when their car

smashed into an electric post along the C5 Ortigas flyover early Saturday, according to a radio report.

Quoting police, radio dzMM identified the fatalities as Ramon Garcia, 28, and the driver of the Audi with plate number PM222; and John Paul Uy, who was at the passenger’s seat.

John Michael Ong, who was seated at the back of the vehicle, survived and was taken to Medical City. All were residing at Valle Verde in Barangay (village) Ugong in Pasig City, the report said.

The report said the accident occurred at 5:20 a.m. Quoting witnesses, the report said the car overtook another vehicle before slamming into the post.

Photos taken by the dzMM reporter on the scene showed Uy’s grief-stricken parents who was said to have rushed to the accident site after having been informed of their son’s death. The bodies of Uy and Garcia were taken to the Quiogue Funeral Homes, the report said.

Police were quoted as saying that the impact was so strong that the engine flew out of the vehicle and landed on a passing taxi. Other parts of the car also littered the highway as shown by the other photos taken by the dzMM reporter.

The accident caused a traffic jam along C5 as police closed the Ortigas flyover to allow authorities to clean up the debris.

Yellow ballot boxes out; black plastic in.

2010-02-23T18:34:00.001-08:00

Say goodbye to the iconic yellow ballot boxes.
The steel ballot boxes, which witnessed much of the Philippines’ bloody election history, will be decommissioned when Filipinos vote for their new batch of leaders on May 10.
The Commission on Elections on Tuesday unveiled the ballot boxes that will be used in the automated national elections in May, saying it will be harder to steal than the yellow metal boxes used in the past.
Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the new ballot box measures 36 inches in length and 20 inches in width.
The box, made of hard plastic, is 34 inches high to better accommodate the long ballots and the large number of voters. (The size of the old ballot box is 12 x 12 x 12 inches.)
“This will fit a thousand ballots, the main reason for the composition of the ballot box,” Larrazabal said.
On top of the plastic box is a cavity for the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machine, which can be locked in place. The box has three hooks for padlocks on the lid.
The ballot box has “unbreakable” translucent windows on the sides so that “the voter can see the paper dropping inside the box,” Larrazabal said.
He also noted that the plastic box could withstand the elements and the rigors of Election Day activities.
Because of the boxes’ size, poll cheaters and local warlords out to manipulate the results will not be able to just grab it from the precinct centers, Larrazabal said.
In past elections, teachers used to guard the yellow boxes with their own lives from election operatives.
In May 2007, a school in Batangas was burned down when teachers manning the voting place refused to give up the ballot boxes. Three people were killed in the fire, which was allegedly ordered by a local politician.
The Comelec initially wanted to use a transparent election box. The poll body ruled it out because light could affect the ultraviolent ink marks on the ballots.
“When you have the markings exposed to sunlight for an extended period of time, they might fade,” Larrazabal said.
“If a recount has to be carried out, then suddenly your ballots may not have UV marks. So, what were original ballots in the beginning might suddenly look like fake ballots,” he added.
Although the Comelec will not be using the yellow metal boxes for this elections, it will not yet throw away the equipment, which was designed for manual polls.
The poll body said the yellow ballot boxes would still be used for barangay elections and referendums.

3 Presidential bets to waive rights to bank secrecy

2010-02-23T18:33:00.001-08:00

Senators Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III and Ma. Ana Consuelo “Jamby” Madrigal and Olongapo city councilor JC De Los Reyes pledged Tuesday to waive their rights under the Bank Secrecy Law to open their accounts to the public if elected president.
Appearing at the Second Integrity and Human Rights Conference at Hotel Intercontinental Manila, Aquino said he would do so to prove his sincerity in fighting corruption.
But he said he would not presume that members of his Cabinet would do the same, as bank accounts were in the realm of individuals' privacy, protected by the Bill of Rights.
De Los Reyes said he would extend this waiver to his wife. "They won't find anything (in our accounts) anyway," he said.
Madrigal said she would also oblige her Cabinet to waive their bank secrecy rights. She said she was not beholden to anybody except to her dead relatives, who had served the country with integrity.
The event was organized by the Commission on Human Rights, in partnership with Bisyon 2020, Transparency International Philippines, the United Nations Development Programme, Civil Service Commission, among others, with the aim of formulating a covenant to usher in “a new paradigm on integrity and human rights for the new government.”

Aquino gripes over ‘biases’of forum moderator

2010-02-17T01:50:00.001-08:00

Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III protested what he described as unfair treatment of a journalist, who acted as moderator of a presidential forum sponsored by a group of businessmen in Pasay City on Tuesday.

During the forum by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Aquino took a subtle dig at how Tony Lopez of BizNewsAsia showed his supposed biases for his closest rival in the presidential race, Senator Manny Villar.

Lopez introduced Villar as former House speaker, former Senate president and “former future president,” while he described Aquino as someone who came from a good “pedigree of heroes.”

Interviewed by reporters after the forum, Aquino did not mince words to hit Lopez, who had been writing negative articles about him.

In fact, Aquino said the perceived bias of Lopez was one reason he opted to attend the event.

“Kaya ako nagpunta dito dahil alam kong may bias. Tinitingnan ko yung mga article ng moderator. Sana may parity lang (I went here because I know there’s bias. I’ve been reading the articles of the moderator. I just hope there is parity),” Aquino lamented.

The senator pointed out, for instance, how he was always chosen to be the first to answer questions in the forum.

“On other fora, it’s alternating. Obviously, the last to answer will have plenty of time to think about his response,” he said.

Asked if Lopez could be favoring any candidate, Aquino said: “Favoring Villar. He has already several articles on that.”

Madrigal to make amends with Judy Ann

2010-02-17T01:36:00.000-08:00

Calling herself and popular actress Judy Ann Santos "victims of politics and politicians," Sen. Maria Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal said on Tuesday she did not mean to offend the actress when she said she regretted tapping a celebrity as an endorser when she first run for the Senate in 2004.
Santos was Madrigal’s top celebrity endorser in 2004.
Madrigal blamed the camp of Sen. Manuel "Manny" Villar for pitting her against her celebrity endorser during the 2004 senatorial polls.
Madrigal assailed the Nacionalista Party standard-bearer's public relations group for allegedly twisting what she said about celebrity endorsers during a recent Philippine Daily Inquirer presidential debate at the University of the Philippines in Quezon City.
In a forum at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila in Intramuros, Manila, the independent presidential candidate said she was "sad.”
“I’m sad that my response in the debate (about celebrity endorsers) was used and twisted by my enemies in politics). I'm sad that Juday (Santos' nickname) got hurt...I'm sad the issue was used by them just to hurt Juday," said Madrigal.
In the Inquirer debate, questions turned to big ad spending by presidential candidates and the use of celebrity endorsers to boost their campaign. When Madrigal was asked about her take on the issue, the senator said she had "realized the folly of my ways" in tapping a movie actress to create a connection with the voting masses in 2004. She did not mention Judy Ann Santos but the actress was her chief endorser in 2004.
Madrigal told students of the Manila city-run university she had "no conflict" with Santos, whom she described as "one of my favorite actresses" during an earlier interview with this paper.

Madrigal said she would go out of her way to be able to explain her side to Santos, whom she called "one of my favorite actresses" during an earlier interview with this reporter.
"I hope we’ll get to understand each other. And wherever she is, I will talk to her. Everything can be resolved if the person is sincere and she knows I’m sincere. I will never say anything bad about Juday," she said.
Madrigal noted she had "repeatedly acknowledged and thanked Juday for her help" in boosting her popularity in the 2004 elections.
"When I announced my presidential bid (on July 31), she was one of the people I thanked," along with members of her family and the late presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr. and his wife, actress Susan Roces, she recalled.
Santos said in a recent TV interview she was not happy about Madrigal's recent pronouncements belittling celebrity endorsers of politicians as an insult to the intelligence of voters.
Madrigal earlier said she was "not considering" asking for Santos' endorsement again.
Apparently referring to Villar, Madrigal blamed her "biggest political rival who is a billionaire, and who has a (political) machinery" for allegedly blowing the issue out of proportion.
"Magaling maglihis 'yon ng story (He knows how to deflect and distract people from issues)," she said.
During the same forum, Madrigal slammed Villar for allegedly making a "circus" out of the recent El Shaddai gathering in Hong Kong where Bro. Mike Velarde, leader of the religious group, indicated he was backing Villar's presidential bid.
"Although I welcome the endorsement of religious groups, let us not cheapen their worth by having a circus in publicizing the endorsement. It should be a serious endorsement based in principles, not on sheer vested interests," said Madrigal.
She pointed out "it's a free country and (Velarde) can endorse who he wants."
"If we look at the background of the two, it appears that Villar and Bro. Mike are longtime business partners," the senator noted.
According to Madrigal, if a religious group decides to endorse her both parties should have had good discussions at not a circus, like what happened in Hong Kong.
Still referring to Villar, she said the NP candidate was "just using the religious group as endorser."
Madrigal wondered why Villar, whom she said had a "100 percent awareness" among the public, still needed endorsements from religious group and celebrities.
"He already has because he was a Senate president, so there's no need to introduce himself. All he needs is to introduce his platform...Di ba siya mahal ng taong-bayan (Isn’t he loved by the masses)?" she said.
So far, Villar got actor-comedians Dolphy and Michael V, singer Sarah Geronimo, and controversial TV host Willie Revillame as his campaign endorsers.

Sen Trillanes, general granted temporary liberty

2010-02-17T01:34:00.001-08:00

Detained Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and 17 others who have been charged with rebellion for seizing and taking over a hotel in Makati City in 2007 have been granted temporary liberty by a local court.
Judge Elmo Alameda of Branch 150 of the Makati City court set P200,000 bail each for Trillanes and the 17, including Brigadier General Danilo Lim, who is running for senator in the May elections under the Liberal Party.
Aside from Trillanes and Lim, allowed to post bail were Captain Gary C. Alejano; Lieutenant Senior Grades Eugene P. Gonzalez, James Layug, Manuel Cabochan and Andy Torrato; Lieutenant Junior Grade Arturo Pascua jr.; Captain Segundino Orfiano Jr.; 1Lieutenant Billy Pascua; Corporal Clecarte D. Dahan; Privates First Class Juanito Jilbury, Emmanuel Tirador, German Linde, Julius Mesa, Cesari Yasser Gonzales; 2nd Lieutenant Jonnell P. Sangalan and Ens Armand Pontejos
In the order he signed Tuesday, Alameda allowed Trillanes, Lim, and the 16 military officials to be released while their case for rebellion was being heard in court.
Alameda said the evidence presented by the government, so far, supported the charge of direct contempt of court against the accused, but not the charge of rebellion.
“An actual clash of arms with government forces is not necessary to make one liable of rebellion,” Alameda said in her 16-page decision.
"No direct, material and competent evidence adduced to prove the specific act committed by the accused constituting the crime of rebellion or any of the elements thereof. The walkout from the court, the marching to the Manila Peninsula hotel and the press conference held in the same hotel denouncing the administration of President [Gloria Macapagal-]Arroyo are not sufficient to prove the non-bailable crime of rebellion," she said.
The walkout staged by the accused in the middle of a hearing for their role in the 2003 mutiny at the posh Oakwood Apartments in Makati could only be considered an act of direct contempt of court and not rebellion, said Alameda.
Citing the Revised Penal Code, Alameda said the elements of rebellion were:
1. That there be a public uprising and taking arms against the government;
2. That the purpose of the uprising is either to remove the allegiance to said government or its laws-the territory of the Philippines or any part thereof or any body of land, naval or other armed forces; or
3. To deprive the Chief executive or Congress wholly or partially of any of their powers and prerogatives.
Alameda said the prosecution failed to prove that all the accused rose publicly and took arms against the government.
“A thorough evaluation of the evidence presented during the entire bail hearing will readily show that the prosecution failed to demonstrate that the evidence of guilt of the accused for the crime of rebellion is strong to foreclose their right to bail,” she said.
“More specifically, the prosecution failed to demonstrate that: a) the accused were involved in public uprising or an armed public uprising by substantial number of rebels; b) the accused took up arms against the government; c) there was a vast movement of men and a complex net of intrigues and plots; d) there was a civil war on a bigger or lesser scale; and e) the Chief Executive was deprived wholly or partially of her powers and prerogatives,” she said.
Alameda also said that while prosecution was able to establish that two of the four assault rifles with loaded magazines where found positive of gunpowder, not one of the witnesses was able to positively identify the owner of the confiscated firearms.
Alameda noted that the testimony of Police Senior Inspector Fernando Reyes, deputy chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) CIDG-NCR, has no value because although he heard Trillanes call for a withdrawal of support for the Arroyo government, his account was based on a TV monitor that was positioned outside Manila Peninsula.
“Simply stated, the prosecution failed to lay sufficient foundation on the admissibility of his testimony. At most, the prosecution should have presented an authenticated DVD disk showing the footages relating to the testimony of PSI Fernando Reyes,” the court said.
Trillanes, Lim and the 16 military officers are still facing charges for the short-lived mutiny in 2003 and unless they are released on bail in that case, rules of court state that they will have to remain in jail.

source: inquirer.net

LP bares Villar land controversy

2010-02-14T08:04:00.001-08:00

The Liberal Party unleashed Friday a land conversion bomb against Nacionalista Party standard-bearer Senator Manuel Villar.
In a press conference at the Iloilo Golf and Country Club in Sta. Barbara, Iloilo, Former Senate president Franklin Drilon said Villar’s company, Crown Communities Iloilo, bought 12.7 hectares in Jibao-an, Pavia, Iloilo from farmer beneficiaries and converted this first-class irrigated rice land into a residential enclave, Savannah Subdivision.
Drilon said Villar had obtained the go-signal from the Department of Agrarian Reform to convert the agriculture land into a residential area only in 2007, or seven years after the construction of the subdivision started in 2000.
Villar, who was in Tanza, Cavite for a campaign rally Friday shrugged off the latest allegations hurled against him by LP, saying the lands were owned by publicly listed companies which has open books that his critics could check for themselves.
“I don’t know what they are accusing me of again. That’s a lie. As far as I know, there’s a process that is according to law and that is an open transaction. These are public companies. I am surprised by what they are saying. This is part of their demolition job against me. These are public companies. This is open. Anybody can look at this,” said Villar in Filipino following a noontime campaign rally of the NP slate in Cavite.
“The documents here do not lie. Under the law, it is illegal to convert first-class irrigated agricultural land into a subdivision but that’s exactly what Manny Villar did in the Savannah Subdivision development. This is a crime,” Drilon said as he presented tax declarations and other documents obtained from the provincial government. (The son of Iloilo Governor Neil Tupas is running for a seat in May under LP.)
Drilon said Villar used P4 million of his pork barrel funds to build a 585-meter national road that led right into the entrance of Savannah. “This is the only public works project of Villar in the province,” said Drilon at the Iloilo press conference.
He said that Villar, not content with the 12-hectare Savannah property, bought the adjoining rice lands in the area and amassed a total of 250 hectares of land to expand his residential community.
He said the farmers had no choice but to sell their property because their irrigation supply had been cut off with Villar’s conversion of the Savannah property which was the primary source of water in the area.
“Villar destroyed the irrigation canals. They back-filled the canal so they can be classified as non-serviceable,” said Drilon who noted that Villar’s Pavia property value has shot up to P3,500 per square meter from less than P150 per square meter.
“This is what we call C-5 and a half. Regardless if it is only half a kilometer, it shows the lack of decency on the part of the developer, Senator Villar, who simply set aside all interest of the CARP beneficiaries to be able to pursue his business interests. The C-5 controversy is simply a tip [of] the iceberg. It is a pattern we now see. We are aware of other subdivisions all over the country where similar practice was followed,” said Drilon.

With a report from Nikko Dizon, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Villar seen to get Bro. Mike’s nod.

2010-02-14T07:52:00.000-08:00

NACIONALISTA PARTY (NP) standard-bearer Sen. Manuel Villar arrived here Saturday afternoon to meet with Filipino migrants and influential lay Catholic leaders, including Bro. Mariano “Mike” Velarde of the charismatic group El Shaddai.
Villar was to meet with Couples for Christ leader Frank Padilla and other CFC elders Saturday night. On Sunday he is to attend the Chinese New Year celebration of El Shaddai’s Hong Kong chapter.
Shortly before she herself flew to the former Crown Colony, Villar’s running mate, Sen. Loren Legarda, said the two of them were “the only ones invited by Brother Mike.”
Legarda told the Inquirer by phone that Velarde had personally extended the invitation to her and Villar to attend Sunday’s gathering in Hong Kong, which hosts nearly 100,000 Filipino voters.
The gathering is to be held on Chater Road at the central business district, where Filipino domestics congregate on Sundays.
Politicians running for national or local posts always seek the support of religious groups such as El Shaddai and Iglesia ni Cristo, which is known to vote as a bloc during elections.
Long friendship
On the phone with the Inquirer in Manila, Velarde’s spokesperson Mel Robles confirmed that among the presidential candidates, only Villar was invited by the El Shaddai leader to join him at Sunday’s gathering.
Robles, who was also in Hong Kong to take part in the Chinese New Year celebration, left it to Velarde to say whether he would endorse Villar and Legarda.
But he confirmed that among the candidates in past and coming elections, the NP standard-bearer was the closest to Velarde.
Robles, the administrator of the Light Rail Transit Authority, also chairs Buhay, the El Shaddai party-list group.
“Their friendship goes a long, long way. Compared to all others in the past, this one has the longest friendship with him,” Robles told the Inquirer on the phone.
According to Robles, Villar has enjoyed Velarde’s support since he first ran for congressman up to the time he became Speaker of the House of Representatives and Senate President.
Explaining the friendship, Robles said Velarde was one of the pioneers of mass housing in the country, and Villar used to supply sand to his business.
Velarde reportedly ventured into the residential subdivision business in the 1980s after graduating from the University of the East with a degree in geodetic engineering.
Like Villar, Velarde’s property was also deemed to have benefited from the controversial C-5 road extension project. But the Senate decided not to include the politically influential church leader in its investigation.
Verbal, nonverbal clues
In a statement sent to the Inquirer through Robles later Saturday, Velarde confirmed that Villar was the only presidential candidate invited to join him at Sunday’s gathering.
But when asked if he was supporting Villar’s candidacy over the others, Velarde merely said: “We go a long way back and we’re very close friends.”
Short of confirming that his boss was inclined to back Villar, Robles said the invitation for Villar to join Velarde in an El Shaddai event was “out of the ordinary.”
But he added that as a matter of policy, Velarde did not openly endorse candidates but merely gave verbal or nonverbal clues for his flock to “discern” during El Shaddai prayer rallies in Parañaque City close to Election Day.
Robles also said that if there was someone Velarde was “openly and wholeheartedly endorsing,” it would be the Buhay party-list group, of which his son Rene is a representative.
Villar arrived on board a Cathay Pacific flight at around 2:40 p.m. with his wife, Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar.
The senator is expected to attend Mass at the Church of the Annunciation in Tsuen Wan district before having dinner with Padilla and other CFC leaders.
He is to also meet Sunday with leaders of the militant group Migrante before attending the El Shaddai celebration.
Villar’s NP has allied with the militant Makabayan alliance, which has a strong presence in the Filipino community in Hong Kong.
According to Migrante, Hong Kong has one of the highest number of registered voters among overseas Filipino workers, and had the highest voter turnout overseas during the 2004 and 2007 elections.
Loren’s adviser
Legarda disclosed to the Inquirer that it was Velarde himself who had advised her to run with Villar.
“I was consulting him last year on who to run with after Chiz (Sen. Francis Escudero) bolted the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC),” Legarda said.
“Chiz is gone,” she quoted Velarde as saying. “Don’t look too far. You should be with Manny (Villar).”
Escudero had earlier been groomed to be the NPC’s standard-bearer, with Legarda as his running mate. But he backed out at the last minute.
Legarda said she and Velarde meet for lunch almost every month.
“The last time we had lunch together, he was with his daughter and son,” she said.

Aquino denies backing Binay’s VP bid

2010-02-11T19:35:00.000-08:00

Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III dispelled speculations he is supporting the vice presidential bid of Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay and not of his running-mate, Senator Mar Roxas.
“Ako, kinakampanya ko po ang aking running-mate, si Mar Roxas. Klaro po na pag ako ay may pipunupuntahang lugar ay kasama ko si Mar Roxas. Ang platform po namin, kami ni Mar Roxas ang gumawa (I campaign for my running-mate, Mar Roxas. Wherever I go I am joined by Roxas. We formulated our platform together,” he said.
Aquino and Roxas both belong to the Liberal Party. Binay, who is running with former president Joseph Estrada, was a close ally of Aquino’s mother, the late president Corazon Aquino.
“Si Jojo Binay po kaibigan ko. Pero nag-usap kami at kinlaro ko sa kanya na ang kandidato ko nga ho talaga ay ang aking kapartido na si Mar Roxas (Jojo Binay is a friend. But we talked and I clarified to him that my candidate is my party-mate, and that’s Mar Roxas),” said Aquino.

He said he had asked Binay to join his senatorial slate but the latter declined.

Aquino said if he has supporters backing Binay he would persuade them to instead support Roxas, who gave up his presidential bid for Aquino.

Villar : I did no wrong so why should I ask him for help ?

2010-02-09T20:21:00.001-08:00

Senator Manny Villar today said he did not approach Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile for help on the C-5 road controversy.
“Wala akong hininging tulong at walang ibinigay. No help was asked and none was given, “Villar said.
Villar also belied Enrile’s claim in a radio interview this morning that he offered to help Enrile with "anything" during one of their meetings about the C-5 road controversy.
Villar said he saw no need to ask help from Enrile because “ I was confident that the documents, the records, the witnesses, and the rules will prove that the C-5 road project was not double-funded, overpriced or rerouted.”
“Bakit ako hihingi ng tulong e hindi naman ako guilty at wala naman akong ginawang masama ? Lahat ng dokumentong sinubmit at lahat ng nag-testify sa Senado yan ang sinabi, “ he said.
“But looking back, I thought I was dealing with honorable men who would view things fair and impartially. Nagkamali pala ako,” Villar said, adding that he was “hurt” by Enrile’s “false story.”
He said the Senate hearing on C-5 controversy was “conceived in malice and was meant to embarrass me so I will not be a factor in these elections.”
“Nagsimula ito ng umakyat ako sa surveys. Nang gumaganda ratings ko, pumapangit naman ang mga atake nila sa akin ,” Villar said referring to his steady climb in the surveys, with a scant eight points separating him and frontrunner Sen. Noynoy Aquino of Liberal Party per one recent poll.

NP senatorial bets launch campaign minus standard-bearers

2010-02-09T20:18:00.000-08:00

Without its standard-bearers, the Nacionalista Party's (NP) senatorial ticket kicked off its campaign with a motorcade in various towns in Laguna on Tuesday.

But only eight of 12 NP senatorial joined the motorcade, which started in Binan market.

In attendance were Senator Pia Cayetano, former congressman Gilbert Remulla, lawyer Adel Tamano, Bayan Muna Representative Satur Ocampo, Gabriela Representative Liza Maza, Ramon "Mon-Mon" Mitra, Gwendolyn Pimentel, and Susan Ople.

Absent were guest candidates and Senators Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr., Ilocos Norte Representative Ferdinand "Bong-Bong" Marcos Jr., and jailed Colonel Ariel Querubin.

Remulla said Querubin was represented by his son, Martin.

Remulla could not say yet if those absent in the motorcade will later show up in the rally slated at 3: 30pm in Banga town spot plaza, Calamba Laguna.

Teodoro vows to lead a "Positive Campaign"

2010-02-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

He will leave the mudslinging and brickbats to his rivals and embark on a “positive campaign” of political reconciliation and uplifting the Filipinos’ morale, administration candidate Gilbert Teodoro said Tuesday as he sets off the start of the three-month campaign for his presidential bid.
In pinstriped green and white polo and jeans, Teodoro showed up at the Lakas-Kampi headquarters along EDSA at noon with running mate actor Edu Manzano and four of his six senatorial candidates.
He faced the media for a news conference then led a convoy of vehicles in a motorcade to the Ynares Gym in Antipolo City, where he would fire his opening campaign salvo.
Aboard a coaster, Teodoro waved to onlookers awaiting the motorcade. The road leading to Antipolo City where his vehicles would pass by are spruced with streamers and posters of administration candidates.
Teodoro’s senatorial slate is composed of Ramon Revilla Jr., Lito Lapid, Ramon Guico, Raul Lambino, Rey Langit, and Silvestre Bello III.
Asked how his campaign would be different from his rivals, he said he would lead a “positive campaign” focusing on “reforms, how to uplift the morale of the Filipinos, and genuine political reconciliation.”
“To me, it should be a positive campaign, we have to uplift the moral of the Filipinos, lend a helping hand, it has to be positive, that’s why it’s ‘Sulong Pilipinas,’” he said.
He said his common message would be for the people to “help each other overcome obstacles and grab opportunities through institutional governance, through trying to help each other, the ordinary citizen and the government and genuine political reconciliation.”
What is needed, he said, is reform based on stability and an experienced leader who can set aside political differences and genuinely reconcile all political factions so that the country can focus on opportunities for growth.
Teodoro said he is prepared for the worst intrigues and scheming in this campaign, saying he feels he has seen them all.
Asked what he would find the most difficult in the three-month campaign period, he said it would be the physical exhaustion and the separation from his family.
Teodoro also introduced journalist and television host Mike Toledo as his spokesman.

Its Carnival Time

2010-02-09T20:16:00.001-08:00

Candidates waved from motorcades, pressed hands with housewives and teenagers, and pleaded at Masses for God’s blessings as the most extravagant political carnival in Philippine history rolled off Tuesday.
The country’s richest politician and the son of its democracy icon are locked in a tight battle to win the hearts of some 50 million voters, who will go to the polls on May 10 in the Philippines’ first automated national elections.
At stake in the elections are the posts of president, vice president, 12 Senate seats, more than 200 seats in the House of Representatives and over 17,600 local government positions.
The world’s best boxer, Manny Pacquiao, and a dictator’s flamboyant widow, former first lady Imelda Marcos, are among the dizzying array of characters hoping to grab a share of power in one of Asia’s most unruly democracies.
Some analysts warned that candidates’ promises of change were likely to prove hollow.
“I don’t think there will be any change in the idiosyncracies that define the Philippines,” said Robert Broadfoot, managing director of the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy group.
Poverty, corruption and unemployment are the top issues in the campaign.
The two front-runners in opinion surveys, Senators Manuel Villar and Benigno Aquino III, are promising a clean government and fresh start for the Philippines after nine years of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s tumultuous rule dotted with coup plots and corruption allegations.
With dozens of people already dead in the run-up to the polls—including 57 civilians (at least 30 of them media workers) gunned down in a massacre in Maguindanao province last November—political violence has again emerged as a main concern. About 130 people were killed during the last elections in 2007.
Aquino, who rode into contention on a wave of sympathy following the death of his mother, democracy heroine Corazon Aquino, leads Villar by a hair in the latest surveys.
Aquino’s earlier huge lead in surveys vanished almost as quickly as it was gained as Villar, a mega-rich property developer, caught up him with a 35-percent support in the latest Pulse Asia survey following an advertising spending spree.
Spice from Estrada
Adding spice to the race is former President Joseph Estrada’s attempt at political resurrection, after he was deposed halfway through his first term in 2001 and later convicted of corruption. Ms Arroyo pardoned him weeks later.
Estrada is running third in the surveys and, although an outside chance, some analysts said the former movie star could yet achieve his wish of redemption.
“It’s going to be difficult for him, but he has 100-percent name recognition across the country—it depends on how diligently he runs his campaign,” said Ronald Holmes, a political lecturer at De La Salle University in Manila.
The ruling coalition’s choice to succeed Ms Arroyo, former Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr., is running a distant fourth with just a 5-percent support in the latest survey.
However Holmes, also president of polling firm Pulse Asia, said picking a winner three months from the election was impossible, and even Teodoro had a chance if the coalition’s formidable machinery could kick into action.
Come-backing Imelda
For an international audience, interest will focus on Pacquiao, the seven-time world champion boxer who is running for a congressional seat in Sarangani province in Mindanao.
Pacquiao is counting on his hero status to get him elected. He failed in a similar bid in the 2007 congressional elections and Holmes said could again be struck a knockout political blow.
“It’s going to be difficult for him. He is up against someone who has been in local politics for a long time,” Holmes said.
Also seeking a seat in the House of Representatives is Imelda Marcos, the 80-year-old wife of Ferdinand Marcos, who is running in the second congressional district of Ilocos Norte for the seat being vacated by her son, Ferdinand Jr.
Lenten tradition
Police have set up checkpoints in a nationwide crackdown on unlicensed guns. They said operations were continuing to disarm nearly 100 private armies on the payroll of political warlords.
On Tuesday, candidates shook hands with vendors, housewives, laborers and teenagers as they hopped from town to town just a few hours away from Manila, visiting markets, parks and churches on the first of 90 days of campaigning.
Some candidates heard Mass at churches, with one transforming his rally into a prayer gathering, reenacting the Lenten tradition of Jesus Christ washing the feet of his disciples to illustrate his desire to be a public servant.
Personalities vs platforms
Financial markets are hoping for a smooth transition, outweighing fears of possible technical and administrative problems from the country’s first automated polls.
Analysts are looking for more details on the candidates’ platforms, particularly economic policies, which are absent from a barrage of political ads on TV and radio since the start of the year.
Historically, popular personalities from political clans, the media, sports and show business dominate the elections, but some analysts are seeing some positive changes.
“In this election, I see a 50-50 ratio on personalities and platforms or issues as the political race heats up among the leading presidential candidates,” said Ramon Casiple, executive director of Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms.

source: inquirer

Aquino: I will redistribute Hacienda Luisita in 5 years

2010-02-09T20:14:00.001-08:00

Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III Tuesday promised to redistribute the 6,453-hectare Hacienda Luisita Inc. (HLI) within five years as prescribed by the new agrarian reform law.
In a press conference at his father’s ancestral home in Concepcion, Tarlac, where the Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer formally launched his candidacy, Aquino said that the hacienda controlled by the Cojuangco family of his late mother President Corazon Aquino was virtually bankrupt.
The presidential candidate did not give details of the debts but said that this was the reason the Cojuangcos had been hesitant to dump the sprawling sugar plantation on the farmers with its obligations still unpaid.
“I have said several times before that I have already talked with my family and that what we are after is the welfare of our ‘kasamahan’ and our main problem is how to transfer the land without the debt.
“We could have made a voluntary offer to sell from day one if we were only after our own interest. We get paid, and we will be left with a huge sum in the bank, but our kasamahan are left in a not so perfect situation—10,000 (farmers) to divide 4,500 hectares of land that do not have equal productivity,” said Aquino.
His running mate, Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, himself a rich landowner, took the cudgels for him by stressing that that the farmers’ enemy was not Aquino but the banks.
“The land is mortgaged to the banks and they cannot just turn their bank and give up the land because it would all go to the banks,” Roxas said.
Aquino said that his cousins “who are running the hacienda” had already made the rounds to get the consent of 10,000 farmers on what scheme they wanted to effect the land transfer. He said this should also be approved by the corporation.
Aquino issued a press statement at the start of his national campaign promising to complete the distribution of over a million hectares of private lands during the five-year extension period of the new agrarian reform law.
He said that this would allow the government to pour more funds into agricultural extension services, irrigation, farm-to-market roads, to help farmer-beneficiaries.
P150-billion fund
Aquino noted that P150 billion allocated under CARPER (CARP Extension with Reforms) was approved last year (Aquino abstained during the voting) for the purchase of lands and he intended to use the funds to implement the land transfer in his own family’s Hacienda.
Agrarian reform was the centerpiece of a poverty alleviation program that Corazon Aquino had vowed to undertake when she campaigned for president in the snap election of 1986 against the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. A subsequent People Power revolution that year ousted Marcos.
In 1988, President Aquino promulgated a comprehensive agrarian reform program, but her hacienda was exempted when it opted to distribute shares of stocks instead to farmers.
However, the Department of Agrarian Reform said that after 17 years, the arrangement had not improved the lives of the farmers and ordered the distribution of the lands to them. At the Cojuangcos’ behest, the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order. The case remains pending.
Those lands that remain undistributed are the huge estates, like Hacienda Luisita, whose owners have resisted the program the past two decades. The Hacienda issue has become an albatross in the Aquino campaign and a big question mark on his ability to address poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth.
Aquino as rapper
In Capas later, Aquino shocked and entertained his audience by giving an impromptu performance of his political rap jingle on a makeshift stage at the public market.
He told the crowd that he wanted to disprove the Villar camp’s claims that he merely put on fast mode his song to make it sound like he was rapping.
In the evening, the group proceeded to Tarlac City for the unveiling of the 9-foot monument of Corazon Aquino.
During the press conference, Aquino and Roxas blasted Nacionalista Party presidential candidate Sen. Manny Villar for his purported secret ties to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
“I have been taught as a child that if I pushed for something that is wrong, I will be part of that evil,” Aquino said.
“Their alliance will eventually come out in the coming days. You can see from their actions and words that they do have a collaboration.”
Roxas mocked Villar’s “fake” image as seen from his constant dying of his white hair and alleged botox treatment for his wrinkles.
“This campaign will stand on character versus cash,” he said.
While Aquino and Roxas zeroed in on Villar in the kick-off rally at the Concepcion public market, Aquino claimed that Ms Arroyo remained as his main target in the elections and that Villar and anyone who would seek to continue her “crooked system” should not be allowed to be in power. “
Noynoy blasts Gibo
Aquino said this included his cousin, Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro, Ms Arroyo’s former defense secretary.
“I am older than him and in fairness, I don’t think we have ever hit each other below the belt. He claimed in his slogan that it was possible for the country to grow fast but he has to explain why start only now when they have been in power for 10 years?” Aquino said.
With Villar cutting down Aquino’s once formidable lead, the LP candidate said his campaign team would aim at delivering a more clear and focused message primarily through 300,000 card-carrying volunteers ready to defend and promote him.
Aquino said that Villar, whom he described as his “closest competitor,” would be his best ally in the campaign.
“My closest opponent mouthed what I said (about not raising taxes and managing the deficit) and he agreed that my position is correct. As he follows my platform more and more, my opponent will constantly change his message because he has not been studying what he is supposed to study,” Aquino said.
Ad spending
What Aquino will not do is match Villar’s spending which LP guest senatorial bet, Akbayan party-list Rep. Risa Hontiveros, estimated at between P6 billion and P15 billion, which was bigger than the entire state budget for state housing of P4.2 billion.
Villar is currently spending 10 times what Aquino was shelling out for his campaign ads. Even if his ad spending gets bigger with the start of the campaign, Aquino said Villar would still outspend him 2 to 1.
Aquino’s main fear was that the uninformed public would accept the image conveyed by the ads as reality.
He said his team’s goal was to make sure that the public would be apprised of the truth about his actions that conflict with his image, such as the C-5 double insertion issue where he caused the construction of a redundant and more expensive road project that primarily benefited his subdivisions.
Fans look for Kris
Aquino’s girlfriend, Valenzuela Councilor Shalani Soledad, was nowhere in sight. She was out campaigning for a congressional seat in Valenzuela. But she was hardly missed.
Aquino’s shrieking fans in Concepcion were looking for his popular sister Kris Aquino and her son Baby James.
“She is part of team creating materials (for the campaign) and she has plenty of obligations,” Aquino told reporters. “When she is here, they say I am using Kris. When she is not here, they ask where is Kris?” Aquino said, complaining about his dilemma.
Kris has been seen as a double-edged sword for Aquino—her popularity as attested to by the numerous companies that get her to endorse their products, has made the Aquino name even more popular; but her string of love affairs and tactless remarks have also made her a liability to Aquino.
Aquino said that Kris and her other sisters—Pinky Aquino-Abellada and Ballsy Aquino-Cruz—were his “surrogates” who would help cover all of the 80 provinces in less than 90 days.
“We will take turns because my schedule is also tight,” he said.
Another surprise was the presence of broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez who sat behind Roxas at Immaculate Conception Church. The couple ate fishballs at the church gates before the Mass.

source: inquirer

Voters told: Shade whole ovals, do not 'overvote'

2010-02-09T19:43:00.000-08:00

The right way to vote in the May elections is by fully shading the ovals opposite the printed names of candidates in the ballot, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Tuesday.
Comelec legal chief Ferdinand Rafanan also said voters should not ``overvote’’, or voting more than is necessary. For instance, if one is voting for the President, the voter should only shade one oval opposite the candidate he’s voting for. If he shades more than one oval for the President, the counting machine will invalidate the vote for the position.
Rafanan made the points during a voters’ education workshop here attended by 30 Nueva Vizcaya leaders in partnership with the Comelec’s citizens’ arm Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV).
He said that voters must learn these two steps so that the poll machines would count their votes.
“The most important thing that the voter should learn in the automated polls is to shade the ballots correctly and not to overvote. The manner of voting is not so very much hinged on the operation of the machine. The voter’s only interaction with the machine is when he feeds his accomplished ballot in the machine scanner for counting after which he should see it go inside the translucent ballot box,” said Rafanan.
The precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machine is an automation technology that uses an optical scanner which reads marked ballots fed into the machine. It would not read a check, a cross, a dot or a line written inside the oval, only a half or fully shaded oval, said the poll official.
While the poll machines are configured to read as a vote a half-shaded oval, Rafanan encouraged voters to fully shade the ovals to ensure that they are counted as vote.
“The poll machines operate in a way that it would read an oval with a threshold mark of at least 50 percent or simply, a half-shaded oval. But note that a half shade differs per person. So, voters should practice full shading of these ovals so they are 100 percent sure that their votes are counted correctly,” said Rafanan.
As guide to prevent an overvote, Rafanan said the ballots would also contain guidelines stating that a voter “can vote for not more than one candidate” for president, vice president and partylist and “not more than 12 candidates” for senator.
These instructions means a voter can undervote or select less than the total 12 senate candidates, for example, but not overvote, which is done by shading ovals of 13 senatorial bets instead of 12, would cause the machine to discard all votes for that office.
Rafanan also urged voters not to fold or put spurious marks on the ballot. He said this could compromise the ballot’s security features such as bar code or invisible UV ink and result in the rejection of the vote.
A voter would be given only one ballot, under the law.
“We will print only 50 million ballots for the close to 50 million registered voters. One voter is entitled to one ballot only, no more second chances in filling up another ballot,” Rafanan stressed.
Preparing a “kodigo” or list of candidates to be voted would also help the voter to shade the ballot faster, said Comelec commissioner Rene Sarmiento in another interview.
Since the new ballots would have the names of candidates arranged in number and in alphabetical order, Sarmiento said the “kodigo”or list should include both the name and the assigned number of a candidate.
Sarmiento also urged voters to help Comelec in monitoring election violations of candidates during the campaign period between February 9 to May 8 for national elective posts and from March 29 to May 8 for local bets. Comelec issued campaign guidelines on Monday.
To practice voting in the special ballots for automation, download sample ballots for non-ARMM and ARMM areas at the Comelec website

source: inquirer

Villar allies no-show in Senate, stall vote on ethics rap

2010-02-04T02:10:00.000-08:00

Allies of Senator Manny Villar were a no-show on Wednesday when the Senate resumed its session to discuss and probably vote on the ethics committee complaint that was filed against him.
Only 11 senators showed up at the session hall, not enough to conduct business.
Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile, who presided over the session, said the absence of the opposition group in the Senate was an "attempt" to prevent the disposition of the C-5 road project controversy.
"Some members opted not to attend the session to prevent the disposition of this matter," he further said.
Because of lack of quorum, Senate Majority Floor Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri then moved for the adjournment of the session but was stopped by Senator Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal.
Madrigal is the complainant in the ethics case filed against Villar, who allegedly used his position to benefit from the road project.
Madrigal invoked the rules of the committee, which would allow the Senate leader to order the arrest of the absent senators.
But Enrile rejected Madrigal's motion, saying he will like to be compassionate to colleagues.
Zubiri moved for the adjournment of the session.
Congress will resume session on May 31.

Source: Inquirer.net

SC upholds delisting of 10 party-list groups

2010-01-30T04:10:00.001-08:00

The Supreme Court has upheld the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec’s) resolutions disqualifying at least 10 party-list groups from seeking representation in Congress in this year’s congressional elections.
The disqualified groups include the organization of Fernando Poe Jr.’s supporters in the 2004 elections, the Freedom, Peace, Justice and Progress Movement, and the amusing group of cockfight aficionados Alyansa Sabungero.
Other groups whose appeals of their disqualification by the Comelec the Supreme Court dismissed include Alab ng Pusong Pinoy, Abag sa Kalikupan, Koalisyon at Aksyon Nag-iimpok Para sa Ekonomiya at Gabay ng mga Organisasyon or 1-Kanegosyo, Alyansa Alay sa Adhikain ng Beterano, Anak sa Pantalan, Agro-Industrial Productivity Exponents, 1-Angkan Party, and Alyansa ng Sambayanang Pilipino.
Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez, the Supreme Court spokesperson, told reporters that the Court dismissed the petitions for certiorari either because the groups failed to show abuse of discretion on the part of the Comelec or because they failed to comply with the rules on such appeals.
Marquez said the Supreme Court also dismissed the petition for certiorari filed by one Richard Recto against the Comelec’s resolution disqualifying him from the senatorial elections for being a nuisance candidate.

source: inquirer.net

Congress looking into delays in poll machines delivery.

2010-01-27T17:15:00.000-08:00

Congress is now looking into possible violations in the P7.2 billion poll automation contract after several adjustments have been made in the delivery schedules of machines to be used in the first ever national automated elections.

Senator Fancis “Chiz” Escudero said the changes made on the delivery date of the machines have exceeded the maximum 30-day adjustment period specified in the contract between the Commission and Elections and technology provider Smartmatic inc.

“They say there’s no delay but that’s because they keep on changing the delivery date. It is indicated in the contract that they can’t adjust for more than 30 days from the original contract date,” Escudero told reporters after a hearing by the joint congressional oversight committee on automated election system on Wednesday.

“The lawyers are looking into the first date set and they would like to know if they have exceeded the 30 day maximum adjustment period considering they are already delayed for almost three months,” said Escudero, co-chairman of the committee.

If there were indeed violations committed in the contract, the senator said, the committee would point this out to the Comelec or file necessary actions in court.

In cases of delay, the poll automation contract provides that a portion of the total amount, specifically one tenth of one percent, or about P7 million , will be deducted for each day of delay from the amount due Smartmatic.

“My problem, Atty. Tolentino, is that in the contract , although you can move deadlines, you can’t move the deadline beyond 30 days from what was originally stated in the contract but some of the adjustments made exceed already 30 days,” he said.

The senator was referring to Jose Tolentino, executive director of the Comelec.

But Tolentino attributed the changes in the delivery of machines to the delay in the awarding of the contract to Smartmatic.

The contract should have been awarded in May 2009 but because of some delays in the release of money for the poll automation project, it was only awarded to Smartmatic two months after.

There was another delay of about 51 days, Tolentino said, when a case was filed against the poll automation system.

“That’s the reason why the Comelec pursuant to the provision of the contract had to make adjustments,” he told the committee.

“The Comelec allows the parties to make changes because not all delivery schedules indicated in the contract , not al the problems had been foreseen by all the parties. So the parties may now amend them but they have to make sure the last deadline like for example in the delivery of the PCOS (precinct count optical scan), which is February 28, should still be met,” he pointed out.

Based on the last date of delivery, Tolentino said, “Everything is still on time.”

As of Wednesday, Comelec chairman Jose Melo reported to the committee that more than 50, 000 of the 82,000 machines had been either delivered or ready for shipment to the country.

“We have the 28,900 in the warehouse in Cabuyao and 12,000 are awaiting release by the Bureau of Customs and 8,000 are in transit. 7, 200 are awaiting shipment in Shanghai so 26,000 are awaiting advise whether they are already finished and ready to be shipped,’ Melo told the committee.

Courtesy of Inquirer

Supporters of Noynoy Aquino created a video in youtube to support his candidacy.

2010-01-23T02:37:00.000-08:00

Kay Noynoy Kami

Teodoro to benefit from Villar, Aquino word war

2010-01-23T02:11:00.000-08:00

INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Administration candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro might just make headway out of the mudslinging between leading presidential candidates Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Manuel Villar, his camp said Friday.

Lakas-Kampi-CMD vice presidential candidate Edu Manzano, Teodoro’s running-mate, said voters are seeing that Teodoro has an untarnished reputation among the aspirants for the presidency.

“Gibo is coming out clean, with no potential issues involving his integrity and character,” said Manzano, an actor and television host and former vice mayor of Makati City.

Because of this, he said Teodoro’s ratings could even surge in the coming weeks.

Teodoro is fourth in various presidential surveys, behind Aquino, Villar and former president Joseph Estrada.

Villar of the Nacionalista Party and Aquino of the Liberal Party began trading barbs two weeks ago over the result of a survey that showed a two-percentage point drop in Aquino’s ratings.

Aquino expressed doubts on the survey of the Social Weather Stations, which was commissioned by Villar’s campaign.

Aquino further taunted Villar, saying he did not take the lead in questioning the scandals hounding the present administration.

Villar retorted, calling Aquino a “liar” and stressing that it was during his leadership in the Senate when major investigations against the administration were initiated by his party-mates.

Manzano said the public has become tired of negative campaigning.

“The more the LP and the NP drag each other’s standard-bearer down, the more Gibo is emerging as the superior candidate with an unsullied personal track record,” he said in a statement.

Manzano said they are currently making the rounds in campuses, where they are welcomed overwhelmingly by the youth voters.

Are we READY for an automated election this May 2010?

2010-01-17T20:23:00.000-08:00

Automation of the Election has been an issue since last year and specially these days. Comelec has made the deal and we will have a new election process this May, an Automated Election. We just now have 4 months before the election, the question is are we ready? I have read in the news that the Comelec is having a hard time implementing the new process. The time allocated is not enough to get it done. The vulnerability of the machines, time to educate the people or voters, testing, implementation and security has been an issue.

LADLAD Party List Joins Election on May - A network of lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender Filipinos

2010-01-15T17:51:00.001-08:00

ANG LADLAD (formerly Ang Lunduyan) was formed on September 1, 2003 as a network of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Filipinos. The members can either be LGBT organizations or individuals, or their heterosexual supporters.

In Filipino, "magladlad" means to unfurl the cape that used to cover one's body as a shield. It means to come out of the closet, to assert one's human rights as equal to that of the next Filipino. Thus, it means to take one's place in the sun, with dignity intact.

Platforms

1. Support for the Anti-Discrimination Bill that gives LGBT Filipinos equal opportunities in employment and equal treatment in schools, hospitals, restaurants, hotels, entertainment centers, and government offices.

2. Re-filing of the bill to repeal the Anti-Vagrancy Law that some unscrupulous policemen use to extort bribes from gay men without ID cards;

3. Setting up of micro-finance and livelihood projects for poor and handicapped LGBT Filipinos;

4. Setting up of centers for Golden Gays, or old and abandoned LGBTs, as well as young ones driven out of their homes. The centers will also offer legal aid and counseling, as well as information about LGBT issues, HIV-AIDS, and reproductive health. These centers will be set up initially in the key cities/metropolitan areas of the Philippines -- Baguio, National Capital Region, Cebu and Davao.

The platforms of ANG LADLAD are like laser beams -- clear and focused only in one direction. We aim to restore our pride and dignity as LGBT Filipinos as well as give ourselves a chance to lead kinder and gentler lives.

source: http://www.angladlad.org

Comelec approves 144 Party-list Groups

2010-01-15T17:22:00.000-08:00

The Comission on Election approves a total of 144 party-list groups to join the national election in May.

“We have accredited a total of 144 party lists out of 306 that filed manifestations to participate in the party list system of representation in the May elections. Of the total, one is included the gay party list Ang Ladlad as per the Supreme Court ruling that ordered Comelec to include it in the ballot with pre-printed names of candidates pending the result of its petition,” said Comelec commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal.

The controversial gay rights group Ang Ladlad has made it to the list but not 162 other party-list aspirants.In its 33-page Resolution No. 8744, the Comelec said the groups’ petitions for accreditation have been approved on the recommendation of the agency’s law department.

The Comelec said the accredited party-list groups have been carefully scrutinized for their track records, programs of action, and nationwide
visibility and influence.

Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said Ang Ladlad’s inclusion in the list was on orders of the Supreme Court.

Party-list groups accredited by the Commission on Elections:

1. 1-AANI

2. 1-Aangat Pilipino (1-AK)

3. 1st Consumers Alliance for Rural Energy (1-CARE)

4. 1-Ako Babaeng Astig Aasenso (1-ABAA)

5. 1Guardians Nationalist of the Philippines Inc. (1Ganap/Guardians)

6. 1st Kabalikat ng Bayan Ginhawang Sangkatauhan (1st KABAGIS)

7. A Blessed Federation of Farmers and Fishermen International inc. (A Blessed)

8. Aangat Tayo (AT)

9. Abakada Guro (ABAKADA)

10. Abang Lingkod Inc. (Abang Lingkod)

11. Abante Ilonggo (aba Ilongg)

12. Abante Katutubo Inc. (Abante Ka)

13. Abante Mindanao (Abamin)

14. Abante Tribung Makabayan (ATM)

15. Abono

16. Action Brotherhood for Active Dreamers Inc. (Abroad)

17. Action for Democracy and Development for the Tribal People (Add Tribal)

18. Action for Dynamic Development Inc. (ADD)

19. Act Teachers

20. Action League of Indigenous Masses (ALIM)

21. Adhikain at Kilusan ng Ordinaryong Tao para sa Lupa, Pabahay, Hanapbuhay at Kaunlaran (Ako)

22. Adhikain ng mga Dakilang Anak ng Maharlika (ADAM)

23. Adhikaing Alay ng Marino sa Sambayanan Inc. (Alon)

24. Adhikaing Tinataguyod ng Kooperatiba (ATING KOOP)

25. Advocacy for Teacher Empowerment Through Action Cooperation and Harmony Towards Education Reform (A Teacher)

26. Advocates for Special Children and the Handicapped Movement (Asahan Mo)

27. Agapay ng Indigenous Peoples Right Alliance (A-IPRA)

28. Agbiag Timpuyog Ilokano (AGBIAG)

29. Agila Pwersa ng Nagkakaisang Magsasaka (AGILA)

30. Agila ng Katutubong Pilipino (AGILA)

31. Agri-Agra na Reporma para sa Magsasaka ng Pilipinas Movement (AGRI)

32. Agrarian Development Association (ADA)

33. Agricultural Section Alliance of the Philippines (AGAP)

34. Ahon Pinoy (AHON)

35. Akap Bata

36. Akbay Pinoy OFW-National (APOI)

37. Akbayan Citizens Action Party (Akbayan)

38. Ako Ayoko sa Bawal na Droga (Ako)

39. Ako Bicol Political Party (AKB)

40. Aksyon Magsasaka Partido Tinig ng Masa (AKMA-PTM)

41. Aksyon ng Mamamayang Nagkakaisa (Amana)

42. Alagaan Natin Ating Kalusugan (Anakalusugan)

43. Alagad

44. Alay Buhay Community Development Foundation (Alay Buhay)

45. Alay sa Bayan ng malayang Propesyunal at Repormang Kalakal (Abay Parak)

46. Alliance of Advocates in Mining Advancement for Nation Progress (AAMA)

47. Alliance for Barangay Concerns Party (ABC)

48. Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD)

49. Alliance for Philippines Security Guards Cooperative (AFPSEGCO)

50. Alliance for Rural Concerns (ARC)

51. Alliance for Association of Accredited Workers in the Water Sector (1-TUBIG formerly AAWAS)

52. Alliance for Bicolnon Party (ABP-Bicolnon)

53. Alliance for National Urban Poor Organizations Assembly Inc. (ANUPA)

54. Alliance for People’s Organizations (APO)

55. Alliance of Regional Coalitions Against People’s Povery (ARCAPP)

56. Alliance of Volunteer Educators (AVE)

57. Alliance Transport Sector (ATS)

58. Alma sa Paghihikahos at Ignorasya (ALMA)

59. Alyansa ng Mamamayang Naghihirap (ALMANA)

60. Alyansa ng Media at Showbiz (AMS)

61. Alyansa ng mga Grupong Haligi ng Agham at Teknolohiya para sa Mamamayan Inc. (AGHAM)

62. Alyansa ng Bayanihan ng Magsasaka, manggagawang Bukid at Mangingisda (ABA)

63. An Waray

64. Anak Mindanao (AMIN)

65. Anak Pawis (AP)

66. Ang Agrikultura Natin Isulong (AANI)

67. Ang Asosayon Sang Mangunguma Bisaya-Owa Mangunguman (AAMBIS-OWA)

68. Ang Galing Pinoy (AG)

69. Ang Laban ng Indigong Filipino (ALIF)

70. Ang Ladlad LGBT Party (ANG LADLAD)

71. Ang Mata’y Alagaan (AMA)

72. Ang Tao Muna at Bayan (A TAMBAY)

73. Angat Ating Kabuhayan Filipinas (ANAK)

74. Arts Business and Science Professionals (ABS)

75. Atong Paglaum

76. Asosasyon ng mga Maliliit na Negos-yanteng Gumaganap (AMANG)

77. Association for Righteousness Advocacy in Leadership (ARAL)

78. Association of Laborers and Employess (ALE)

79. Association of Administrators and Professionals and Seniors (AAPS)

80. Association of Philippine Electric Cooperatives (APEC)

81. Babae Para sa Kaunlaran (BABAE KA)

82. Bago National Cultural Society of the Philippines (BAGO)

83. Bagong Bayan na nagtataguyod ng Demokratikong Ideolohiya at Layunin (BANDILA)

84. Bagong Henerasyon (BH)

85. Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency (BANAT)

86. Bayan Muna

87. Bayani

88. Batang Iwas sa Droga Foundation (BIDA)

89. Bigkis Pinoy Movement (BIGKIS)

90. Binhi-Partido ng mga Magsasaka Para sa mga Magsasaka (BINHI)

91. Biyaheng Pinoy Labor Association (Biyaheng Pinoy)

92. Biyayang Bukid

93. Buhay Hayaan Yumabong (Buhay)

94. Butil Farmers Party (Butil)

95. Champions for Innovative Employment (CHINOY)

96. Citizen Battle Against Corruption (CIBAC)

97. Citizen Power Movement (CPM)

98. Coalition of Associations of Senior Citizens in the Country (SENIOR CITIZENS)

99. Cocofed-Philippine Coconut Producers Federation (COCOFED)

100. Coconut Farmers Association of Linamon Lanao del Sur (COFA)

101. Confederation of Nonstock Savings and Loan Association Inc. (CONSLA)

102. Cooperative Natcco Network (COOP-NATCCO)

103. Democratic Independent Workers’ Association (DIWA)

104. Filipino Muslim Organization (FIL-MUS)

105. Firm 24-K Association (FIRM 24-K)

106. First People’s Representative for Indigent Student Athletes (1ST PRISA)

107. Gabriella Women’s Party-List (GABRIELLA)

108. Green Force for the Environment Sons and Daughters of the Mother Earth

109. Itenerant Vendors Alliance of the Philippines (IVAP)

110. Kababaihang Lingkod Bayan sa Pilipinas (KLBP)

111. Kabalikat ng Mamamayan (KABAYAN)

112. Kabataan party-list

113. Kabukluran ng mga Kababaihang Filipina sa Timog Katagalugan (BUKLOD FILIPINA)

114. Kalahi Sectoral Party (KALAHI)

115. Kalinga Advocacy for Social Empowerment and Nation-Building Through Easing Poverty (KALINGA)

116. Kapatiran ng mga Nakakulong na Walang Sala (KAKUSA)

117. Kasangga sa Kaunlaran (ANG KASANGGA)

118. Kasosyo Producer-Consumer Exchange Association (AA-KASOSYO PARTY)

119. Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan All Filipino Democratic Movement (KAAKBAY)

120. Katribu Indigenous Peoples’ Sectoral Party (KATRIBU)

121. Kaunlaran ng Agrikultura Asensadong Bayan Probinsiya Angat ng Bayan (KAAGAPAY)

122. Koalisyon ng Katutubong Samahan ng Pilipinas (KASAPI)

123. One Advocacy for Health Progress and Opportunity (1-AHAPO)

124. Organization of Regional Advocates for Good Governance Onward Nation Building (ORAGON)

125. Pamilyang OFW-SME Network Foundation (OPO)

126. Parents Enabling Parents Coalition (PEP)

127. Partido Katutubong Pilipino (KATUTUBO)

128. Partido Manggagawa (PM)

129. Pilipimo Association for Country – Urban Poor Youth Advancement and Welfare (PACYAW)

130. Pro-active in Climate Change Leaders (PCL)

131. Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta (PBA)

132. Social Movement for Active Reform and Transparency (SMART)

133. Sulong Barangay Movement (SB)

134. The True Marcos Loyalist (For God, Country and People) Association of the Phils. (BANTAY)

135. Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP)

136. Una ang Pamilya (1 ANG PAMILYA), which is formerly Alliance of Neo-Conservatives (ANC)

137. United Movement Against Drugs Foundation (UNI-MAD)

138. United Transport Koalisyon (1-UTAK)

139. Vendors and Traders of the Philippines

140. Veterans Freedom Party (VFP)

141. Women Power (WPI)

142. Yes We Can

143. You Against Corruption and Poverty (YACAP)

144. Youth Leagues for Peace Advancement (LYPAD)

Just one wife, simple life, says Villar in broadsides at 2010 rivals

2010-01-14T04:43:00.000-08:00

January 14, 2010 14:48:00
Maila Ager
INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—On the warpath these past days with his rivals for the presidency, Senator Manny Villar came out subtle on Thursday as he told a presidential forum why having only one wife and living simply are of essence to the choice for the country’s next President.

At the same time, the Nacionalista Party’s presidential aspirant vowed not to appoint any relatives in the bureaucracy should he win in this election in May.

“Number one, let me say that I will not be appointing any relative of mine in the government,” Villar said at a presidential forum in Makati City, in response to a question by former president Fidel Ramos.

“Number two, Sir, I am known as Mr. Sipag at Tiyaga. I realize that aside from being a multi-tasker, you have to work 24/7. That is why I am working 26/7,” he said.

And getting personal, Villar said he only has one wife and they have been together for 40 years now.

Listed as one of the richest men in the country, the senator also promised to live a simple life.

“On simple living, kapag tiningnan n’yo po ang aking pamilya, simpleng-simple lang. ‘Yong aking misis, isa lang. (When you look at our family, we are very simple. I only have one wife). We were classmates. We've been together for about 40 years,” he said.

“Kung magiging pangulo, napakahalaga na maging halimbawa siya sa bagay na ito (If you’re going to become a President, it is important that he or she becomes a good example in this regard),” Villar said.

Most importantly, Villar said the next President must be able to manage the country from Day One as he would be confronting “problems, tremendous amounts of problems, when he becomes president.”

“There is no time for OJT or on-the-job training. There is no time for consultants,” he said, “He must hit the ground running, multitask and manage Day One.”

“Napakatagal naghihintay ang ating mga kababayan sa pagkakataong makaahon. Ito na lamang ang kanilang pagkakataon, hindi natin sila dapat biguin (Our countrymen has been waiting for long to get out of poverty, we should not fail them).”

Villar cuts Aquino lead in presidential race—survey

2010-01-09T05:11:00.000-08:00

Senator Manny Villar has narrowed down the lead of the frontrunner in the 2010 elections, Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, according to a survey by the Social Weather Station (SWS) commissioned by an ally.

Villar cut Aquino's lead by eight points – from 19 to 11 percentage points, said the survey sought by San Juan representative Ronaldo Zamora, and conducted from December 27 to 28.

Of the 2, 100 respondents asked by the SWS in Filipino as to who on its list would they most likely vote for if elections were held today, 44 percent said they would go for Aquino while 33 percent for Villar. Full Story..

DOJ files murder raps vs Lacson as slay brains

2010-01-07T20:32:00.000-08:00

Senator not surprised by Dacer-Corbito charges

By Dona Pazzibugan, Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:14:00 01/08/2010

MANILA, Philippines—After nearly a decade, the alleged brains behind the Dacer-Corbito killings is facing trial and may have to defend himself behind bars.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson has been charged in court with two counts of murder in connection with the killing of top public relations man Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito on Nov. 24, 2000.

A panel of prosecutors from the Department of Justice (DOJ) found credible the affidavit and court testimony of former Senior Supt. Cezar Mancao II, who said it was Lacson, his former boss, who had masterminded the twin murders.

The DOJ panel filed the charges against Lacson at the Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Thursday morning.

No bail was recommended.

In a statement issued by Lacson’s office, the senator’s lawyers said the DOJ decision was not surprising because it had “prejudged” their client.

“From the very start, Senator Lacson made it clear that the DOJ, through then Secretary Raul Gonzalez and through acting Secretary Agnes Devanadera, had prejudged the case against him and that the DOJ was going to indict him at any cost to silence him and to punish him for his exposés against the administration,” said Alexander Poblador, one of Lacson’s lawyers.

It was Mancao’s affidavit that had prompted Dacer’s children to ask the DOJ to reopen the investigation and include Lacson among the accused.

In the affidavit he executed on Feb. 13, 2009, at Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in the United States before he was extradited, Mancao said that about a month before the murders, he heard Lacson tell former Senior Supt. Michael Ray Aquino, Lacson’s then most loyal aide, to have Dacer killed.

At the time, Lacson was the chief of the Philippine National Police and concurrent head of the now defunct elite team Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF).

Aquino was then the operations chief of the PAOCTF, and Mancao, the head of its Task Force Luzon.

‘Nothing political’

The three-member DOJ panel recommended that the case against Lacson be consolidated with the ongoing case being heard by the Manila RTC Branch 18 against 21 accused, including Aquino and former PAOCTF officials and operatives.

“We based our findings on the documents submitted by the family of Dacer, which are mainly those already existing in the case before the RTC Branch 18, plus the Feb. 13, 2009, affidavit executed by Mancao in Florida,” Senior State Prosecutor Peter Ong, the head of the panel, told reporters in a news conference.

Mancao’s claim was corroborated by another former Lacson aide, ex-Senior Supt. Glenn Dumlao, who was also extradited last year from the United States where he, Mancao and Aquino fled before they could be arrested back in 2001.

Dumlao has been discharged as an accused and is now a state witness, and the government has also asked the court to discharge Mancao as an accused. But they are now both covered by the DOJ Witness Protection Program.

The panel dismissed Lacson’s claim that he was under “political persecution” by virtue of his being a member of the opposition.

“There is nothing political in this case,” Ong said. “This is about bringing justice to the victims of a heinous crime and stopping others from committing the same.”

Ong said Lacson’s “defense hinges primarily on persecution, to which we didn’t give consideration. He insisted that the testimony of Mancao is not believable, but we didn’t give weight to it.”

Devanadera had called the news conference to announce that charges had been filed against Lacson. Also present were Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño, Assistant Chief State Prosecutor Richard Fadullon, and the other panel members, State Prosecutors Marmarie Satin-Vivas and Mari Elvira Herrera.

“Senator Lacson is not precluded from availing [himself] of all remedies available to him under the law,” Devanadera said.

No complaint vs Estrada

Although Mancao also implicated former President Joseph Estrada in his affidavit, the DOJ did not include the latter in the preliminary investigation because the Dacer family had yet to file a formal complaint against him.

But Ong quoted the Dacer siblings’ lawyer as saying that they would file a complaint against Estrada.

Asked to comment, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada said he was glad his father was not charged.

“Let justice take its own course. Of course, we are relieved that President Erap was not included. It only shows that they have no evidence against him,” the senator said at a press conference.

He added: “They do not have direct or testimonial evidence against the former President. ... It’s all hearsay. This only shows the wheels of justice [are turning] in this country.”

Senator Estrada also said Lacson would now get his day in court.

“He’s old enough or man enough to defend himself in court. At least, he was given a chance to prove his innocence in court,” Senator Estrada said. read more..

Comelec office ransacked

2010-01-06T20:19:00.000-08:00

200 troops guarded Maguindanao facility
By Charlie Señase
Inquirer Mindanao

Filed Under: Elections, Robbery and theft, Crime, Eleksyon 2010, Security (general)

SHARIFF AGUAK, MAGUINDANAO, Philippines—Suspected thieves broke into and ransacked the Commission on Elections (Comelec) provincial office in this capital town, but police officials were surprised over the report, saying the place was heavily secured.

“They (thieves) could have [entered] … the premises during the holidays because we learned of [it] … only on Monday when we reported for work,” Estelita Orbase, provincial election supervisor, said late Tuesday.

In Manila, two senators on Wednesday raised suspicions about the theft and urged the Comelec head office to investigate. They said it might be part of cleaning up the cheating mess committed there during the 2004 and 2007 elections.

“The suspicion is very strong that they’re clearing the office of incriminatory documents,” said Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

Orbase said the intruders gained entry to the Comelec office through the windows by detaching the jalousies. They took the water dispenser and some kitchen utensils, but Orbase said some documents might be missing .

“We are still trying to find out what are the other missing articles, which might be of significant value to the coming polls,” she said.

Senior Supt. Alex Lineses, provincial police chief, said the Comelec had not reported the robbery to police authorities and was baffled that the robbers could easily enter the Comelec office because it was being heavily secured.

“We have our men and the military securing the perimeter, both inside and outside, and it is impossible that robbers were able to penetrate [the office],” Lineses said.

At least 200 soldiers and policemen are deployed at the provincial capitol compound, which is also surrounded by a concrete fence. Employees must write their names at the gates before they can enter the compound and their offices.

Heavy troop deployment

The heavy troop deployment was prompted by the election-related massacre of 57 people, including 30 journalists, at Ampatuan town in Maguindanao last Nov. 23. Several top civilian officials, mostly members of the Ampatuan clan, were arrested.

A few days after the military takeover of the province on Dec. 5, lawmen seized election-related documents from a warehouse allegedly owned by the Ampatuan clan in Shariff Aguak. The documents, including voter’s registration forms and voter’s IDs, were dug up along with firearms and ammunition.

Orbase had confirmed that the recovered documents were authentic and were issued by the Comelec. She could not say why it ended up being buried at the warehouse.

Last Dec. 11, more voter’s IDs were found near the house of acting Maguindanao Gov. Sajid Ampatuan.

‘Revelations’

The poll officer of Shariff Aguak at that time, Allan Obpon, was to be invited to explain why the election-related documents were taken out of the Comelec office. But he died on Dec. 11 of heatstroke while on an Islamic pilgrimage in Mecca.

The documents were moved to the Comelec provincial office pending investigation.

In a phone interview, Pimentel said it was possible that some people were “worried about the revelations of what really happened in the 2004 presidential election, as well as in the 2007 elections.”

For his part, Sen. Rodolfo Biazon said authorities should identify the people behind the latest break-in as it would appear that it was related to the massive cheating committed there in 2004 and 2007.

The robbery could have been committed by people “who may be compromised to whatever pieces of evidence that had been carted away,” said Biazon. With a report from Christine O. Avendaño in Manila

source: Inquirer.net

Election gun ban starts next week

2010-01-05T00:30:00.000-08:00

January 05, 2010 11:33:00

Cebu Daily News

STARTING Jan. 10, bringing licensed guns outside the residence will get you into trouble for violation of the election gun ban.

Chief Supt. Lani O. Nerez, chief of Police Regional Office (PRO-7) yesterday told reporters that only state forces and private security personnel in official uniform will be allowed to carry firearms.

Nerez, however, said the PNP plans to ask the Commission on Election (Comelec) to exempt off-duty policemen who need their weapons to respond to emergencies.

In an earlier agrement between PNP and the Comelec, political candidates are allowed to have two police escorts. This was intended to insulate policemen from partisan politics.

Starting Jan. 10, more checkpoints will be added by the police with approval by the Comelec.

Yesterday, Nerez led the inspection of his men’s firearms at Camp Sergio Osmena to check the taped nozzles of their guns. None of the issued firearms went off during New Year's Eve. Correspondent Chito O. Aragon

Official List of Candidates National Election

2010-01-03T06:39:00.000-08:00

Nacionalista Party (NP)

President: Senator Manny Villar
Vice President: Senator Loren Legarda

Senators:
reelectionist Sen. Pia Cayetano,
detained Col. Ariel Querubin,
lawyer Adel Tamano,
former opposition Rep. Gilbert Remulla of Cavite
Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Satur Ocampo.
Miriam Defensor-Santiago (a guest candidate)
Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.(guest candidate)

Liberal Party (LP)

President: Senator Noynoy Aquino
Vice-President: Senator Mar Roxas

Senators:
former Senate President Franklin Drilon
former Bukidnon Rep. Nereus Acosta
Muntinlupa Rep. Ruffy Biazon
Akbayan party-list Rep. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel
Bukidnon Rep. Teofisto Guingona III
former Sen. Sergio “Serge” Osmeña III (independent)
former Senator and NEDA chairman Ralph Recto

Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP)

President: Former President JOseph Erap Estrada
Vice President: Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay

Senators:
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile
reelectionist Senators Jinggoy Estrada
Miriam Defensor-Santiago
Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez,
Makati Rep. Teodoro Locsin Jr.
businessman Jose de Venecia III
detained Brig. Gen. Danny Lim.

Lakas-Kampi-CMD Party

President: Defense Secretary Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro
Vice President: former Optical Media Board (OMB) chair Edu Manzano

Senators:
reelectionist senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.
reelectionist senator Manuel “Lito” Lapid
reelectionist senator Richard Gordon

Other Presidentiables

President: Senator Richard Gordon
Vice-President: MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando

President: Senator Jamby Madrigal

Bangon Pilipinas
President: Brother Eddie Villanueva

President: Nicanor Perlas (independent)

Ang Kapatiran
President: JC de los Reyes (independent)

Teodoro gains ground among youth—Quezon execs.

2010-01-03T04:39:00.000-08:00

LUCENA CITY – Presidential candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. is fast emerging as the favored choice in Quezon, especially among the youth, his party mates at the Lakas-Kampi-CMD said.

San Francisco town Mayor Hernani Tan (Lakas-Kampi-CMD), president of Quezon Mayors League, vowed to work hard to ensure the victory of his party’s candidates in the province.

“I admired him [Teodoro] more when he publicly declared that there’s nothing to be ashamed of being part of the Arroyo administration,” said Tan. “That is truly a remarkable character trait of a leader.”

Quezon Representative Danilo Suarez, one of key officials of Lakas-Kampi-CMD, predicted that once Teodoro reached double digit ratings, “it would be a different ball game.”

“With almost 60 percent of reelectionist local officials belonging to Lakas-Kampi-CMD, we have the most organized political machinery all over the country,” said Suarez. “That would deliver the votes to Gibo.”

Acting Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera, former mayors’ league president, said results of surveys and mock elections in the province showed Teodoro leading among students.

“They see Gibo as the best among presidential candidates. I believe that would start the surge of support for him,” she said in a phone interview.

Devanadera was former mayor of Sampaloc, Quezon, and also former president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines during the time of president Fidel V. Ramos.

Last week, Devanadera, who is running in the congressional race in the province’s first district, joined Teodoro in a meeting with Quezon officials of the Lakas-Kampi-CMD here.

At the meeting, Teodoro urged party mates to strive hard for the victory of all administration candidates.

Teodoro and his wife, Tarlac Representative Nikki Prieto-Teodoro, went market-hopping accompanied by Suarez and Lucena Mayor Ramon Talaga Jr.

Administration vice presidential candidate Edu Manzano also came with the Teodoros in the market sortie but spent more time in the dry goods section.

Ex-Arroyo’s defense chief now defending Noynoy’s votes.

2010-01-03T04:35:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines – Former defense secretary Avelino "Nonong" Cruz, Jr. has a new job: defending Noynoy's votes.

Cruz has been tapped to head the legal team that would help protect the votes of Liberal Party standard bearer Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, Aquino campaign manager Butch Abad said in an interview.

He would also oversee the training of 500,000 volunteers that the Liberal Party has been working to mobilize on election day, said Abad.

"Right now, Nonong Cruz is heading our vote protection team, our army of lawyers who will also train our volunteers," Abad said.

"Our target is to have half a million volunteers so that by election day, we can cover almost all of the precincts, starting with the most fraud-ridden provinces," he added.

Cruz was once one of President Macapagal-Arroyo's trusted advisers but he left the Cabinet after differences over administration moves to overhaul the Constitution and over an alleged aborted plan of Ms. Arroyo to declare martial law in 2005. In July 2009, he urged soldiers to "defy illegal orders" that would allow the present administration to perpetuate itself in power beyond what the Constitution allows.

Cruz was a founding partner of "the Firm," or the law offices of Villaraza and Angangco, which was once the private legal counsel of Arroyo and was considered as the most influential in the country. Another founding partner now sits on the Supreme Court: Justice Antonio Carpio.

Asked if the firm was supporting Aquino, campaign spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said: "As far as I know, Nonong Cruz is for Noynoy. I don't know about the other partners of The Firm. (Cruz) was with (Senator) Mar (Roxas) even before so it was a natural consequence that he went for Noynoy after Mar stepped aside."

Lacierda said that Cruz's team has been training election watchers and volunteer lawyers about the intricacies of the new election technology and on how to spot cheating and prevent it from succeeding.

"They appraise us about the automation law and the possible scenarios that could happen. We have a lot of volunteer lawyers joining all over the country. They joined because they also believe in Noynoy and are tired of the corruption. They're not paid," Lacierda said.

Abad said the election watchers would have to watch how the automated counting machines would be used at the precincts for pre-testing seven days before the elections.

"After the pre-testing, they will still have to be present until election day. Their watch should be non-stop. They have to be there 24/7," Abad said, adding that they plan to deploy three volunteers a day who will have eight hours shifts to guard the automated machines.

Come election day, the Aquino campaign would deploy at least two election watchers in all of the country's 75,000 precincts that would each have an estimated 1,000 voters, Abad said.

Outside the precincts, the campaign would field three to four watchers to help ensure Aquino supporters find their voting precincts and cast their votes, he said.

"The volunteers will help the voters find their names on the voters' list and make sure that they'll know what to do next," Abad added.

With Aquino's numbers averaging at a high of 40 plus percent in the surveys during the last four months, Abad said that the son of the revered late President Corazon Aquino could get at least 400 votes in each precinct.

"So each of the four watchers would have to help around 100 voters. We really have to build up our watchers," Abad said.

Another task for the volunteers would be to identify potential Aquino voters in their communities.

Abad said that the efforts to muster half a million volunteers for Aquino was being handled by civil society groups and NGOs and formed part of a two-pronged approach by the Aquino camp to build up its candidate's political machinery.

The other half is the effort of the Liberal Party (LP) to recruit new members from the ranks of country's influential politicians. Abad said more new recruits were coming in.

"They also see the (poll) numbers so they know, even in their own backyard, who is the leading candidate so they are lining up," Abad said.

He said the LP has been able to get the support of the Osmeñas of Cebu and even Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.

On the financial front, Abad said donors have expressed interest in helping Aquino’s campaign due to the high public support he received after Corazon Aquino’s death in August.

"We are generating a lot of interest from donors...like in Cebu, we have a group who told us we don't have to worry about anything. They'll take care of the sorties, the vehicles, the logistics," he said.

And while Senator Manuel Villar—who is in second place in the surveys—said that he was closing the gap between him and Aquino, Abad said that he was confident that Aquino's lead would grow further, especially after the launching of Aquino’s own TV and radio ads.

http://politics.inquirer.net

PNP chief orders quick solution to poll-related violence

2010-01-03T04:28:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine National Police Director General Jesus Verzosa has directed all regional police directors to quickly solve election-related incidents of violence in their areas of jurisdiction after a series of ambuscades in Northern Luzon and Eastern Mindanao this week, which killed four people.

“It is imperative for the PNP to determine politically-motivated killings in order for the police to lay down appropriate interventions up to the run up of the national and local elections next year,” Verzosa said in his directive Friday.

The order came after at least four people were killed and nine others wounded in separate attacks in various provinces within a span of a week.

Verzosa directed police officials in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and Caraga in Mindanao, and Ilocos region in Northern Luzon to identify those responsible for the attacks in Lanao del Sur, the shooting of a vice mayoral candidate in Surigao del Norte and the murder of another local candidate in Ilocos Norte, all of which happened in a span of five days.

Verzosa said he instructed police officials to establish the motives for these killings to separate those that were politically motivated, “especially at this time when the PNP is finalizing its preparations of its operational and security plans for the national elections next year.”

In the Ilocos region, police have deployed a company of the elite Regional Mobile Group (RMG) in Ilocos Norte to avert any more attacks following the killing of village chief Joen Caniete on Monday. Caniete was vying for a seat in the Dingras town council in the 2010 elections.

Caniete was killed when his convoy was waylaid by at least 10 suspects in Dingras, Ilocos Norte. Eight other persons were wounded in the incident.

Chief Superintendent Constante Azares, Ilocos regional police director, said that the primary motive for the attack was politics.

Azares said that follow-up operations have led to the confiscation of several unlicensed firearms, which are now being tested for ballistics examinations.

source: http://politics.inquirer.net

Teodoro brushes aside low ranking in surveys

2010-01-03T04:19:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines - Administration standard-bearer Gilbert Teodoro, who is rating poorly in surveys of presidential candidates
, has dismissed opinion polls as mere guides that don’t reflect the choice of the people.

“We are making excellent progress,” Teodoro said when asked whether he was disturbed by the strong lead of rivals Senators Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Manny Villar, and former President Joseph Estrada.

“Voting results and not poll surveys will determine the victors in next year’s presidential race,” said the former defense chief, stressing that the election is four months away and a lot of things could happen.

Barely a month after being named by the Lakas-Kampi-CMD as its standard-bearer, Teodoro’s rating has climbed to five percent in the latest Pulse Asia survey, up by three percentage points from the previous survey in October.

Zambales Rep. Mitos Magsaysay, spokesperson for Teodoro, said she is confident of Teodoro’s chances in 2010.

read more: PhilStar.com

2 more may run for president in 2010

2010-01-03T03:55:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is now screening the motions for reconsideration filed by disqualified candidates and the petitions of two more presidential aspirants in the 2010 elections might be approved.

Comelec Commissioner Nicodemo Ferrer said the number of senatorial bets might also increase, while the list of candidates for vice president would remain at eight.

“Maybe for president, there would be two more,” Ferrer said, but refused to identify the two presidential bets.

A total of 99 certificates of candidacy (COC) for president had been filed with the Comelec but only eight were approved.

The Comelec also only approved eight out of the 20 vice presidential aspirants, while 150 senatorial bets were approved.

Of all the disqualified candidates for president, the most popular include environmentalist Nicanor Perlas, lawyers Elly Pamatong and Oliver Lozano and former Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez, who all listed themselves as independent candidates.

“Perlas claims that he is now supported by several parties. He has to show that to us and maybe we’ll be convinced that he has the capacity to wage a nationwide campaign,” he added.

Jimenez has been claiming that he has enough funds to launch a nationwide campaign but he has to prove that he has people in the field.

“When they filed their COC, they were independent. But eventually some of those who have been disqualified were adopted by political parties,” Ferrer said.

The Comelec has been rushing the review of the motions for reconsideration filed by those disqualified as it is set to start printing ballots by January 2010.

The Comelec had earlier approved the presidential candidacies of Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III of the Liberal Party, Olongapo City Councilor Juan Carlos de los Reyes, former President Joseph Estrada, Sen. Richard Gordon of Bagumbayan party, Sen. Jamby Madrigal, former defense secretary Gilbert Teodoro of the Lakas-Kampi-CMD, Sen. Manuel Villar of the Nacionalista Party, and Bro. Eddie Villanueva.

The vice presidential bets approved by the poll body include Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, Ang Kapatiran bet Dominador Chipeco Jr., former Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Bayani Fernando, Sen. Loren Legarda, actor Edu Manzano, Sen. Manuel Roxas, broadcaster Jay Sonza, and former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr.

source: PhilStar.com

Erap says rivals' lead in surveys may not translate into votes

2010-01-03T03:53:00.001-08:00

MANILA, Philippines - Former President Joseph Estrada has expressed confidence his top rivals’ lead in surveys of presidential candidates will not translate to votes come May 2010.

“They are still weighing everything. It’s still five months from election day. Two months before the election, I think they will be decided on who to vote for,” Estrada said in an interview at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) office in Intramuros which was hearing a disqualification case filed against him.

Senators Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Manny Villar have consistently topped the surveys. In the latest Pulse Asia survey, Aquino’s rating was at 44 percent, followed by Villar at 23 percent, and Estrada at 19 percent.

“The people have seen my performance even if it’s just two and a half years. None of my Cabinet officials have been involved in scam,” he added.

A battery of lawyers accompanied Estrada yesterday at the hearing of the Comelec’s Second Division on the three disqualification cases filed against him by lawyer Evillo Pormento and Elly Pamatong, and one Mary Lou Estrada.

The three claimed that Estrada should not be allowed to seek the presidency, citing constitutional provision against re-election of a president.

“It’s baseless. The ban is only for incumbent president, a president who served complete six years. I served only for two and a half years so I’m qualified to run,” he added.

During the hearing, Estrada’s lead counsel George Garcia moved for the consolidation of the three cases but this was opposed by Romulo Macalintal, lawyer of President Arroyo.

In seeking the country’s highest post, Estrada said he wants to be remembered as a leader who championed the cause of the masses.

Estrada, standard bearer of the United Opposition, said his return to Malacañang would enable him to finish his pro-poor programs that got stalled when he was ousted in 2001.

“I have always said that in the twilight of my life, I just want to be remembered as the man who championed the cause of the Filipino masses,” he said.

Aquino ahead of rivals in Facebook campaign.

2010-01-03T01:42:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines—They may be older than most Facebook users, but the perceived frontrunners in the presidential race—Benigno Aquino III, Manuel Villar, Gilbert Teodoro, Joseph Estrada and Richard Gordon—have joined the social networking bandwagon on the Internet with the single objective of wooing voters in the run-up to the May 10 elections.

In the digital race to get as much “fans” and “supporters,” Aquino, standard-bearer of the Liberal Party, seems to be ahead of the pack.

So far on their official Facebook pages, Aquino has 210,988 supporters; Villar (Nationalista Party) has 158,016 fans plus 2,756 in two other Facebook public profiles; Gilbert Teodoro (Lakas-Kampi-CMD) managed to have 26,907 fans and 3,100 supporters; while Richard Gordon (Bagumbayan) and Joseph Estrada (Partido ng Masang Pilipino) have 2,894 and 4,050 supporters, respectively.

The former president has another Facebook account with 421 fans.

Sen. Jamby Madrigal (independent) has 201 fans, while JC Delos Reyes' two youth group accounts have 861 and 71 members, respectively.

The Inquirer made the count as of 3 p.m. Saturday, but the figures continued to go up at presstime.

Aquino breached the 200,000 mark when, in the first hours of the New Year, one Abygail Salcedo clicked the “supporter” button in Aquino's site.

Salcedo responded to the campaign waged by the the volunteer-run “Noynoy (Aquino) New Media Team,” which launched a 20-day online drive in the run-up to 2010 to parallel the wide lead Aquino has been enjoying in recent polls.

The Aquino camp welcomed this development by issuing a statement saying that “201,000th fan marks beginning of 2010 for Noynoy's online supporters.”

It said that the continuing surge showed “unwavering momentum” for Aquino's presidential bid.

Building on a base of 116,000 supporters, the Noynoy New MediaTeam went into overdrive during the holidays.

Supporters from around the world rallied friends and family by initiating impromptu sign-up brigades, personally inviting friends, forwarding e-mails and painting their profile pictures yellow.

Some supporters also donated a few dollars a day to widen their reach and advertise their support on the social network.

“The breaching of our goal cements what the polls have been consistently saying for the last four months,” said New Media Bureau Head Enteng Romano III.

“The momentum is unbroken, Filipinos are steadfastly heeding our call for genuine change in this country,” he said. “This only proves that if we work together and put our hearts into it, we can accomplish great things.”

The fan page amassed more than 80,000 new supporters in 20 days. After midnight, the 201,000 target was easily surpassed, further widening the gap between Aquino and his rivals by more than 50,000 supporters.

It remains to be seen, however, if online fans and supporters would translate into votes come election day.

All five candidates uploaded photoshop-edited pictures, but only Villar was smiling; the rest were in a pensive or serious mood.

Sporting the slogan “Gordon, bayani (hero),” the photo of the senator shows him hugging a baby while holding a megaphone. The picture was taken while he was mobilizing volunteers and rescuers during the Mt. Pinatubo calamity in the 1990s.

Gordon’s campaign theme: "Leadership must be earned, not bought nor inherited."

Donning his orange campaign color, Villar's profile shot has a green backdrop, a subtle way of reminding voters that his running mate is Sen. Loren Legarda, who has championed environmental causes for over two decades.

His campaign theme: "Galing sa mahirap, para sa mahirap."

Teodoro's slogan, emblazoned at the bottom of his main picture, is: “Galing Talino: para sa mabilis na pagbabago.”

Estrada is shown wearing a Barong Tagalog in his profile picture.

His slogan is: "Walang tutulong sa Pilipino kung hindi ang kapwa Pilipino."

The political operators and strategists of all the presidential candidates might have been inspired by United States President Barack Obama, who raised half a billion dollars online in his 21-month campaign for the presidency.

The digital campaign—the use of e-mail, text messages and social networking sites like Facebook and Multiply—was a big factor in Obama's victory in 2008.

Facebook defines itself as a social utility that connects people with friends and others, and in election time, others include voters.

All five presidential candidates intentionally put “currently running for president” or “presidential standard-bearer” in their profile information.

Manny Villar

2010-01-03T01:34:00.000-08:00

Political Party

Status

Decided

Hometown

Moriones, Tondo, Manila

Short Description

The public life of Manny Villar straddles both the worlds of business and politics. He is one of the few who managed to excel in both.

Civil Status

Married

Gender

Male

Nationality

Filipino

Birthday

December 13, 1949

Spouse

Cynthia A. Villar

Children

Profession

Businessman, Politician

Company

Philippines

Religion

Roman Catholic

Noynoy Aquino

2010-01-03T01:33:00.000-08:00

Political Party

Hometown

Manila

Short Description

TANGGALIN ANG TIWALI, ITAMA ANG MALI. "Corruption is the single biggest threat to our democracy. It deprives the poor of the social services they badly need. I destroys the very moral fiber of our society. No reform agenda will succeed without a determined program to eradicate corruption."

Civil Status

Single

Gender

Male

Nationality

Filipino

Birthday

February 08, 1960

Eddie Villanueva

2010-01-03T01:31:00.000-08:00

Political Party

Bangon Pilipinas

Status

Decided

Hometown

Bulacan

Short Description

"This world is too poor to buy my convictions and principles

Civil Status

Married

Gender

Male

Nationality

Filipino

Birthday

October 06, 1946

Spouse

Dr. Adoracion "Dory" Villanueva

Children

Eduardo Jr., Emmanuel Joel, Eleanor, and Edelisha.

Profession

Professor, Economist, Broadcaster, Freedom-fighter, Evangelist

Company

ZOE TV

Religion

Filipino Christian

About Eddie Villanueva

2010-01-03T01:30:00.000-08:00

"This world is too poor to buy my convictions and principles"

Bro. Eddie: A radical student reformist during the 70’s, professor of economics, finance and political economy in PUP and Christian evangelist that has helped transform the lives of millions of Filipinos here and abroad.

ACADEMIC RECORD

Tertiary : Philippine College of Commerce (PCC), now Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) 1969
Student leader and consistent academic scholar, 1969-1976
Course : Bachelor of Science in Commerce
Major : Economics
Minor : Finance

Adjudged : Best Debater of the Year College of Law, University of the Philippines SY 1971-1972
Adjudged : Best Debater of the Year Polytechnic University of the Philippines SY. 1967-1968

PRESENT POSITIONS

• President, Jesus Is Lord (JIL) Worldwide Movement (already resigned)
• President and Chairman, ZOE Broadcasting Network (franchise holder and licensee to operate VHF Channel 11 and UHF Channel 33)
• Chancellor, Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation (JILCF), Inc.
• Chairman, Bagong Pilipinas, Bagong Pilipino Movement
• National Chairman, Philippines for Jesus Movember (PJM)
• Member, Board of Trustees International Bible Society-Philippines
• Chairman, International Christian Solidarity on Religious Freedom (a global coalition of Christian churches fighting for religious equality and freedom for all nations of the world)
• Vice-Chairman of Executive Council, Christ for Asia (formerly Charismatic Fellowship of Asia, CFA) 1989 to date; Bangkok, Thailand
• TV Host, Jesus the Healer, ZOE TV 11/ GMA 7; Diyos At Bayan, ZOE TV 11/ GMA 7
• Columnist, Abante and Abante-Tonite and monthly publications in Hong Kong and Taiwan

PAST POSITIONS

• Longest-Sitting Member, Board of Regents, Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP); honored by the University for donating his entire honorarium to the PUP Scholarship Fund.
• Radio Host, Tinig sa Itaas, DZJV 1458 (Station located at Calamba, Laguna)
• Author, Find It! Straight From The Word (Copyright 2004, Eduardo C. Villanueva); Surest Covenant (Copyright 2004, Eduardo C. Villanueva)
• Contributor, Legacy (Copyright 2005, Church Strengthening Ministries); This Is My Story (Copyright 2004, Cityland Foundation, Inc.)
• Part-Time Faculty Member, Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), 1978-1979
• General Manager, Agape Trading Company, 1976-1977
• Export Manager, Maran Export Industries, 1973-1975
• Full-time Faculty Member, Department of Economics & Finance, Philippine College of Commerce, now, PUP, 1969-1972

INTERNATIONAL AND LOCAL HONORS AND CITATIONS

• Conferred with Doctorate Degree on Divinity by Promise Christian University through Dr. Michael McKinney on August 16, 2008 in Los Angeles, California, USA
• Conferred with “Doctor in Education Management, Honoris Causa” from Polytechnic University of the Philippines, November 28, 2003
• Conferred with “Doctor of Philosophy in Humanities, Honoris Causa” from Bulacan State University, October 3, 2003
• Conferred with "EDSA People Power Freedom Award" for ZOE TV 11 as the only TV Station consistent in standing for Truth, Justice, and Righteousness during People Power 2 on February 25, 2001, Edsa .
• Conferred with "Gintong Ama" (Golden Father) Award for Socio-Civic/Religious Sector by Golden Mother and Father Foundation on June 16, 1996 at Metro Theater, Manila
• Conferred with the "Office of Episcopacy" by the cross-section of the Body of Christ in the Philippines on April 12, 1996 in Manila, Philippines

Jamby Madrigal

2010-01-03T01:19:00.002-08:00

Political Party

Genuine Opposition

Hometown

Manila

Short Description

Is a politician in the Philippines. She was elected during the 2004 general elections and is currently serving as a Senator .

Civil Status

Married

Gender

Female

Nationality

Filipino

Birthday

April 26, 1958

Spouse

Jean Claude Dudoignon Valade

Children

Profession

Politician

Company

Republic of the Philippines

Religion

Roman Catholic

About Jamby Madrigal

2010-01-03T01:19:00.001-08:00

amby Madrigal was born on April 26, 1958 in Manila to Antonio Madrigal (1921-2007) and Amanda Abad Santos-Madrigal. She is the granddaughter of the former Supreme Court Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos of San Fernando, Pampanga. Her granduncle – pre-Commonwealth Assemblyman Pedro Abad Santos – founded the Socialist Party of the Philippines. The Abad Santos brothers were from a modest family.

Her paternal grandfather was Senator Vicente Madrigal of Ligao, Albay, one of the Philippine Republic’s elected senators in 1949.She, her father, and grandfather are members of the rich Spanish-Visayan Madrigal family. Her aunt, Senator Pacita Madrigal-Gonzalez was a senator during the Quezon and Magsaysay administrations and was the first administrator of the Social Welfare Administration, the predecessor of today’s Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). Her late married uncle and aunt were former Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Manuel Collantes and heiress Consuelo “Chito” Madrigal.

TOP

Joseph Estrada

2010-01-03T01:16:00.001-08:00

olitical Party

PMP

Status

Decided

Hometown

Manila, Philippines

Short Description

Tunay at Tapat na Nagmamahal sa Masang Pilipino

Civil Status

Married

Gender

Male

Nationality

Filipino

Birthday

April 19, 1937

Spouse

Loi Estrada

Children

Jinggoy, Jacqueline and Jude

Profession

Actor, Politician

Company

Philippines

Religion

Roman Catholic

Personal Life

Estrada is married to (the former Doctor and first lady-turned-senator) Luisa Pimentel and had three children by her: Jose Ejercito, Jr. (better known as "Jinggoy Estrada"; former Mayor of San Juan turned Senator/married to Precy Vitug), Jackie Ejercito (married to Beaver Lopez), and Jude Ejercito (married to Weng Ocampo). Joseph Estrada met his wife Loi while working as an orderly at the National Center for Mental Health (NMCH) in Mandaluyong City.

About Joseph Estrada

2010-01-03T01:15:00.000-08:00

Tunay at Tapat na Nagmamahal sa Masang Pilipino

Joseph Marcelo Ejercito Estrada was born on April 19, 1937, in Tondo, Manila. His parents, Engr. Emilio Ejercito and Maria Marcelo, moved to San Juan where he grew up and where he continues to reside to this day. His primary education was obtained at the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Manila University. He later took up an Engineering course at the Mapua Institute of Technology.

In his early twenties, he became a movie actor by accident but later proved himself to be an accomplished thespian, starring in a string of well-received films that earned him the title of a living legend in local filmdom. More popularly known as Erap, he is a five-time Best Actor awardee – a feat he repeated by winning the Best Picture award an equal number of times. This earned him a rare place in the FAMAS Hall of Fame in 1981 and 1984, respectively.

He entered politics in 1967, was elected and re-elected mayor of the Municipality (now City) of San Juan which he served with dedication and distinction for more than 16 continuous years. Unfortunately, he was one of hundreds of local officials who were asked to step down in the aftermath of the 1986 EDSA revolution. When he left his post, the San Juan Municipal treasury registered P24-million in savings.

In 1972, he was selected as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) in Public Administration by the Philippine Jaycees. He was also voted Outstanding Mayor and foremost Nationalist by the Inter-Provincial Information Service in 1971 and awarded the coveted title, “Most Outstanding Metro Manila Mayor,” the following year by the Philippine Princeton Poll.

His administration of San Juan was marked by unequaled accomplishments in infrastructure development. These included the establishment of the first san Juan Municipal High School, the Agora complex, a modern slaughterhouse, a sprawling Government Center with a post Office, a mini-park and the concreting of 98 percent of San Juan’s roads and alleys.

As mayor, he paid particular attention to the elementary education of school-age children by improving and renovating school buildings and constructing additional school structures, health centers, barangay halls and playgrounds in all the barangays and providing artesian wells to areas with low water supply. He relocated some 1,800 squatter families out of San Juan to Taytay, Rizal, at no cost to the affected families. He was also the first mayor to computerize assessment of the Real Estate Tax in the Municipal Assessor’s Office.

For the movie industry, he established the Movie Workers Welfare Foundation (MOWELFUND), Inc. which has now become a robust organization that provides industry workers with financial and professional assistance. His efforts to upgrade and professionalize the film industry have resulted in substantial benefits to all movie personnel, from directors and actors down to the lowest crewmen.

He is the Founder and President of the ERAP Para sa Mahirap Foundation, a foundation that offers scholarship assistance to poor but deserving college students. Through the foundation’s educational grants, more than a thousand students have since earned a college degree.

He also established the San Juan Progress Foundation, the San Juan Police and Fire Trust Fund and the Friends of Joseph Estrada, which offers free burial assistance for the poor folks of San Juan.

In 1987, he set his sights on a Senate run and handily garnered a seat. He was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Public Works. He was Vice-Chairman of the Committees on Health

JC De Los Reyes

2010-01-03T01:12:00.000-08:00

Political Party: Ang Kapatiran Party
Hometown: Olongapo City
Short Description
His passion and vision is to unceasingly work to fight and defeat massive, enslaving poverty, a mission to be accomplished not only in Olongapo but in the whole country.

Civil Status: Married
Gender: Male
Nationality: Filipino
Birthday: February 14, 1970
Spouse: Dunia Valenzuela
Children: Gabriel, Santiago and Barbara
Profession: Councilor
Company
-
Religion: Roman Catholic
Other Organizations
Solidarity Philippines; Pro-Life Philippines

About JC de los Reyes

2010-01-03T01:11:00.001-08:00

Born February 14, 1970, married to Dunia Valenzuela with three children, Gabriel 10, Santiago 7 and Barbara 5.

He studied in Ateneo de Manila for his elementary education, and graduated in De la Salle for high school. He finished his B.A. in Theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville, reputed to be one of the most orthodox Catholic Universities in America. Late 1993 he taught Philosophy in the then Center for Research and Communication, now the University of Asia and the Pacific and was under the tutelage of Fr. Joseph de Torre, a Spanish priest of the Holy Cross who wrote extensively on the social teachings of the Church. In 1995, he ran and was elected City Councilor of Olongapo.

During his term, he focused on the poor, the youth and cooperatives. In 1999 he finished his post-graduate studies in Public Administration from the University of the Philippines and proceeded to study law in Saint Louis University, Baguio City, finishing his degree in 2005.

The organizations he helped propagate as an active member since 1995 was the National Renewal Movement and the Ang Kapatiran National Political Party or the Alliance for the Common Good, a registered political party that seeks to promote the politics of genuine social concern. Presently, he is national animator of Solidarity Philippines, a movement to pro-actively advance the Social Justice Agenda of the Church and Executive-director of Breaking the Yoke of Poverty Foundation whose project is Jubillee homes for the Poor, a housing project for 60 families.

In the 2007 elections, among 27 local and national candidates, he was the lone winner of Ang Kapatiran Party, placing second among ten slots for the Olongapo City Council. This was achieved despite a decade absent from local politics.

His free legal assistance program under an informal project named JUSTICE CRUSADE has been widely successful among his constituents. He is presently prioritizing the institutionalization of the Barangay Human Rights Action Centers, the office mandated by law for the protection and prevention of human rights violations in the barangay.

Councilor JC has spoken out and campaigned against illegal drugs, rampant violations of worker’s rights at Hanjin, Subic Bay and has campaigned against illegal fish cages in the area. He has also led protests against the proposed coal power plant and has been outspoken in criticizing government’s plan to open more casinos in Subic.

The boldest statement he has made for good governance is the filing of numerous cases before the Ombudsman against high ranking government officials where he himself is complainant. This is in line with his political policy of alleviating the people’s suffering by addressing the problem of expensive and increasing costs of basic needs like water, electricity, medicines, health care, etc., and insuring that these basic services are kept free and far from graft and corruption.

His passion and vision is to unceasingly work to fight and defeat massive, enslaving poverty, a mission to be accomplished not only in Olongapo but in the whole country.

source: PoliticalArena.com

JC de los Reyes

2010-01-03T01:11:00.000-08:00

Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro

2010-01-02T23:45:00.000-08:00

Political Party: LAKAS-KAMPI-CMD
Status: Decided
Hometown: Manila

Short Description
Honorable Gilberto “Gilbert” Cojuangco Teodoro, Jr. is the youngest Secretary to hold the Defense portfolio at the age of 43, when he assumed the post in August 2007.

Civil Status: Married
Gender: Male
Nationality: Filipino
Birthday: June 14, 1964
Spouse: Congresswoman Monica "Nikki" Prieto-Teodoro
Profession: Secretary of National Defense
Company: National Government

source: PoliticalArena.com

Richard "Dick" Gordon

2010-01-02T19:13:00.000-08:00

Political Party :BAGUMBAYAN
Status: Undecided
Hometown:Olongapo City

Short Description
Dick Gordon is a proven transformational leader, the real action-man; making possible the seemingly impossible, and simply best known for overcoming great odds.

Civil Status: Married
Gender: Male
Nationality: Filipino
Birthday: August 05, 1945
Spouse: Kate H. Gordon

Children: Marnie, Ali, LJ, Brian
Profession: Senator, Blue Ribbon Committee Chairman
Company: SENATE OF THE PHILIPPINES
Religion: Roman Catholic

National and International Awards
2008 AteneoUSA Award – Public Service (to be given 5 July but did not attend due to Typhoon Frank ) AteneoUSA Chicago All Ateneo Convention

source: PolitcalArena.com

Richard "Dick" Gordon

2010-01-02T19:10:00.000-08:00

About Richard "Dick" Gordon

ck Gordon is a consistent and proven transformational leader.

In the 2004 national elections when he ran as senator of the Philippines, despite the initial low public opinion surveys, Gordon won and received the fifth highest number of votes from the electorate even without sectoral and religious command vote support. Filipinos warmly received his very positive personality and track record of achievements.

He passed the very first law in the 13th Congress, Republic Act No. 9333, fixing the regular elections at the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), and several other important laws, including Republic Act No. 9369, the New Automated Election System law; Republic Act No. 9334, the Sin Tax Law, Republic Act Nos. 9399 and 9400, fixing the tax regime in Special Economic Zones and Freeports in Clark in Pampanga, Poro Point in La Union; and John Hay in Baguio; Republic Act No. 9346, the abolition of the death penalty law; and Republic Act No. 9367, the Biofuels Act of 2007.

Furthermore, as Chairman of the Senate Committee of Constitutional Amendements and Revision of Laws, he upheld the supremacy of the Constitution at all times. Though he may not have voted for the ratification of the 1987 Constitution, he took an oath to preserve and defend it. He insisted on the lawful process of charter change only according to the process set forth in the Constitution. He opposed the unconstitutional People’s Initiative and was one of the triumphant parties in the case of Lambino and Aumentado vs. COMELEC, G.R. No. 174153, October 25, 2006.

He also preserved the separation of powers in government and asserted the Senate’s constitutional right and duty to conduct inquiries in aid of legislation against Executive Order No. 464 in Senate, et al. vs. Ermita, G.R. No. 169777, April 20, 2006, and Executive Order No. 1 in Sabio vs. Gordon, et al., G.R. No. 174340, October 17, 2006.

In 2001, he transformed the moribund Philippines Tourism industry: plagued by a negative image of kidnappings and SARS disease and complicated by an era of continued threat of terrorism. As Secretary of Tourism he accomplished this with his campaign: "WOW Philippines! More than the usual!" This resulted to increased tourist arrivals that rejuvenated the industry, becoming the country’s acknowledged fastest way to address poverty and unemployment. In addition, in his capacity as World Tourism Organization (WTO) Commissioner for East Asia and the Pacific in 2002 and Chair of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) for 2003, he became the chief advocate of Third World countries that have been unduly affected in tourism and trade by unfair Travel Advisories imposed by Western governments.

In 1992, he led the successful conversion of the former United States’ naval facility in Subic Bay. He turned it into the Philippines’ primary trade zone. This was when the Philippine Senate rejected a treaty extension ending a century of US military presence in the country. He lobbied in Congress for the passage of a bill he drafted based on an old plan to convert the American naval and air force facilities in Subic and Clark respectively into economic enclaves by the creation of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

As founding Chair and Administrator of the SBMA, he inspired an army of 8,000 volunteers who protected and preserved the U.S.$ 8 billion facility. Together with the volunteers, he successfully transformed Subic into a premier investment hub that hosted the 4th APEC Leaders Summit in 1996. By the time he left in 1998, SBMA had over 300 investors including notable American companies: Federal Express, Coastal Petroleum and Enron. It even had British firms, BICC Cables and Shell Exploration as well as Taiwan’s Acer Computers and France’s Thompson Audio. More than 90,000 jobs were created under his leadership.

source: http://PoliticalArena.com

Gilbert Teodoro

2010-01-02T19:06:00.001-08:00

About Gilbert Teodoro

In a time of great change, a beacon is needed to guide the Filipinos. Gilberto “Gibo” Cojuangco Teodoro, Jr. can be that beacon.

Gibo is the only son of former Social Security System (SSS) administrator Gilberto Teodoro, Sr. and former Batasang Pambansa member Mercedes Cojuangco-Teodoro. During his elementary and high school days at Xavier School in San Juan City, Gibo was the tall, lanky, and curly-haired kid who wore teeth and back braces. But the young Gibo was exceptionally smart and genial. He may have come from a prolific family, but Gibo was neither sheltered nor a snob. Growing up, he had an early taste of politics and he showed great interest for public service.

He was elected Kabataang Barangay president in his hometown Tarlac in 1980 and concurrently became Central Luzon Kabataang Barangay president for five years. He was bona fide member of the Sanguniang Panlalawigan of Tarlac from 1980 to 1986.

He furthered his education at the De La Salle University Manila, graduating with a degree in Bachelor of Science in Commerce Major in Financial Institutions in 1984. A strong sense of justice inspired him to pursue a Law degree at University of the Philippines, where he received the Dean’s Medal for Academic Excellence in 1989—the same year he topped the Philippine Bar exams. Subsequently, he passed the New York State Bar examinations in 1997.

Gibo completed his masters degree at the Harvard Law School in Massachusetts and, just early this year, he was given the first honorary Doctor of Laws degree by West Negros University of Bacolod.

For seven years, Gibo practiced his profession at the Estelito Mendoza Law Firm until his congressional candidacy in 1998. By his own merits, Gibo won and became Tarlac’s First District Representative for three terms (nine years). While in congress, Gibo was a proponent of human rights, economic development, and progress.

Aside from being a licensed commercial pilot, he also holds rank as colonel in the Philippine Air Force Reserve Force.

Gibo, 45, is married to present Tarlac First district Representative Monica “Nikki” Prieto-Teodoro and they have one son named Jaime Gilberto.

As the 34th and youngest Department of National Defense Secretary, Gibo is headstrong on preserving the security of the country. As the concurrent Chairman of National Disaster Coordinating Council, he is proactive and involved in disaster management.

source: http://PoliticalArena.com

Happy New Year!!

2010-01-02T18:30:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!

As I have been reading post from different blogs about this coming 2010 election. I have read this quote and I would like to share it to everyone.

"If we can vote for the best performer on the TV show, we should certainly vote in elections that profoundly affect our future." - Tim Duffy (Queens College)

I will just make it short: Let us be vigilant this coming election, we should choose the right the candidate to lead our country. This is a new start, exercise your right, take the lead...VOTE WISELY..

Aquino continues to lead ahead of Philippine election: poll

2009-12-30T17:08:00.000-08:00

The son of the late Philippine democracy icon Corazon Aquino has maintained his commanding lead over rivals in next year's presidential election, a nationwide survey showed Monday.

Senator Benigno Aquino garnered 45 percent support, way ahead of multi-millionaire property developer and senator Manny Villar, who took 23 percent, Pulse Asia said in its survey.

Coming in third was disgraced former president Joseph Estrada with 19 percent, while former defence secretary Gilberto Teodoro, the candidate from President Gloria Arroyo's ruling coalition had a mere five percent, it said.

The survey covered 1,800 respondents around the country and was taken from December 8 to 10, just days before the elections commission announced that the four were among eight candidates eligible to run for president.

The four others are however are widely considered minor candidates with not enough machinery for a serious, nationwide campaign.

The Pulse Asia survey mirrored the results of a survey carried out by another pollster early this month, and indicates that support for Aquino "remains virtually unchanged," it said.

From a political lightweight with no significant achievements in his 11 years as a legislator, Aquino was thrust into the limelight when his mother died in August.

He took advantage of the massive outpouring of emotional support for her to catapult himself into the national consciousness.

The soft-spoken, bespectacled Corazon Aquino was well-loved in the Philippines for leading a 1986 "people power" revolution that ended dictator Ferdinand Marcos's 20-year brutal regime.

In the announcement of his candidacy, Aquino in September vowed to end corruption in government and give the public 'closure' by going after the Marcos family's fabled ill-gotten wealth.

"I want to make democracy work not just for the rich and the well-connected, but for everybody," Aquino said.

source: Msn.ph

Noynoy Aquino tops polls again

2009-12-30T16:54:00.001-08:00

Atty. Edwin Lacierda
Presidential Campaign of Benigno S. Aquino III
December 21, 2009
Statement on the December 8 – 10, 2009 Pulse Asia Survey Results

“The survey results validate our belief that the Filipino people continue to support our campaign for an honest government.

“It comes at a time when our many opponents are desperately trying to bring us down through lies and black propaganda.

“The fact that these are among the highest ever ratings for a presidential candidate–former president Joseph Estrada’s peak
approval stood at 42% and remained at around 38% during the 1998 elections–proves that their dirty tricks are not working.

“Our call remains, ang laban na tapat ay laban ng lahat!”

source: Noynoy.ph

About Manny Villar

2009-12-26T17:12:00.001-08:00

The public life of Manny Villar straddles both the worlds of business and politics. He is one of the few who managed to excel in both.

Working Student

He was born to a simple family in Moriones, Tondo, Manila. His father, Manuel Montalban Villar, Sr., a government employee, hailed from Cabatuan, Iloilo and his mother Curita Bamba, a seafood dealer, came from Pampanga and Bataan. Manny is the second child in a brood of nine. At a very young age, he was already helping his mother sell shrimp and fish in the Divisoria Market. With the burning desire for a better future and a strong determination to improve his family’s living conditions, Manny worked hard in selling shrimps and fish to be able to send himself to school.

“I learned from my mother what it takes to be an entrepreneur,” he revealed. “And it means working really hard to achieve your dreams.” In Divisoria, he marveled at the volume of sales that Chinese merchants were making, thus he vowed early on to become an entrepreneur.

Hard work, persistence, and perseverance became his guiding principles in life. This earned him the title “Mr. Sipag at Tiyaga.”

He continues to inspire Filipinos with his life story and encourages each and every kababayan to improve their quality of life and fulfill their dreams through the very values he believes in -- “sipag at tiyaga.”

Entrepreneur

Manny Villar was a working student at the University of the Philippines, the premier institution of higher learning in the country, where he obtained his undergraduate and master’s degree in business administration and accountancy. By then, he was also putting in long hours as a fish and shrimp trader, where the action starts at the ungodly hours of the morning when the catch lands in the market.

After graduation, he tried his hand as an accountant at the country’s biggest accounting firm, Sycip Gorres Velayo & Co. (SGV & Co). He resigned shortly though to venture on his own seafood delivery business.

When a restaurant he was delivering stocks to did not pay him, he printed out “meal tickets” which he persuaded the restaurant owners to honor. He then sold these tickets at a discounted price to office workers. It took him one year to liquidate his receivables.

He worked briefly as a financial analyst at the Private Development Corporation of the Philippines. His job was to sell World Bank loans, despite the attractive rates of which there were no takers. Convinced that he could make it on his own again, he quit his job and promptly availed of one of the loans.

So with an initial capital of P10,000 in 1975, Villar purchased two reconditioned trucks and started his sand-and-gravel business in Las Piñas.

Housing Innovator

It is here while delivering construction materials to big developers that Manny Villar came up with the idea of selling house and lot packages when the convention then was for homeowners to buy lots and build on them.

Manny Villar became the housing industry leader, and the biggest homebuilder in Southeast Asia, having built more than 100,000 houses for the poor and middle class Filipino families.

He then initiated mass housing projects to achieve economies of scale. His various innovations practically created the country’s mass housing industry. The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism calls him “the dean of the (Philippine) real estate industry.”

Awards and Distinctions

For his business achievements, he was made cover story in the Far Eastern Economic Review. And his life story was also featured in Asiaweek, Forbes, AsiaMoney and Asian Business Review.

He garnered various awards such as the Ten Outstanding Young Men Award (1986) by the Philippine Jaycees, Agora Award for Outstanding Achievement in Marketing Management (1989), Most Outstanding CPA by the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (1990) and Most Outstanding UP Alumnus (1991).

Through the years, universities and colleges all over the country have conferred upon Villar honorary degrees in various fields in recognition of his exemplary performance in public service, his pioneering initiatives and innovations that revolutionalized the country’s mass housing and real estate industry, and his distinct role in the enactment of economic and social reform laws that are vital in sustaining the country’s economic momentum and improvement of the lives of Filipinos, particularly the cause of small and medium enterprises.

Among these universities and colleges that have bestowed Honoris Causa to Villar are: Adamson University, Doctor of Science; Bataan Polytechnic State College, Doctor of Humanities; Bulacan State University, Doctor of Humanities; Cagayan State University, Doctor of Humanities; Central Luzon State University, Doctor of Humanities; Foundation University (Dumaguete), Doctor of Humanities; Laguna State Polytechnic College, Doctor of Humanities and Entrepreneurship; Pangasinan State University, Doctor of Development Management; Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology, Doctor of Business Administration; Ramon Magsaysay Technological University, Doctor of Entrepreneurial Management; Romblon State College, Doctor of Humanities; Tarlac State University, Doctor of Public Administration; Wesleyan University-Philippines, Doctor of Humanities; and Western Visayas College of Science and Technology, Doctor of Technology in Entrepreneurial Management.

Manny Villar's Political Career

2009-12-26T17:07:00.001-08:00

Political Career

In a stunning political debut in 1992, Villar won with the most overwhelming mandate among congressmen in Metro Manila. He promptly applied his economic and managerial expertise as a key member of the House’s economic team, marshalling in economic reform measures of the Ramos Administration such as the New Foreign Investments Act and the restructuring of the Central Bank of the Philippines. He was the House representative in the government’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington D.C. in 1992.

He also oversaw various infrastructure projects in his districts like the construction of concrete roads and the Alabang-Zapote Flyover. He introduced the “Friendship Route” to ease the traffic problems in southern Manila by persuading subdivision homeowners to open up their roads to the general public.

He succeeded in passing Republic Act 8003 “Declaring Certain Areas in Las Piñas as Tourist Spots.” The law formalized his program of rehabilitating historical and cultural landmarks in Las Piñas starting with the world-famous Bamboo Organ Church. The ongoing project dubbed as “Las Piñas Historical Corridor” covers the stretch of the Old District and may even rival the Intramuros and Vigan restoration projects.

A staunch environmentalist, he initiated a privately funded tree planting drive in his district. He developed a P10-million tree nursery beside his home. He also quietly led a dedicated tree-planting drive complete with maintenance and watering of tree seedlings planted in the open spaces of the community.

When he realized that many poor students could not go to school because they do not even have fare money, he organized the “Manpower on Wheels” Program, a livelihood training school housed in a van that makes the rounds in depressed areas. The program has since produced more than 5,000 graduates and has been awarded by various government and civic organizations for its innovative scheme.

During his first term, he steered Las Piñas and Muntinlupa to cityhood. He pointed out: “As a developer, I have always envisioned these two communities as the ‘Twin Cities of the South’ of Manila. In fact, Las Piñas and Muntinlupa are the two fastest growing communities in the country today.”

For his constituency work and personal vow, he extended grants of home sites to some 10,000 poor families in Barangay CAA, Las Piñas City. Two major roads were also opened in his district: the Sucat-Pulanglupa Link Road to Parañaque and the Zapote-Molino (Daang Hari) Link Road to Cavite, thus alleviating the traffic congestion in the area.

During his second term, he was able to upgrade the Las Piñas District Hospital with a new building and better facilities. He also launched the “Sagip-Bukas” Drug Prevention Program on all the private and public schools of Las Piñas to educate the youth about the dangers of drug abuse. He also nationalized the Las Piñas High School to upgrade its facilities.

By the end of his second term of office, Villar had already proven beyond doubt his capacity for excellence as a true Filipino entrepreneur and a brilliant public servant who can get things done.

Champion for Entrepreneurs

In 1995, Manny Villar ran for re-election and won an unprecedented 142,000 votes, the highest number of votes for a congressman in the entire country. Winning media acclaim as an outstanding congressman as well as the respect and recognition of his peers, he was elected to chair the Committee on Entrepreneurship.

As one of the leading entrepreneurs in the country, he championed the cause of small and medium-sized enterprises. He authored and passed into law the landmark New Magna Carta for Small and Medium Enterprises (RA 8289). He initiated creative legislation such as the establishment of the Small and Medium Enterprises Stock Exchange and Business One-Stop-Shop centers, the latter he immediately implemented in Las Piñas City with the help of local officials.

Speaker of the House

It was no surprise then to those in the know when he gained the remarkable acclaim of 171 of 220 congressmen as the Speaker of the 11th Congress of the House of Representatives.

In a time when the country is slowly recovering from a host of economic and political crises, the election of the ‘brown taipan’ at the helm of Congress signaled a watershed event in the Philippine political history. The rise of Manny Villar ushered in a new consensus of leadership based on managerial skills and not simply on oratory and rhetoric.

By his first year in office, Villar undertook three pathbreaking reforms. He succeeded in marshalling consensus in the House to reform the ‘pork barrel’ system by limiting congressional discretion projects to the set parameters of the Executive’s development policies. Secondly, he launched a revamp of leadership by appointing at least seven neophyte congressmen to head powerful committees like ecology and banks. Finally, he set a strong and principled stance on environment protection legislation with the passage of the “Clean Air Act,” a measure that for more than ten years and three previous congresses were not able to pass.

On his second year in office, Manny Villar steered the 11th Congress into a record-breaking achievement in legislation and economic reforms. Among the pioneering measures he shepherded into law were the Retail Trade Liberization Act, the New Central Bank Act, the New Securities Code, and the New Banking Act.

Noynoy Aquino's Platform for Good Governance

2009-12-25T22:33:00.000-08:00

Platform

	From a President who tolerates corruption	to a President who is the nation’s fi rst and most determined fi ghter of corruption
2	From a government that merely conjures economic growth statistics that our people know to be unreal	to a government that prioritizes jobs that empower the people and provide them with opportunities to rise above poverty
3	From relegating education to just one of many concerns	to making education the central strategy for investing in our people, reducing poverty and building national competitiveness
4	From treating health as just another area for political patronage	to recognizing the advancement and protection of public health, which includes responsible parenthood, as key measures of good governance
5	From justice that money and connections can buy	to a truly impartial system of institutions that deliver equal justice to rich or poor

source: Noynoy.ph

Manny Villar

2009-12-25T20:24:00.000-08:00

Senator of the Republic

In the national elections held last May 14, 2001, despite being a relative newcomer in national politics, Manny Villar posted one of the most impressive showings in the national polls. On his first day in office, he filed 204 bills covering a comprehensive legislative program of action— the first among neophyte senators and the third highest filer among the senators of the 12th Congress of the Philippines.

After being elected by his colleagues, he assumed the position of Senate President Pro-Tempore, the second to the highest post in the higher Chamber of Congress. He is presently the Chairman of the Committee on Finance that is in charge of all deliberations and discussions on the national budget of the country and the Committee on Public Order and Illegal Drugs. He is also the Vice Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations and Committee on Agriculture. He authored 44 laws during the 12th Congress, among them are: RA 9178 Barangay Micro Business Enterprises Act, RA 9189 Overseas Absentee Voting Act, RA 9208 Anti-Trafficking of Persons Act, RA 9257 An Act Granting Additional Benefits and Privileges to Senior Citizens, and RA 9262 Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act. He has filed Bills aimed at providing business opportunities for the people and improving the Filipinos’ quality of life through basic health care, decent shelters, responsive social services, and high quality education.

Outside the Senate’s halls, Villar actively sponsors the Sipag at Tiyaga Caravan Kaalaman, a livelihood training program that provides skills and inspiration to people that will allow them to venture into their own businesses. The caravan travels all over the country conducting livelihood seminars that are consistently widely attended and appreciated.

He has also spearheaded the building of schools, sending out medical missions and setting up relief operations whenever or wherever needed. He led the inauguration of the Las Piñas-Muntinlupa-Laguna-Cavite (LPMLC) link road, more popularly known as Daang Hari, as part of his road improvement program aimed at easing traffic in the south of Metro Manila. According to him, an efficient and rationalized road network is one of the fundamental requirements in improving commerce and spurring economic progress.

In February 2004, he was elected as President of the Nacionalista Party—the country’s oldest and grandest political party. He was also named the Most Distinguished UP Alumnus—the highest recognition given by the UP Alumni Association—for his exemplary public service and achievements.

Senator Manny Villar, despite his numerous accomplishments and heroism, has remained simple and unaffected. A true family man, he is a devoted husband to Congresswoman Cynthia A. Villar (Lone District of Las Piñas), and a loving father to sons Paolo and Mark and daughter Camille.

source : MannyVillar.com.ph

Kapuso and Kapamilya Unite for Noynoy Aquino’s ‘Hindi Ka Nag-iisa’ Music Video

2009-12-25T20:13:00.000-08:00

In a rare turn of events, kapamilya and kapuso stars joined forces in a political music video

for Kris Aquino’s brother, Noynoy.

The “Noynoy anthem” music video was brilliantly directed by Onat Diaz with an all star cast including both Kapamilya and Kapuso talents such as Sharon Cuneta, Kris Aquino, Boy Abunda, Ogie Alcasid, Bea Alonzo, Dingdong Dantes, Marian Rivera, Aiai delas Alas, Mariel Rodriguez, Bianca Gonzales, Erik Santos, James Yap with other PBA Players and more. Asia’s Songbird Regine Velazquez sang the Noynoy anthem while her partner, Ogie Alcasid, composed the song.

VIDEO LINK:

source: http://www.starmometer.com/

Noynoy Aquino's speech before filing for candidacy, Nov 28 2009

2009-12-25T19:55:00.001-08:00

Napansin ko po, hindi nababati ng maayos ang ating mga kasanggang matibay tulad ni Mayor Lim, na nandito po sa entablado.

Nandiyan po si Mayor Aro Mendoza ng Tarlac City!

Nandiyan po si Vice Governor Mark Leviste ng Batangas, matanda lang po ng konti sa akin yan.

Alam ho ninyo ang problema ko, ay mahaba-haba sana yung sasabihin ko sa inyo. Tapos sabi sa akin, paki bilisan ninyo one minute lang kayo at baka magsara yung Comelec.

Ito po ang listahan ng babatiin ko halos naging baliktaran sa papel, tsaka ko na po kayo babatiin kapag mas mahaba ang oras.

Simple lang po ang mensahe natin itong araw na ito:

Diyan po sa Manila Cathedral, tatlong buwan pa lang po halos ang lumipas noong atin pong ina ay nandiyan at dadalhin na po sa huling hantungan. Marami pong problema na bumabalot sa aking kaisipan. Unang una na ho doon, wala na po ang ating pinuno, paano kaya natin maibabalik sa liwanag ang ating bansa? Kulang siguro sa tulog kaya’t hindi ko nakita kaagad yung mga sagot.

Nakita po natin yung apat na sundalo nandoon sa taas ng truck. Sila ho ay hindi magkakasama sa isang unit at tsaka yung isa po ay miyembro ng kapulisan. Sila ho ay hindi nagtraining para sa trabahong iyon na sinabihan silang siyam na oras kayong hindi puwede kumilos. Pero yung Pilipino ho, tulad noong apat na iyon, bigyan lamang ng pagkakataon, maliwanag kung ano ang tama, gagawin ang tama – yun po ang solusyon natin.

Itong araw pong ito ihahain natin yung ating certificate of candidacy. Ito po siguro ang unang hakbang sa huling yugto ng ipinaglalaban natin. At ano nga ba ang pinaglalaban natin? Kapag tayo po, sa tulong ninyo, ay pinalad, yung pataba po, ang tataba halaman hindi na po yung mga tiwaling kawani ng gobyerno.

Magkakaroon din po ng sistema ng gobyerno na hindi nagpapahintulot o nakapapayag ng nangyaring karumaldumal na nangyari sa Maguindanao, hindi na po pupuwede iyan. Magkakaroon na tayo ng katiyakan na kaparusahan kapag may nilabag ka sa batas natin, iyan po ay itaga na natin sa bato.

Ipinaglalaban din po natin na lahat ng Pilipinong gustong matuto, may pagkakataon para matuto. Ang Pilipinong gustong magkaroon ng trabahong may dangal, magkakaroon ng trabahong may dangal.

Ang Pilipino pong may karamdaman, aarugain ng estado, obligasyon po iyan ng estado. Lahat po iyan, kaya nating makamtan, dahil ako po ay naniniwala sa bansa po natin. Sa singkuwentang porsyento na binubungkal na lupa, hindi ho tamang may nagugutom sa Pilipinas. Kailangan lang po gawin natin yung tama, babawasan natin ng babawasan ang nagugutom at talagang papunta na tayo sa kasaganaan, dahil gagawin po natin ang tama.

Malapit na po tayong senyasan. Baka sabihin sa atin ay malapit na ang lunch break sa Comelec.

Ang importante lang po sa akin na maiwan sa inyo sa araw na ito ay isang bagay:

Yung mga kalaban natin ang daming ipinagyayabang. Lahat na po sila ay ipinagsama-sama ko na. Pare-pareho silang gusto pa ring ipagpatuloy ang paglilinlang, yung pandaraya. Ang sagot ko lang sa kanila: Sige na pumutak na kayo ng pumutak. Sige na magtext brigade na kayo, mag-internet pa kayo. Sige na bilhin na ninyo ang lahat ng commercial na puwede ninyong bilhin.

Pero ang taong bayan, sa akin pong pananaw ay gising na, mulat na at sawa na sa inyo!

Papasalamatan ko nalang ho kayong lahat.

Mga kapatid, talagang noong iniisip natin ito, ang dami kong problemang nakikita sabi ko, “Paano nga ba natin malalaktawan iyan?”

At yung sagot po pabalikbalik, simple lang pala, habang nandiyan ang taong bayan maski anong problema kaya nating laktawan. Ang tagumpay po buwan na lang ang pinag-uusapan, ke nandoon ako, ke wala ho ako dito, sigurado po ako itong ating krusada, magpapatuloy at magtatagumpay dahil lahat po kayo ay nandito.

Kaya’t magandang umaga pong muli at maraming salamat sa inyo!

Noynoy Aquino signs his certificate of candidacy

source: Noynoy.ph

Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III

2009-12-25T06:55:00.001-08:00

"TANGALIN ANG TIWALI, ITAMA ANG MALI"

About Noynoy Aquino III

It is in his bloodline. It is his heritage. For him, democracy restored must be enshrined without fear but with greatest fervor.

It is second nature to Senator Benigno “Noynoy” S. Aquino III to be both a fiscalizer, who relentlessly espouse public accountability, and a staunch advocate of liberal democracy.

His key legislative initiatives are anchored on the protection of human rights and good governance through increased transparency and public accountability. These are founded on the democratic ideals championed by his parents, former Senator and martyr Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. and former President Corazon Aquino.

A true working democracy, he says, makes possible not only political freedoms but a better life for all Filipinos. It must be able to provide jobs, education, social services and equitable economic prosperity for everyone, not just the rich, privileged few.

The defense of democracy nearly cost Senator Aquino his life. He was almost killed during the military coup against President Aquino in 1990 when he met retreating rogue soldiers at the front gates of Malacañang. Three of his bodyguards died while he suffered five bullet wounds. A bullet is still embedded in his neck.

Senator Aquino served as Congressman of the 2nd District of Tarlac from 1998 to 2007. In 2004, he was stripped of his prestigious post as Deputy House Speaker for Luzon after he joined leaders of the Liberal Party (LP) in calling for the resignation of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo at the height of the “Hello Garci” scandal.

In May 2007, he ran for Senator and won, placing 6th in the national elections.

As Senator in the 14th Congress, he chairs the Senate Committee on Local Government.

In the LP, Senator Aquino held various positions such as Secretary General and Vice Chairman. He is now the party’s official standard bearer for the 2010 Presidential election with Mar Roxas as his running mate.

Noynoy is a graduate of Economics at the Ateneo de Manila University. He fancies Chinese food and is a shooting and billiards enthusiast.

source: http://www.noynoy.ph/

Automation of Election by 2010

2009-12-20T22:39:00.001-08:00

PHILIPPINE NEWS SERVICE -- BOTHERED by the slow count of votes cast in the May 14 elections, Malacañang yesterday called on all stakeholders in the political process to put in place an automated election system to replace the Philippines’ century-old method of manual voting and counting.

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said the Arroyo administration was determined to see an automated system installed in time for the 2010 presidential election.

“If we are to exercise political will, three years is sufficient time for electoral reforms,” Bunye said. “Yet, for this miracle of modernization to take place, we need to act as one nation committed to elevating its electoral system to a state-of-the- art democratic exercise.”

Congress passed the Automated Electoral System Act, which was signed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo into law early this year.

Under this law, automated voting was given a P2.6-billion fund this year, and automation was to be implemented in two provinces and two cities each in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

But the Commission on Elections failed to implement the automation scheme because the law was passed too late.

Two House members echoed the call, and asked the election commission to start planning for full computerization of the 2010 election to hasten the proclamation of poll winners.

Lakas Rep. Mauricio Domogan of Baguio City and Kampi Rep. Rodito Albano III of Isabela said automation would also prevent confusion, doubts and allegations of fraud which marred the senatorial and local elections.

The Department of Education, which is in charge of the teachers who run the elections, is also calling for the automation of the electoral process, for a different reason.

“Our teachers need to be relieved of their election duties for their own safety. This can only be done if we finally computerize the electoral process,” Education Secretary Jesli Lapus said.

He made the call following the death of a high school teacher in a fire believed to have been intentionally started at the school where she had been on election duty in Taysan, Batangas.

In 2004, the Comelec purchased 1,900 automated vote-counting machines worth P1.3 billion for use in that year’s national and local elections. But the Supreme Court stopped the use of the counting machines due to technical defects and flaws in the bidding process.

The Philippines, which started holding elections during the American colonial period in 1906, still uses the much-maligned manual voting and counting system that has been replaced by automated voting machines the world over.

“Much can be solved by automation, but for this to happen, all elements—from legislation to budgetary support and a trouble-free, fully transparent and acceptable bidding process—must be in place,” Bunye said.

Bunye said that the President, in her Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan, pointed out that electoral reforms, particularly automated elections, were essential to political stability.

“The administration is certainly up to the challenge of electoral reforms. Let us hope that such reforms will part of a nation-building agenda that all sectors and political parties can support as a vehicles toward constructive political engagement and increased people participation in national governance.”

Meanwhile, the Palace said that all questions on the results of the senatorial election in Maguindanao province should be addressed and resolved through the law.

Presidential adviser on political affairs Gabriel Claudio said it was unfair to conclude that the elections in Maguindanao were fraudulent just because the results were overwhelmingly in favor of the candidates of the administration’s Team Unity coalition.

“The integrity and credibility of the elections are paramount. All questions about the results in Maguindanao can be and should be addressed through the mechanism provided by law,” Claudio said in a text message.

The rival Genuine Opposition coalition said that the 12-0 results of the senatorial derby in Maguindanao in favor of Team Unity was statistically improbable and the result of manipulation of election returns.

Claudio warned against raising charges of cheating without hearing the side of election officials in Maguindanao.

“Let us give the official in charge of the election in that province the opportunity to enlighten us on how the election was conducted,” he said.

source: http://www.philippinestoday.net