Arangkada for July 15, 2005

 

GASTO SA SUPORTA

 

Ang pagarpar sa lokal nga mga opisyal nga nahigugma ang Sugbo kang Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo gisukwahi sa mas lanog nga mensahe sa ilang mga aksiyon. Gawas nga gibabagan og barbed wire ang agianan atubangan sa "Malakanyang sa Sugbo," gigamitan pa gyod og puwersa ang pagbungkag sa mga demonstrador nga niawhag sa resignasyon sa presidente.

Nganong barbed wire may gibawos sa Malakanyang kon tinuod nga mahigugmaong gigakos sa mga Sugbuanon ang presidente? Ug gipaulbo bang kanyon sa tubig ug bomba tear gas kay nahadlok silang makit-an sa tibuok nasud ug kalibotan nga di diay tanang Sugbuanon nahigugma sa presidente?

-o0o-

Ang paglumbaanay sa lokal nga mga opisyal pagpadayag sa ilang suporta ni Presidente Arroyo di makatabang sa nagtakilid na natong ekonomiya. Ang namiyahok nang daan nga panudlanan sa gobyerno gisamotan pa gyod og kilkil sa mga politiko para sa dagkong gasto sa ilang pagbutang og streamers, pag-organisar ug mga delegasyon paingon sa Malakanyang, mga parada ug rallies sa ilang mga lugar para sa presidente.

Pilay gasto sa mga gobernador sa Kabisay-an sa ilang biyahe paingon sa luhong hotel sa Sugbo aron lang pagtuman sa diktar sa Malakanyang nga isiyagit ang binuang-ug-klarong-panghudlat-lang nilang plano pagtukod og buwag nga Visayas Republic kon mapalagpot si Presidente Arroyo?

-o0o-

Kumbinsido si kanhi gobernador Lito Osmena sa Sugbo nga nanikas si Presidente Arroyo sa niaging eleksiyon. Labaw pa siyang kumbinsido nga bakakong dako ang presidente. Pero nagtoo sab siyang maluwas ang presidente gikan sa krisis nga naghulgang mopalagpot niya sa katungdanan.

Matod ni Osmena ang bugtong lusot parang Arroyo mao ang dinaliang pag-usab sa konstitusyon, nga mas maayong maglakip sa pag-usab sa sistema sa gobyerno gikan sa presidential ngadto sa federal. Nipasabot si Osmena nga mao ra ni ang makapakumbinser sa politikanhong mga partido sa paghatag og lugway sa presidente ug paglingiw na lang gikan sa higante niyang mga bulilyaso.

-o0o-

Pero ang pasidaan ni Osmena nga di hingpit nga kasaligan ang panumpa ni Presidente Arroyo pagsuporta sa gisugyot nga kausaban sa konstitusyon, tungod sa daghan nang mga bakak nga iyang gisabod sa publiko, nakaangkon dayon og lab-as nga sukaranan dihang niinsistir si Rigoberto Tiglao, ang pangu sa Presidential Management Staff nga ang pag-uyon sa presidente sa charter change wa magpasabot nga uyon sab siyang laslasan ang iyang termino.

Sa ato pa, wa gyoy katagbawan ang presidente. Inay magpasalamat sa sugyot ni kanhi presidente Fidel Ramos nga maoy nakaluwas sa iyang administrasyon sa niaging semana, gusto sang motiwas sa iyang termino sa 2010 ug mopahimus sa tanang makabuhong nga mga benepisyo sa labing taas nga katungdanan sa nasud.

Kon lain gyod og sabaw si Arroyo, nipasidaan si Osmena nga dali ra kaayong bakwion sa politikanhong mga partido ang ilang suporta ug hingpit nang mahugno ang administrasyon. [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Arangkada for July 14, 2005

 

P2M NI DOBLE

 

Kon nagsulti sa tinuod si Marietta Santos, ang uyab ni T/Sgt. Vidal Doble, di kahadlok sa seguridad ray nakapugong ni Atty. Samuel Ong, kanhi deputy director sa National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), pag-atubang sa Kongreso nga nagsusi sa audio recording sa istorya nilang Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ug kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.

Maglisod si Ong pagpasabot nganong gibayran niyag P2 milyones si Doble bugti sa "mother of all tapes." Diin man gikan ang kuwarta? Kinuha ba lang ni Doble gikan sa hangin o may sukaranan ang pasangil nga gikang Laarni Enriquez, kabit ni kanhi presidente Joseph Estrada, ang dakong kuwarta?

-o0o-

Dugang eskandalusong mga detalye sa kinabuhi ni Doble nga nitumaw human nabisto nga usa siya sa nag-wiretap sa cellular phone ni Garcillano nga gitawgan sa presidente ka-15 ka higayon niadtong Mayo ug Hunyo sa niaging tuig:

• Tulo ang iyang babaye, si Santos maoy numero tres, wa pa mailhing numero dos;
• Napugos si Doble pagawas sa San Carlos Seminary diin siya nitago uban nilang Ong ug Santos kay nakuha sa Intelligence Services of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) ang iyang tinuod nga asawa, si Arlene, ug duha nila ka anak gikan sa Kidapawan;
• Mahimong natental si Doble pagbaligya sa Garci tapes kay kanunayng kuwang ang kuwarta tungod sa iyang ka-bohemyo; ug
• Nahibung ang iyang kaubanan sa ISAFP nga nikalit lag kadaghang kuwarta ni Doble pila ka semana sa wa pa iwara-wara ni Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye sa Malakanyang ang iyang kopya sa Garci tapes.

-o0o-

Gawas sa pagsalikway ni Santos sa pangangkon ni Doble nga gidagit silang Ong ug gitanggong sa seminaryo, gibisto sa Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) ang pagkaduhig ni Doble sa away sa duha ka inilang obispo sa Simbahang Katoliko: Silang Teodoro Bacani ug Socrates Villegas.

Si Bacani maoy nipasud nilang Doble, Santos ug Ong sa seminaryo; samtang si Villegas maoy nikuha ni Doble sa seminaryo ug nitugyan niya sa kasundalohan nga nagda og armored personnel carrier.

-o0o-

Mas unang nakakuha sa Garci tapes kay nilang kanhi senador Francisco Tatad ug Atty. Allan Paguia, kansang kopya maoy gipaminaw sa mga kongresista, silang Senador Panfilo Lacson ug kanhi solicitor general Frank Chavez. Gihatag ni Tatad ang iyang kopya ngadtong Paguia Mayo 15 ning tuiga, ilang Lacson ug Chavez sa Abril pa. Posibleng mas sayong niabot ang kopya ni Tatad pero Mayo na siyang niabot gikan sa gawas sa nasud.

Si Chavez dunay bersiyon giunsa pagkuha sa Malakanyang ang ilang kopya sa Garci tapes: Silang NBI Director Reynaldo Wycoco ug kanhi NBI 7 director Reynaldo Esmeralda maoy nipabati ini nilang Presidente Arroyo ug Bunye sa Malakanyang. Nahugno ang presidente ug si Bunye maoy nag-una-una pagpabati sa publiko sa peke nga bersiyon. [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Yung Dagdag! Yung Dagdag!

Posted by Sheila Coronel 
PCIJ

THE president's voice sounded urgent. She was muttering under her breath. This morning, using sound enhancement, we listened again to the "Hello, Garci" recording and heard clearly for the first time what Mrs. Arroyo told election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano in a conversation that took place at 11:17 p.m. on May 31, 2004.

That phone call began with the President relaying to Garcillano the information that the opposition was trying to get Namfrel (National Citizens Movement for Free Elections) copies of municipal certificates of canvass. Garcillano reassured her that Namfrel is "now sympathetic to us."

The president's reply is garbled in the recording, as she lowered her voice and muttered. We asked a sound engineer to enhance the sound for us. We listened again and this is what we heard her telling Garcilliano: "… Namfrel does not tally… pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag (but you know, the padding, the padding)."

[PCIJ didn't put this in earlier versions of the transcript because we were not sure until now.]

This is the only time in all the 15 phone calls that Mrs. Arroyo made to Garcillano between May 26 and June 10 that she actually used the word, dagdag.

Some of the president's calls dealt with her anxiety about the count and her winning margin ("Will I still get more than 1 M?" she famously asked "Garci" at 9:23 a.m. on May 29).

The May 31 phone call was more direct. She actually referred to votes being padded. While she did not directly say that she had directed the padding or that she knew her votes had been padded, the purpose of the conversation appears to be to assuage her worry that the padding would not discovered if the Namfrel documents did not tally with the certificates of canvass.

Many of the presidential calls in the Hello Garci tapes dealt with Mrs. Arroyo's concern that the count reflected in various election documents — statements of votes and certificates of canvass — did not match. She expressed this worry about the documents from Basilan, Lanao del Sur and Sulu. She was worried because the mismatch in the figures might be seen by the opposition and used by them in alleging fraud by the ruling party.

The particular conversation where she talked about dagdag seems to be along the same lines. She was fretting about the possibility that the opposition would get hold of Namfrel documents (Namfrel gets the sixth copy of the precinct-level election returns) and discover that these do not match with the certificates of canvass, which contain the aggregated counts of all the precincts in a municipality, city or province.

This is why Garcillano had to reassure the president that Namfrel is "now sympathetic to us."

In her reply, she wanted more reassurance. "Pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag," she said.

When this call was made on May 31, most of the certificates of canvass had already been submitted to Congress. It would have meant trouble if the count reflected in these certificates were questioned either by Namfrel or the opposition, based on their own copies of the election returns. At this point, the president seemed to be concerned about two things: 1) that the spurious documents would not be discovered; and 2) that the counts in the places where special elections were held and the counting delayed would show her as the winner.

Special elections were conducted in late May in some towns and barangay in Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. Some of the president's phone calls dealt with the counting in these places.

The content of those phone calls was previously reported in this blog. Here are the transcript and enhanced audio of the "dagdag" phone call.

Conversation between Gary (V. Garcillano) and an unidentified female believed to be GMA (Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) on 31 23:17 hotel May 2004

Garcillano: Hello, ma'am.

GMA: Hello, tsaka ano yung kabila, they're trying to get the Namfrel copies of the Municipal COCs.

Garcillano: Namfrel copies ho?

GMA: Uhm-um.

Garcillano: Ay wala naman, ok naman ang Namfrel sa atin. They are now sympathetic to us.

GMA (mumbling): Oo, oo … (garbled) …Namfrel does not tally. Pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag.

Garcillano: Oho, we will get an advance copy ho natin kung anong hong kwan nila.

GMA: Oo, oo.

Garcillano: Sige po.

Arangkada for July 13, 2005

 

CYBER PROTEST

 

Niadtong Biyernes, dihang katumbahon nang administrasyon ni Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, gilusad ang signature campaign sa cyberspace pag-awhag sa presidente pag-resign. Ang GMA Resign Now! ( http://www.gmaresignnow.com/) gisugdan ni Vicente Romano III, ang utok sa eLagda nga dakog natampo sa pagpalagpot ni kanhi presidente Joseph Estrada niadtong 2001. Sa akong pagsuwat ini, ang nakapirma sa petisyon sa gitawag ni Romano nga "moral majority" niabot nag dul-an sa 20,000.

Si Romano niawhag sab sa mga grupo sa pagtukod sa ilang signature stations ginamit ang kopya sa petisyon ug signature sheets nga ma-download gikan sa website. Salamat ni Romano, duna nay kapahungawan ang katawhan nga di maato sa pagpaminaw sa tradisyonal nga media sa ilang sentimento sa krisis nga nihakop karon sa nasud.

-o0o-

Gipatin-aw ni Romano ang sukaranan sa kampanya: "Naminaw mi sa tapes. Nibasa mi sa transcripts. Nagtoo ming ang pakigsulti ni Presidente Arroyo kang (kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio) Garcillano labaw pa sa "lapse in judgment." Ug kay gitudlo man sa presidente si Garcillano sa Comelec bisan gikaintapan nga "tikasan," klarong giplano nang daan ang pagpanikas.

Mahimo tang modangop sa impeachment. Pero ang tandugong sitwasyon mahimong modasig sa pipila ka grupo pagsakmit sa gahom sa ilegal nga paagi. Ug tungod sa kahuyang na sa presidente, nagtoo ming wa na siyay katakos pagduma, labi na sa pag-usab sa nasud ngadto sa lig-ong Republika.

Ang bugtong mahimo ni Presidente Arroyo mao ang pag-resign karon dayon, aron mapatuman ang lagda sa succession sa konstitusyon. Pinaagi ini, mahimong maluwas pa niyang Republika. Kon nagtoo ka, sama namo, nga si Presidente Arroyo kinahanglang mo-resign karon dayon, kuyog sa moral majority."

-o0o-

Gitubag sang Romano ang pipila ka pangutana:

• Nganong di man mong kapasaylo sa presidente? Nanikas siya. Bisan unsa niya katakos, ug bisan unsa kataphaw ang mopuli niya, imoral ang pagtugot sa pagpabilin sa lider nga mahimong di maoy tinuod nga presidente;
• Nganong di man paatubangon ang presidente sa impeachment? Si Gloria ang sentro sa krisis. Kon mo-resign siya, mawad-an nag sukaranan ang mga protesta;
• Kasaligan bang mopuli niya? Si Noli de Castro. Kon mo-resign sab siya, si Franklin Drilon. Bisan kinsa nila makahunong sa mga protesta. Kon magpabilin si Gloria, dako ang kahigayonan sa kudeta o people power. Ug ang modaog maoy magpili kinsay sunod nga mangu sa nasud;
• Di kasaligan si de Castro. Unsa man diay imong gusto, ang junta o si Erap? Si Noli wa pay eskandalo, way koneksiyon sa oposisyon ug popular sa masa;
• Kon mopirma ko, makumbinser ba si Gloria pag-resign? Way garantiya. Pero igo nang mahibawo siya nga ang mayoriya sa katawhan di molingiw sa iyang binuang. Kon di siya mo-resign, mahimong ang mayoriya sa gabinete maoy makumbinser pagbakwi sa ilang suporta niya. [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Gloria Resign Campaign

Posted by Alecks Pabico
PCIJ

REMEMBER eLagda? In 2000, the "dotcom movement" led by IT professional Vicente Romano III tried to gather one million sign-ups in 21 days to be sent electronically to then Pres. Joseph's Estrada to call for his resignation. Unable to gather enough signatures as a consequence of non-cybersavvy protesters and a president who, Romano thought, probably didn't read anyway, the groups' efforts shifted to an email barrage campaign that targeted government officials still supporting Estrada at the time, particularly the senator-judges in his impeachment trial.

Today, the same people behind eLagda have come up with another online petition-signing campaign  to clamor for Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to step down. On its website " Save the Republic, GMA Resign Now!" is a statement that reads:

We listened to the tapes. We read the transcripts. We believe GMA's conversation with Garcillano was more than just a lapse in judgment. And when you consider the fact that GMA appointed Garcillano as Comelec Commissioner in spite of his notoriety as an "operator" (one who engineers wide-scale electoral cheating), we can only conclude that the cheating was pre-meditated.

We can, of course, go through the process prescribed by law — impeachment. Meanwhile, however, we have a politically volatile situation that might encourage some sectors to pursue extra-constitutional means to seize power. And given the extent of damage on GMA's moral ascendancy, we believe she has lost the capacity to govern, much less the ability to transform this nation to a strong Republic.

The only decent thing for GMA to do is to RESIGN NOW, and let the constitutional process of succession take effect. By doing this, she can at least save the Republic.

If you believe, as we do, that GMA should RESIGN NOW, join the MORAL MAJORITY in petitioning GMA to RESIGN NOW.

As of July 8, 2005, the site has attracted 17,881 petitioners representing 17,268 individuals and nine organizations — a curious mix that includes the Judy Ann Santos Fans Club (with 5,000 members) , ERAP Fans Club (6,991), Bangon Pilipinas-Progresibong Kristiano (5,000), and Kapwersa Brotherhood (170).

CNN/Time Poll: Gloria Resign!

MANILA, Philippines (CNN) -- A majority of people surveyed this month say Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo should not complete her presidential term, according to a new CNN/Time poll.

Additionally, the survey found that opposition to the Philippine leader fell and rose along age lines.

Of the 600 people surveyed in the poll, conducted by TNS during the past week, 57.5 percent said Arroyo should quit.

The poll was taken July 2-5, and had a margin of error of 4.1 percent. TNS is a London-based international polling company.

The results come as Arroyo faces mounting pressure to step down, following allegations of cheating in the 2004 presidential election.

She is accused of talking to an election official about ensuring a million-vote victory in the vote. Arroyo won re-election in 2004.

She won a reprieve of sorts on Sunday, when a group of influential Roman Catholic bishops declined to demand her resignation, saying no single option could be deemed "morally correct."

In the CNN/Time poll, people were asked, "Do you think President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo should or should not complete her six-year presidential term?"

Of the poll's respondents, 37.7 percent of those surveyed said they believed she should complete her term. A further 4.7 percent of people did not know.

Calls for her resignation fell along age lines in the CNN/Time. Among the poll's findings:

62 percent of those asked who were between 18-24 said she should not complete her term;

Nearly 63 percent of respondents aged 25-34 said Arroyo should not complete her term;

Approximately 61 percent of respondents aged 35-44 said Arroyo should not complete her term;

Nearly 54 percent of respondents aged 45-54 said she should step down;

And, 41.5 percent of respondents 65 and older said Arroyo should not finish her term.

Arangkada for July 12, 2005

 

BRASO UG BAKAK

 

Atol sa tigom sa gabinete niadtong Hulyo 5, usa ka buwan human giwarawara ni Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye ang audio recording sa giingong panag-istorya nilang Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ug kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, ug usa ka semana human nangayog pasaylo ang presidente sa iyang pakig-istorya sa usa ka "opisyal sa Comelec" aron "pagpanalipod sa iyang mga boto," nakugang ang ligdong nga mga sakop sa gabinete sa bag-ong direksiyon nga giumol sa Malakanyang aron pag-alkontra sa lapad nga mga protesta para sa resignasyon ni Presidente Arroyo:

• Ang pasigehon nag atubang sa media mao silang Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Ilocos Sur Governor Chavit Singson ug Puerto Princesa City Mayor Edward Hagedorn, samtang ang mobanos pagduma sa krisis mao nang retiradong mga heneral nga sila si Interior Secretary Angelo Reyes, Transportation Secretary Leandro Mendoza ug Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane, aron pagpakita sa "dagkong braso" sa administrasyon; ug
• Gisubli ang sugyot, nga natuki na sa nangaging mga tigom sa gabinete, nga mogahin sila og dakong kuwarta aron ipamayad sa mga sakop sa media pagseguro nga mayoriya sa mga magsisibya ug mga peryodista mopabor sa pagpabilin ni Presidente Arroyo sa katungdanan.

-o0o-

Kon tinuod ang pangangkon sa nang-resign nga mga sakop sa gabinete nga gipangulohan ni Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, di na ta maglibog nganong way tihiktihik ang panghudlat ug panghaylo nga gipabaha sa administrasyon sa pag-ulbo sa labing uwahing eskandalo nga nitay-og sa administrasyon. May sukaranan ang ilang kahadlok nga di managana ang Malakanyang pagamit og puwersa ug busa mamahimong duguon kon molapad ang umaabot nga mga protesta batok sa administrasyon.

Ang nagkadungan nga panghudlat nilang Duterte, Singson ug Hagedorn pagbuwag gikan sa republika kon palagputon gyod si Presidente Arroyo sa katungdanan di diay inosenteng pasidaan sa lokal nga mga opisyal nga nanalipod sa ilang lider. Kabahin na diay to sa agresibong propaganda sa pamakak nga gilusad sa Malakanyang aron paghadlok ug pag-ilad sa kinabag-an.

-o0o-

Ang kuwartang gipabaha sa Malakanyang para sa mga sakop sa media niresulta na. Wa pasayloa silang kanhi presidente Cory Aquino ug ang mga sakop sa gabinete nga nang-resign sa makalilisang nga pagpanamastamas ug pakauwaw nga gilusad sa mga torotot sa presidente.

Angayng pahinumdoman si Presidente Arroyo sa leksiyon sa kasaysayan nga mahimong iyang nataligam-an. Napamatud-an sa pagkapukan sa diktadura ni kanhi presidente Ferdinand Marcos duha ka dekada nang nilabay nga way bisan unsa kagamhanan sa hulga ug bakak nga makapiog sa katawhang nahigmata na.

Si Presidente Arroyo, sama ni Marcos, nitoo sa iyang kaugalingong propaganda. Nakumbinser nga makalingkawas sa panudya sa bangis nga krimen nga iyang nahimo batok sa katawhan pinaagi sa pagtapok sa tradisyonal nga mga politiko. Nga kon maapiki na, segurong manglayat ngadto sa bag-ong mga agawon nga ilang ka-ulog-ulogan. [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Gloria's Statement

I GIVE thanks to the bishops for their statement of guidance and wisdom. I appreciate their collective voice of moderation and temperance at this time of national soul-searching. I will read every line and everything between the lines of the bishops' statement in our effort to bring moral enrichment for a nation impoverished both in its material and spiritual foundations.

I shall continue to pray with the Filipino people for true redemption from corruption and evil. I've searched deeply for moral discernment. The second letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians rings true for me: I cannot boast about myself except about my weaknesses. But I know in faith that in my own weakness His power can be made perfect in me to help me become the servant-president for you in the way He wants me to be.

We must also focus on getting our economy moving. I will work with the church, members of civil society, and all others to help build a better quality of life for the people of the Philippines, and to put an end to the political bickering that is causing such harm to our nation.

Once more, I pledge you everything within my power to earn your enduring trust and support.

Once again, beloved bishops, thank you.

CBCP Statement

1. As a people we seem to have passed from crisis to crisis in one form or another. For many analysts, reinforcing these crises are ambivalent cultural values such as palakasan, pakikisama, utang na loob, and family-centeredness. As Bishops we have long contended that the crises that we have suffered are basically moral--the lack of moral values in ourselves, in our relationships, in our social structures.

2. Today we are beset with yet another political crisis of such magnitude as to polarize our people and attract them to various options ranging from the extreme right to the extreme left. In this grave situation, various groups take advantage of one another, manipulate situations for their own agenda and create confusion among our people sometimes by projecting speculation or suspicion as proven fact, with the aim of grabbing power.

3. At the center of the crisis is the issue of moral value, particularly the issue of trust. The people mistrust our economic institutions which place them under the tyranny of market forces whose lack of moral compass produces for our people a life of grinding dehumanizing poverty. They also mistrust yet another key institution – our political system. This mistrust is not recent. For a long time now, while reveling in political exercises, our people have shown a lack of trust in political personalities, practices, and processes. Elections are often presumed tainted rather than honest. Congressional and senate hearings are sometimes narrowly confined to procedural matters and often run along party lines. Politics has not effectively responded to the needs of the poor and marginalized.

4. This question of trust in national institutions has taken a critical urgency with the resignation of some key Cabinet members, the realignment of political parties and the creation of new alliances. Amid this realignment of forces we commend the clear official stand of our military and police authorities who reiterated their loyalty to our Constitution that forbid them from engaging in partisan politics.

5. Moreover with academe, business, professional and civil society varied positions have been taken with regard to President Macapagal Arroyo. Some want her to resign; others want her to go through due process. Some want a Truth Commission. Others impeachment. Some want a constitutional process and others an extra-constitutional process. On the other hand there is also a wide manifestation of support for the chief executive by a cross section of society.

6. Today, we ask ourselves, "As bishops what can we offer to our people? Can we provide some clarity and guidance in the present confusing situation?" We can only answer these questions from who we are. We are not politicians who are to provide a political blueprint to solve political problems. Rather we are Bishops called by the Lord to shepherds the people in the light of faith. With Pope Benedict XVI we do not believe in the "intrusion into politics on the part of the hierarchy." But we are to interpret human activities such as economics and politics from the moral and religious point of view, from the point of view of the Gospel of Jesus end of the Kingdom of God. We are to provide moral and religious guidance to our people. This is what we offer in the present crisis. Not to do this would be an abdication of our duty.

Our Pastoral Role and Our Stand

7. In the welter of conflicting opinions and positions our role is not to point out a specific political option or a package of options as the Gospel choice, especially so when an option might be grounded merely on a speculative and highly controvertible basis. In the present situation we believe that no single concrete option regarding President Macapagal Arroyo can claim to be the only one demanded by the Gospel. Therefore, in a spirit of humility and truth, we declare our prayerfully discerned collective decision that we do not demand her resignation. Yet neither do we encourage her simply to dismiss such a call from others. For we recognize that non-violent appeals for her resignation, the demand for a Truth Commission and the filing of an impeachment case are not against the Gospel.

8. In all these we remind ourselves that a just political and moral order is best promoted under the present circumstances by a clear and courageous preference for constitutional processes that flow from moral values and the natural law. Hence, we also appeal to the people, especially their representatives and leaders, to discern their decisions not in terms of political loyalties but in the light of the Gospel values of truth, justice and the common good. We urge our people in our parish and religious communities, our religious organizations and movements, our Basic Ecclesial Communities to come and pray together, reason, decide and act together always to the end that the will of God prevail in the political order. People of good will and credibility who hold different political convictions should come together and dialogue in order to help move the country out of its present impasse. We believe with Pope Benedict XVI that through prayer the Filipino people and their political representatives and leaders guided by moral principles are capable of arriving at decisions for the common good that are based not only on political realities but above all on moral precepts.

9. Yet having said this we wish to subject specific situations to moral inquiry to guide our people in deepening their moral discernment.

Restoring Moral Values

10. On Moral Accountability: "Political authority is accountable to the people. Those who govern have the obligation to answer to the governed " (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, 408) President Macapagal Arroyo has admitted and apologized for a "lapse [in] judgment" for calling a COMELEC official. The admission further eroded the people's trust on the already suspected electoral system and raised serious questions on the integrity of the elections. Beyond apology is accountability, Indeed, with forgiveness is justice. To restore trust would require a thorough, credible and independent process to examine the authenticity of the so-called Garcillano tapes, verify any possible betrayal of public trust and mete out due punishment on all those found guilty. Punishment should also imposed on those duly found guilty of corruption and illegal acts, such as jueteng and wire tapping. Moral accountability calls for radical reforms in various agencies of the government to make them more responsive to the requirements of integrity as well as to the needs of the poor.

11. On Constitutionality: In the present crisis some calls are being made of measures that are counter-constitutional. The Constitution enshrines cherished values such as human dignity and the common good, freedom, the rule of law and due process. On this basis, we reject quick fixes that cater to selfish political agenda and advantage rather than to the common good. We deplore the attempts of those groups who seek to exploit our vulnerable national situation in order to create confusion and social chaos, in order to seize power by unconstitutional means. We reject calls for juntas or revolutionary councils. Our political leaders have to be the first to observe and faithfully implement the Constitution. Revolving the crisis has to be within the framework of the Constitution and the laws of the land so as to avoid social chaos, the further weakening of political systems, and greater harm in the future,

12. On Non-Violence: Violent solutions, as Pope Paul VI taught us, "produce new injustices, throw more elements out of balance, and bring on new disasters" (Populorum Progressio 31) There are today, on different sides of the social and political spectrum, those who would instigate violence in order to promote their own agenda or causes. We reject the use of force and violence as a solution to our problems. Such cannot be an option of the Gospel, for we know that Jesus the Lord taught a Gospel of Love and non-violence.

13. On Effective Governance: "Public authority in order to promote the common good… requires also the authority to be effective in attaining that end" (Pacem in Terris, ch. IV) Together with competence, personal integrity is one of the most necessary requirements of a leader. Ineffective governance may be due to a lack of personal integrity or lack of competence. It could also be the result of a confluence of factors that have eroded trust and credibility and hence effectiveness. In our present situation we recognize that blame could be attributed to many, even all of us. Yet we would ask the President to discern deeply to what extent she might have contributed to the erosion of effective governance and whether the erosion is so severe as to be irreversible. In her heart she has to make the necessary decision for the sake of the country. We all need to do the same, Indeed moral discernment is very difficult since it is not based on political allegiance and alignments but on moral considerations.

Conclusion

14. Dear People of God, sadness and anxiety were our feelings when we as Bishops first met to study on various aspects of the crisis. To confront the fears and hopelessness that are the daily companions of our poor is to realize that we of the Church likewise contributed to them by our neglect, our bias, our selfishness.

15. To respond to the pastoral situation we commit ourselves to a more effective evangelization in word and deed so that moral values might become dynamic forces of human life in economics, politics and culture. We especially commit ourselves to the formation of men and women endowed with competence and integrity and empowered to effective leadership in the economic and political spheres. With the Gospel of truth, justice, peace and love in their hearts they might, indeed, be a leaven of social transformation for our country.

16. This year of the Eucharist reminds us to the abiding, loving, and healing presence of the Lord Jesus in our midst. By the grace and mercy of God and the maternal protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we pray that a deep sense of hope will prevail in these dark moments of our history. Our loving God will not abandon us no matter what pit of evil we have fallen into. We shall emerge stronger from this crisis. We shall rise endowed with greater integrity. We shall be witnesses to the power of God's grace to transform us into a noble nation, a holier Church, a united people.

FOR THE CATHOLIC BISHOPS' CONFERENCE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Fernando R. Capalla, D.D. President Archbishop of Davao

Arangkada for July 11, 2005

 

ALAS NI RAMOS

 

       Kon mangutana mo nganong nagpabilin pa si Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo sa Malakanyang, bisan sa lapad ug sibaw nang awhag sa iyang resignasyon, usa sa posibleng tubag mao ang pagkabuakbuak sa mga grupo nga managlahi og plano unsay angayng mahitabo kon mokanaog na ang presidente sa katungdanan:

·        Si kanhi presidente Corazon Aquino, ang Makati Business Club, faction sa Liberal Party ug nang-resign nga mga sakop sa gabinete gustong tumanon ang konstitusyon ug si Bise Presidente Noli de Castro ang mopuli niya;

·        Ang politikanhong oposisyon gustong magdungan pag-resign silang Arroyo ug de Castro usa ka caretaker council ang mopuli pagduma sa nasud; ug

·        Ang cause oriented groups nagplano pagtukod og transitory o revolutionary government nga maglakip sa tanang grupo nga nakigbatok sa administrasyon.

-o0o-

       Ang kahanap sa plano nga ipatuman kon mobiya na si Presidente Arroyo sa Malakanyang, bisan human motalikod sa presidente ang iyang suod nga mga alyado—ang nahibilin sa presidente mao na lang ang tradisyonal nga mga politico—nakahatag ni kanhi presidente Fidel Ramos og kahigayonan pagpagawas sa iyang alas.

       Sa di pa mag-piyesta ang mga loyalista ni Presidente Arroyo pagdeklarar ni Ramos nga manluluwas sa naapiking presidente, pahinumdoman ko namo nga grupo ra sang Ramos maoy usa sa nagsugnod sa pagtumaw sa sitwasyon nga nakahulga ni Arroyo.   Silang Heneral Fortunato Abat ug kanhi budget secretary Salvador Enriquez, mga batabata ni Ramos, maoy nagsugod sa awhag nga palagputon si Arroyo.  Si Ramos wa mokihol pagbadlong nila.

-o0o-

       Ang alternatibo nga gitanyag ni Ramos sa dihang niadto siya sa Malakanyang niadtong Biyernes sa hapon—kanus-a gitoohan nga hapit na malumpag nang Administrasyong Arroyo—dakong tamparos sa presidente.   Kon mapatuman, si Ramos nay tinuod nga hawod.  Magpabilin tuod si Arroyo sa katungdanan pero gilaslas ni Ramos ang iyang termino hangtod na lang sunod tuig.

       Ug mora na lang siyang kiko sa Palasyo.  Nga igo na lang magpaabot kanus-a mahuman ang gisugyot ni Ramos nga High Commission ug mga sakop sa Kongreso nga molingkod isip constituent assembly pag-usab sa konstitusyon ug pagpatawag og bag-ong eleksiyon sunod tuig.

-o0o-

       Nganong napugos man si Presidente Arroyo pagdawat sa sugyot ni Ramos?   Kay wa siyay kapilian.  Ang alternatibo mao nga napalayas na unta siya sa Malakanyang niadtong Sabado.  Bahalag lameduck na lang, mas madanihon gihapon ang usa pa ka tuig nga lugway pagpabilin sa Malakanyang.

       Gawas pa, ug mao ni mas dakong insentibo, ang plano ni Ramos maoy labing lig-ong garantiya nga di siya gukdon ug prisuhon sa bag-ong gobyerno tungod sa giingong higanteng mga atraso sa iyang bana, anak ug bayaw.

       Duna hinuoy nahibilin nga problema:  Unsaon nila pagkumbinser ang katawhan nga ang alas ni Ramos maoy labing makiangayong lusot gikan sa Gloriagate?  [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com       

Crowd Out Glo

Posted by Luz Rimban 
PCIJ

IT wasn't a quiet weekend at the Palace, as Malacañang went into overdrive bashing the Cabinet secretaries who tendered their resignations yesterday.

Lakas Congressman Prospero Pichay, interviewed on radio, flung accusations of conflict of interest against Customs Commissioner Alberto Lina who Pichay says formed a company called LGC logistics involved in the importation of electronic products for the Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal (Calabarzon) Area.  

Pichay claims to have confronted Lina a month ago with the matter but according to Pichay, Lina wouldn't let go of a P100-million business.

Pichay also says former Customs Commissioner Guillermo Parayno, until yesterday the chief of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, was also an incorporator in the company.

Presidential Chief of Staff Rigoberto Tiglao, interviewed over GMA-7, also had some things to say about his former colleagues, who he said "chose to grandstand."

Just four days ago, Tiglao said, President Arroyo gave resigned Secretary of Trade Juan Santos the go-signal to pursue an anti-poverty program.  There was also Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima whose proposal for the privatization of PAGCOR was considered by the administration but found impossible to implement without legislation from Congress. Tiglao also chastised resigned National Anti Poverty Commission Chair Imelda Nicolas for leaving the commission high and dry amid all the work that needed to be done.

"Para akong sundalo sa kainitan nang labanan, pagtalikod ko umalis na ang mga kasama ko (I felt like a soldier in the middle of a war who suddenly turned to find myself abandoned by my comrades)," Tiglao said of his resigned former colleagues who were themselves busy giving press conferences and interviews today.

What has happened is that for now, the Palace has shifted the focus of contention and debate from the President to her former Cabinet and sub-Cabinet appointees, which just might give the news media more than enough space to crowd out the President.

Arangkada for July 10, 2005

 

           AFP DISTANSIYA NA

 

       Si Kongresista Roilo Golez, ang labing unang sakop sa administrasyon nga niawhag ni Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo sa pag-resign, dunay talagsaong mensahe ngadto sa Armadong Kusog ug sa kapolisan:   Ayaw mo pagpanghilabot sa nagpadayong krisis sa liderato sa nasud.  Ang linya ni Golez sukwahi sa mensahe sa mga lider sa Edsa 1 ug 2 nga bukas nga nidasig sa kasundalohan ug kapolisan sa pagsuporta sa pakigbisog sa katawhan pagpalagpot sa administrasyon.

       Mahimong igo lang nagsunod si Golez sa linya sa US ug sa dagkong mga negosyante nga ang bisan unsang kausaban sa nasudnong liderato kinahanglang ipasubay sa konstitusyon.  O tingali masaligon siya nga mapugos sa oposisyon ug sa civil society groups si Presidente Arroyo pag-resign bisan kon di mosuporta sa ilang kawsa ang kasundalohan ug kapolisan.

-o0o-

       Makahuloganon sab ang pagdeklarar ni AFP Chief Efren Abu, di lang kausa kon dili kaduha gyod, nga magpabilin silang neutral ug nga ang ilang ipatigbabaw mao ang konstitusyon.   Napapas nang nahaunang pasalig ni Abu sa pag-ulbo sa kontrobersiya nga hingpit silang nagsuporta ni Presidente Arroyo.

       Naatol ba lang o tinuyo gyod nga nagkatakdo ang bag-ong postura ni Abu ug ang pasidaan sa US batok sa radikal nga mga paagi pagpalagpot sa administrasyon?  Unsa may implikasyon sa neutrality sa AFP:  Nga di na sila mopagamit sa ilang kasundalohan ug armoured personnel carriers aron paghasi sa mga protesta batok sa administrasyon?

-o0o-

       Gipamatud-an ni PNP Chief Arturo Lomibao nga mas lunod-patay siya para sa presidente.   Wa siya maghisgot og neutrality, hinunoa nilab-as sa iyang hingpit nga suporta para ni Presidente Arroyo.  Ambot bilib ba lang gyod sa presidente o nakumbinser nga ang iyang papel sa niaging eleksiyon, nga nabisto sa kontrobersiyal nga audio recording sa panag-istorya nilang Presidente Arroyo ug kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, maoy garantiya nga bitayon siya sa sunod nga pamunoan.

       Pero ang kapolisan ni Lomibao di na sama kalunod-patay.   Wa na nila babagi ang kaliboan nga nagprotesta sa Makati.  Ang maayong balita para sa Malakanyang mao nga ang mga demonstrador, kasagaran nila gidudahang hinakot ni Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay, nagkatibuwaag dihang tingpanihapon na.

-o0o-

       Ang pagtapok ni Presidente Arroyo sa mga politiko sa Malakanyang aron magsige lang gihapon og aleluya niya, nakapahinumdom nako sa kataposang mga adlaw sa diktadura ni kanhi presidente Ferdinand Marcos sa 1986.

       Ang giisip nga kataposang lansang sa politikanhong lungon ni Presidente Arroyo mao ang gikahadlokan sa Malakanyang nga deklarasyon sa Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) pag-awhag sa presidente pagkanaog sa katungdanan.   Ang tingog sa simbahan, kon modason sa awhag nilang kanhi presidente Corazon Aquino ug sa Makati Business Club, gipaabot nga maoy mopabaha sa minilyon ka katawhan sa kadalanan aron mapugos na gyod si Arroyo sa paglayas.   [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com      

      

Arangkada for July 9, 2005

 

             KINSAY MOPULI?

 

Sa akong pagsuwat ini, klaro nang mga tilimad-on nga mokanaog si Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo sa katungdanan. Nitingog na si kanhi presidente Corazon Aquino ug ang Makati Business Club ug ilang gidasonan ang nagkalapad nga awhag para sa iyang resignasyon. Apiki na kaayo siya bisan wa pa katingog ang Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) nga gikahadlokan sa Malakanyang nga moawhag sab niya pagpahawa sa Palasyo.

Ang nakapatakilid gyod sa administrasyon, nga maisugong nihulbot sa ilang kataposang baraha nga mao ang pagsaad og kausaban sa sistema nga nilamoy ug nakapadunot sa tanang mga politiko, mao ang pag-resign sa 10 ka mga sakop sa iyang gabinete—nga bisan minoriya ra pero maoy labing takos ug ligdong nga mga sakop sa iyang opisyal nga pamilya—bisan kon iya silang giminaruan pinaagi sa pag-una pagpangayo sa courtesy resignations sa tanang sakop sa gabinete.

-o0o-

Bisan sa tanang istorya sa iyang kalig-on, kaisog ug determinasyon, labi na nga napamatud-an sa kontrobersiyal nga audio recording sa panag-istorya nilang kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano nga di managana si Presidente Arroyo paglapas sa mga balaod kon maoy gikinahanglan pagpabilin sa gahom, wa ko magtoo nga makalahutay si Presidente Arroyo pagsukol ug pagpapating atubangan sa sibaw nga awhag sa iyang mga kaatbang nga karon gikuyogan na sa iyang mga kanhi dumadapig.

Nahibawo ang presidente nga di siyang kalahutay sa pagpaugat pagpahamtang sa iyang liderato ngadto sa katawhan nga nawad-an nag pagsalig ug pagtahud kaniya. Ang kinatibuk-an niyang kahanas sa politika gamiton sa pagseguro di lang sa iyang graceful exit kon dili, ug labaw na, sa pagpanagang nang daan nga di siya gukdon ug paninglan sa tanan niyang mga atraso sa mosunod nga pamunoan.

-o0o-

Nga mahitabo lang kon, sama sa Edsa 1 sa 1986 ug Edsa 2 sa 2001, kutob ra gihapon ta sa naandang pag-ilis sa mga personalidad. Sakto si Presidente Arroyo nga kinahanglang usbon ang sistema nga nilamoy ug sa ubang mga politiko nga sud na sa daghang katuigan nga nagbanusbanos paghupot sa gahom pero pulos napakyas pagtuman sa ilang gisaad nga kalamboan ug kaluwasan. Pero sayop siya nga kinahanglan siyang ipabilin sa katungdanan aron maoy moduma sa kausaban. Ang pagtangtang niya sa gahom maoy unang lakang nga gikinahanglan aron makasugod nang pag-usab sa dunot nga sistema.

Ang nakasubo kay bisan hapit na manamilit ang administrasyong Arroyo, wa pa magkauyon ang nagkalainlaing sektor kinsay mopuli. Si Bise Presidente Noli de Castro ba nga maoy gasto sa labing dagkong mga negosyante? Transitional government ba nga maoy gusto sa cause oriented groups? Civilian-military junta ba nga giduso ni Heneral Fortunato Abat? O lunsay nga military junta ba nga maoy gipasiatab ni Retired Colonel Billy Bibit ug sa junior officers nga iyang giangkon nga iyang gipangulohan? [30]   leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Gloria's Fighting Words

(Text of Pres. Arroyo's Nationwide TV/Radio Address on July 7, 2005)

 

Mga Minamahal kong kababayan.

When I was young and my late father Diosdado Macapagal was president of our country, I thought of him as the "good guy" and his political opponents on the other side were the "bad guys".

Because of my father's influence, I had always thought of myself as on the side of the good. Thus, it is very painful for me to know that among many of our countrymen today, I have been demonized as the "bad guy." This is unfair, but it is a cross that God in His wisdom has given me to bear, so I will bear it. I have never questioned God's ways before, and I will not do so now.

When I first entered politics in 1992, little did I know that within a decade, I would become president of our country. And little did I expect that within another five years, there would be calls from civil society for my resignation from office or for the formation of a "Truth Commission" regarding some of my political actuations.

When I spoke before the nation some two weeks ago, I did so against the advice of my legal counsel. But I thought that speaking before you, the Filipino people, was the right thing to do. Shameless people have peddled the lie that I confessed to cheating. What I disclosed was that I talked to an election official. But that this had taken place after the certificates of canvas had already been used to proclaim the winning senators, and it was those same certificates of canvass that showed that I won by around a million votes. That is the truth.

Indeed, it is right for our country to confront the truth, but if we do so, let's confront the biggest, most painful political truth. The big truth that we are aware of deep in our hearts, but that we collectively sweep under the rug. The big truth whose debilitating effects on our country, year after year, decade after decade, have developed into feelings of disgust, hopelessness and even despair among large segments of our society.

The truth that I discovered from my beginnings as a neophyte politician in 1992, rising to become a veteran politician through the years, is this: over the years, our political system has degenerated to such an extent that it is very difficult to live within the system with hands totally untainted. That is the truth. In addition, our system has degenerated to such an extent that more often than not, it is political agenda first, and national interest last. For example, we have endless investigations and scandals in aid of political and media projection, rather than in aid of legislation or executive action. That is the truth. Because of this system of politics, our country has been left behind by other countries in the region, and our best and brightest, the cream of our youth, are voting with their feet to leave the country. That is the truth.

I do not blame any individual or political block for this sad state of affairs. It is simply the truth that the political system that I am part of has degenerated to the point that it needs fundamental change. We are collectively to blame, so we must collectively be the solution. Let he who is without sin, cast the stone. To those who feel that they cannot cast the first stone, I invite you to help in the solution.

My proposed approach to reform our system of politics and governance is something that I had wanted to bring forth during the upcoming state of the nation address. However, because our country is hungry for a resolution to the political uncertainties that have plagued us these past few weeks, I will bring it up now.

First of all, I am not resigning my office. To do so under circumstances that connote an EDSA 3 would condemn any successor to the possibility of an EDSA 4, then an EDSA 5, and so on, unless our political system were first reformed to make it more responsive to the people's will, such that changes in leadership come about in an orderly and stable manner.

The world embraced EDSA 1 in 1986. The world tolerated EDSA 2 in 2001. The world will not forgive an EDSA 3 in 2005, but would instead condemn the Philippines as a country whose political system is hopelessly unstable. And the Filipinos as among the finest people in the world, but who always shoot themselves in the foot. Under those circumstances, who would invest money in the Philippines? How would we weather the difficulties arising from the price of crude oil being at its highest in history?

What I intend to do is to work with legislators and civil groups who believe that changes in the fundamental law of the land are necessary in order to confront such basic issues as federalism, the character of our legislative process, reducing red tape in government processes, running for public office under a true party system and with less need to raise campaign funds, modernizing the economic provisions of our constitution, and so forth.

At the same time, I will restructure and strengthen the cabinet, giving it a free hand to meanwhile reform and manage our day to day governance with as little political interference as possible, even from me.

This is how we will proceed.

First, I'm asking my entire cabinet to tender their resignation in order to give the executive a free hand to reorganize itself. I'll ask our sectors to give me the names of candidates that we can invite to replace those who will not return to the cabinet, or even to help out at other levels of the executive.

Second, the cabinet will be given a free hand on governance, while I focus on the fundamental changes that we need to put in place.

Third, I will begin to reach out to the political and civil sectors that have an interest in the various advocacies that are relevant to our constitution. Federalism, for example, is an advocacy that I had espoused long ago.

This is neither political ploy nor gimmick. I believe that this process will quickly lay the foundation for deep reforms in our society, including reforms in our political way of life. This would be a legacy that our generation of politicians and citizens could collectively be proud of. I now have grand children to play with and to help bring up. Like all of you, I want our children to grow up in a better Philippines. I have prayed on this, and I hope that I have discerned God's will properly.

Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat.

Arangkada for July 8, 2005

 

                MAS DAKONG ATRASO

 

Duha ka posibleng katin-awan nganong wa mokihol si Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo pagsusi kinsay utok sa pag-wiretap sa cellular phone ni kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano nga iyang gitawgan og labing menos ka-15 ka higayon samtang nagpadayon pang iskutenyo sa eleksiyon niadtong Mayo ug Hunyo sa niaging tuig:

• Mahimong may labot ang presidente sa pag-wiretap ni Garcillano aron pagseguro nga di siya mobalitok sa kampo ni Fernando Poe Jr.; o
• Nahadlok ang presidente nga kon mahibaw-an ang tinuod nga mga sirkumstansiya sa wiretapping, mabisto nga nakahimo diay siya og kalapasan nga mahimong mas grabe pa kay sa pagtikas sa niaging eleksiyon.

-o0o-

Kon toohan ang mga tinubdan sa abogado ni kanhi NBI deputy director Samuel Ong, si Atty. Homobono Adaza, nga na-interview sa DYAB Abante Bisaya, di lang gikan sa Malakanyang kon dili gikan gyod sa pamilya ni Presidente Arroyo ang sugo sa pag-wiretap ni Garcillano:

• Ang naghimo sa aktuwal nga wiretapping mao silang T/Sgt. Vidal Doble ug laing upat ka operatiba sa Intelligence Services of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP);
• Ang nagsugo nilang Doble mao ang hepe sa ISAFP atol sa eleksiyon nga si Rear Admiral Tirso Danga;
• Ang nagsugo ni Danga mao ang usa ka sakop sa gabinete ni Presidente Arroyo; ug
• Ang nagsugo sa sakop sa gabinete mao ang usa ka sakop sa pamilya ni Presidente Arroyo.

-o0o-

Kon tinuod nga ang pamilya mismo sa presidente maoy nagsugo sa wiretapping, mosamot siya og kaapiki. Kay suma sa gibalikbalik sa mga magbabalaod nga sipsip sa iyang administrasyon, ang pagpaminaw ug pag-record sa mga panag-istorya sa telepono nga way pagtugot sa korte ni pananghid sa mga nag-istorya klarong kalapasan sa Republic Act 4200.

Ang kadunot na sa kadungganan ni Garcillano mahimong makaiban og dyutay sa krimen. Pero ang wiretapping makapatumaw sa mas seryusong pangutana: Kon giunay pag-wiretap sa Malakanyang ang ilang alyado, unsa may garantiya nga wa sila mohimo og mas grabeng kalapasan sa balaod aron pagpangespiya sa ilang mga kaatbang sa politika o karibal nga mga negosyante?

-o0o-

Mao diay nga bisan mas importante ang nasudnong seguridad kay sa iyang personal nga mga interes, nipili si Presidente Arroyo pagtak-om labot sa wiretapping. Pero hangtod kanus-a siyang magtago sa kangitngit? Hangtod kanus-a niya malipat ang katawhan gikan sa kamatuoran?

Karong inanay nang nitakdo ang aktuwal nga mga panghitabo sa mga kasayuran nga nahisgutan sa tulo ka oras nga audio recording, makasugakod pa ba ang presidente sa pagpanalipod sa iyang kaugalingon inig sulpot na sa dugang mga ebidensiya nga wa siya mohunong sa pagmaniobra lang sa eleksiyon aron pagsegurong magpabilin sa gahom nga nakapabuhong pag-ayo sa iyang bana, anak, bayaw ug ubang mga suod? [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Sleepless in RP

Commentary: Arroyo's troubles leave investors sleepless in Manila

By Andy Mukherjee Bloomberg News

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo of the Philippines has explained how she beats the stress of what must be Asia's most embattled political job: by praying and then going to sleep.

 

"When I'm in my room, I lie down and I pray a lot, then I fall asleep," the 58-year-old leader is quoted as saying in Time magazine's July 4 Asian edition. "I do that all the time," said Arroyo, "usually at 3.30 p.m., after Mass."

 

Unlike the president, investors in the Philippines are a sleepless lot these days, though they too are saying their own prayer, and it's for Arroyo's political survival.

 

Arroyo, whose family members are being investigated by the antigraft prosecutor on charges that they had received payoffs from illegal gambling operators, this week apologized for talking on the phone to an election commissioner during the presidential vote count.

 

The opposition claims the taped conversation proves Arroyo cheated in the May 2004 poll to defeat her opponents, including the popular action-movie hero Fernando Poe Jr., who died late last year without conceding defeat.

 

While acknowledging a "lapse in judgment" in her June 27 television broadcast, Arroyo denied that her action had influenced the election's outcome. The difference between what Arroyo is accused of and what she has admitted to holds the key to investors' decisions on whether to stay in the Philippines.

 

The audio recording of the conversation, multiple versions of which are in circulation, does not prove the opposition's case that Arroyo tried to influence the vote, Standard & Poor's said Tuesday in a statement.

 

While the wiretap scandal has spooked investors and provided fodder for Internet chat rooms, it hasn't worked very well on the streets. The "e-power" of the recording that is being traded on the Internet has failed to match the zeal of the "People Power" movement, which toppled President Ferdinand Marcos in 1986.

 

Nor did anti-Arroyo demonstrations this month produce anywhere near the level of excitement of January 2001 when President Joseph Estrada was under popular pressure to resign following allegations of corruption.

 

In the absence of proof that she cheated to keep the top job until 2010, Filipino voters may be willing to "close this chapter" as Arroyo has urged them.

 

Investors, too, would be glad if the scandal just went away. That would allow them to focus on recent improvements in the debt-ridden country's chronic budget deficit.

 

The government posted a budget surplus of 3.3 billion pesos, or $59 million, in April, marking the first time in four years that revenue exceeded spending. Fiscal correction will gather speed as a value-added tax, or VAT, is introduced next year. VAT will improve the country's junk-bond debt rating and help push up bond prices.

 

"Unless real evidence of vote manipulation on a broad scale emerges in the coming weeks," Scott Wilson, executive director of investment research at UBS in Singapore, wrote in a note, "Arroyo's congressional support is likely to remain firm."

 

Wilson is maintaining his "buy" rating on Philippine bonds.

 

In the first five months of this year, tax collections were a fifth of a percentage point higher at 5.2 percent of gross domestic product, the first increase in eight years, according to UBS.

 

Fitch Ratings last month changed its outlook on Philippine debt to stable from negative, citing "significant fiscal measures," for which credit must go to Arroyo, who countered political opposition to push a law that will increase the value-added tax rate to 12 percent from 10 percent starting January 2006.

 

The increased rate, along with fewer VAT exemptions, is expected to lift revenue in 2006 by about 104 billion pesos.

 

Arroyo's administration also won praise last week from the International Monetary Fund, which hailed it for its "courageous campaign" against tax evaders.

 

Standard & Poor's said Tuesday that Arroyo's apology was unlikely to affect the country's foreign-currency rating of BB-, three levels below investment grade.

 

"Over the long term, however, the possibility of a president weakened by diminished public support and an obstructive legislature could heighten political instability," said an S&P analyst, Agost Benard. "That might further impede the administration's efforts to put public finances on an even keel."

 

Public debt exceeds the Philippines' gross domestic product of $85 billion.

 

A weak Arroyo would be more acceptable to investors than the chaos that might occur if she were ousted.

 

If Arroyo is impeached or forced to quit, Vice President Noli de Castro will replace her, pending new elections.

 

The vice president enjoys mass appeal, though "he has limited support from the business community and the elite," Credit Suisse First Boston's regional economist, Sailesh Jha, wrote in a research note last week.

 

Investor sentiment is crucial for the Philippines to stem the decline in the peso, which has fallen 2.4 percent against the U.S. dollar in the past month, more than any other Asian currency.

 

A weak currency increases the cost of debt payment - the government's net overseas borrowings equal 48 percent of the country's annual current account receipts.

 

With so much riding on Arroyo's ability to survive the political crisis and stay focused on the economy, investors hope the president is alert - and awake.

Arangkada for July 7, 2005

 

             BOMBA SA TIME

 

Kay wa man mopakitag interes si Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ug ang Malakanyang pag-ila kinsay nag-wiretap sa ilang panagsulti ni kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, bisan upat na ka semana human niulbo ang kontrobersiya, ug kay di man sab interesado ang Kongreso gawas ni Senador Rodolfo Biazon, ug kay otro man sang nilingiw ang media gawas sa Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) ug Newsbreak, dakong baligho nga ang Time, ang labing dakong magasin sa Estados Unidos, maoy nakauna pag-detalye sa ruta sa tulo ka oras nga audio recording sa wa pa mapabati ngadto sa publiko.

Ang artikulo sa Time sinuwat nilang Anthony Spaeth sa Washington ug Nelly Sindayen sa Manila maoy labing unang detalyadong asoy sa "Gloriagate" nga nabasahan sa Amerikanhong mga opisyal ug katawhan. Naglakip ni sa pagsuway sa Malakanyang pag-cover-up sa eskandalo pinaagi sa pagpresentar og pekeng bersiyon uban ni Edgar Ruado, ang chief of staff ni Kongresista Iggy Arroyo, bayaw sa presidente, nga niinsistir nga siya si "Gary" nga maoy ka-istorya sa presidente.

-o0o-

Niang di na kaayo bag-o dinhi sa Pilipinas pero eksplosibo pa gihapong kasayuran gikan sa Time, labi na atubangan sa determinadong paningkamot ni Presidente Arroyo pagkuha sa padayong suporta ni US President George Bush:

• Si T/Sgt. Vidal Doble sa Intelligence Services of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) maoy ni-wiretap sa cellular phone ni Garcillano sa mga buwan sa Mayo ug Hunyo sa niaging tuig isip kabahin sa iyang normal nga trabaho;
• Gihatag ni Doble ang orihinal nga kopya sa recording ngadto sa drayber ug bodyguard ni Atty. Samuel Ong, kanhi deputy director sa National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Mayo karong tuiga;
• Nakadawat og duha ka audiotapes gikan sa wa niya mailhing tinubdan pinaagi sa koreyo niadto gihapong Mayo si kanhi senador Francisco Tatad;
• Niadtong Mayo 15, gisumiter ni Tatad ang audiotapes ngadto sa iyang abogadong si Allan Paguia kinsa iya sang gipangayoan og tambag unsaon pagamit ang recording; ug
• Si Paguia mao nay naghimo og 32 minutos nga CD version nga wa na maglakip sa iyang gihulagway nga pribadong mga istorya sa pribadong mga indibiduwal.

-o0o-

Nipadayag og pagduda ang Time sa motibo ni Doble paghatag sa orihinal nga kopya sa recording ngadto ni Ong. Tinuod ba siyang gibayran sa oposisyon? Dunay mas klarong tubag ang artikulo sa Newsbreak: Gibisto sa kadagkoan sa ISAFP ang recording human laslasi ni AFP Chief Efren Abu ang dagkong gahom sa ahensiya.

Laing mga pangutana: Diin man gikan ang kopya ni Senador Panfilo Lacson nga iyang gipada para sa authentication sa eksperto sa Asutralia? Naatol ba lang nga si Doble sakop ni Lacson niadto sa Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF)? [30]   leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Tatad Is Tape's Source

Tale of The Tape
He Said, She Said
BY ANTHONY SPAETH AND NELLY SINDAYEN/MANILA

At the center of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's woes is a widely circulated tape of purported telephone conversations between a woman and an election officer identified by ex-colleagues as Virgilio Garcillano. Here's why the recording is proving so troublesome for Arroyo:

What does the tape say?
It contains more than a dozen conversations between a man referred to as "Garci" and several callers, including a voice that sounds like Arroyo's. The most damaging excerpt is this:

Female voice: "So will I still lead by 1M [sic]?"
Garci: "More or less it's that advantage, ma'am."
Female voice: "It cannot be less than 1M?"
Garci: "I will force it."

What is the implication?
The "1M" may refer to 1 million votes—which is about the margin by which Arroyo won the May 2004 presidential election. In her apology to the nation last week, she admitted to a "lapse in judgment" for phoning an official of the Commission on Elections. She said she did so to ensure her lead would not be eroded by her opponents cheating. Arroyo's critics say that by contacting an election official during the counting, she abused her power. Arroyo neither mentioned the tape nor said the female voice was hers, and did not name the election official she talked to.

Why not?
That might have hoisted Arroyo on her own petard. On June 6, the presidential palace released two tapes: the Garci tape that is circulating, and another tape recording of the President speaking to someone called Gary, with similar dialogue. The palace said the Garci tape was doctored to make Arroyo look bad, and that the Gary tape is the genuine recording. A few days later, an Arroyo loyalist in the central Philippines, Edgar Ruado, chief of staff of Mrs. Arroyo's Congressman brother-in-law Ignacio Arroyo, came forward to say he was Gary. If Arroyo's voice was indeed the one on the Garci tape, and she had acknowledged so, she would have tacitly admitted that the Gary tape was a lie—implying a presidential palace cover-up.

How did the Garci tape become public?
Francisco Tatad, a former Senator in the opposition camp, says he received two audiotapes from an anonymous source in the mail in May. He gave them to a lawyer, Alan Paguia, asking for legal advice on the conversations. Paguia, who worked in 2003 as an attorney for Arroyo's predecessor Joseph Estrada, made a 32-minute condensed version. When the palace released its copy of the conversations (the Gary tape), Paguia started distributing the other version on CD. The lawyer says he wasn't working on behalf of Estrada, but had his own reasons for spreading the CDs: in November 2003 the Supreme Court had suspended Paguia's right to practice law for his repeated criticism of its approval of Arroyo's taking over the presidency from Estrada.

Who recorded the phone conversations in the first place?
Technical Sergeant Vidal Doble has admitted to taping the phone calls as part of his duties at the Intelligence Services of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Doble says he gave the original tapes to the driver and bodyguard of Samuel Ong, a former deputy chief of the National Bureau of Investigation. Why he did so—whether he was paid by the opposition, as has been alleged by Arroyo's aides—is unclear. Ong is in hiding; the original tapes, according to his attorney, are with a trusted friend. Election officer Garcillano has also disappeared and is rumored to have left the country.

The Wiretapped Voices

Posted by Sheila Coronel 
PCIJ

AS I write this, the House of Representatives is playing the three-hour tape submitted by former Estrada lawyer Alan Paguia. Contrary to speculations, opposition senators have nothing to worry about. There is nothing in those tapes that implicates them. They are home free — for now. The same, however, cannot be said for some oppositionists running for local posts in Mindanao.

Today the Commission on Elections chairman, Benjamin Abalos, confirmed that during the elections, he got calls from three opposition senatorial candidates — Juan Ponce Enrile, Jamby Madrigal and Jinggoy Estrada. Enrile, who was reelected senator in 2004, admitted that he did speak to the Comelec chair, but only to make sure that his votes were properly counted. Madrigal and Estrada are so far silent.

So far, there have been no apologies for the impropriety of those calls, or of "lapses in judgment." Maybe the intent was to show, as Rep. Pichay has been repeating over and over the last few days,  that the President's phone calls to Garcillano were not unusual in our political culture.

But back to The Tape. The one that is playing in the House at the moment is also the same one released by former NBI Director Samuel Ong, and which you can download for free from this site (no need to go through a congressional hearing).

We have identified, with the help of four Comelec personnel and other sources, about two dozen voices on those tapes, and none of them belongs to an opposition senator.

Apart from the president, the First Gentleman and Garcillano himself, the voices we have identified include those of six candidates who ran in 2004, 11 Comelec officials, three political party lawyers and supporters, as well as Garcillano's wife Grace and secretary Ellen Peralta.

In addition, intelligence sources identified for us three of the five ISAFP agents who annotated the tape — that is, these agents, who were most likely the ones also tapping Garcilliano introduced each of the calls by identifying who was in them and the time and date it took place.

We will reveal the identities of all these people later this week, when the special edition of our i Report hits the streets. But for now, the opposition senatorial candidates can rest easy. None of them are included in whatever version of the "Hello Garci" tape. What should give them reason to worry is if Garcillano makes a comeback.

After all, in a June 7 interview with reporters, the Comelec commissioner looked very confident. At that point,  he didn't seem worried about any possible investigation of the wiretaps. He wasn't worried about the opposition, either. He said:  "I helped many of them, I have many friends among them."

That was a month ago,  when the only versions of the conversations that had been made public were those released by Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye. Garcillano didn't yet know that the three-hour recording existed. A few days later, he dropped out of sight.

To help the congressmen make sense of the recording, here is a list of the candidates we identified as having called Garcillano from May 17 to June 18, 2004.

• Robert Barbers
  Former senator; K4 senatorial candidate May 2004
  (Spoke to Garcillano on May 24 17:37; May 25 15:19; May 26 09:11; after May 26 19:50; May 29 15:16; June 3 13:35, 13:37, 13:39, 19:03; June 4 12:05; June 8 12:33; June 14 10:32; referred to in other Garci calls on May 24 16:00; May 25 11:45; June 1, 14:12, 15:07; June 2 10:23, 11:56; June 6 12:03; June 8 12:02, 14:33, 15:33; June 20, 12:08)

• Suharto "Teng" Mangudadatu
  Rep., lone district, Sultan Kudarat, elected May 2004; believed to be closely associated with First Gentleman Mike Arroyo
  (Spoke to Garcillano on June 4 08:32; June 20 12:08 and was referred to in conversations on May 29 09:47; June 6 12:03; June 16 12:57)

• Abdullah Dimaporo
  Rep., Lanao del Norte, re-elected May 2004
  (Spoke to Garcillano on June 8 17:28; June 9 06:39)

• Gerardo Espina Sr.
  Former representative, lone district Biliran; municipal mayor, Naval, elected May 2004
  (Spoke to Garcillano on June 9 13:30)

• Juhary Abinal Galo
  Mayoralty candidate, Lumba-Bayabao, Lanao del Sur
  (Spoke to Garcillano on June 2 21:45)

• Abdusakur Tan
  Former governor, Sulu; KNP gubernatorial candidate, May 2004
  (Spoke to Garcillano on June 8 12:14, 15:56)

Garci: A Tarnished Man

Poll official at heart of tape crisis has tarnished image 
By Agence France-Presse

VIRGILIO Garcillano, the man accused of stealing the 2004 election for Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, has faced allegations in the past of ballot-box skullduggery. The 68 year-old former Commission on Elections (Comelec) official is widely suspected of being one of the voices in a taped telephone conversation which allegedly shows Arroyo conniving with him to fix the May 2004 vote. The first part of the conversation, with a voice sounding like Arroyo's, saying "Hello, Garci?", has become an object of derision --widely used in rap tunes and mobile phone ringtones. But at the House of Representatives, which is investigating the alleged cheating, the three-hour tapes are serious stuff and are being used to bolster opposition calls for Arroyo to be unseated. "It's like undergoing a seminar for electoral fraud," said legislator Roilo Golez, the president's former national security adviser who broke away from his ex-boss last week over the controversy. Garcillano, who has withdrawn from the public eye since the scandal broke in June, was quoted in an interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper on Wednesday as saying that "many of those conversations ([on the tape] are doctored." Portrayed in the tapes as a polyglot who fielded calls in the main dialects of Cebuano, Tagalog and Ilocano, Garcillano categorically denied that he promised Arroyo a one-million-vote victory margin and said he would confront his accusers at the proper time. He has maintained there is nothing improper in a candidate speaking to a commissioner of the independent Comelec before the vote count is finished, adding that he spoke with other opposition and administration candidates before the votes were tallied. Other Comelec officials and candidates have since come forward, admitting that they had conversations about the elections before the count was finished. But all of them state that they did nothing improper. Garcillano however has a poor reputation as an election official that hurts his credibility, especially with the Congress. A lawyer and reserve military officer, Garcillano joined the election commission as a special attorney soon after passing the bar in 1960. He was stationed for much of his time in the southern island of Mindanao, a volatile place where political warlords use feudal loyalties, patronage, and private armies to win votes during elections. As he moved up the ranks of Comelec, Garcillano was hit by accusations of involvement of election cheating although few of the accusers went public. The most prominent case came in 1995 when then-senatorial candidate Aquilino Pimentel accused Garcillano of using his position as regional elections director in Mindanao to help switch votes from Pimentel to another candidate. Garcillano was never found guilty but Pimentel never forgot and is one of those leading the effort to unseat Arroyo. Despite Garcillano's checkered history, Arroyo in March 2004 appointed him one of the Comelec commissioners, a sensitive position that includes the independent supervision of voting and tallying during national polls. Congress, which must confirm the appointment of Comelec officials, bypassed Garcillano's appointment seven times -- effectively showing its disapproval. But Arroyo re-appointed him each time, bolstering speculation that the two enjoy a special relationship.