Maraming salamat sa iyo, Tita Cory, at paalam.

01Aug09

This is an entry dedicated to the lady in yellow. I thought it was only fitting to post her 1991 State of the Nation Address –her last SONA — before Ramos became president.

Someone who will stand in this place next year, may do better for I believe in the inexhaustible giftedness of the Filipino people. I only hope that he will be someone who will sincerely mean you well.

I hope that history will judge me as favorably as our people still regard me, because, as God is my witness, I honestly did the best I could. No more can be asked of any man.

On June 30, 1992, the traditional ceremony of political succession will unfold at the Luneta. The last time it was done that way was in 1965. I shall be there with you to proudly witness the event. This is the glory of democracy, that its most solemn moment should be the peaceful transfer of power.

Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat at paalam.

Maraming salamat din sa iyo, Tita Cory.

—–

PRESIDENT CORAZON C. AQUINO – The State of the Nation Address 1991

Opening of the fifth Regular Session of the Congress of the Philippines
July 22, 1991

This is the last time I shall address you on such an occasion as this. Let us clear the air between us.

Filed under: Uncategorized   |  Leave a Comment

Will Recent Bombings Lead to Declaration of Martial Law?

13Jul09

The idea of self-preservation means nothing to people who equate self with power. Whose sense of meaning, whose self-worth, whose defining characteristic is power. I suspect that between Marcos and Gloria, the latter has the deeper need for it. She has people kneeling before her, she can ignore the derision, the ridicule, all the slights that have come her way in her life, real or imagined. She loses that, she is nothing. She has no meaning, she has no life, she has no self. None that is worth preserving.

- Conrado de Quiros

Filed under: Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo   |  2 Comments
Tags: Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Martial Law

Know your candidate!

02Jul09

Below are some websites you can visit to learn more about our candidates:

http://ph.politicalarena.com/
http://politics.inquirer.net/
http://www.youthvotephilippines.com/

Please add links by commenting below if you find other relevant websites Let’s make an informed decision in 2010!

Thank you.

Filed under: 2010 Elections   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: 2010 Elections, Inquirer, Philippine Elections, Youth Vote

Utang na Loob

02Jul09

It is not the number of times she has visited Pampanga in the past three months that is important, nor is it her desire to represent the district come 2010. The point that should be examined is the kind of politics she brings to the province… Patronage politics is politics of the worst kind precisely because it exploits the material deprivation of the many. Ms. Arroyo’s political moves are objectionable not only because they are aimed at perpetuating herself in power, but more importantly because they perpetuate the impotence of our people.

—————————————————————
THE PROMISE OF POLITICS

By: Randy David

The public has watched with great interest the almost weekly visits of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to Pampanga, particularly to the province’s second district, where she is a registered voter. These unusual visits, too numerous to ignore, have fueled speculation that Ms Arroyo may be preparing to contest the district’s seat, either as representative in the present Congress or as member of Parliament in a new parliamentary government.

Filed under: 2010 Elections, Charter Change   |  2 Comments
Tags: 2010 Elections, Cha-cha, Chacha, Charter Change, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, GMA, Padrino System, Pampanga, Patronage Politics, Randy David

Monsters vs. Aliens

01Jul09

Authored by: fairyprincess

That is picture of the Parliamentary building of Singapore. There is a running joke in universities that it looks like a spaceship because the concept of human rights is alien in Singapore. Haha. Well, a revering hall may not work either, because I know a hall that is filled with leaders who alienate the needs of their people.

***

One of the many interesting people I met in choir practice is Ma’am Ann. She has been working for a foreign couple who has job assignments all over the world so for the past 5 years she has been country hopping to Dubai, Switzerland, Australia, Finland, Hong Kong but her home base has always been Singapore. Her family is from a small province in Luzon and she goes home 1-2 times a year, particularly to see her 3-year old grandson, although at this point of her story, I think she is lying because she doesn’t look a day older than 45. Ma’am Ann dedicates most of her free time for a global religious network whose task is, according to my narrow understanding, to aid in priestly duties and do community work like visit the hospitals and home for the aged.

I asked her if she will vote for next year’s elections, and, without a pause, she layed out her  naked, unaduterated response - Bakit pa? She then narrates to me how her brother used to support an honest candidate going against an incumbent, and how she was a poll watcher and she guarded the boxes, and how they thought, this is it: with enough perserverance, we will prevail. Then the tauntings started, then the threats, then the killings. In the end, they were back at the beginning. It is not perseverance prevailed; it is the padrino system.

Then she tells me of how even the Philippine Embassy and Consulate today turns their head away from their needs.

Filed under: OFW   |  1 Comment
Tags: Batasan, Hongkong, OFW, Padrino System, Philippine Consulate, Philippine Elections, Philippine Embassy, Singapore