Igan Arnold Clavio on SONA 2009 with Monsod, Villar, Legarda and Escudero: Winnie Monsod Says GMA Failed in Education, Poverty and Employment

28 July 2009

In this One-on-One with Igan, Arnold Clavio discusses PGMA's SONA 2009 with economist Winnie Monsod, Senator Manny Villar, Senator Loren Legarda and Senator Chiz Escudero.  Off the bat, Monsod contradicted some of PGMA's glowing report; according to Monsod, PGMA failed in the areas of education, poverty and employment.

For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV

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July 7, 2009 — Today is the 117th Founding Anniversary of the Katipunan — Binigyang-Pansin Po Ba Ito ng NHI?!

7 July 2009

One hundred seventeen years ago today, on July 7, 1892, Andres Bonifacio and a few friends met secretly in a house on Azcarraga St. (now Claro M. Reco Avenue) to establish a secret organization that will eventually free the Philippines from foreign rule.  That organization was the Katipunan.

My good friend, Prof. Ding Reyes, reminded me of today's significance in our nation's history in his email which I reproduce in full below:

ngayong hulyo 7, 2009, ika-117 taong kaarawan ng pagkakatatag ng Kataas-taasang, Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan, kilalanin natin ang esensya ng papel nito sa kasaysayan ng Pilipinas.

 

basahin ang tungkol sa hamon sa atin ng La Liga Filipina at ng Katipunan sa kasalukuyan. buksan ang http://readdingz. blogspot. com

 

Sinimulan nang iserye saa internet ang nilalaman ng aklat kong Kartilya Ngayon! (2007), buksan ang http://kartilya. 8m.net

 

Dakilain natin sa pamamagitan ng pagsasabuhay ang diwa ng Katipunan!

 

read MY BLOGS at http://readdingz. blogspot. com & view my books in on-line catalog, http://bookmakers- phils.8m. net. See alsohttp://kamayanforum .8m.net; and http://sanibdasal. 8m.net.  

One would normally expect our country's National Historical Institute (NHI) to remember this date in its website with all the due prominence that it deserves.  Alas, this is how the NHI website's home page looks as of today July 7, 2009, 10:20am:

Wouldn't it have been better, even just for today, if the NHI had emblazoned on its home page a fitting artwork that would have remembered the Katipunan's founding on this date one hundred seventeen years ago?

Wala na nga pong karampatang pag-alala sa website ng NHI eh ganito pa po ang nangyayari sa Monumento ngayon.  Isa na itong "Vanishing Monumento (I took this picture along EDSA about 200 meters away from the Monumento several days ago)"

Kailan po kaya personal na magsasalita ang ating mga Senador sa bagay na ito?

At this point, please allow me acknowledge to the attention given to this issue by the Office of Senator Loren Legarda through his Chief Legislative Officer, Atty. Antonio Paredes, Jr. and one of his able legislative staff members, Mr. Jet Pacapac.  

Senator Legarda's office sent letters to the Office of Chairman Ambeth Ocampo of the NHI, Mayor Enrico "Recom" Echiverri of Caloocan City and several others expressing concern about what is happening in Monumento and endorsing my Open Letter for the consideration of these government officials. (I'll post scanned images of the other letters when I return; the one below is addressed to Chairman Ambeth Ocampo of the NHI; please click on the image to enlarge).  

I also like to thank the Office of Senator Mar Roxas which several months ago also wrote letters to our authorities about the Monumento upon my request.  None of these authorities have replied.  One had me called up but they have not bothered to make any written replies.

I approached Senator Gordon after the Blue Ribbon Committee hearing yesterday and he promised to look into the matter.

We were at the NHI yesterday and it's an enlightening experience.  I have a lot more to say about this when I return. 

Here is a teaser of what is there to discuss (please click on the image to enlarge):

It's a photograph I took yesterday of an NHI memo written on September 4, 2007 by NHI Director Ludovico Badoy addressed to Mr. Melquiades Robles of the LRTA regarding revised plans for the Monumento. 

Thank you for bearing with me.  

Huwag po nating isuko ang dangal ng Pilipinas sa Monumento!

To God be the glory!

Naalala ko po tuloy ang awiting "Kahit Konting Pagtingin," ito po ang lyrics niya:

 

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Senator Loren Legarda on the Imperiled Poll Automation, the Torture of Fil-Am Melissa Roxas and the Murder of Jonathan Fetalvero

30 June 2009

Senator Loren Legarda is still out of the country — I know many people wanted her back as early as last week, I understand she's coming back on July 2 — but she has released this press statement on three important issues of the day:

Press Release
June 30, 2009

Press statement of Senator Loren Legarda

On imperiled poll automation

There may be merit in allowing the other bidders in the Comelec's poll automation project to complete their deficiencies so that they may contend for the project, a possibility pointed out by Comelec Chairman Jose Melo.

True, there may not be enough time to start a new bidding for the poll automation project. But with this statement by Chairman Melo, who said the bidding has to be started from scratch, by all means, Comelec must look at this possibility or some legally feasible alternatives, instead of altogether shutting the door on a computerized election.

Without any honest-to-goodness effort by the Comelec to push poll automation, the people may be justified in thinking that they had been taken for a ride by some parties whose interests would be served by the status quo - that of holding a manual election which is more vulnerable to fraud.

On Fil-Am's torture

The account of torture by Filipino-activist Melissa Roxas at the hands of purported military men in the Philippines is most troubling and deplorable. This administration cannot just brush it aside because the account was, more or less, congruent with its pockmarked human rights track record.

While the Commission on Human Rights wants Ms. Roxas to come back to the Philippines, I would understand if she would refuse to do so having been traumatized by her experience and knowing that she had made some very powerful enemies here.

CHR should consider to instead meet with Ms. Roxas in the United States so that her deposition can be taken in order to pinpoint those responsible for the reprehensible crime which she said had been committed against her.

On killing of yet another media practitioner

The killing of Jonathan Fetalvero, a hard-hitting radio broadcaster, underscored once more the culture of violence against media practitioners that had marked this administration.

The sixth media man to have been killed in the country since January and the 67th under the Arroyo administration, Fetalvero had been added to the long list of journalists who had been silenced permanently, probably by people who do not like their hard-hitting ways of exposing corruption and other wrongdoings in society.

Justice has been elusive to the other victims of violence against Fetalvero, and we can but urge our law enforcement authorities to do their duty with utmost dedication so that these crimes can be solved.

This is the affidavit of Melissa Roxas, and the following video clips show Roxas making her allegations against the AFP and AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner denying AFP involvement in the abduction and torture, all courtesy of GMANews.tv: 

I wish Senator Legarda will speak out openly and clearly on the raging H1N1 menace.  We need her leadership on this issue, she being the Chairman of the Senate's Committee on Health and Demography.  The prima donna attitude of the DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III is simply unacceptable.  

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Let's Support the Call for an H1N1 Summit in the Philippines — Secrecy and Ignorance Cannot Defeat an Unseen Viral Enemy

26 June 2009

Secrecy cannot defeat an unseen H1N1 viral enemy.  Let's push for an H1N1 summit wherein the entire nation will know all the facts about H1N1, the dangers, the risks and what steps we can take collectively to win the fight against H1N1. Ignorance will never protect us and this is one instance wherein what we don't know can hurt us. 

Yesterday, I was at the Senate to attend the Senate hearing on H1N1 updates attended by officials from the DOH, the DepEd, CHED, NDCC, DILG, staff members of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography.  Mr. Jet Pacapac of the Office of Senator Loren Legarda informed me about the hearing which was presided over by Atty. Antonio Paredes, Jr., Senator Legarda's Chief Legislative Officer.

I was able to record portions of the proceedings and I will post them here or at youtube when I come back tonight.  

Those of you who have followed this blog know my position on the secretive attitude by the DOH regarding the flights which brought in the first infected H1N1 passengers into the Philippines. 

This secretive attitude by the Philippine DOH is the opposite of the stance adopted by our neighbors in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia and Singapore wherein they immediately informed publicly all the passengers of the flights that carried the first instances of H1N1 infection.  All of those passengers were told to call their health ministry hotline where presumably they were instructed precisely how to conduct themselves and protect themselves in case they exhibit symptoms and how they can help other people simply by keeping away from them as much as possible; this two-way communication is superior and faster to the one-way communication adopted by the DOH and enables all concerned to better protect themselves and to perform the necessary social distancing so they can prevent unnecessary spread of the infection.    

DOH officials explained to the Committee that they did not disclose these details because the law does not allow it.  I still have to find exactly what that law is but even assuming that were true, our government should seriously consider amending said law quickly because it is obvious that it is not helping us in our fight against H1N1.  

In the said hearing, I also informed the Committee about a certain school I know of wherein students and their parents were offered the regular flu vaccine for P800 per shot which is higher than the P400 to P700 per shot that we often hear on TV.  The memo to the students and their parents did not even bother to clarify that the regular flu vaccine is ineffective against H1N1. Worse, the memo did not even bear the signature or endorsement of  the school principal who is legally and morally responsible for all the students.

I gave a copy of the memo to the DepEd representative who attended the hearing.  I expect our government to do something about this matter and on the  general issue of lowering the prices of drugs and other products vital in the fight against H1N1.

I also called for an H1N1 summit wherein government agencies and various sectors of society such as doctors, health workers, the media, drug companies and ordinary citizens can get together to sit down and discuss openly all the problems and possible solutions related to H1N1 such as how to bring down the price of vital anti-viral drugs like Tamiflu.  The DepEd representative appeared very supportive of this idea and they appeared to be thinking along the same lines.

I also brought to the attention of the Committee the need to discuss more openly the concept of cytokine storms and how the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic killed millions of healthy young men and women because of this scientific phenomenon wherein the immune system of people infected by the virus overact causing a condition known as ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) which permanently damages the lungs leading to what is more popularly known as multiple organ failure. 

This is a historical fact and the earlier we discuss it and make people more aware of it, the better it will be for all of us.  The objective is not to cause panic among people but to instruct them about it, raise consciousness and hopefully, get their support in a comprehensive strategy against H1N1.

In fairness to the DOH and other members of the panel, they received the suggestions openly and said that they would consider them.  I wish to thank everybody concerned especially the Office of Senator Loren Legarda and the offices of the other Senators who are members of the Senate Health Committee, the DOH, DepEd, CHED, NDCC, DILG, WHO representatives and Dr. Mavic Vasquez of quarantine who answered my question on the flight details issue.

Just to show what I mean regarding the contrast between the secretive attitude of the DOH and the transparent policy of the Malaysian Health Ministry, I reproduce below part of my blog post on May 22, 2009:

* start of May 22, 2009 blog post *

First Confirmed H1N1 Case in the Philippines — Bakit sa Malaysia Sinabi Yung Airlines & Flight No. Nung First H1N1 Case, Bakit sa Pilipinas, Hindi?

22 May 2009

At the end of this post is the latest update as of May 22 in the new DOH website.  It is dated May 21 but I'm sure it was posted only today.

What is evident in this latest update by the DOH is that IT DOES NOT TELL US THE AIRLINES AND FLIGHT NO. which brought this 10-year old girl back home to the Philippines.

Let's compare this first H1N1 case handling by the Philippine DOH with the first H1N1 case handling by Malaysia, our next-door neighbor.

This is a screenshot of a ChannelNewsAsia video report on May 15, 2009:

This are two screenshots of a Star video report on May 15, 2009 clearly identifying Malaysia Airline flight MH091 from Newark, New Jersey, USA as the flight taken by the first Malaysia H1N1 case patient:

and asking the passengers of said flight to contact the Health Ministry at its hotlines:

  

This is the video clip of the Star report from youtube:

Why is it that the Malaysians could disclose the airlines and flight no. which took the first H1N1 case patient to Malaysia from the United States while here in the Philippines, the health authorities have, so far, told us nothing?!  

Paano tayo magiging VIGILANT kung WALA TAYONG ALAM?!!!

To sum up, heto po yung detalye nung first Malaysian H1N1 case:

MALAYSIA FIRST H1N1 CASE

Patient Name :  Undisclosed   

Age :   21

Country of Origin :  United States

City of Origin :  Newark, New Jersey, USA

Destination :  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Airlines :  Malaysian Airlines

Flight No. :  MH091

Arrival Date :  May 13, 2009

Arrival Time :  7:15am

This is the first Philippines H1N1 case:

PHILIPPINES FIRST H1N1 CASE

Patient Name :  Undisclosed  (Understandable because she's a child)

Age :   10

Country  of Origin :  United States

City of Origin :  Not disclosed to the public (why?)

Destination :  NAIA or maybe, Centennial (probably)

Airlines :  Not disclosed to the public (why?)

Flight No. :  Not disclosed to the public (why?)

Arrival Date :  May 18, 2009

Arrival Time :  Not disclosed to the public (why?)

What is the difference between Malaysia and the Philippines? 

The Malaysians have a better right to know?  Bakit?!

* end of May 22, 2009 blog post *

I believe you can judge for yourself which is the better approach.

  

 

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Senator Legarda Appeals to the DOH to "Bombard People with right info on swine flu" — YES! — Start with Flight No. of First Confirmed H1N1 Case in RP

27 May 2009

While browsing the Senate website, I ran accross this press release by the office of Senator Loren Legarda.  Senator Legarda is Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography and what she says about the matter is important: 

Press Release
May 22, 2009

Loren asks DOH: Bombard people with right info on swine flu

Senator Loren Legarda yesterday said that Filipinos must take the first confirmed case of swine flu infection in the country calmly, while taking sanitary precautions like the frequent washing of hands and the use of face masks if applicable.

"The Department of Health must seek the help of media - radio, television and newspapers - to disseminate precautionary guidelines and on what should be done when swine flu infection is suspected," said Loren.

"This is one instance when the people wouldn't mind being bombarded with information by DOH. There's no such thing as information overload when it comes to swine flu. But the important thing is that our people are getting the right information."

The chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, Loren added that Filipinos must also work to improve their immune system by exercising, having a balanced diet and getting plenty of rest.

"Being healthy certainly helps in view of reports that most of the 80 deaths worldwide associated with swine flu arose from complications with other ailments," she said.

As the symptoms of swine flu are very similar to common flu cases, Loren said that all Filipinos who feel feverish must immediately seek medical attention.

"The important thing is for us not to disregard symptoms as just a case of the common cold. It's better to err on the side of caution on this matter."

"But what are the symptoms? What should people do, step by step, if they suspect possible infection? The DOH must inform the people because false information can sow panic and complicate our efforts to contain the spread of the virus."

Loren said that the Philippines dealt well with the SARS and avian flu scare, but that health authorities must double their efforts against swine flu.

The senator said health officials must note how the virus quickly spread in Japan from just four confirmed cases to over 200 cases at present in at least three major cities.

Yesterday, before I learned about this press release, I called up the office of Senator Legarda to ask her help in asking the DOH to give the people more information on the H1N1 confirmed cases.  I was told by her staff that Senator Legarda is out of the country but they asked me to communicate with them formally so they can refer the matter to the Senator.

Just today, we have news telling us of Singapore's first confirmed case of H1N1.  What did the Singaporean health authorities do?  UNLIKE THE PHILIPPINES, they informed not just the Singaporean public but the entire world IMMEDIATELY about the flight which brought the patient from New York to Singapore  - the flight is Singapore Airlines SQ 25 which arrived from New York on May 26.  

Dito po sa Pilipinas, hanggang ngayon MYSTERY FLIGHT NO. 1 and MYSTERY FLIGHT NO. 2 for the first two confirmed H1N1 cases.

The DOH wants us to be VIGILANT using GUESSWORK and CONJECTURE.  Hindi po tama ito at dapat tigilan na ng DOH ang pagtrato sa ating mga Pilipino na para tayong mga TANGA! 

Even Tamiflu itself or Oseltamivir, which, in the absence of a vaccine, is the anti-viral drug of choice in combating the effects of H1N1 flu, does not appear to be widely available even now when we already have two confirmed H1N1 cases in the Philippines. I asked a large branch of Mercury Drug yesterday, May 26, in Caloocan City and Tamiflu still costs P150.50 per capsule but they did not have it, referring me instead to their flagship branch in the MCU area. 

Full-course treatment with Tamiflu requires taking ten pills which will cost the patient P1,505.00, something beyond the reach of the vast majority of Filipinos. By now, the DOH should have its stockpile distributed to DOH hospitals at least in key city centers so that people who might need them will have them available for free. The DOH by now should have fully informed us of their plans in this regard.  Tamiflu is most effective against influenza A, which is the type of influenza under which H1N1 falls, if taken during the first two days of the flu. Beyond that, its effectiveness diminishes. The DOH should also have instructed all of us Filipinos about it by now.    

We expect Senator Loren Legarda to speak out publicly, preferably in person, over this vital issue involving public interest as soon as she can! The same goes true for our other Senators, they are welcome to show and express their concern! 

Habang abala po tayo sa pagsubaybay sa Hayden Kho - Katrina Halili scandal, hindi po natin dapat kalimutan ang ibang mahahalagang usapin katulad ng pag-iingat sa H1N1, tuition fee increase moratorium (NA MUKHANG KINALIMUTAN NA NG LAHAT), Pre-Need Scandal hindi lang sa Legacy kundi sa CAP, Permanent Plans, CHA-CHA, VFA, ang mapanganib na bantang pagbubukas ng Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, atbp. 

Gising mga kababayan!  

Lalaban tayo!  

Ganito kami sa Makati!

Ayoko ng may inaabuso! Tulungan natin sila!

Ang KABATAAN dapat aasahan na ng bayan!

Ano pa ba mga slogan natin?!

Mabilis na AKSYON po at SOLUSYON ang kailangan mula sa ating mga opisyal lalo na 'yung magsisitakbo ng Presidente, Bise-Presidente at Senador sa 2010 at hindi slogan lang!

HUWAG N'YONG BIGKASIN LANG KUNDI TUPARIN N'YO PO ANG SINASABI NG SLOGAN NINYO PARA MANIWALA KAMI AT BAKA (PERHAPS, MAYBE, PROBABLY) MAIBOTO PA NAMIN KAYO!

NGAYON NA PONG 2009 DAHIL MATAGAL PA ANG 2010!

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