opinion


REPUBLIC SERVICE


BIG DEAL


A 4


The Manila Times


MONDAY


D e cember 6, 2010


Edit orials Gesture of peace


T


HE Aquino administration’s 18-day ceasefire with Communist rebels to mark the Christmas season is a good gesture of peace, which we hope both parties


would strictly observe. Over the weekend, Malacañang announced that it has struck a truce, the longest in the last decade, with the National Democratic Front (NDF), which represents the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA). This is a welcome development, as the last time the CPP-


NPA-NDF came close to talking peace was during the early years of then President Corazon Aquino, the late mother of President Benigno Aquino 3rd. Unfortunately, a series of killings by Leftist leaders upset the mood before a series of coup d’etat by members of the military derailed the negotia- tions, marking the government’s turn toward the right. The President therefore should remember the lessons of his late mother’s aborted attempt to talk peace with the Communist rebels.


While there is no imminent threat of a coup against the current government, the Philippine Left has wasted no time in opposing the present administration’s policies, especially after the party-list group associated with the Communist rebels—Bayan Muna—had allied itself with another presi- dential candidate during the national elections last May. What complicates matters is that breakaway groups from the mainstream CPP-NPA-NDF had allied themselves with the current President. This is why Bayan Muna is opposed to the appointment of


two members of the Akbayan party-list group as chair of the Presidential Commission on Human Rights and as head of the National Anti-Poverty Commission. We hope that the breakaway groups won’t make it difficult for this government to forge peace with their erstwhile former comrades.


But the biggest challenge for the Aquino administration is to ensure that it puts a check on human rights violations, especially by the military. In this regard, the government should ensure a fair and quick closure to the “Morong 43” issue. The military claims the 43 detained health workers are abetting the, if not part of the Communist movement. The detainees deny this. This issue will become a sore point that will pester the peace negotiations once talks between the government and the NDF resume in February.


Finding fuel A


NOTHER confirmed petroleum find near the Malampaya natural gas field, the Philippines’ biggest of its kind, is a welcome development.


An Australian firm, Nido Petroleum Ltd., reported over the


weekend that its initial geochemical analysis point to the presence of liquid hydrocarbons, which are the building blocks of petroleum, at Service Contract 58 in offshore Northwest Palawan Basin.


The area, which spans 13,400 square kilometers, includes the Balyena, Butanding and Dorado prospects. After years of exploring, Nido said it will proceed with the selection of specific areas to start drilling, which would ensue starting 2012. At a time when the international price of crude oil is rising in light of the global economic recovery led by Asia’s emerg- ing markets, the positive find near the Malampaya provides the Philippines an additional buffer. This is the luxury enjoyed by neighboring countries like


Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, as their respective indigenous oil industries help insulate them from oil price shocks. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Philippines’ energy demand would double by 2030 amid expectations of the rising requirements of the service and transport sectors. The country’s total final energy demand is projected to almost double from 26.5 million tons of oil equivalent (MTOE) in 2005 to 45.6 MTOE in 2030, growing at an average annual rate of 2.2 percent. The ADB said the transport sector would account for 44 percent of the local economy’s energy requirements in 20 years time, with road transport consuming 75 percent of that, as this sector is seen to grow at an annual rate of 3.3 percent. The industry sector would account for a smaller 25 percent of energy demand. With these projections, the ADB said the Philippines’ import dependence would rise from 43.1 percent in 2006 to 65 percent in 2030, especially since the country imports the bulk of its oil and coal require- ments for the transport and electricity-generating sectors. Imagine the huge drain on our hard-earned foreign exchange reserves if they are spent on securing our energy requirements from abroad.


This is hard-earned because the bulk of these steady forex


inflows are the work of our export sector and the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). A number of multinational oil firms are scouring the Philippine offshore areas for other fuel finds after the Malampaya.


Exxon Mobil is looking near the Sulu Sea area, while Shell, which runs the Malampaya, is trying to tap another location. We hope they find oil sooner, as the preparatory work alone can take some time, as can be seen from the work put in by Nido in its latest discovery.


MONDAY December 6, 2010 The Manila Times DANTE F. M. ANG 2ND, Executive Editor


FRED DE LA ROSA, Chairman Editorial Board RENE Q. BAS, Editor in Chief ROMY P. MARIÑAS, News Editor


ARNOLD S. TENORIO, Business Editor CONRAD M. CARIÑO, National Editor


TESSA MAURICIO-ARRIOLA, Lifestyle Editor ARIS L. SOLIS, Regions Editor


PERRY GIL MALLARI, Acting Sports Editor BRIAN M. AFUANG, Art Director RENE H. DILAN, Photo Editor


 DANTE F. M. ANG 2ND, President and CEO


Telephone All Departments. 524-5665 to 67 Telefax 528-1729; Subscription: 524-5664 Local 222 URL http://www.manilatimes.net • e-mail newsboy1@manilatimes.net Letters to the editor


THE MANILA TIMES is published daily at 2/F Dante Ang and Associates Building, 409 A. Soriano Avenue, Intramuros, Manila 1002


VOLUME 112 NUMBER 056


Social scum run riot


RUE, this column has been critical of Manila Mayor Alfredo S. Lim on numerous oc- casions in the past. However, on his decision to ban the so-called kuliglig—pedicabs that run on hand tractor or lawn mower en- gines—from the capital city’s ma- jor thoroughfares he has this cor- ner’s support. The mayor’s and the city council’s decision to impose the ban had been a long time coming—and may have been postponed in order to suit the reelection requirements of Lim and other officials last May. But that, as they say, is water under the bridge. The important thing is that City Hall has finally mustered the political will to solve what the kuliglig prolifera- tion represents, anarchy in the street. In addition, this column finds it ridiculous that Anak Pawis Rep. Rafael Mariano—no relation, as far as I know—and other quarters have urged the Commission on Human Rights to investigate the police dispersal of kuliglig protest- ers last Wednesday.


T DAN MARIANO


PLM, Mapua, Lyceum and Letran, all in Intramuros.


The authorities had tried to talk


the kuliglig demonstrators into ending their protest peacefully, but to no avail.


By their disorderly behavior and due to the inconvenience they caused tens of thousands of com- muters and motorists last Wednes- day, the kuliglig drivers only suc- ceeded in alienating the public. They managed to convince Manileños and other capital region residents that the mayor and the city council were right in imposing the ban. Congressman Mariano and his


The leftist congressman claimed that the authorities resorted to “sheer brutality” and “excessive force” in dispersing the kuliglig protesters. However, Mariano’s version of the events near the Manila City Hall is at odds with on-the-spot radio reports and TV news video, which showed that the violence was sparked by the protesters themselves.


The protesters brought dozens of


kuliglig and used them to build a barricade across Burgos Drive, forc- ing traffic to grind to a halt. The gridlock stretched as far as the Coastal Road and Aguinaldo High- way in Cavite. Thousands of com- muters were forced to hoof it, in- cluding students of such schools as


fellow travelers ought to revisit some of the Marxist tracts that make spe- cial mention of the lumpenproletariat, the underclass to which the riotous kuliglig drivers belong. In The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx called the lumpenproletariat– German for “rabble proletariat”—the lowest stratum of the industrial work- ing class, which include undesirables such as tramps and criminals. Describing them as “social scum,” Marx characterized the lumpenproletariat as not only disinclined to participate in revolutionary activities with their “rightful brethren,” but also tend to act as the “bribed tools of reaction- ary intrigue.”


They don’t deserve the sympa-


thy of Congressman Mariano—or anybody else, for that matter.


Budget issues “Budget advocates” who belong to


the Social Watch Philippines (SWP)/ Alternative Budget Initiative (ABI) have warned that the Senate failed to consider very serious social de- velopment issues when it passed the P1.64-trillion budget without any cuts on the P21.1-billion appro- priations for Conditional Cash Transfers (CCT) and the very huge and vague lump sum items. “We are worried that the Senate


approved the proposed budget as submitted by the President and approved by the House of Repre- sentatives because there were very huge reductions in the allocation for other pro-poor services in favor of CCT under the Department of Social Welfare and Development,” said Professor Marivic Raquiza of the National College of Public Administration in the University of the Philippines and convenor of SWP, which organized the ABI. In a statement issued Friday,


Raquiza was quoted saying that “Filipinos will definitely suffer from the decreasing levels of pub- lic spending for poverty programs caused by the transfer of alloca- tions to CCT which only addresses very few dimensions of poverty.” According to the same statement,


Mercy Fabros of Woman Health Philippines said: “The government decreased the budget for the Indigents’ Program under the Phil- ippine Health Insurance Program by 33 percent even if the Philippines ranks ninth on the list of 22 high- burden TB countries in the world based on the World Health Organi- zation’s Global TB Report 2009.” Rene Raya of Action for Economic


Reforms reportedly said: “About 20 percent of school-aged Filipinos are


out of school. Yet, they only get 1 percent of the education budget. This will translate to poverty statistics and a continuing cycle of poverty.” Hazel Tanchuling of Rice Watch


and Action Network was quoted say- ing: “The agriculture sector is in a slump. Latest statistics from the Bu- reau of Agricultural Statistics shows that overall agriculture production contracted by 2.9 percent in the first half of 2010. Yet, the proposed 2011 budget reduced the budget of the Department of Agriculture from P41.17 billion to P37.698 billion.” Worst of all, Raquiza said, “the funds that were cut from the budget of frontline agencies were transferred to lump sum items without sufficient details. How could the Senate approve a budget with P94-billion lump sum appro- priations that lack details?”


Berroya vs. Ping


Not just once in online social net- works and coffee-shop talk has it been suggested that the govern- ment tap the services of Reynaldo Berroya in order to arrest Sen. Panfilo Lacson Jr. That is, of course, if the au- thorities are serious in their pro- nouncements to bring the fugitive senator and double-murder sus- pect to justice. Berroya—a former superior of


Lacson’s in the National Police and the senator’s implacable nem- esis after their relations soured— could be expected to do his best, unlike, say, NBI Director Magtang- gol Gatdula who was one of Lac- son’s protégés in the PNP. The problem is, Lacson might not survive a Berroya manhunt.


dansoy26@yahoo.com The budget: 11 questions about 2011


FTER the chest-thumping and finger-pointing over the speedily approved 2011 budget dies down, it’s Question Hour. While the media, the politicians and the pundits may find much to debate over the quick passage in Congress of the P1.46-trillion pro- posed General Appropriations Act, including some controversial out- lays and cuts, the more pragmatic may prefer to move on and delib- erate how to get the best out of the GAA and minimize the worst in it. So here go our 11 questions on the 2011 budget. Will the budget deficit fall? In


A RICARDO SALUDO


mid-2005, despite escalating oil prices and the “Hello, Garci” con- troversy, the peso strengthened, in- terest rates fell, and the stockmarket surged. Reason: the Arroyo Admin- istration’s fiscal reforms slashing the budget deficit, which nearly disappeared three years later. Today, exchange and interest rates remain benign and stocks are setting records. But if the budget busts the deficit, confidence will weaken, and the resulting capital squeeze will retard growth and investment. As always, the key is not curbing spending, but raising revenues. Is there enough government spending to keep growth on track? This year saw strong expansion, thanks to the global recovery and election spending. Neither will give the economy a boost next year. Gov- ernment planners hope that private investment, including public-pri- vate partnership projects, would take over as the main lift. But that’s a big if. The government must be ready to spend for growth, and there should be ample funds if Congress kept the P148-billion public works outlay, up by half. Now the govern- ment must demonstrate greater ab- sorptive capacity—and honesty. Is there money for PPP? Business is expected to fund highways, rail- ways and airports. But those projects require government money too, mainly for land and right of way, including resettlement of affected


settlers. ROW can be very expensive, often exceeding the cost of actual construction. If projects get delayed because the government did not budget for its share of costs, it would sap their enthusiasm and again paint the Philippines as a bureau- cratic quagmire. Are there funds and programs for disaster preparedness, relief and recovery? President Benigno Aquino 3rd blocked two major projects for flood control, a Japan-funded pack- age for Central Luzon, cited in the State of the Nation Address, and the Belgian-financed Laguna Lake dredg- ing project. What will the govern- ment do in their place? With Metro Manila singled out as facing the greatest danger from floods and quakes among cities in Southeast Asia, the government must invest in protecting exposed communities, es- pecially the poor, who suffer most from calamities. It has allocated P21 billion for cash transfers, but what use are they to inundated families. What is the plan for CCT? Speak- ing of conditional cash transfers, Congress gave the Palace everything it asked for, including every peso it allocated to CCT. Now the Depart- ment of Social Welfare and Devel- opment must spell out exactly how it would ensure that the funds go to those who need them after comply- ing with conditions and with no politics or corruption. It would in- deed be an utter reversal of Presi- dent Aquino’s campaign slogan if a major program to uplift the poor becomes the occasion for graft: Kung may mahirap, may corrupt. Is there funding for anti-corrup- tion campaign? And speaking of


corruption, exactly what is the Aquino Administration doing to fight corruption, besides making public accusations and insinuations sans evidence? It would be good to see if there is money in the budget for, say, rewards to whistleblowers, hiring and training of investigators and prosecutors for the Palace of- fice now tasked with anti-graft probes, and training and streamlin- ing programs for frontline offices of agencies and LGUs. The government must put its money where the Presi- dent’s mouth is. What outlays and programs are


there for security and peace and order? After the Rizal Park hostage tragedy, PNoy announced the crea- tion of a quick-reaction elite force against terrorists. Is this plan in the budget? What about police recruit- ment, training, transport, arma- ments, and high-tech investigation? Are there ample resources for anti- narcotics operations and units? Let’s not forget prosecution and correction. And now that the Presi- dent has done some cramming on the Zenarosa Committee report, what’s on the cards for disman- tling private armies? Will there be enough affordable


rice? The SONA claimed that the pre- vious administration imported too much rice, well beyond the projected shortfall. The government has since backtracked and admitted that the country still needed to import the staple. After Typhoon Juan’s ravages in the North Luzon rice belt, there may be more foreign grain needed. And if the Philippines buys more rice, it would quickly consume state funds. Indeed, this week, Vietnam lifted export prices after a major In- donesian purchase. If the cost of rice surges, does the government have money to keep the grain affordable? Not to mention its program for rice self-sufficiency by 2013. What about the Bagong Bayani? With some $20 billion in annual re- mittances, overseas Filipinos deserve a fair allocation in the budget for as- sisting those in trouble abroad,


where there may be no one who can help a Filipino in distress but the Philippine government. Is there more money for legal services, repa- triation of stranded OFWs or those in hotspots, and temporary shelters? This writer has learned that due to the administration’s budget cuts, one embassy could no longer maintain its home for distressed workers. Many OFWs voted for Noynoy. What does PNoy have for them? And have we forgotten land re-


form? Budget Secretary Florencio Abad probably would not, having been agrarian reform secretary in the first Aquino Administration (he was not confirmed), But Abad’s boss does not seem that keen about the issue, at least when his family’s Hacienda Luisita comes up (no such ambivalence about redistrib- uting the lands of former First Gen- tleman Jose Miguel Arroyo’s fam- ily). Is there money to finally work away at the most contentious tracks yet to be transferred to the landless? Plus funds for programs and invest- ments to make agrarian reform beneficiaries truly benefited by their emancipation. Will the budget be online? The proposed GAA would require agen- cies to upload and update on the Internet not only the bidding and award of projects, but also the status of their implementation (see Sept. 6 column). In addition, DBM is sup- posed to post online all lump sum outlays and what they are spent on. That includes legislators’ pork barrel funds and the internal revenue allot- ments of local governments. Assum- ing all that was approved untouched by Congress, we may yet have the most transparent budget yet. Now all we need to do is follow


the law. That, of course, is the hardest part.


Ricardo Saludo heads the Center for Strategy, Enterprise and Intelligence (ric.saludo@censeisolutions.com). He holds a M.S. in Public Policy and Management from London’s School of Oriental and African Studies.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14