Misinformation on Coal

“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”
- Benjamin Disraeli

Misinformation it seems is the remaining tactic of the proponent of the 168 MW coal plant here in Iloilo. As more and more Ilonggos understand that putting up a coal plant right in our backyard is not such a good idea, the proponent and its PR team are now trying to spread more lies and half-truths.

Well what can you expect? Millions of pesos in annual profits are at stake here and that the proponent has hired the best spin doctors to weave a blanket of misinformation.

Clean Coal?

First, they keep on reciting this “clean coal technology” script as if repeating it a thousand times will at least make it sound cleaner. In industrialized countries they are already moving towards renewable alternatives to coal in recognition of the fact that coal plants are the dirtiest sources of energy.

And coal-plant investors in these industrialized countries are now even talking about advancing the technology such as burying the carbon emissions underground or the use of a gasified form of coal. Again, in recognition of the fact that coal-fired power plant technology including the circulating fluidized bed combustion proposed here in Iloilo is a dirty technology.

Shortage?

Secondly, these coal pushers take advantage of the power interruptions brought about by the inefficiencies of the PECO-PPC tandem and the region’s poor transmission infrastructure. Then they conveniently pair these brownouts and blackouts to their over-exaggerated power demand projections.

They spin this dark tale that these power interruptions are going to get worse and a coal plant is the only answer to this problem. But if you check the annual projections of the DOE since 10 years ago, they have been projecting a shortage as early as 2005. Do we have a shortage now? No. The problem that we have now can be solved simply by an improvement in the transmission facilities, not by a 168 MW coal plant.

Currently, Iloilo City has a peak demand of only 76 MW and we have a capacity of 84 MW (69 MW from PPC and 15MW form NPC), not to mention the 25 MW capacity of the Negros-Panay submarine cable that provides additional power to the island. Simply put, these coal plant PR managers are fear-mongering us Ilonggos to accepting a hazardous project.

I am not saying here that there is no need to build more power plants for the city’s future needs. What I am saying is let us not foolishly jump to this dirty project as we have enough time to study and solicit investors for a cleaner power source.

Safe?

Thirdly, I have never heard any of these coal pushers acknowledging that indeed coal plants pose dangers to both the human health and the environment as shown by tomes of documents worldwide. What is ironic however is that while there is no admission of any hazard, they keep on mouthing their ready reply called “mitigating measures.” I do not know why you need “mitigating measures” if this is supposed to be a “clean coal technology.”

Now, they even got somebody from the DOH to endorse the project. I really do not know how a doctor from the DOH can be so ignorant of the facts. This endorsement of the building of a coal plant right in a densely populated city is such an irresponsible act coming from a health professional.

The DOH doctor asserted, “As far the health is concerned, there's no question with that because our concern is public protection. DOH is supportive of the coal plant project as it believes that mitigating measures will be put in place precisely to protect the public.”

There they go with the “mitigating measures” again. Here is a DOH doctor who will entrust our city’s health and environment to the belief that “mitigating measures will be put in place.” Why not chose a cleaner option so that there will be no need to mitigate? Why put a community at risk if there are other safer alternatives?

In news reports this doctor never mentioned what mitigating measures she has in mind and did not even articulate a medical or scientific perspective on the issue. All she can say is that the coal plant project is okay, period. It seems that corruption in Malacañang has trickled down to the departments.

Shameless

The sad story here is that some media entities are becoming to be part of this misinformation. An example is the shameless practice of this certain news daily in slanting all its news stories for the coal plant and maligning those who opposed the project.

This newspaper, while it proclaims itself as “Western Visayas’ Most Read and Respected,” has a weird concept of balance news. It is balance in a way that it gives good publicity in proportion to the weight of your wallet.

An interesting coincidence is that the publisher/editor of the paper is the paid PR manager of the coal plant proponent.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337 and for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

A democratic alternative to GMA

(This is a statement from former UP President and now chairperson of Laban ng Masa Prof. Francisco Nemenzo)

A democratic alternative to GMA

The belated involvement of Makati Business Club and other elite groups in the campaign to oust Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is welcome. But we should not let them steal victory from the people.

The ouster of GMA will bring no significant improvement if the system of elite rule is left intact. Whoever accedes to Malacanang in this political framework will remain a captive of the greedy and colonial-minded elite.

For as long as the elite hold effective power, a snap election will be another contest between trapos who enjoy their financial blessings. Democracy is a fraud where people are merely asked to choose who among the candidates of the elite will represent and repress them.

The truly democratic alternative to GMA is a Transitional Revolutionary Government, a collective leadership that has the strength and political will to institute fundamental reforms. Since the country is damaged beyond repair after decades of oligarchic rule, it has to be rebuilt from top to bottom. New structures for popular participation at the grassroots level should replace the present pseudo-representati ve system. The neoliberal policies now dragging the country to the brink of disaster should be reversed. The public and private centers of power should be democratized. The bureaucracy, military and police should be cleansed of officials whose opulent lifestyles can only be sustained by graft and corruption.

We are appalled to hear the executive director of the Makati Business Club claim that his outfit financed the inter-faith rally last Friday. Laban ng Masa never received and will never accept any assistance from such a source. That is how the elite manipulate the elected trapos. That is why we are not only fighting for regime change; we are fighting for system change. We do not only want to rid the country of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo; we want an end to the system that breeds her type of leadership.

Readers’ take on corrupt politics

"Kung kaya mong isipin, kaya mong gawin
Isa-isang hakbang lamang at ika’y makakarating
Tulad ng puno na galing sa binhi
Ang mga dakilang gawa’y nagmula sa guni-guni..."
- from “Kung Kaya Mong Isipin” by Joey Ayala

Today I am featuring several emailed letters from this column’s readers. Many of the emails I received in the past days are in reaction to my previous article entitled “The Tentacles of Evil”.

What is common in many of the reactions I received is that despite of what is happening in our country, many well-meaning Filipinos are still ready to stand up for what is right and willing to act for the future of our nation.

Definitely you can sense the tone of hopelessness, of surrender to the seemingly bleak future ahead. We are buried in a very dark hole indeed, but let us hope that we Filipinos can muster enough wisdom, courage and sense of unity to choose the path that will lead us back to the light.

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Kabayan,

We all desire to achieve our objectives....

What about those overnight critics/enemies of PGMA who were with her many years in their post and took advantage of enriching themselves? Should we also run after them...or just let them go scot free, as if nothing happened?

If we want to get rid of the scalawags in our society, we should consider the option of reaping them out also....and sow a new seed. Don't let the old weeds remain.

Just my thoughts...

From: maltares@kfupm.edu.sa

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I feel so helpless seeing and hearing all this mafia function that’s been happening ever since she (Gloria Arroyo) was in power.

And to realize that she used those money for her own good, sacrificing our Inang Bayan. It saddened me to realize that those projects are good projects, broadband, North and South rail projects to name a few. I'm saddened because it hit me when I think the good impact of such. Broadband means good communication, faster link, same with the road construction that will boost our economy. Look at our neighboring Asian countries, Japan has the Bullet train that transport people faster, good roads and airlines, same with Singapore, Hong Kong and the like.

It’s so frustrating to know, that this unfinished projects cost this much $$$$ and our mahal na INANG BAYAN was in debt for millions AND millions of dollars. Seems like the Philippines was sold to China for the benefit of this hypocrite, and as you well said, FAKE president.

I agree that its time to stand up now before it’s too late, we will soon be carrying China's passport.

From: asilag@arrow.com

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Just like many Filipinos, I am appalled by the latest events in our country. This administration just as the previous administrations has committed big crimes against our nation – corruption, corruption and corruption. I do not know if we can even live to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I agree with you that it not correct to swallow the corruption of President Arroyo simply because all of them are corrupt anyway. We cannot trust any of those dirty politicians. It is time to move and bring out alternative leaders for our country’s future.

From: janreyes123@yahoo.com

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337 and for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com)

The Tentacles of Evil

“Work and struggle and never accept an evil that you can change.”
- Andre Gide

So what has our nation become after more than 100 years since the Philippine declaration of independence? Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal, Apolinario Mabini and all our heroes for sure are turning in their graves as the nation is plunged deeper unto this pit of corruption and greed.

What has our nation become after almost a quarter century since the first EDSA people power? The spirit of EDSA, our dreams of social justice, is now drowned into the abyss of inequity and elite politics.

It seems that whatever good that is left is overpowered by the powerful stench of mafia-style governance. Our nation has been marinated for so long in this concentrated pulp of sleaze such that as time passes, the flavors of greed and corruption seeps deeper and deeper into its matter. Now, it seems that this concentrate has fully invaded the very core of our nation’s culture, spirit, and consciousness.

What is apparent is that the tentacles of evil have now reached all corners of our society. It is so entrenched that even those who are well-meaning are even blinded by the real issues.

Take for example those who would rather turn a blind eye on the substantive issues and say “Well, let the opposition prove the accusations against Arroyo in an impeachment case or a legal proceeding. Let the rule of law prevail.”

The assumption here of course is that Gloria Arroyo will submit to the “rule of law”. Could a government operating like a mafia submit to the rule of law? We have seen several times already how Gloria Arroyo manipulated our laws to suit her and her cronies. We have seen how Arroyo breached the spirit of our laws just to push her family’s agenda. Now what “rule of law” are we talking about here?

Further what this rule-of-law argument is saying is that removing Arroyo from Malacañang through another people power is a violation of our laws and constitution. The presidency, as all public offices, is a public trust. Now, is the exercise of the people of its sovereign power to withdraw this trust and oust a corrupt and fake president outside the scope of its political rights?!

Or take also the example of those who will simply tolerate Arroyo and defend her by saying “Well, all of them are the same anyway. Let any one who is clean cast the first stone.”

The problem with that premise is that it is okay for their beloved Arroyo to steal since all of these trapo (traditional politicians) are thieves anyway. I don’t know how in heaven’s name could one accept such kind of reasoning.

We should stand up now not for the benefit of the other thief, but for the sake of our nation’s future, for the sake of our children. We should stand up now not because we want to install another trapo, but to push for a social justice agenda that will benefit the poor and the marginalized, our nation as a whole.

This is I think one of the lowest period in Philippine history. A point where the nation is still divided in condemning corruption in its grandest scale. A point where we don’t even tremble in indignation as we are faced with one big blatant attempt to defraud the nation.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337 and for e-mails to ianseruelo@yahoo.com.)

Censored Article

The article I wrote entitled "Big Flaws in Fr. Celis Arguments" (see previous post) was censored by my editor. It did not saw print nor was it published in its online edition.

We had an exchange of e-mails but in gist, here is what he said "my point is we don't have to refute the personal views of others to bring our message across.. i think fr.boy's pronouncements was his personal view and not as a member of the task force.. i did not say that you have violated journalism ethics, it's just my judgement not to print your article trying to refute specifically the pro-coal arguments of fr. boy.. indi bala entitled man siya to have his own perception about the issue?"

Here are different excerpts from my several emails to him:

"If you read my article it was a respectful opinion. it was not attacking Fr. Celis as a person. The article attacks the argument, not Fr. Celis. I dont have any below the belt attack on the persona of Fr. Celis. He had his views known by using the media, it is just anybody's right to give a different opinion. He is entitled to his opinion but as a columnist, i am also entitled to how i view the issue. "

"What is wrong with a columnist reacting to an article from other paper or sources? And what is wrong if a columnist wants to react to another specific person's viewpoint?

"Fr. Celis is part of the Task Force created by Trenas to evaluate the proposed coal plant. So his statements and public pronouncements of endorsing the coal plant has political implications. Moreso what is wrong with refuting a personal opinion? Like when one refutes or supports another columnist's personal opinion, there is nothing wrong with it. If one of our readers reacts to or refutes my personal opinion, then it is also ok. What is important is we do it in a manner that focuses on the issues and principles."

"As a writer yourself you should know how it will feel to have your piece of writing censored. And when the government suppresses our freedom to express or the independence of the media we are all in one side fighting against it."

Despite all those however he said it was his editorial judgement. So what can i do?

Big Flaws in Fr. Celis’ Pro-Coal Arguments (# 1)

“A small rock holds back a great wave.”
- The Odyssey by Homer

Corruption in government and in Philippine society happen everyday. This culture of corruption envelopes the whole system as if it is a malignant tumor. The main beneficiaries of this sick system are big time corrupt politicians who regularly rake in millions of pesos in kickbacks from multi-million projects.

Now, why will you scold the lowly barangay captain from pocketing one thousand pesos intended for a barangay project? In proportion, a thousand pesos is an insignificant “candlelight” in the hellfire of muliti-million kickbacks.

The management of solid wastes is a global concern. These wastes pollute the earth’s water, air and land resources in such disturbing rate. Industrialized countries such as the US are the leading generators of solid waste as they churn out millions of tons of solid waste per day such as tin cans, tires, plastics, styrofoam and bottles that end up in land fills and don’t get recycled.

So why will you scold Juan who tossed his garbage over the bridge and into the river? In proportion, a bagful of garbage is an insignificant “candlelight” in the hellfire of millions of tons of solid wastes.

Fraud is rampant every time we hold our elections. Vote rigging seems to be a given, an accepted feature in our electoral exercise. Wholesale cheating is done by “operators” the likes of Garci and also with the aid of military officers. Thousands if not millions of votes get padded up to the trapo (traditional politician) with the highest bid.

Now why will you scold the one flying voter who cheated by voting twice thereby adding just one fraudulent vote? In proportion, one vote is like an insignificant “candlelight” in the hellfire of millions of fraudulent votes.

The examples I have given above utilize the same argument Fr. Espiridion Celis is using in support for the proposed construction of a coal plant in Iloilo City.

"China definitely will open two coal-fired power plants every week for the next three and half years. It is like opening a very, very big oven for global warming. Will you scold Iloilo for lighting a candle because it will heat the world? I don't think we are proportion here. There are 24 coal-fired power plants in the Philippines, why Iloilo should have not one? I do not understand," he was quoted by the local media.

Celis also added, “I'm sure that Iloilo will not contribute one-twentieth of China's (emission)”.

We human beings are supposed to be stewards of the planet we live in – a planet, which in Christian teaching, is god’s creation. So priests I suppose would be in the front line of these efforts. I also suppose that religious leaders would have higher standards than say an economist or a capitalist or a politician when it comes to the protection of mother earth.

It is simply hard to believe that a church leader will say that it is okay to pollute a little and not mind the bigger global picture. It is hard to believe that a spiritual leader will say something that is tantamount to declaring that small actions do not affect the bigger world.

Asserting that the act of putting up one more coal plant could not possibly factor materially to the planet’s pollution and contribute to global warming is exactly the kind of mindset that is worsening a lot of the world’s ills.

Simply go back to my earlier examples on corruption, solid waste problem and electoral fraud. One thousand pesos, one bagful of garbage and one fraudulent vote are certainly not in proportion to the totality of the respective problem. But can we really dismiss them as insignificant?

Corollary to this, history has proven that small actions have caused both uplifting and devastating impacts to the world.

If Mahatma Gandhi has the same mindset as articulated by Fr. Celis, then the struggle for India’s independence could have been longer and violent. Apartheid in South Africa would not have been abolished sooner if Nelson Mandela did not believe in small actions.

The end of the horrible racial segregation in the US could not have been expedited if Rosa Parks gave her bus seat up to a white person, thereby giving no spark for Martin Luther King to initiate small protest demonstrations.

Our own Andres Bonifacio could not have inspired a revolution if he did not believe that his small band of katipuneros could one day defeat the mighty Spanish military.

On the opposite side, Adolf Hitler could not have brought mayhem to the whole world if he was stopped initiating his small propaganda about his superior race that placed him on the leadership of his nation.

Now, if the quote attributed to Fr. Celis came from the prospective investor or their paid consultants, I would understand as many of them think only of the benefits to their bank accounts with little consideration to the impact to the environment and society as a whole.

Coming from a priest however makes it different as you anticipate a more insightful opinion, a profound reasoning, a moral stand. Obviously, with all due respect to the parish priest of Mandurriao, I think he has not realized the true meaning of the dictum: “think globally, act locally.”

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Save TESDA! Prosecute Syjuco!

“Ethical axioms are found and tested not very differently from the axioms of science.
Truth is what stands the test of experience.”
- Albert Einstein

This column would like to yield this space to a petition to save Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) amidst the corruption scandal within the agency. Under the leadership (or the absence of it) of Boboy Syjuco, this department has deteriorated and became a milking cow of some people.

It is sad that an agency that benefits the poor and the working sector would be threatened to be abolished just because of the corrupt action and irresponsibility of its head.

Indeed there is no question that TESDA needs to be improved and that there is so much to be done for the agency to be able to achieve its mandate. But we cannot deny that with the worsening education and employment situation in the country, TESDA, in its small way, is filling in the gap for thousands if not millions of Filipinos.

This column is encouraging this blog’s readers to support the petition below which by the way can be signed online. The online link can be found at the end of this article.

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To: Philippine Congress

We are pleased over the positive developments during the past weeks concerning the corruption case against Syjuco and the five members of the TESDA Bids and Awards Committee (TESDA-BAC). The corruption scandal is nearly over as all the aforesaid officials have been found guilty of grave misconduct and gross neglect of duty by the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC) for their participation in a P 9.2 Million anomalous transaction involving the printing of a book entitled Salabat for the Filipino Soul.

Malacañang has upheld the PAGC ruling and ordered the dismissal from government service of the five TESDA-BAC members. On the other hand, Syjuco’s case has been forwarded to the Committee of Peers due to his cabinet rank. While we are eagerly hoping for the Committee of Peers to finally bring the case to its just conclusion, we are deeply saddened by the emerging bid among some of our legislators to abolish TESDA and to transfer its functions to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

As you may know, TESDA was established through the enactment of Republic Act No. 7796 otherwise known as the "Technical Education and Skills Development Act of 1994.” Signed into law by President Fidel V. Ramos, the need for it arose from the key recommendations of the 1991 Report of the Congressional Commission on Education. These recommendations came about as a result of a national assessment of the state of education and manpower development in the Philippines.

Three offices – the National Manpower and Youth Council (NMYC) of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Bureau of Technical and Vocational Education (BTVE) of the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS), and the Apprenticeship Program of the Bureau of Local Employment (BLE) of the DOLE – were merged into one in order to “reduce overlapping in skills development activities initiated by various public and private sector agencies, and to provide national directions for the country's technical-vocational education and training (TVET) system.”

In general, TESDA is mandated to:

1. Integrate, coordinate and monitor skills development programs;
2. Restructure efforts to promote and develop middle-level manpower;
3. Approve skills standards and tests;
4. Develop an accreditation system for institutions involved in middle-level manpower development;
5. Fund programs and projects for technical education and skills development; and
6. Assist trainers training programs.

TESDA has gone a long way since its inception. In an assessment of TESDA’s performance during the period from 1995-2000, the said agency earned an average rating of 2.71 or Fair by various stakeholders and an Independent Review Panel. Moreover, the report concluded that there is still a lot of room for improvement. This indicates that even after just a few years since it was established, TESDA already showed potential to serve as “a conductor, a referee, a policeman, a helper, a strategist, a planner, a visionary for the TVET sub-sector.” Combining three agencies into one is no easy task and yet, TESDA in its early years has managed to come up with “notable initiatives.”

The assessment report made various recommendations to strengthen TESDA and what surfaced as the most urgent need to further strengthen the TVET sub-sector was to push for adequate funding for TESDA. More recommendations were made and every one of them pointed to strengthening TESDA, focusing its mandate and instituting reforms within the agency. Not one suggested that TESDA be abolished or be placed under another jurisdiction.

Now more than ever, the country needs to address the issues concerning our manpower development. With the degrading state of our education system and the job-skills mismatch that has been pointed out as the major cause of the unemployment among our youth and labor force, we must reform TESDA in order for the institution to become more responsive. Placing it under the management of DTI will only defeat our purpose of developing our manpower as the two agencies cover different mandates and have different expertise. In addition, doing so will only result to a multi-layered bureaucracy that would not have the sufficient focus and resources to address the needs of our middle-level manpower.

We call on our legislators not to be swayed into abolishing TESDA just because of the Syjuco corruption scandal that has negatively its performance. Ever since he became Director-General, Syjuco has only brought shame to TESDA. This is because he has merely used the agency as a tool to further his political and vested interests. This is evident on how the budget of TESDA is concentrated in District 2 of Iloilo where he served as former Congressman and how he spends excessively on programs that have nothing to do with improving the plight of the TVET sub-sector and publicity stints meant to raise his profile and please GMA.

Our legislators should banish Syjuco, not TESDA. The whole agency does not deserve to bear one man’s failings.

SAVE TESDA! SACK SYJUCO!

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This blog fully supports this petition and is encouraging you to sign along at the following web address: www.petitiononline.com/sacboboy/petition.html.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Time to Move

“ The road may be rough, the weather may forget us But won't we all parade around and sing our songs, A magic kingdom, open-armed…”
- from “Bandwagon” by R.E.M.

A new movement against illegitimate debt was launched during the last weekend in Quezon City . It is aptly called People Against Illegitimate Debt (PAID!). This movement held its first assembly and also launched its People's Petition calling for the creation of an Independent Citizens' Debt Audit Commission.

This column thinks that this is a timely undertaking given the country’s worsening debt situation. No thanks to the sitting fake president! Further, last year was a year when a lot of anomalous big projects were exposed – projects that end up jacking up the country’s debts. Well, it’s not as if there was a year that I can remember when there was a shortage of corruption-tainted debt-creating “projects”.

What made 2007 stand out as the “Year of the Corrupt Trapo” is the boldness by which corruption was done. Just think about the ZTE-National Broadband Network (NBN) project, the World Bank textbook scam, the Cyber Education Project (CEP). And we can add to that the Austrian Medical Waste Loan. Not all of these projects were initiated in 2007 but it was that year when these anomalies came to light.

It is distressing to note that after these sham projects were exposed, it was met with rage from the public alright, but only took a few days or weeks for the anger to die down. What is ironic is that this anger always ends up building our mounting apathy. We seem to say “Well that is how it is. What’s new?” And every time this kind of event happens we retreat back to our shell and say “I said so. Those trapos (traditional politicians) will always be trapos.”

These actions undertaken by a broad network of social movements, civil society leaders, people's organizations, communities and personalities in organizing the PAID! movement and calling for a debt audit are clearly meaningful steps to the right direction.

Here are excerpts from the group’s manifesto:

"More than just the burden of payments, there is the fundamental injustice. While citizens are forced to pay, much of these debts were contracted without full public transparency and accountability, and without full compliance with democratic processes, and did not benefit the people.”

"Many loans were accompanied by unfair terms and harmful conditionalities. A significant number has been tainted with deception and fraud, or used for questionable purposes such as financing of ill-designed, unnecessary, and even inoperable programs, or repayment of earlier loans for onerous projects such as the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant."

It is high time that we start asking questions. Now, is the time that we demand transparency and accountability from the government.

How much is the country’s outstanding debt and exactly how much are we paying annually? Who contracted the loans and what were the loans for? What procedures were followed? Were these procedures in compliance with the principles of transparency, accountability, due diligence, democratic decision-making?

How were the loans used? Were the funds actually spent for the intended purposes? What were the terms and conditionalities accompanying these loans? What were the effects of the loan-financed projects and policies on communities and on people’s lives?

What were the environmental impacts of these loans and projects? What are the accountabilities of creditors? What are the effects of automatic and continuous payments of these debts today on the lives of the Filipinos?

Answers to these questions are what Independent Citizens' Debt Audit would like to be presented and revealed to the Filipino taxpayers and consumers. It is these questions that PAID! seeks to be answered as it calls for the creation of a Congressional mechanism to audit the country’s debt.

This audit, as PAID! envisions, should go beyond mere accounting as it should examine past and present government policies, transactions and contracts that have contributed to the accumulation of public debts. This action shall be a step for the review and rationalization of laws and regulations relevant to borrowings, public guarantees and debt payments.

One of the main organizers of this movement is the debt watchdog Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC). During the 13th Congress, FDC was successful in getting the joint resolution on debt audit passed unanimously by the House of Representatives. However, it was stalled in the Senate due to the inaction of some legislators.

Now, let us get this moving once again. Let us start talking about this issue as this involves the future of the country. Let us start knocking in unison so the halls of Congress will be filled with our calls. To paraphrase a landmark manifesto: We have nothing to loose but the chains of indebtedness.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Twelve 2007 issues, Twelve wishes for 2008

2007 is on its way out. Another year has past. Looking back, it has been one chaotic year indeed. Here are 12 selected issues from the various topics I tackled this past year. Aside from the quotes from one article per month, I also included my wishes for 2008 pertaining to each of the issues.

1. Minimum wage, January 2007

“The business sector declares that a legislated P125.00 increase in the minimum wage will be ‘disastrous’ to the economy.

“The business sector presents, in their full page advertisements campaigning against the wage legislation, that the increase will cause a ‘disastrous chain reaction’ and is a ‘ticking time bomb’.

“I say, continue to deny the workers their just share to their fruits of labor and see for yourself where this ‘disastrous chain reaction’ will lead to. And yes, starve an already impoverished population and witness what a real “ticking time bomb” is all about.

My wish for 2008: May workers be more unified in their struggle for just wages. In the sorry state of Philippine politics, only a united loud angry voice by the masses may be effective for the trapos to notice.

2. Global warming, February 2007

“For years now, scientists all over the world have been raising the alarm over global warming. Strong evidence points to this phenomenon and how human activity is strongly link to climate change. Lately a scientific gathering strengthened this consensus with the hope that the world will act faster and face this inconvenient truth.

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued their Fourth Assessment Report on the underlying science of climate change. IPCC has concluded that humans are the main culprits for atmospheric greenhouse gas build-up.

My wish for 2008: I hope that more people the world over will pressure their respective governments to act swiftly on this global issue.

3. Still on poverty, March 2007

“Further according to the NCSB, here are the poverty thresholds per capita (per person, per day) in the areas in Provinces in the Visayas area: Guimaras P43.73, Negros Occidental P40.48, Aklan P39.59, Iloilo P39.33….

“It means that here in Iloilo we only need P39.33 a day to live out of poverty. Take note that that amount does not only cover food. That amount should include allocation for house rent, utilities, fare, clothing, health and for other emergencies.

“I don’t actually need to write an article to highlight how the government manipulates these data to hide the real crisis. I know that everyone knows the actual situation and how the burden is getting heavier by the day.

My wish for 2008: May the Filipinos survive another year.

4. Peace in Mindanao, April 2007

“It seems that peace in Mindanao remains to be illusive. The conflict in Sulu is getting worse. As the government continues its military offensive, we should once again bring to the fore the painful impact of war to the population.

“A decision to go to war should be supported with hard facts and real evidence that it is indeed necessary. The government should learn from the example of what happened in Iraq. The government should learn from the previous military offensives in Mindanao. Bombs and guns can never be a solution to the deep divide in the South.

My wish for 2008: Peace. Harmony. Yeah I know this again is too much to ask in a year. Ok then. A bit of peace. A tiny morsel of harmony and tolerance.

5. Arroyo dumped in mid-term elections, May 2007

“Looking at the results of the recent elections, I can say there is a glimmer of hope in the Filipino nation. As of today’s numbers, at least nine in the magic 12 senators are not administration candidates.

“This is by itself equivalent to a vote of no confidence to the current corrupt administration – a government headed by a president whose mandate simply came from a fellow named Garci.

“Despite the Filipinos reluctance to march out in the streets to protest Arroyo’s fraud and corrupt practices, this election results manifest the stand of the majority who are fed up.

“Though this is short of the anger I expect from a nation oppressed by a fake president, I nevertheless say this is a significant spark. A flicker that I hope will never die but grow into a blaze that will light up the Filipinos’ consciousness. A glimmer of hope…

My wish for 2008: I wish that principles return to Philippine politics. Okay that is too much to ask, I know. All I am asking for is just a tiny tiny bit. And may this glimmer of hope transform into a conflagration this year.

6. The continuing burden of PECO consumers, June 2007

“First order of business, here in Iloilo City, should be to alleviate the burden of the power consumers who for years have been slapped with exorbitant electric bills. PECO (read: Patay Electric Consumers) has for decades manipulated the rate setting mechanism to pad its electric rates. And up to now, it seems there is no respite to the suffering of the Ilonggo consumers.

“To compare, look at the amount of taxpayers’ money that the Province was able to save recently when they shifted their power source from PECO to Napocor. Now, the Iloilo Provincial Capitol only spends about half of what it pays PECO before.

“The questions now are: Is there a way to end this abuse and malpractices of PECO? Is there a feasible solution in sight? Or do we simply remain at the mercy of PECO?

“The answer is: Yes, there is a way! In fact we now have a golden opportunity to have a say in PECO and in fact take over its management as a consumer cooperative. To recall, the ERC ordered PECO last year to refund P2.89 Billion of overcharges to its consumers. This amount, instead of the tedious process of distributing it back to thousands of consumers, should be converted to shares to take-over the management of PECO.

My wish for 2008: A stronger consumer movement in Iloilo and all over the country.

7. Another SONA, July 2007

“‘First, investments in physical, intellectual, legal and security infrastructure to increase business confidence. Imprastraktura para sa negosyo at trabaho. Isang milyong trabaho taon-taon.’

“Interpretation: As in my previous SONA, I promised millions of jobs annually. And I am proud to say that yes I have achieved all those targets! In fact by simply paying lip service to the country’s economic needs, our government is forcing, este…causing… millions upon millions of Filipinos to be employed annually… outside of the country, however, hehehe. But still you have to credit me for that, for if there are jobs here in our country, then only a few Filipinos will be able to see America or Canada.

“‘Second, investments in a stronger and wider social safety net - murang gamot, abot-kayang pabahay, eskwelang primera klase, mga gurong mas magaling at mas malaki ang kita, mga librong de-kalidad, more scholarships for gifted students, and language instruction to maintain our lead in English proficiency. Dunong at kalusugan ang susi sa kasaganaan.’

“Interpretation: Health and education, that’s my priority. That is why for 2007 we budgeted P146B for education and P13B for heath care. Just don’t look at my allocation for debt servicing which, by the way, will amount to P622B. Don’t tell anybody ok? Just believe me when I say that health and education are my priorities.

My wish for 2008: That I will not be able to hear another round of Arroyo’s SONA.

8. More illegitimate debts, August 2007

“In 1996, The Philippine government entered into a loan agreement with government of Austria that involves an equivalent of P500 million.

“The Philippine government agreed to pay $2 million annually starting 2002 up to 2014. This translates to an additional annual debt payment of almost P100 Million peso for the Filipino taxpayers.

“Test however showed that the incinerator units are of substandard quality, as it did not meet emission levels guaranteed by the supplier.

“A subsequent assessment of the incinerators’ emissions, jointly conducted by the DOH and the World Health Organization (WHO), revealed that these incinerators emit extremely high pollution.

My wish for 2008: That our legislators will repeal automatic appropriations for debt payments and pass a measure to rationalize the country’s fiscal and debt policies.

9. Suspension of NBN project, September 2007

“The kickback-laden ZTE-NBN broadband project has been suspended. This controversial project will cost $329.5 million – that is, ladies and gentlemen, equivalent to almost P15 billion (yup, that’s 15 with 9 zeroes!) at the current exchange rate!

“But why was the project suspended? Is it because it was tainted with corruption? Or is it to prevent more stink from coming out? Did Gloria Arroyo wake up one morning and realized the contract is unfair to the government? Or is she trying to save her behind by protecting her husband’s behind?

“I think this project should not only be suspended but deserves to be thrown directly into the nearest thrash can. For what is likely to happen is that Arroyo will simply wait for the public opposition to the project to die down and then revive the contract. We know that these greedy, scheming trapos (traditional politicians) will do anything to make their pockets heavier.

My wish for 2008: I ardently wish that these greedy politicians will wake up one day, any day within the year, and recognize that stealing is wrong. Yeah right!

10. Another coal plant proposal and junket bribes, October 2007

“If the current technology used in coal plants is “clean” why is it that up to now there are ongoing technological researches on how to make the same technology become environmentally friendly?

“Simply put, if “clean coal” is indeed “clean” why the need to make it clean?

“This technology that they are pushing is plainly NOT CLEAN – that is the simple message, no matter how they distort the facts. The term “clean coal technology” is a misnomer – grossly misleading and revoltingly contradictory.

“This leads me now to a separate but related issue – the question of legality and propriety of the ‘study trips’ of our ‘honorable’ city officials that were sponsored by the very proponent of a coal plant project in the City of Iloilo.

"Treñas, Mabilog and these councilors should know better. As public officials, they should ensure that their actions and position on issues is beyond reproach. They should not allow their office to be tarnished by such mindless action.

My wish for 2008: That these blind city officials will see the light – that no amount of PR and bribes can cover the fact that coal plants are harmful to human health and the environment. I also wish that Ilonggos will see through the deceit of the coal plant proponents.

11. The pardon of Erap, November 2007

“In writing this article I am even at a loss as to how to approach the issue. The reason is that in any angle you view it; this current move of the fake president is simply revoltingly repulsive (or repulsively revolting)! It was simply a pardon granted without any single grain of wisdom. Well, apart of course from the motive of self-preservation.

“Yes, that is a crystal clear fact – that this pardon of Erap is nothing more than Arroyo’s scheme of ensuring her stay in power. Arroyo is simply trying to appease a section of the ever growing opposition to her administration – a tactic to divide those calling for her immediate removal from office.

“When national policies are made to simply satisfy the interests of a politician then we have a problem. When a presidential power is used for the sole purpose of satisfying a whim of a trapo President then we have a big problem.

My wish for 2008: That Gloria Arroyo and Erap be put in jail together in one cell for crimes against the Filipino nation. Or at least in my dream – that would surely give me a restful sleep.

12. The strengthening of the Peso, December 2007

“The strengthening of the peso against the dollar was also the brainchild of Arroyo. By not investing enough in economic services, the government was able to force more Filipinos, including physicians who became nurses, to work abroad. So the more OFWs, the more dollar and other foreign currency remittances.

“These OFW remittances are the reason why our economy is kept afloat. Isn’t that a very clever economic strategy? Push your population to hunger and they will find food somewhere else and even send more food back home.

My wish for 2008: That Arroyo stops taking credit from ‘achievements’ she did not have a hand on. And that Filipinos will have a better Christmas next year – more food on the table!

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HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL! Thanks to all readers and all those who sent text messages and emails. I was not able to reply to all your messages but rest assured that they are all highly appreciated.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Another Blue Christmas

“Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, tell me now
Why the dark before the dawn?”
- from “Yahweh” by U2

It is Christmas season once again and it seems there is not much going on. When I say “going on”, I mean improvement in the lives of the ordinary Filipinos.

In fact, “improvement” is not even the appropriate term; for this column would be glad to proclaim if the majority still feel at least the same level of satisfaction (or more accurately: destitution) from the previous year.

Try to ask around and check how people think they fared today compared to the previous Christmases. Well, for sure majority will confirm this, albeit, with smiling faces, what with the Filipinos’ capacity to smile in the face of extreme hardship.

The year 2007 is about to end and clearly this year marks ever deeper hardship for the Filipino family. It was a year of steep increases in the cost of basic commodities as well as other services and goods.

For one the cost of petroleum products have increased many times we even lost count as to the actual number of increases. Along with these came the increases in the prices of goods which are dependent in different levels to oil inputs.

Jeepney fares also increased, which is I think the highest single increase as far as I can remember. And yes of course the electricity rates! This was indeed another year of steep increases in power rates and more is to come as the fuel cost continue to soar. Add to that the continuing anti-consumer practices of PECO, other private power distribution companies and electric cooperatives.

Well, we may ask, since when did these prices stop increasing? Good question, but this was a year with the sharpest rise in the cost of different products and the nominal cost of living as a whole.

Secondly, it’s not only a function of the rate of increases of the various commodities and services. It is also a function of the stunted level of incomes of the poor Filipinos especially the ordinary workers. Well I don’t want to whine about the recently approved adjustment in the minimum wage because that will take another article. The bottom line is -- our capacity to buy remains very low and continues to be eroded.

This was another year of hardship to the majority of Filipinos while the government is busy window-dressing the economy.

This fiscal crisis, which has in fact been around as early as the year 2001, is manifested in the budget, spending and new borrowings of the national government. Less and less is spent by this government for social (housing, health care, education) and economic (infrastructure) services as it borrows more and more to pay for its debts.

No wonder more Filipinos are going out and even more are planning to go out, not for a greener pasture (for we can’t even say that what we have in the Philippines is still green!), but simply for a green one.

I sure hope that these dark days will be over soon as we wake up to a new dawn. Wishful thinking…

Trivia: This article is largely based from an article I wrote in December 2004. The funny thing is – I only did a few editing and the article seems to be current. The situation holds true then as much as today. That is the sad reality.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Economist or Politician?

“I think I’m a pretty good economist, but a very bad politician.”
- by Gloria Macapacagal-Arroyo

On rare occasions I agree with Gloria Arroyo. She may be a well-known liar and one of the most corrupt trapo (traditional politician) in Philippine history but once in a while she has the capability to tell the truth. For example the quote above is indeed very true. Below are my proofs and validations.

As a “pretty good economist” the following are just a few examples of Arroyo’s economic accomplishments.

1) Arroyo was responsible in the country’s ballooning debt. Gloria Arroyo, in just a period of 4 years (2001-2005), borrowed P2.44 Trillion, which is more than the combined borrowings of the Aquino, Ramos and Estrada administrations. Arroyo in just a short period was able to bury the country in deeper debt! Of course, we and our grand-children will be the ones who will end up paying those loans.

2) Despite of the ever increasing debt, the only item in the annual government budget that receives real increases in allocation is debt servicing. Where did the money go? Only Arroyo and cohorts know. Sounds like magic but only a “pretty good economist” can do that!

3) Arroyo was the bright mind behind the introduction of an efficient solution to the country’s classroom shortage. Can you still remember last year, when Gloria was able to lick the problem of classroom shortage in the country? All she did was change the ideal classroom-to-student ratio from 1 classroom for every 50 students to 1 classroom for every 100 students! Do you have any better economic strategy than that?

4) Gloria was able to improve the financial status, not of the country by the way, but of her family and cronies. Her being the president is material to the business dealings Mike Arroyo and friends brokered with the Philippine government to corner handsome contracts. Also let us not forget Jose Pidal who stashed away millions in deposits in controversial deals with the Arroyo government.

5) The strengthening of the peso against the dollar was also the brainchild of Arroyo. By not investing enough in economic services, the government was able to force more Filipinos, including physicians who became nurses, to work abroad. So the more OFWs, the more dollar and other foreign currency remittances.

These OFW remittances are the reason why our economy is kept afloat. Isn’t that a very clever economic strategy? Push your population to hunger and they will find food somewhere else and even send more food back home.

Now, as a “very bad politician”, below are Gloria’s career highlights so far.

1) During the EDSA 2 protests, Gloria Arroyo then Vice-president only abandoned her boss once it was clear that Erap is about to be toppled. Gloria’s trapo strategy: Stay in the fence while the factions are throwing punches, then when one is about to be knocked out, immediately jump to the winning side! She is such a bad politician indeed – no back-bone, unprincipled, fence-sitter.

2) To make sure she won the previous presidential election, Arroyo utilized hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ money to finance her campaign by distributing (read: bribing) local officials. Also she employed the infamous Joc-joc Bolante to distribute bribes pretending as fertilizers. And let us not forget our all-time favorite, Virgilio “Hello Garci” Garcillano who was tasked to make sure that Arroyo leads by 1 million votes in Mindanao at all cost.

Arroyo is such a “very bad politician” for being caught on tape conspiring to rig the previous presidential election. Good politicians don’t get caught, right?

3) Arroyo is swamped with anomalies and scandals which prompted calls for her to be impeached. Impeachment proceeding should be initiated in the Lower House and under the House rules, only one impeachment case can be filed against her within a year. Now, by simply having one of her cohorts file a weak case against her she manages to give herself another year of getting away with mounting crimes against the nation. By abusing technicalities, Arroyo makes a mockery of the constitution and our laws.

4) To appease a section of the opposition and a section of poor Filipinos, Arroyo pardoned Erap after he was found guilty of plunder. Disguised as a humanitarian act, a plunderer who was toppled by the people was freed just to ensure her stay in power.

5) As a “very bad politician”, Arroyo employed different tactics to suppress dissent and opposition to her fake and corrupt government. We can still remember the violent Calibrated Preemptive Response or CPR that met street demonstrations last year. Also, E.O. 464 which was issued to block the appearance of government officials and military officers in Congressional hearings that investigate her administration’s anomalies.

Meanwhile activists and journalists are being assassinated in such blatant fashion as the Arroyo government pays lip service to the protection of human rights.

Pretty good economist but a very bad politician? You bet!

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Opinions and Opinions

“An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it.”
- by Jef Mallett

There are opinions that you can easily laugh off. These are the kind of opinions that are not supported by facts or worse run counter to established facts. Worst, these opinions are sometimes being passed off as truths.

An example of this is the opinion of Iloilo City Mayor Treñas and other coal plant pushers when they claim that coal plants are environmentally safe as their emissions are “odorless, colorless and tasteless”. Well, the last time I checked the Mayor does not have a degree in chemistry, medicine, environmental science or any related field. Further, in the absence of expertise, the Mayor should at least cite some credible studies and not simply believe the opinion of fellow coal plant pushers in Taiwan.

There are also opinions that you need to take seriously. These opinions are backed up by data and scientific evidence. And most often this opinion comes from somebody who has expertise and experience on the subject matter.

A good example of this is an opinion from a Physician who heads the National Poison Management and Control Center on the same subject – coal plants. Dr. Lynn R. Panganiban, an Ilonggo, is also a Professor of the UP College of Medicine Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, FPSCOT-Fellow of the Philippine Society of Clinical and Occupational Toxicology, and DPAFP-Diplomate of the Phil. Academy of Family Physicians.

Now, this column is featuring below an excerpt from Dr. Lynn’s email. Please compare her point by point assertions to the “intelligent” opinion of coal plant pushers – Treñas, Mabilog, et al.
* * * * *

Dear Colleagues in the health profession and concerned Ilonggos/Ilonggas,

Greetings!

Two weeks ago, it was brought to my attention that there is a plan to set up a coal-fired power plant in the City of Iloilo. This news came as a surprise to me since I have the belief that this source of electrical power was no longer an option considering that a few years back, similar proposals were resisted and rejected by the Municipalities of Banate and Concepcion.

As an Ilongga who remains to be appreciative and proud of the City and as a physician-toxicologist who understands the impact of hazardous chemicals on health and environment, I am deeply concerned and saddened about the proposed setting up of the said coal-fired power plant.

It is a general knowledge that coal-fired power plants have been the major source of air pollution all over the world. In fact, their emissions have been major contributors to the global warming phenomenon we are currently experiencing. Although there have been attempts in addressing the toxic discharges with introduction of new technologies, we are still in the stage of merely reducing these emissions and have no methods of totally eliminating them.

My concern and apprehension with the establishment of the coal-fired power plant is based on the following:

1. Emissions from coal-fired power plants are composed of pollutants such as oxides of sulfur, mainly sulfur dioxide; nitrogen oxides; polynuclear hydrocarbons; total gaseous hydrocarbons; solid particulates, especially PM 10; formaldehyde; carbon monoxide, metals such as mercury and arsenic.

2. The above substances carry with them intrinsic toxic effects. In combination, these effects can be magnified because of chemical-chemical interactions that produce synergistic effects. For instance, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides and particulate matter have common target organs - the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. The combined effects of these substances can be more than the sum of the individual effects on these organ systems.

3. There are members, in the community situated near coal-fired power plants, who are vulnerable to even low concentrations of the above substances. For instance, children may be exposed to more of these substances than adults because they breathe more air for their size than adults do. For sulfur dioxide, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) (1999) reports that “Long term studies surveying large numbers of children indicate that children who have breathed sulfur dioxide pollution may develop more breathing problems as they grow older, may make more emergency room visits for treatment of wheezing fits, and may get more respiratory illnesses than other children. Children with asthma may be especially sensitive even to low concentrations of sulfur dioxide.” A recent study published in the Environmental Research in January 2007 showed that “air pollution from coal-fired power station, although not exceeding local pollution standards, had a negative effect in children’s lung function development.”

4. The presence of heavy metals in the emissions of coal-fired power plant should be taken into consideration. Mercury has been identified as one of the metals released in coal combustion. Globally, this toxic metal has caused significant adverse impacts such that in 2005, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Governing Council arrived at the decision that “urges governments, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations and the private sector to develop and implement partnerships in a clear, transparent and accountable manner, as one approach to reducing the risks to human health and the environment the release of mercury and its compounds to the environment.”

With regards the health effects, it has been found that organic mercury is a potent teratogen and reproductive poison. Its worst effects involve the central nervous system and the onset can be insidious and compose of dysarthria, ataxia, mental retardation, among others.

5. The establishment of the coal-fired power plant is not an economically-efficient way of sourcing energy if we include in the total cost of operation the health and environmental impacts. The increased hospital visits, the prescribed medications, the man-hour productive losses because of sickness carry with them monetary equivalents. For an individual who develops mercury poisoning, the cost of the chelating agent alone for a 19-day course is P136, 095.00. The big question is: Who will shoulder these health costs? Have these been taken into consideration?

6. Establishment of a hazardous industry such as the coal-fired power generation will require stringent and efficient monitoring of its impact on health and environment. Monitoring does not just mean merely using our sense of smell or sight. This monitoring system means setting up of a scientifically sound technology for measuring pollutant levels in the environment and biologic fluids, their periodic evaluation and provision of appropriate interventions. This system entails money as well when done in an honest to goodness manner. Current cost for each environmental sample runs from P1,200.00-P5,000.00. This cost is also the same for biologic samples. Again, has this kind of monitoring system been considered and who will shoulder the cost?

In my 17 years of work as a toxicologist, I still have to see an efficiently operating monitoring system that seriously looks into health and environmental impacts of pollutants in the country.

Very truly yours,

Lynn R. Panganiban, MD, FPSCOT, DPAFP
Mandaluyong City

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(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com)

Trapoliticking at its peak

“Funky crime funky crime
don't you know funk's colors blind
well I've committed a funky crime
against a state of mind”
- from “Funky Crime” by Red Hot Chili Peppers


That law is always rigged to favor the rich and the powerful has been blatantly displayed once again in Philippine politics. Trapoliticking in the country is at its highest peak nowadays. And these trapos (traditional politicians) are really getting to be bolder and bolder these days.

It seems that these unprincipled politicians can just rob us (of our taxes or of justice) in broad daylight and pretend as if there is nothing wrong with their action. They can even look us straight in the eye and say they are doing it “for the good of the country”.

Two recent political events have marked the year 2007 as the Year of the Trapos. One is the instant pardon of Erap Estrada who was found guilty of plunder. Then comes the recent efforts of Gloria Arroyo to once again stop a genuine impeachment against her…at all costs.

Pardon me, Madame Gloria

First, let’s track back a little to Arroyo’s pardon of Erap Estrada. I do not know, but this recent action of Arroyo has sort of sent 1000 volts of electricity up my spine. I felt numbness. Disbelief. Anger. And a hint of hopelessness.

For how could you forgive somebody found guilty of plunder but has not even acknowledged his wrongdoing? How could you forget a crime when the criminal has not even owned up to his offense?

It’s not that I don’t expect Gloria Arroyo to be capable of such hideous trapoliticking. But it’s more of a shock that it is indeed happening. It’s like as time goes by under this administration, the Filipino nation is getting buried deeper and deeper into this pit of unprincipled politics.

In writing this article I am even at a loss as to how to approach the issue. The reason is that in any angle you view it; this current move of the fake president is simply revoltingly repulsive (or repulsively revolting)! It was simply a pardon granted without any single grain of wisdom. Well, apart of course from the motive of self-preservation.

Yes, that is a crystal clear fact – that this pardon of Erap is nothing more than Arroyo’s scheme of ensuring her stay in power. Arroyo is simply trying to appease a section of the ever growing opposition to her administration – a tactic to divide those calling for her immediate removal from office.

When national policies are made to simply satisfy the interests of a politician then we have a problem. When a presidential power is used for the sole purpose of satisfying a whim of a trapo President then we have a big problem.


The spirit of the law, impeached

Now let us go to the issue of the recent efforts of Arroyo to once again stop a genuine impeachment against her.

The removal of a dishonest, abusive and corrupt President is an inherent power of the people from whom all the government powers emanates. This power to remove a President is delegated to Congress through the process of impeachment. This, in essence, is a mechanism to ensure the accountability of the leader of the land to the people through a body which is representative of them.

Now, an impeachment proceeding should be initiated in the Lower House and under the House rules, only one impeachment case can be filed against the same impeachable official within a year. This limitation is supposed to prevent a harassment of impeachment cases against a President who is assumed to be working for the country.

Gloria Arroyo however is using this rule to make a mockery of our constitution and our laws. By simply having one of her cohorts file a weak case against her she manages to give herself another year of getting away with mounting crimes against the nation.

The sadder fact is that a lot of Congress Representatives are in connivance with Malacañang in this scheme. Despite the existence of strong evidence against Arroyo, these shameful people we call “honorable” have several times terminated the impeachment proceedings for mere technicalities taking advantage of the same weak case that one of their accomplices filed.

The spirit of the law is unashamedly disregarded by these trapos to simply make sure that their benefactor remains in power. For them, implementing the spirit of the law is not as important as making sure that the hand that feeds their pocket is safe and sound.

If the Supreme Court doesn’t make a corrective stand on this issue then down the drain our nation go.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com.)

Irony of all ironies!

“It’s a black fly on your Chardonnay
It’s a death row pardon two minutes too late…”
- from “Ironic” by Alanis Morissette

I read in a previous issue of this paper that Mayor Treñas is leaving for Korea. Treñas will attend a three-day meeting of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI). I did a research on this initiative and this particular meeting and I found out some interesting information.

According to its web site ICLEI “is an international association of local governments and national and regional local government organizations that have made a commitment to sustainable development.” I would like to highlight “sustainable development” which our mayor seems not to understand very well.

ICLEI partners with United Nations in different programs and was actually founded in the UN headquarters in New York. This group supports the environmental initiatives of the UN and the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). IPCC, composed of scientists from all over the world, declared in a recent conference that human activity is the main cause of global warming and highlighted fossil burning activities (coal plants) among others.

I commend ICLEI for its laudable objectives and its global efforts to tackle global environmental issues particularly global warming to the level of local governments. In fact, this meeting in Jeju, Korea will “address the future role of local governments in the international effort to tackle climate change.”

The website http://www.iclei.org/ is indeed very impressive and informative. It features efforts of local governments from different cities to combat global warming, stories about renewable sources of energy and conferences on this and that environmentally-sound alternatives.

Of course here in Iloilo City, our local government’s effort is promoting the construction of a coal plant! And by the way, Treñas is a current member of ICLEI’s Executive Committee “that oversee the implementation of the Strategic Plan and ICLEI operations”. Tsk ,tsk, now you understand why I have that title in this article.

* * * * *

By the way I prepared a short speech for Treñas to deliver in the ICLEI meeting. Please read below.

Today we have gathered here as members of the Executive Committee of ICLEI to tackle our role as local government executives in the issue of climate change. Indeed we have a big role as we are the grassroots leaders in our communities.

We should continue to promote sustainable development. The development that can sustain our political careers and our pockets. What use is development if we are without power?” (Big smile)

That is why in my beloved city, the City of Iloilo, I am supporting the building of a coal fired power plant. And yes this proposed coal plant will be very clean as it will utilize what the proponents say as the “clean coal technology”. Sounds hi-tech, right?

I really believe them because they are my friends. In fact they even gave me a nice treat – an all-expense paid trip to Taiwan, among other gifts! (Wink, wink...) But of course it was to view a coal plant, a study trip. And my, oh my, I loved the beaches in Taiwan. But then again it was a study trip and yes I learned a lot about coal plants!

Despite of volumes of studies that document the hazards of coal plants, I now believe the proponents when they say coal plants are clean. Why? Because they are my friends! And we should trust our friends, right?

Further, when I went to Taiwan, the coal plant emissions are colorless, odorless, and tasteless. Yes I went up the plant’s smoke stack, smelled and tasted the emissions. It was fun climbing up and down the ladder, by the way.

Anyway, what I am trying to point out here is that what you cannot see, smell or taste could not possibly hurt you. Right? How scientific could you get? I actually failed in my high school chemistry class (if my memory serves me right) but heck, I am the mayor now and mayors don’t need chemistry.

And when I was there I never heard anybody cough or I never saw a sickly person. So I declare that coal plant emissions cannot cause asthma or cancer. I’m very observant, right? I knew it I could have been a good scientist.

Now, I appeal to you in behalf of my coal plant friends. Let us declare the building of coal plants as sustainable development projects.

Let us ignore the opinion of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Food and Drug Administration, the studies by Harvard School of Public Health and many other institutions that detail the hazards of coal plants to the environment and to people’s health.

Let us ignore the declaration of UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that point to burning fossil fuels, majority of which from coal plants, as the culprit in climate change.

As a member of this executive committee, I move that we declare all those scientists to be anti-development and adopt my scientific methods as the new standards.

This is, ladies and gentlemen, our role as local government executives in the issue of climate change. I, thank you. (Bow!)

Of Coal Plants and Junkets

“Integrity has no need of rules.”
– Albert Camus

If your bathroom were sparkling and spotless would you clean it? Would you wash the dishes when you know they are already clean?

If the current technology used in coal plants is “clean” why is it that up to now there are ongoing technological researches on how to make the same technology become environmentally friendly?

In the global scene, why is the power industry talking about burying coal plants emissions and implement what they call the CCS or the carbon (CO2) capture and storage?

Among other mitigating efforts to ease environmental impact, why is it that options including gasification of coal are now being laid on the table on coal power plant designs?

Simply put, if “clean coal” is indeed “clean” why the need to make it clean?

Well, coal plant proponents will say: “Current coal technology is clean and ongoing studies are geared towards making it more environment friendly.

That does not make sense! Why make it more environment friendly if it is already clean? If you say you want it to be “MORE environment friendly”, then you are claiming that it is already “environment friendly”. But is it?

If the technology is environment friendly then there should be no talk on how to mitigate the harmful emissions and noxious hazards of coal plants. But the fact that they cannot deny is – there is!

“Clean Coal” – revoltingly contradictory

Now, why call it “clean” when in actuality it is not? Why are they not accepting in public that indeed coal plants harm the environment and human health?

Why is there no admission from proponents that coal plants, including those using circulating fluidized bed (CFB), account for the biggest toxic emissions (sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury, etc.) in the planet?

Now, coal plant proponents will say: “Well one more coal plant here in Iloilo will not really make things worse. Further, it is only one additional plant and the impact may be negligible. And after all we need more power for the region’s development.

To the question: “Is ‘clean coal technology’ really clean?” does it really matter if the percent of additional pollution is small compared to the whole? Does it really matter if the hazards will be felt in 1 year, in 10 years or in 50 years?

The answer is “NO”. This technology that they are pushing is plainly NOT CLEAN – that is the simple message, no matter how they distort the facts. The term “clean coal technology” is a misnomer – grossly misleading and revoltingly contradictory.

Further, apart from it being a contributor to the planetary scourge of global warming, this coal plant will be a threat in the smaller regional scale. This coal plant, CFB or otherwise, that they want to build here in Iloilo poses serious hazards to our environment and to the population’s health.

On the need for additional power, many studies have shown superior renewable alternatives – options that embody the concept of sustainable development that this column has covered in the past.

Study trips or disguised bribe?

This leads me now to a separate but related issue – the question of legality and propriety of the “study trips” of our “honorable” city officials that were sponsored by the very proponent of a coal plant project in the City of Iloilo.

Mayor Treñas, Vice Mayor Mabilog and several City Councilors went to Taiwan allegedly to visit coal plants as arranged by the proponent. The trip and all expenses were shouldered by Global Business Power Corp. (GBPC), owner of Panay Power Corporation (PPC) whose proposing a 100 MW coal plant in Lapaz, Iloilo City.

In the legal front, RISE or the Responsible Ilonggos for Renewable Energy, through FDC chairperson Roming Gerochi is right on target in filing charges against Mayor Treñas for accepting this sponsored junket.
In the RISE complaint filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, Treñas is accused of violating Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. Section 7 (d) of the Act stipulates the following:

“Solicitation or acceptance of gifts. - Public officials and employees shall not solicit or accept, directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan or anything of monetary value from any person in the course of their official duties or in connection with any operation being regulated by, or any transaction which may be affected by the functions of their office.”

Clearly, Treñas (and the others) violated this provision. What’s funny is that in news reports this supposedly lawyer Mayor justifies his action by saying that “the proponents are not contractors or suppliers for projects of the city government”.

Further he said “his trip cannot be covered by prohibitions of the law because the coal-plant project does not need the approval of the city government”.

Nowhere in RA 6713 exempts a public official under the circumstances mentioned by Treñas. The actual quote of Section 7 (d) of the law above is very clear and is to be applied in a general manner as stressed in the phrase “in connection with…any transaction which may be affected by the functions of their office”.

Is it not that making the city and its environment safe a function of their office? Is it not that the health of Iloilo City residents a part of the function of their office? Is issuing a business permit to PPC and ensuring that PPC is operating with the best interest of the City not a part of the function of their office?

Is it not their function to objectively study and make a stand on such important issue as the building of a coal plant right in the middle of the city? So how can Iloilo City residents now expect that their City officials will be objective and be on the side of the City’s environment and people’s health when it comes to the issue of the building of a coal plant?

What happened to integrity?

Treñas, Mabilog and these councilors should know better. As public officials, they should ensure that their actions and position on issues is beyond reproach. They should not allow their office to be tarnished by such mindless action.

To remind our “honorable” public officials, below is the “Declaration of Policies” of RA 6713:

“It is the policy of the State to promote a high standard of ethics in public service. Public officials and employees shall at all times be accountable to the people and shall discharge their duties with utmost responsibility, integrity…”

Actually, even without RA 6713 or any law, common sense will tell you that as public officials, accepting this junket is plainly inappropriate. This is in fact not only a question of law but more so a question of integrity.

But well maybe I am expecting so much from our public officials. Maybe common sense and integrity are characteristics that are really not that common among these politicians.

* * * * * *
Happy 30th Anniversary to UP in the Visayas’ Validus Amicitia Brotherhood! Congratulations for thirty years of powerful friendship. More power, amigos!

Gloria’s 7 Social Sins

“The cause of liberty becomes a mockery if the price to be paid
is the wholesale destruction of those who are to enjoy liberty.”
- by Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi would have been very happy to witness the presentation of a scroll containing his very own “Seven Social Sins” to Gloria Arroyo on her recent visit to India. While addressed to society as a whole, Gandhi’s “Seven Social Sins” is actually very appropriate reading for unscrupulous politicians like Arroyo.

We sure hope that Gandhi’s words of wisdom could penetrate the callous hearts of these trapos (traditional politicians). Of course that is granting that these rotten politicians still have the conscience left to see beyond their own interests.

Now, here are the seven social sins as proclaimed by the great Mahatma Gandhi: (1) Wealth Without Work, (2) Pleasure Without Conscience, (3) Knowledge Without Character, (4) Commerce Without Morality, (5) Science Without Humanity, (6) Religion Without Sacrifice, and (7) Politics Without Principle.

Here are some of my reflections on these social sins as exemplified by Gloria Arroyo, her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo and their cohorts.

Wealth Without Work. Gloria Arroyo and her husband have exhibited this numerous times already. Recent example would be the controversial NBN project. This power couple is trying to broker a P15 billion project, earn hefty kickbacks in the process by simply using the office the President. Sa-ching! Easy money!

Pleasure Without Conscience. An example of this was Gloria’s ambition to be the President of the country at all costs. As captured in her famous “Hello Garci” conversations, she would even agree to let Garci and men kidnap a poor teacher whose a witness to her election cheating in Mindanao. All in the name of pleasure to be the “elected” President of the Philippines!

Knowledge Without Character. Gloria sure has lots of knowledge given her economist (kuno) background. However this knowledge is useless if she continues to ignore the basic concepts of economic equity and social justice.

Commerce Without Morality. This is exemplified by the many business deals Arroyo and friends brokered with the Philippine government to corner handsome contracts. Also let us not forget Jose Pidal who stashed away millions in deposits in controversial deals with the Arroyo government.


Science Without Humanity. Well, what could be a better example than implementing a high technology project such as the national broadband project? This project will result in millions more of additional debt for the Filipinos (not to mention millions more of kickbacks for Gloria and husband!). Gloria said this would enable students even in the remotest municipalities to access the Internet and learn. Yeah right! Students who have barely anything to eat or do not even have a decent classroom are so excited to browse the worldwide web.

Religion Without Sacrifice. Like many other politicians, Gloria Arroyo has the propensity to project a religious image especially during election period. These trapos summon the support of the Cardinals, the pastors, the priests, the imams and what have you, as they present themselves as god-fearing individuals. Old tricks but the sad fact is, it works!
Politics Without Principle. Now, in this last one Gloria Arroyo would receive the highest honors. I don’t know if I still need to give an instance. Examples are all over the place! Go figure.

Suspension of NBN project not enough

“They said it changes when the sun goes down
Over the river going out of town…”
- from “When the Sun Goes Down” by Arctic Monkeys

The kickback-laden ZTE-NBN broadband project has been suspended. This controversial project will cost $329.5 million – that is, ladies and gentlemen, equivalent to almost P15 billion (yup, that’s 15 with 9 zeroes!) at the current exchange rate!

But why was the project suspended? Is it because it was tainted with corruption? Or is it to prevent more stink from coming out? Did Gloria Arroyo wake up one morning and realized the contract is unfair to the government? Or is she trying to save her behind by protecting her husband’s behind?

No doubt this action by the administration is an effort to contain the can of worms that was opened to the public. This is an attempt to diffuse the public anger against the personalities involved in brokering the deal – no less than Gloria’s husband and their corrupt gang – in fact against Malacañang itself.

By all indications this project is nothing but a giant milking cow. This is like the mother (or father) of all kickbacks! With all the problems facing our country and with very low budget for even the basic social services, I cannot fathom the callousness of this P15 billion project.

Yes, a broadband network would make communication among government agencies more efficient. And they claim this will improve government services, which I doubt by the way (but this is another story).

But is this the only way to do it? Can’t we live without it? No, in fact many developed nations and major cities all over the world do not have broadband connectivity. This is comparable to wearing Prada and sporting the slickest cellphone while your stomach grumbles in hunger.

The correct question would be – Do we have to prioritize this project over the more pressing problems of poverty, inaccessible education, unemployment and housing? Just imagine how many classroom buildings we can build with P15 billion additional budget to education. Or think of the number of lives that will be saved with investing this P15 billion to health care.

I think this project should not only be suspended but deserves to be thrown directly into the nearest thrash can. For what is likely to happen is that Arroyo will simply wait for the public opposition to the project to die down and then revive the contract. We know that these greedy, scheming trapos (traditional politicians) will do anything to make their pockets heavier.

The Senate should pursue the investigation of the anomalies surrounding this deal. Suspending the contract should not result to the hiding of the facts of culpability of government officials and personalities involved.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com)

Why remove Raul’s posters?

“The great corrupter of public man (and woman) is the ego....
Looking at the mirror distracts one's attention from the problem.”
- Dean Acheson

I read a news article about the justification of the removal of the DOJ posters from the walls of the Hall of Justice. The DOJ poster bears the image of the great Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales.

They said that the face of great Raul in the posters were vandalized with mustache and beard and even horns! When the Hall of Justice’s maintenance office received the communication that Chief Justice Renato Puno is scheduled to visit, then they decided to remove all those “redesigned”posters. They claim that the posters are not presentable anymore.

This column condemns those unfounded action and demand that those posters be pasted back to the walls of the Hall of Justice! Remove all the other posters that they want but certainly not Raul’s posters! Removing those posters is tantamount to a mockery of justice. And they can afford to do that with the image of the Justice himself? They are violating a basic freedom guaranteed by the constitution! This is a big farce!

First, those posters were paid for by the Filipino taxpayers. It was the people’s money that was utilized in the printing of such magnificent narcissistic posters. We spent for the printing of the poster, why remove it? Posters are meant to be, well, posted.

Second, they should respect whatever markings are on the posters for that is a part of its overall aesthetic value. It is a work of art in progress. Don’t they understand that the ordinary Filipino paid for the printing of the posters and now are contributing their artistic talents to make the posters even more appealing, informative and mind tickling?

Lastly and more important – the beard, mustache and the horns are actually appropriate, very fitting! Look at the track record of Raul – his brave lawyering for the American soldier rapist stationed in Subic, his colorful anti-women remarks and attitude, his many anti-people actions and positions plus his unquestioning and undying support to a fake and corrupt administration.

Beards and mustache characterize villains. So what wrong with that? Horns, well, devils wear them – it will portray somebody as evil, or sinister, or dreadful, creepy or simply horrible! So what’s the big deal?

To all readers lets us start a signature campaign to bring all those posters back! No, I do not mean that they replace them with new ones. We want exactly those same posters that they removed. We want the PNP and the NBI in coordination with the FBI, the CIA and the Interpol to determine the location of the posters and bring them back immediately! If needed let us elevate this issue to Congress or maybe to the International Court of Justice. Can anybody draft a position paper?

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com)

Not a 9/11 poem

“One death is a tragedy. A million deaths is a statistic.”
- Josef Stalin

It’s almost 9/11. This date is probably the most “recall-able” date in world history. It marked the mourning of the world for the victims of the terrorist attack that brought down the twin towers of New York.

While we always remember the more than 4,000 victims of 9/11, the irony is we tend to forget the thousands and the millions more of people who died from other bigger human-caused tragedies. Atrocities of governments and people in power such as wars of aggression that led to death tolls we simply leave to statisticians to record.

In the anniversary of 9/11 I would like to yield this space to a very meaningful piece of poetry below. Let us pause for a moment of silence, not only for the deaths of 9/11, but for all victims of intolerance, discrimination, exploitation and greed.

* * * * *

A MOMENT OF SILENCE
BEFORE I START THIS POEM

by Emanuel Ortiz
11 September 2002


Before I start this poem, I'd like to ask you to join me
In a moment of silence
In honour of those who died in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon last September 11th. I would also like to ask you To offer up a moment of silence For all of those who have been harassed, imprisoned, disappeared, tortured, raped, or killed in retaliation for those strikes, For the victims in both Afghanistan and the US.

And if I could just add one more thing...

A full day of silence
For the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have died at the hands of US-backed Israeli forces over decades of occupation. Six months of silence for the million and-a-half Iraqi people, mostly children, who have died of malnourishment or starvation as a result of an 11-year US embargo against the country.

Before I begin this poem,

Two months of silence for the Blacks under Apartheid in South Africa, Where homeland security made them aliens in their own country. Nine months of silence for the dead in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Where death rained down and peeled back every layer of concrete, steel, earth and skin And the survivors went on as if alive. A year of silence for the millions of dead in Vietnam - a people, not a war - for those who know a thing or two about the scent of burning fuel, their relatives' bones buried in it, their babies born of it. A year of silence for the dead in Cambodia and Laos, victims of a secret war .... ssssshhhhh.... Say nothing ... we don't want them to learn that they are dead. Two months of silence for the decades of dead in Colombia, Whose names, like the corpses they once represented, have piled up and slipped off our tongues.

Before I begin this poem.

An hour of silence for El Salvador ...
An afternoon of silence for Nicaragua ...
Two days of silence for the Guatemaltecos ...
None of whom ever knew a moment of peace in their living years. 45 seconds of silence for the 45 dead at Acteal, Chiapas 25 years of silence for the hundred million Africans who found their graves far deeper in the ocean than any building could poke into the sky. There will be no DNA testing or dental records to identify their remains. And for those who were strung and swung from the heights of sycamore trees in the south, the north, the east, and the west...

100 years of silence...

For the hundreds of millions of indigenous peoples from this half of right here,
Whose land and lives were stolen,
In postcard-perfect plots like Pine Ridge, Wounded Knee, Sand Creek, Fallen Timbers, or the Trail of Tears. Names now reduced to innocuous magnetic poetry on the refrigerator of our consciousness ...

So you want a moment of silence?
And we are all left speechless
Our tongues snatched from our mouths
Our eyes stapled shut
A moment of silence
And the poets have all been laid to rest
The drums disintegrating into dust.

Before I begin this poem,
You want a moment of silence
You mourn now as if the world will never be the same
And the rest of us hope to hell it won't be.
Not like it always has been.

Because this is not a 9/11 poem.
This is a 9/10 poem,
It is a 9/9 poem,
A 9/8 poem,
A 9/7 poem
This is a 1492 poem.

This is a poem about what causes poems like this to be written. And if this is a 9/11 poem, then: This is a September 11th poem for Chile, 1971. This is a September 12th poem for Steven Biko in South Africa, 1977. This is a September 13th poem for the brothers at Attica Prison, New York, 1971.

This is a September 14th poem for Somalia, 1992.

This is a poem for every date that falls to the ground in ashes This is a poem for the 110 stories that were never told The 110 stories that history chose not to write in textbooks The 110 stories that CNN, BBC, The New York Times, and Newsweek ignored. This is a poem for interrupting this program.

And still you want a moment of silence for your dead?
We could give you lifetimes of empty:
The unmarked graves
The lost languages
The uprooted trees and histories
The dead stares on the faces of nameless children
Before I start this poem we could be silent forever
Or just long enough to hunger,
For the dust to bury us
And you would still ask us
For more of our silence.

If you want a moment of silence
Then stop the oil pumps
Turn off the engines and the televisions
Sink the cruise ships
Crash the stock markets
Unplug the marquee lights,
Delete the instant messages,
Derail the trains, the light rail transit.

If you want a moment of silence, put a brick through the window of Taco Bell, And pay the workers for wages lost. Tear down the liquor stores, The townhouses, the White Houses, the jailhouses, the Penthouses and the Playboys.

If you want a moment of silence,
Then take it
On Super Bowl Sunday,
The Fourth of July
During Dayton's 13 hour sale
Or the next time your white guilt fills the room where my beautiful
people have gathered.

You want a moment of silence
Then take it NOW,
Before this poem begins.
Here, in the echo of my voice,
In the pause between goosesteps of the second hand,
In the space between bodies in embrace,
Here is your silence.
Take it.
But take it all... Don't cut in line.
Let your silence begin at the beginning of crime. But we, Tonight we will keep right on singing... For our dead.

(Send your comments and reactions to: for text messages to 0919-348-6337; for e-mails to ianseruelo@gmail.com)