Punchline
The political vultures flying over Batasan
By Ermin Garcia Jr.
The writing on the wall is there for Speaker Joe de V to see.
Without a doubt in anyone’s mind, the Speaker will have to contend with President Arroyo’s wrath from hereon till she gets her pound of flesh awash with a lot of blood in her hands. Let’s just say he now stands on equal footing with Sen. Ping Lacson being on top of her hate list. The only difference between them is that the dagger being sharpened for JdV is one that sinks in smoothly and slowly while that intended for Lacson is simply crude.
The Palace occupants already smell fresh blood. The political vultures can already be seen hovering over the roofs of the Batasan.
I would not even be surprised if one or two Brutuses among the Pangasinan congressmen have already joined the long line eager to sign the new pact with Kampi and DILG Sec. Ronnie Puno in exchange for bigger pork barrels.
What an irony it would be for the Speaker who thinks that his dispensation of the pork barrel is his guarantee that would keep him in his post for as long as he cares. In the end, it’s the pork barrel that will do him in.
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LONG OVERDUE FERRY SERVICE. The planned ferry service to-and-fro the cities of Alaminos-Dagupan-San Fernando is a long overdue facility. In fact, the national government has long ignored the fact that Luzon has a long coastline and a ferry service can provide the cheaper if not even efficient means of mass transport.
But I will even go farther with this fantasy. Imagine a ferry to and fro Dagupan City and Manila that carries light vehicles. Imagine the amount of savings on fuel and still enjoy the convenience of having your car/jeep to move around the two metro cities!
Unfortunately, it will take a lot more than simply buying ferries, establish a budget for a minimum breakeven operation, setting up a schedule for the trips and making them run on a 24-hour basis. A sea lane for ferries must be established, berths will be constructed, security patrols must be set in place, regulatory policies must be defined, etc. These will take some time to establish.
Nonetheless, better late than never.
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GONZ THE EDUCATOR.I must doff my hat to our columnist Gonz Duque.
He continues to be a trailblazer in the education sector. Though he loves to talk and argue, you are better off working with him as an educator and forget about retaining him as your lawyer ….hehe.
I cannot but admire his knack for thinking out of the box to get the business of education surging ahead minus the profit factor.
His foray into the ladderized education concept to provide blue collar workers not just skills but a college degree will do a lot to promote entrepreneurship in the province. But his most extraordinary accomplishment to my mind was his decision to install the ladderized education concept to the Dagupan City jail to give new hope to our convicted criminals.
Finally, inmates can now look forward to establishing their own businesses or gaining an employment with their diplomas and newfound skills which otherwise could not be possible in their lifetime after exiting the jail’s gates. (To some inmates, continuing as pastors, having achieved a spiritual transformation, when they return to their communities, is a new alternative).
Go, go Gonz!
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NEW VULNERABIILITY OF JOURNALISTS. My post-mortem on the recent Trillanes escapade.
The mouthing of the cause and advocacy of Senator Sonny Trillanes (and Brig. Gen. Danny Lim) was nothing new. In fact, people thought that was predictable and therefore, nothing was debatable about that. There was nothing new as well with the tactic applied. Neither was there anything new with the military/police response as well.
What was troubling and unprecedented was the cuffing and restraining of journalists who stayed inside the hotel. I recall newsmen being rounded up in the early days of martial law but their hands were never cuffed or restrained.
Without a doubt, the Arroyo government enforcers deliberately resorted to it to fully intimidate mediamen, that henceforth, pesky journalists who dare cover police operations can be arrested on the charge of obstructing justice!
There was absolutely no justification for the arrests and the cuffing of mediamen. But on the other hand, I submit that if any of the journalists who chose to stay with Trillanes et al. had been injured or shot dead in the crossfire if a firefight had erupted, the military or police could not be entirely blamed for such a fiasco. The journalists opted to take the risks.
I am certainly wary of the thinking and the endless plotting in the Palace led by my classmate Ronnie Puno! Between the issuance of E.O. 464, the mass arrests and cuffing of the journalists and the imposition of a one-night curfew, something is afoot.
(For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/punchline/
Readers may reach columnist at punch.sunday@gmail.com . For reactions to this column, click “Send MESSAGES, OPINIONS, COMMENTS” on default page.)
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