Mayor Benjie Lim, the publisher By Ermin F. Garcia Jr. Finally, the Senate has terminated its investigation on the P728 million fertilizer scam at the Department of Agriculture. In brief, the Senate recommended that criminal and administrative charges be filed against former officials of the department, led by Sec. Agriculture…

  GMA’s war with media By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.       As I write this column, President Arroyo announced that she has finally lifted the state of emergency in the country.  I guess, she surmised that journalists like us can now heave a sigh of relief with her…

                          Finally, a successful “landfill” By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.         The brouhaha over the now “not-so-mysterious” transfer of the dried decomposed waste materials from the Dagupan dumpsite to a private lot in San Jacinto (owned by a Mr. George Lee) may yet turn out as a…

Curious Order: Confiscate (but don’t arrest?) By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.   There seems to be more than meets the eye in the ongoing campaign versus gambling machines in the province. PNP provincial chief Alan Purisima has reason to question the seeming wrong priorities set for his command by the…

    Remembering 2005 By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.     The year 2005 is a year that the province will long remember. It will be remembered as the year when two Pangasinenses figured in the country’s worst and biggest election scandal, having been nd in a got caught in…

    Another “magic” budgeting By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.           Last week, Dagupan City Councilor Michael Fernandez sounded the alarm bells about an impending deficit spending in the city. He nipped the bud but frankly the expose was hardly news. In fact, judging from the…

    Taxes to pay for corruption By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.             To the Arroyo government, the imposition of EVAT signals to the world’s financial capitals that the country is prepared to pay its debts unconditionally. This development has pleased the country’s creditors no…

      Truth waiting to be served By Ermin F. Garcia Jr.       Over the week, we received a comment from Mr. Jess Delfin of California about the Punch’s mediocre reporting, specifically the “Manaoag gets “world class police station”. He wondered what the Punch meant when it…