Is anyone watching?

ARE any of you still watching the hearings in the House of Representatives (Impeachment complaint vs. GMA) and the Senate (starring Joke-Joke Bolante and the fertilizer fund scam)?

I gave up at the last House hearing where former Speaker Jose De Venecia was shooting his mouth off regarding the money allegedly distributed by the presidentita to the congressmen to shut them up in the last impeachment complaint.

I don't doubt that what JDV is saying is true, and even whatever else he is claiming to have happened in China while the presidentita, her husband and he were playing golf w/ ZTE executives. It's just that, too late na dava? Why only now JDV? Just bec. you were still Speaker, you kept quiet all the while your son Joey and Jun Lozada were being grilled over the barbeque pit on the ZTE Broadband issue? Tsk, tsk. How convenient.
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I did sneak a peek at this afternoon's hearing at the Senate. I was curious to find out Ibarra Poliquit's involvement in this fertilizer fund scam.

(Barry Poliquit is currently VP of physical resources of the GSIS.)

You see I knew an Ibarra/Barry Poliquit almost two decades ago when he was just a staff assistant at the office of Undersecretary Celso Roque at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Roque, a former UP professor, I thought ran a tight ship, and handled the environmental concerns of the department. So even in the late '80s, we were already talking and writing about global warming, and debt-for-nature swaps, etc. Our environmental officials were pretty much ahead of their time compared to their counterparts in the U.S., Japan, and Australia.

Going back to Barry Poliquit, I knew him when he was thinner and was one of the people whom I knew who was already into scuba diving even before it became a rage in the Philippines. He was married to Rhoda Poliquit, who worked in the Dept. of Agrarian Reform then. He also struck me as one of those guys in the DENR who knew his stuff and was willing to share good environmental stories with us reporters.

In my 23-year-old mind, Barry didn't look like someone who would engage in nefarious activities involving gov't funds. Even though he was much older than I, he appeared as someone who still retained his youthful idealism despite the corruption in most government offices.

After I left the beat, I lost touch w/ Barry and his wife, and only heard of him again during the reopened Senate investigation on the fertilizer fund scam. According to the media reports, he was assistant secretary at the Dept. of Agriculture and had helped Joke-Joke Bolante, then Usec, oversee the implementation of the fertilizer fund program. Today he was being grilled on his apparent inadequate monitoring of the program w/c led to the purchases of overpriced fertilizer by their field office.

I wonder what happened to Barry. What changed? Did the corruption eventually get to him? Did it become an "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" type of situation for him? Or did I just read him all wrong when he was still at DENR?
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After googling Dr. Celso Roque to find out what had become of him, I found out that he had passed away on June 30, 2002. Dr. Roque, who was such a masterful storyteller (he always had entertaining stories for us reporters), usually held court at Trellis, the original purveyor of sisig in the metro.

Among the DENR officials of his time, he was really the coolest cat. I could listen to him make kwento for hours, and learned a lot about enviromental issues from him. He is remembered as having pioneered the environmental movement in the Philippines. I raise a glass of wine in his memory.

Jun Lozada on my mind

JUN Lozada has been on a lot of people's minds lately. From the time he made his first appearance on TV in a press con to talk about his kidnapping, at the Senate where he testified on the corrupt ZTE-NBN deal, to his current speaking engagements, his words and thoughts have shaken up a lot of us to the reality of the evilness of this government.

This may be a belated reaction to his testimonies at the Senate hearing, but I've been truly moved by his bravery, his courage of spirit, and the sincerity of his actions. He isn't perfect. He's no saint. He has admitted to many shortcomings in his past. Which is why he continues to be credible in the eyes of the public no matter how many propaganda stories and gossip churned out against him by GMA's minions.

About a month ago, I stumbled on the blog of Jun Lozada's nephew, Voltaire, and it really pained me to read how his relatives missed him. Voltz talks about his uncle being persuaded to buy them pizzas while he and his cousins play tong-its during family get-togethers and such...just tiny close-up views of his uncle's ordinary life. If you want to read more about what's on Voltz's mind, I've added a link to his blog (Strawberry-filled donuts), which you can also click on from the sidebar at the left.

I hope that this present chaos in Jun Lozada's life and those of his relatives and friends, will all work out in their favor in the end, and benefit the nation. It is heavy burden that they carry and they need all our good wishes and prayers.

Don't change the gov't without me!

I need a break from all this political squabbling, and brazen lying of the Arroyo government. I shall be conveniently away on vacation beginning tomorrow when the militant organizations' rally in Makati is staged. Then also on Sunday, when ex-President Aquino leads a prayer rally in La Salle Greenhills. (It's my birthday so please excuse me, Tita Cory.) I shall pray with you in Boracay and especially for Jun Lozada...that brave, brave man. I really hope he gets through his ordeal. Nakakaawa na sya talaga. Pati ako naiiyak na sa mga engot at paulit-ulit na tanong mga senador natin. Hay, anovayan!

Someone asked me if I wasn't going to tomorrow's rally because it could already be the "tipping point." Sorry, I don't think entire country is that enraged yet, despite the nauseous Mafioso-like activities of the presidentita and her henchmen. (Just call them The Sopranos.) I really don't know what the people are waiting for. Parang, something is still holding us back from rising up and kicking these corrupt family and their people out of power. I guess, we're all still hoping that the presidentita actually becomes enlightened, shazam! kapow! and she changes for the better. This reminds me of woman in an abusive relationship. Sinasakal ka na, sinusuntok ka pa, pero ayaw mo pa din iwanan ang asawa mo. Feeling mo your love will save him, and he will still change. Paking shet.

Anyway, talk to you next week guys. Just don't change the government without me.

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AY, and as Jessica says, Happy Kris Aquino Day! (Or Happy Juan Ponce Enrile Day! ick, obvious ba ang leanings on the ZTE-NBN Broadband deal?)

Why Romy Neri refuses to tell the truth (from our mailbox)

For Immediate Release

Contact: Vicente R. Romano III, 0920.9615610
Leah Navarro, 0917.898.1957

Dear Friends,

Here's a short write-up that Jun L wrote sometime in October. He wanted me to disseminate it without attribution. I believe he was motivated both by his genuine concern for a beleaguered friend who was being maligned no end, and his desire, even then, for the truth to somehow surface. He left it up to me as to how and when to disseminate it.

I did not find any compelling reason to get it out then. But now that Jun has told it all, and Neri is being invited back to testify, I believe the public deserves to know what was (and maybe still is) in the mind of Neri – at least from the point of view of a friend. I'm sure Jun will not mind.

Let's get this out in the open.

God bless,

Enteng

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"What is Neri afraid to say and Why?

Many speculations have been made as to what Neri knows about the ZTE-NBN most particularly the direct involvement of Pres. Gloria Arroyo in this abominable affair. After his damaging “Sec. May 200 ka dito” demolition of Abalos, the discredited former Comelec Chairman, many were left disappointed when Neri suddenly clamped up when the Senators started asking him about the nature of his conversation with Arroyo, no amount of coaxing, cajoling and threats was enough to break his Code of Omerta. The question on many people’s mind was, What was Neri trying to protect when he repeatedly invoked “Executive Priviledge” during that gruelling 12 hour Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on live television?

We have known the Truth all along as one of the few people that Neri confided his predicament during those fateful days of April 2006, and how he wanted to resign his post of NEDA Director General and Secretary for Socio-Economic Planning over this incident where he lost all his moral respect for Pres. Gloria Arroyo.

We are doing this document to give the public an understanding of this predicament.

What is Neri afraid to tell the public? He is afraid to tell the public that after he reported the Abalos P200 million peso bribe offer, Arroyo casually told him to ignore it and work for its recommendation for approval anyway. That when he protested that it is too controversial and may attract the wrong kind of attention from media, Arroyo retorted back “Pakulo lang ni Joey yan and his father”. When he tried to reason that it may not be accommodated in the Chinese ODA package because it has been filled up with a list of projects already, Arroyo again ordered him to remove the low cost housing project and some water project to accommodate the ZTE-NBN deal in the ODA loan. That when he attempted to reason that it may not be approved in time for the Boao Forum which was only two days to go from that fateful April day, Arroyo with raised voice told him to include the ZTE-NBN project in the agenda of the following day’s meeting of a combined NEDA Board and Cabinet Committee, who as expected promptly approved the project paving the way for the contract signing between ZTE and DOTC in China the next day. Neri is afraid to tell the public that this conversation took place between him and Arroyo because it might spark another impeachment complaint against Arroyo.

Why is Neri afraid to tell the public about this conversation with Arroyo? He is afraid that another impeachment will simply result to more expenses of public funds similar to the Hyatt 10 impeachment crisis, because as DBM Secretary who replaced Boncodin, he was entrusted with the large scale DBM payola operation of Arroyo to Congressmen, Senators and Governors not quite similar to the crude Panlilio incident that the public is witnessing now. He is afraid with a more partisan Andaya at the helm of DBM, more public funds will be spent to buy the silence and favour of these greedy legislators and local executives.

He is afraid that with Arroyo’s firm control of public funds she can buy all the necessary support from most sectors of society to keep her in power.

He is afraid that even if the opposition knows about this conversation with Arroyo, he is afraid that the opposition will not pursue a serious impeachment proceedings against Arroyo, because it is not to their political interest that Noli de Castro becomes President in case Arroyo is impeached and becomes a more formidable political opponent in 2010. This insincere and unpatriotic goal of the opposition is already being manifested by the malicious speed that the Erap pardon is being cooked by Ronnie Puno together with the Erap camp to hastily put a united front of “Birds of the same corrupt feather” coalition against the emerging JDV led political opposition.

He is afraid that even if the Church knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal, the Church will still not call for her resignation due to the closeness of Arroyo’s trusted lady liason to the Cardinal of Manila who was very effective during the “Hello Garci” crisis. That Arroyo’s Religious Affairs Operators have the Bishops firmly in their “donation” graces, as again manifested by the quick rebuttal of the Mindanao Bishops’ of the call of their fellow bishops in Luzon who where calling for the resignation of Arroyo just after Arroyo gave them a visit in Mindanao.

He is afraid that even if the military knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the fraudulent ZTE-NBN deal, the AFP brass is much to indebted to Arroyo for their position and the perks that goes with their position, that they have demonstrated this twisted loyalty with their willingness to detain, remove from the service and even shoot their own men for voicing out their legitimate concerns regarding the corruption and moral authority of their Commander in Chief. It is a sad spectacle to see the respected warriors of the Marines & Special Forces rot in jail with their ideals, while their men are dying even without receiving the measly P150 per day combat pay that was promised to them by Arroyo due to lack of funds & generals gets a gift bag similar to those given to the governors and congressmen just for having dinner with Arroyo the day after that infamous breakfast & lunch meeting where bribe money flowed scandalously free.

He is afraid that even if the Media knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN scam, Media will simply wither in the torrents of cash and favors similar to how the Hyatt 10, Hello Garci crisis were killed in the media headlines and Radio& TV coverages. Although he believes in the integrity of a handful of Journalist, he believes that a handful of these mavericks cannot withstand the hordes of paid lackeys of Malacanang. Especially that the Arroyo crisis team is now being handled by the best mercenary money can buy, from Ramos Sulo Operation, Erap’s DILG and now Arroyo’s troubleshooter, Ronnie Puno. Ably supported by the Media and PR money from PAGCOR being handled by Cerge Remonte to buy positive airtime, headlines and editorials.

He is afraid that even if the Business Sector knows about the truth of Arroyo’s direct involvement to defraud the coffers of the taxes they are paying, the businessmen will be reluctant to rock the boat of the current economic uptrend, especially with the very close personal and business relationship of the so called leaders of the big business like Ricky Razon of ICTSI, Donald Dee of PCCI and Francis Chua of the Filipino-Chinese Federation to Arroyo herself. He is afraid that the hard earned remittances of Filipino OFWs that is keeping the economy booming and that can keep the economy afloat even under any administration is being wasted under this unholy alliance of Arroyo and her favoured businessmen.

He is afraid that even if the Civil Society knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal, that the Civil Society is now tired of mass actions after witnessing two failed EDSA revolutions, that Civil Society is now afflicted with a “Rally Fatigue” and cannot muster enough public outrage to denounce Arroyo’s “corruption with impunity”. He is afraid that the middle class is now indifferent to the corruption that goes around them, not realising that the middle class are the ones mainly carrying the burden of the loan payments for these corrupt deals. He is afraid that the middle class are more interested to become an OFW & to leave this country leaving their family and children behind, and may not care anymore about the crimes being committed against their country by its own President.

He is afraid that even if the Masa, the students, the workers knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal to steal precious resources from public funds, that they are now too poor and impoverished to be able to afford the time to join mass actions against the abuses of the Arroyo administration, that these former vanguards of mass actions in the country are now completely dependent on financial resources of professional organizers and have turned themselves into a “Rally for hire” groups rather than a true and genuine political gathering shouting for reforms.

He is afraid that the public may not know the extent of corruption in this country and may wrongly believe that they can cure corruption by simply replacing Arroyo with another person. He is afraid that the public may overlook the systemic and institutionalized nature of the source of corruption in this country, he is afraid that the people will again opt for a regime change without concern or a plan to correct the root causes of corruption in the country. He is afraid that people may not realize that it is not bringing Arroyo down that is difficult, it is establishing a new order that is the difficult task.

This is the predicament of Neri which I want people to realize especially to those who are asking Neri to tell the truth."

FORWARD THIS SO THE PUBLIC MAY KNOW.

Nausea

THIS is what I felt like after listening to Jun Lozada, the latest witness in ZTE-NBN Broadband scandal. His statements during a press conference at the La Salle Greenhills and at the subsequent hearing at the Senate showed just how far the illegitimate Gloria Macapagal Arroyo presidency will go just to protect its corrupt acts.

Smacking of Soprano-like Mafia tactics, Lozada was kidnapped, and only released after media became too nosey and noisy about his disappearance and Lozada signed, albeit forcibly, papers saying that he requested for security and protection from the PNP.

I don't know how the presidentita, FG Mike "Baboy" Arroyo and their minions - Environment Secretary Lito Atienza (fallen leader of a fake Liberal Party faction), PNP director-general Avelino Razon, and DILG Secretary and special ops expert Ronnie Puno can stand themselves lying with straight faces about the stunt they pulled. Do they actually think the public believes them?

How can these people especially retired Comelec (more like Kumolek) chairman Ben Abalos sleep soundly at night, knowing that we all know how crass and dishonest he is? He will supposedly file a libel case against Lozada. For what? For having the guts to tell the truth?

The man obviously could no longer live with himself, knowing what he knew about this nefarious deal with the Chinese. And no matter how the presidentita tries to steer clear away from this mess, ordering the DOJ to investigate the case, the grubby hands of her minions has stained her indelibly. (Take note, DOJ's Gonzales actually wants to investigate Lozada the whistleblower, instead of those who have been accused of enriching themselves in this caper. Magkano ba'ng sa'yo Sec?)

I empathize with Mr. Lozada. He is obviously someone with no political affiliations. He's just an ordinary man with a telecommunications and engineering background, whose expertise had been tapped by the government for what it felt was a vital broadband project. He has nothing to gain in coming out in the open with what he knows, and yet a lot to lose. I felt the pressure he was under and my tears welled up as well as he sobbed in frustration and fright at what he had done. He put his life in danger, also that of his family, just because di na nya masikmura ang pangungurakot ng mga tiga gobyerno. (I remember a foreign investor telling me once that under the Marcos regime, only he took 20 percent of any project as kickback. Today, under the GMA administration, kickbacks are par for the course from the lowliest civil servant until Malacañang, with bribes as much as 50 percent of the cost of the project. The punchline of course is, you can't even be sure that the project will actually be implemented. That's how garapal this government is! Yikes, there it goes, the bile up my esophagus...gotta barf folks!)

What's even more troubling about Lozada's revelations is that he confirmed that we are virtually living in a police state where Big Brother can just home in your conversation or intercept your cellphone text messages without you or possibly your telecom provider even knowing it. It's scary to live this way...you will always have to be careful about what you say or text, constantly look over your back even if you have done nothing wrong, because anything you say or do might be misconstrued by the powers that be and you will be picked up, kidnapped, possibly even tortured and killed. GMA's motto after all is, "If you're not with us, you're against us." Tony Soprano is that you?

As for you runny Romy Neri, how dare you even try to stop your friend from coming out with the truth. Bakit, tinanggap mo na ba ang P200M bribe ni Abalos? Why are you now sucking up to your presidentita? Hino-hostage din ba nya ang boypren mo? Nakakahiya at nakakasuka ka talaga!

No matter how Malacañang tries to play this, the public knows the presidentita and her ilk are the bad guys, the liars, the cheats, the corrupt, while Lozada and Joey de Venecia are the ones telling the truth. We are not fools.

It's about time we fight back and kick the shits out of these people in Malacañang.