GREED

Inquirer Opinion / Editorial

http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/editorial/view/20081227-180099/Greed
EDITORIAL
Editorial : Greed
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: December 27, 2008

Pope Benedict XVI has put his finger on what has eluded the grasp of political leaders and economic experts seeking to find the reason for the financial meltdown that sparked the global recession. “If people look only to their interest, our world will certainly fall apart,” the Pope said in his traditional Christmas Day message. The warning was part of his prayer for people to come together to address the world’s most pressing problems, from war and terrorism to poverty and violations of human rights and dignity.
In his “Message to the City and to the World,” the Pope prayed: “Wherever the dignity and rights of the human person are trampled upon; wherever the selfishness of individuals and groups prevails over the common good; wherever fratricidal hatred and exploitation of man by man risk being taken for granted; wherever internecine conflicts divide ethnic and social groups and disrupt peaceful coexistence; wherever terrorism continues to strike; wherever the basics needed for survival are lacking, wherever an increasingly uncertain future is regarded with apprehension, even in affluent nations: in each of these places may the Light of Christmas shine forth and encourage all people to do their part in a spirit of authentic solidarity.” But in a world that has fallen into a deepening economic recession, it is his denunciation of human greed and selfishness that carries a strong and special resonance. For greed is the root of the economic woes now afflicting most nations all over the globe.
In the United States and most of the developed world, it was greed that brought about the collapse of major financial institutions and sent thousands of individuals to bankruptcy: The institutional greed for profits that made banks and other financial institutions overlook even the most obvious risks. The personal greed of those at the helm who continued to receive astronomical salaries and allowances and scandalous perks even as their financial houses and companies crumbled. The criminal greed of so many financial advisers and brokers like Bernard Madoff who devised various investment schemes built on nothing more than promises of quick and easy profits. The reckless greed of investors who fell easy prey to scammers, of home buyers whose incomes could not support their mortgage payments, and of consumers who bought much more than what they could afford.
It is a bit different here in the Philippines, where financial institutions have not been shaken by scandals. Instead greed is in evidence almost in everything the government touches. Wherever there is a law to be enacted or enforced, wherever a permit is needed, wherever a contract is to be awarded, wherever a signature is required, wherever a project is undertaken, greed almost invariably trumps duty, honesty and public service. Greed is what keeps Congress from giving up their pork barrel. Greed is behind the biggest scandals that have rocked the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration, from Jose Pidal to the fertilizer scam to the ZTE contract.
And there is no moderating greed, especially in high places, as Romulo Neri probably knows by now. The only change, in fact, is that greed has grown and spread so that now the country is ranked among the world’s most corrupt nations.
Worse, there is no relief in sight, given the ineffectiveness of the institutions and the officials that are tasked with fighting the corruption caused by unbridled greed. We will need more than prayers to exorcise this demon that is leading the nation to perdition.
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Cost of Corruption

Source: http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/editorial/view/20080212-118232/Cost-of-corruption

Editorial
Cost of corruption

Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:43:00 02/12/2008

Most Read

The failed attempt of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s administration to prevent Rodolfo Noel Lozada Jr., former president of Philippine Forest Corp., from testifying on the $329-million National Broadband Network project has once again focused public attention on the perennial problem of corruption.

Graft and corruption has been a fact of national life since post-Liberation days. Almost every administration has had its big and sensational graft cases. At every presidential election, one major issue that is always raised is graft and corruption. Opposition leaders denounce the graft being committed by the administration, but once they take over the reins of government, they also commit graft. It’s just a case of different sets of people pigging out at the trough that is the national treasury at different times.

Economist Alejandro Lichauco has said the Philippines is perennially in crisis because of “the mortal mix of corruption and poverty and a consequent loss of popular confidence in government and the electoral process as instruments of change.” The fatal mix, he said, is poverty so massive and so intense as to have degenerated into a problem of mass hunger, and corruption that is as massive as the massive poverty. A deadly mix, indeed, that is killing tens of thousands of people.

Starting with the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship, the Philippine crisis has been characterized not only by corruption and poverty but also by human rights abuses and a culture of impunity. Bruce Van Voorhis, a member of the Asian Human Rights Commission, said that these aspects of the life of the nation are linked: “People are poor to a large extent because of widespread corruption; those who wield political power violate people’s rights to attain and maintain that power; a lack of judicial punishment in the courts ensures impunity that permits corruption and human rights violations to continue. The cycle has sadly repeated itself for years.”

Corruption retards economic and social development, lowers the quality of public services and infrastructure and raises the prices of goods and services. In all these aspects, it is the poor who suffer the most because they cannot avail themselves, for instance, of the services of private doctors and hospitals or buy expensive goods. In some cases, corruption literally kills: for instance, a ship sinks and hundreds of people die because a coast guard officer was bribed to allow the overloaded, non-seaworthy vessel to leave port.

In 2000, the World Bank estimated that corruption was costing the Philippine government $47 million (about P1.92 billion) a year or a massive $48 billion (P1.968 trillion) over the 20-year period through to 1997. Think how many kilometers of roads and bridges and how many schoolhouses and hospitals that money could have built. Think of the other public infrastructure and public services that could have been improved with that kind of money. But all that public money went into the private pockets of corrupt, greedy government officials.

Graft and corruption flourishes because of the culture of impunity. Have you heard of any big fish being convicted of corruption and plunder, except deposed president Joseph Estrada? Yes, Estrada was convicted of plunder, but he did not spend even a day in a real prison. Only six weeks after his conviction, he was pardoned by President Arroyo. Was that any way to set an example for the other grafters in government and to would-be grafters and plunderers?

And so the graft and corruption continues. But from time to time a ray of light pierces the darkness and gives the nation hope that we might yet be able to start punishing the grafters. Such a ray was Lozada, whose courageous and forthright testimony at the Senate may yet save the nation from the grip of scandalous, graft-ridden deals.

But whistleblowers like Lozada cannot, just by themselves, ensure a successful campaign against corruption. Graft and corruption has become so ingrained in the national life that it is considered “normal.” Even people like Lozada are ready to consider a 20-percent “commission” on government deals acceptable. But that should not be acceptable. A 20-percent “commission” is an illegal and immoral “tax” on a poor and overburdened people. They have to realize this, watch every government transaction that may be tainted with graft, and denounce officials who are stealing taxpayers’ money — their money.

This is a classic about Tonypet Albano’s screw-ups

This is such a classic!

Goes to show that this Tonypet Albano, from wherever he came from, talks before he thinks. He continues to brag about “Command Votes” and “Baluartes” which will give 12-0 votes for Team Unity without thinking that his 12-0 boasts just goes to show that these cheats are stealing the “freedom of choice” from the people by making these free people (by force or by cash or whatever else means) vote for people against their true and free will.

AS I WRECK THIS CHAIR – By William Esposo

Opposition spokesman Adel Tamano has endeared himself to media and is now the subject of talk that he could be the topnotcher of the next senatorial elections. Tamano’s cool demeanor and his facility at expounding the Opposition’s position in a simple, concise and credible way make him a natural winner before the public eye.

Ironically, Tamano’s greatest unwitting image booster is his counterpart in the administration camp – Tonypet Albano. Albano provides the perfect contrast to create more attention to Tamano’s depth of thought, substance, style and projection. While Tamano complies with media guru Marshal McLuhan’s prescription for television style and form, Albano projects the example of the opposite.

McLuhan established the parameters for effective television projection. The media guru referred to television as the cool medium and radio as the hot medium. To thrive in the cool medium, one is advised to speak a decibel lower than normal conversation and to gesticulate in a subdued manner. You’ll see this in the calculated coolness of American TV anchors.

If they had television in the 1930s during Hitler’s rise to power, the German Fuehrer would self-destruct on the cool medium. Hitler’s style of public speaking was perfect for radio and the big crowded public plazas – but totally unsuitable for television. If seen and heard on television, Hitler’s passionate oratory will come across as a cacophonous and hostile assault on people in the very privacy and peace of their homes.

Tonypet Albano’s communication style happens to be as offensive as having an outsider puking in our living rooms. As Team Unity deputy spokesman, he has shown to us the kind of behavior associated with bad-mannered ruffians. Instead of focusing on addressing very serious issues hurled against the Arroyo regime, he instead resorted to coarse name-calling and personal insults.

When I took Albano to task in a previous column for subscribing to the lowest level of cheap name calling, he had the cheek to write a long rejoinder which the STAR accommodated in the spirit of equal space. It was the oddest rejoinder I’ve ever encountered in that it merely reinforced all the issues I raised.

I suppose Albano’s psychological coping behavior to cover for his lack of substance and credibility is to refer to his vocabulary of sneering remarks and name-calling. After all, how far can you go in defending a regime that has lost credibility and respect? Hence, without ammunition to rebut the slew of issues coming their way, the easiest recourse for Albano is to launch personal attacks on the other person.

Last Thursday, Albano branded Adel Tamano a “racist” when the latter expressed his disbelief over the development that Chavit Singson, a non-Muslim and non-Mindanaon, tallied the highest votes in Maguindanao (in Muslim Mindanao). In so doing, Singson accomplished the unprecedented feat of topping Jamalul Kiram, who is a Muslim and a Mindanaoan, and Migz Zubiri and Prospero Pichay who are also from Mindanao.

Tamano’s point is logical as it is valid. It’s no different from Caloocan’s Recom Echiverri beating Tommy Osmeña for Mayor of Cebu City.

Albano did not even know what issue to pick because “racist” does not even relate to what he wanted to establish. Between Singson and Kiram, there is no race issue. Both are Filipinos. Both are from the same Malay stock. Between Singson and Kiram, there is a difference of religion. Singson is a Christian while Kiram is a Muslim. If there is an issue at all, it would have been bigotry, not racism.

After Tamano made note of that embarrassing, glaring error the next day in a DZMM interview, Albano attempted damage control and rehashed his non-issue, this time calling it bigotry.

Last Tuesday, Tonypet Albano was carping about “trending” allegedly being done by the ABS-CBN-STI quick count. He also suggested that the quick count should be sourced equally from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao – one-third from each island group.

People were wondering what Albano was fussing about when in fact elections were over and additional votes can only be done by dagdag-bawas – not quick counts. There’s “trending” if you manufacture a pre-election survey in order to pre-condition the public mind to accept a certain candidate who is about to win by cheating.

Albano betrayed his ignorance when he also suggested that tally reports coming from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao should be released in equal measure. What he wants will actually create distorted results because of the differences of voting population. Luzon accounts for about 65% of national votes. In order to reflect a representative count, 65% of the reports should come from Luzon.

If Albano fears that the Opposition will get more votes via the quick count, then he is dense because the voting has ended. If he is attempting to remove all indicators of what the real vote was in order to pave the way for administration cheating – then he may be smarter than he sounds.

I really wonder if Albano is not being setup by Team Unity to mouth the ridiculous non-issues that they are desperately trying to raise lately. Perhaps, they now find it convenient to make him verbalize the issues and personal insults that they personally would not want to mouth themselves.

On this “racist” insult hurled by Albano, Tamano stated: “Mr. Albano has called me a liar, gay, and corrupt and I have chosen not to reply to those insults.”

Adel Tamano must be a student of history. He seems to be following Napoleon’s advice: “Never interrupt your opponent when he is making a mistake.”

Chair Wrecker e-mail: macesposo@yahoo.com

Abalos, resign

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Editorial

Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos is bewailing the accusations of widespread cheating that took place in some places, especially in Mindanao, during the last elections. While he expressed alarm over the reports, he seems to be more sad over the controversy generated by the cheating than the cheating itself.

He said the allegations are putting into the question the credibility of the whole electoral exercise. The allegations are eroding the public’s trust on the Comelec.

We have news for Abalos. The people’s trust in the Comelec was eroded long before the May 14 elections. Has he already forgotten “Hello Garci”? Or the failure of the Comelec to thoroughly investigate the complicity of its officials in cooking the results to favor Gloria Arroyo? (Some of those officials were even promoted. One was assigned as provincial director for Maguindanao, with predictable results.) Or the gift by the Comelec of P1 billion in taxpayers money to Mega Pacific for an electronic vote-counting contract which the Supreme Court said was anomalously awarded, was overpriced and would not work?

In the run-up to the elections, the Comelec allowed itself to be used by persons who were out to deny Alan Peter Cayetano a seat in the Senate through the fielding of a nuisance.

It disqualified reelectionist Naga Mayor Jess Robredo, a Magsaysay awardee for government service, by declaring him a Chinese. Two of the commissioners who ruled against Robredo, it turned out, were former law partners of a Camarines Sur administration political leader who was fielding a relative against Robredo.

It accredited a clutch of newly surfaced party list groups with links to the Palace and one, purportedly composed of tricycle operators and drivers, whose president and No. 1 nominee is a medical doctor who just happens to be Abalos’ brother.

It played dumb to the suspicious surge in the number of registered voters in areas which were considered bailiwicks of administration. The biggest increases were in the Lanao provinces and Maguindanao where voting did not take place in many municipalities.

After the elections, we’re seeing more of the same. In Biñan, Laguna, canvassing was suspended for alleged irregularities committed by the leading mayoral candidate. Why Biñan when losing candidates practically everywhere were seeking the same relief for the same alleged offenses of the winners? It just so happens that a son-in-law of Abalos was trailing badly in the count.

Abalos and company should stop shedding crocodile tears for the lost credibility of the Comelec. If they sincerely want Comelec to recover its credibility, they should resign.

http://www.malaya.com.ph/may23/edit.htm

Does the COMELEC still have any credibility?

With so many anomalous and very questionable events ongoing in the provinces like Maguindanao, the COMELEC seems to be “covering-up” for the people in power.

Why can’t they give the 6th copy of the ER to NAMFREL? What are they hiding from NAMFREL or the other Poll watchers?

This act alone just clearly proves that there is NO TRANSPARENCY in most areas in Mindanao. Why do “they” focus their “cheating machinery” in Mindanao?

NAMFREL did the right thing in declaring that they will not “count” the ER’s from Maguindanao. First of all, due to the anomalous delay, the ER’s are most likely tampered-with already. Even if the ER’s do “miraculously show-up”, how do we know if it is authentic?

In everyone’s eyes, these INTENTIONALLY-HIDDEN ER’S should not be counted even by COMELEC and if these ER’s do show-up (after the tampering), the COMELEC has a lot of “explaining” to do regarding the delay.

Only the dumbest of the dumb… would believe that these ER’s are still authentic.

Foreign poll observers: We felt safer in Afghanistan

This is really so pathetic. It is a shame. This is where the major cheating will be made. There is no democracy in our country… it is “all-talk” and nothing sincere. The ARMM should have a separate voting where all eyes will be on them and quadruple the number of watchers and security.

Posted May 17, 2007 03:11:00(Mla Time)

Inquirer

Cynthia Balana
MANILA, Philippines — Despite the “fiesta” atmosphere during the May 14 elections, foreign observers who monitored the voting in Mindanao said Wednesday they worried constantly about possible violence and felt safer in Afghanistan.

They also reported incidents of intimidation, blatant vote-buying, candidates’ poll watchers dictating names to voters as they filled out their ballots and lack of voter respect for election institutions in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

In a statement, the team of 21 foreign observers from the Asian Network for Free Elections (Anfrel) said that while the government claimed the balloting was generally peaceful, it was not so in the ARMM.

It said the ARMM polling was “manipulated by outsiders” and that the culture of impunity for election and political crime may fuel calls for an alternative government that could provide justice for the people.

“The situation is not so comfortable especially if you have the military everywhere and also weapons everywhere,” said Somsri Hananontasuk, Anfrel director from Thailand.

Somsri, who said she saw confrontations between rival candidates and two bomb blasts, had also observed polls in 2004 and 2005 in Afghanistan.

She said she felt safer in Afghanistan than last Monday.

“Of course, we were also afraid of the underground Taliban … but at least we don’t have shooting… the threat from two sides when you go anywhere and the guns that sometimes are poised,” she added.

Hot in Mindanao

The observers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand spent eight days in six ARMM provinces and visited more than 500 precincts.

Mohamad Yunus Lebai Ali, director of the National Institute for Electoral Integrity (NIEI) in Malaysia, said it was “a hot situation” in Mindanao, particularly in Tawi-Tawi and Sulu.

“We are not passing judgment. We came here more as a fact-finding mission to learn from each other and observe. We have universal criteria of elections,” he stressed, including whether the exercise was peaceful, free and fair.

Ali said the observers agreed that the atmosphere was not conducive to elections in the visited ARMM provinces.

No secrecy in voting

“I did not feel physically safe, what more the voters?” he said.

“It’s not to say the election was fair. We saw how protection took place, many cases of vote manipulation. It’s very hard to say there was no cheating up to election day,” he said.

Ali said that being free meant the voting must be done confidentially, which was not the case in the precincts the observers visited.

“We observed a lot of coaching inside precincts where people were being commanded to write the names and I myself observed flying voters in truck loads with 20-25 of them coming to precincts,” he stressed.

Women participation

Somsri noted the deployment of military personnel outside the voting centers in schools.

But she also noted some positive things, such as more women participation in all aspects of the electoral processes, the festive mood in most polling precincts despite the long lines of voters and the vigilance of civil society.

“It is a fiesta of democracy and I take it as celebration of democracy,” she said.

Amim Shah Bin Iskandor of Malaysia said he talked to some people who even tried to sell their votes, something he had never experienced in his country.

“To me, it is very cheap, just P20. This incident happened one day before the election. They’re not afraid and they showed money, they got it,” Iskandor said.

The observers blamed the “clan system” for the continuing political dynasties in the Philippines and said this was not good for the Philippines and other Asian countries.

Use symbols for candidates

Rashid Rashad of Sri Lanka’s People’s Action for Fair and Free Elections compared the Philippines’ antiquated voting process with the more advanced card system used in Sri Lanka’s elections.

“The people are not educated, the ballots are very big. Why don’t you introduce a card system where people just have to choose symbols (for candidates) to make it more simple for voters? The long paper is discouraging voters,” she said.

Proposals for reform

The team proposed several electoral reforms:

• Election offenses must be addressed swiftly.

• The law on campaign finance should be enforced. Overspending must be discouraged, and the source of funding should be clear.

• Cut down the cost of campaigning and enhance accountability and representation by having senators elected by region rather than nationwide.

• The anti-dynasty provision of the Constitution should be implemented to limit the number of politicians from the same family or political clan.

• The Commission on Elections must be more professional and those who misuse their power should be disqualified.

• The local election should be separated from the national to make the process simpler and more transparent.

• The law on modernization should be implemented in coming elections. With reports from Cathy Yamsuan and Associated Press

Why run for a political position?

These people running for political positions from the lowest levels to the highest levels really act desperate.

They would spend millions upon millions of pesos to “market” or “advertise” themselves and they claim that they are using their own money to pay for these political ads. If they can spend tens of millions of pesos, what’s in it for them? What is their “return on investment” from spending all these millions? Do they plan to make much much more than they have “invested”? How can you make millions upon millions if the salary of these political figures are not in the millions upon millions of pesos?

If for example Pichay would spend Php100 million for his political campaigning, how does he plan to get it all back? Is being a Senator, Congressman, Governor, Mayor etc that lucrative that many families have made it their “family business”.

Some mayors even act like they have their own “Kingdom” wherein they are above the law.

Is this “pork barrel” the ultimate prize in running? Of course not, that is just the appetizer! There is much more to gain!

Well, just seems so funny that these guys would do “whatever it takes” to win… there is  so much money is at stake for them!

They are doing it for themselves and not for the people. That is why the Philippines is getting poorer and poorer while our politicians are getting wealthier and wealthier.

Isn’t it supposed to be that when you join politics, you become poorer because you are sacrificing your lucrative carreer to be of service to the people? But apparently, the politicians become wealthier while being in politics.

The Philippines is this way because we allow it to be. We make our politicians very wealthy while we become very poor.

I agree with Manny Pacquiao

I agree with Manny Pacquiao when he openly-stated that nothing positively has happened in General Santos during the many decades reign of the Antonino family. Nothing positive for General Santos but most likely the family business of politics of the Antonino family was positive. Obviously, the Antonino family is another Political Dynasty that needs to be broken.

One thing I do not agree with is that it will be Manny Pacquiao who will replace Antonino. It would have been better if a lawyer would run…but as we all know, this is a popularity contest.

If ever Manny Pacquiao would win (which is already almost sure), I just hope that he will not create a Pacquiao Political Dynasty in the area.

Good luck to you Mr. Manny Pacquiao, … never forget your roots and do not make politics corrupt your mind, heart and body.

Julia Campbell: May you rest in peace

Do not bite the hand that feeds you. Moreso, do not kill the hand that feeds you.

Julia Campbell was a God-send in the eyes of the people who knew her. It is almost impossible to fathom that someone could kill an angel to the community.

Julia Campbell went out of her way to help the poor, helpless, and un-educated. She was in the Philippines for the Filipino people.

How can anyone have murdered her? What was the motive? Is it simply a robbery?

Did poverty drive someone to commit murder? Did poverty turn a human being into a devil to kill an angel?

Whatever it is—this is the real situation in the Philippines, there are many out there who suffer while our politicians ride in their fancy cars and bully their way through traffic as if there is no tomorrow while laughing their way to the bank.

The political dynasties that have become “family businesses” should be stopped right now.

Julia Campbell is a hero and her death should not go unpunished.

Absentee Voting System: Full of Flaws

The Absentee Voting System is riddled with flaws. Is there a way for the “Independent” Poll-watchers like NAMFREL or VforCE (Volunteers for Clean Elections) to count or safe-guard these ballots?

With so many things getting lost in the Philippine Postal System it may be a way for the “Politically desperate” to cheat. Even our International Express Mail System has no tracking capabilities as seen here from their website and so how will anyone keep track of these thousands of ballots?

Pinoys can’t vote in Italy; embassy has no ballots yet

SOME 70,000 Filipino workers in Rome have not yet received ballots that were supposed to have been mailed to them, a labor group said yesterday.

Umangat spokesman Rowena Flores said the delay has kept many Filipino workers in Rome uninformed about who the senatorial candidates were and what party-list groups were up for election.

Flores said embassy officials could not say when the ballots would arrive in Italy, adding workers may ask for an extension in the deadline for absentee voting.

A Department of Foreign Affairs official said the Overseas Absentee Voting Secretariat was checking with the embassy in Rome and the Commission on Elections, but a spokesman, Claro Cristobal, said all ballots had already been sent to Filipino workers overseas worldwide.

The Comelec yesterday came under fire for the poor turnout for overseas absentee voting, which began Saturday.

So far, only 2,220 Filipinos abroad—out of half a million registered worldwide—have cast their ballots.

Senator Richard Gordon said the low turnout was due to a failure by the Comelec to conduct an aggressive information campaign to encourage migrant workers to cast their votes, despite P248 million in funding set aside for that purpose.

“They don’t have any excuse. They had enough funds and the time necessary to conduct a successful overseas absentee voting,” Gordon said in a radio interview. “The Comelec should explain how they spent the funds meant for absentee voting.”

Earlier, Comelec Commissioner Florentino Tuason Jr. said the usual “last-minute syndrome” might account for the low turnout.

He also said a new requirement under the law—that voters execute a sworn statement that they would return to the Philippines to take up permanent residence after three years—kept many migrant workers away.

Cristobal yesterday said reports from embassies and consulates abroad showed that only 896 voters showed up on Saturday, while 1,049 showed up on Sunday to cast their ballots. Some 275 mailed their ballots, he added.

The first voter was Nicanora Maglinis, 56, a native of Maasin, Southern Leyte, who works in Palau.

Records show that 504,110 Filipinos have registered for overseas absentee voting worldwide. The largest numbers are in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Singapore. Of those, 142,634 are new registrants. Michael Caber and Roy Pelovello