vonjobi: wow, congratulations! kelan ang trip? i hope i'll be around when you come. had a good time with diosa last...
Keith Bacongco: Knowing Nograles and his Big Boss...garapalan na lang talaga.
Vinia Datinguinoo Mukherjee: Congratulations, PCIJ! Mabuhay kayo!
Lead Philippines: But without credible mass media there, what is left to protect the people..?
vonjobi: it's juned sOniDo.

Latest Message 3 months, 4 weeks ago

hopeless_race : Lets not just focus sa mga malversation of funds, sa mga overpricing..ating pagtuunan ng atensyon ang diskarte ng mga politiko na umuutang ng bilyon bilyon sa gobyerno."Small time" ang ibang pamamaraan ng pangungurakot kumpara sa pag-utang sa gobyerno ng bilyon na tunay ngang masasabing "pinaka big-time" at wala pang sabit.
hopeless_race : Mukhang tikom ang bibig ng lahat pagdating sa diskarte ng mga politiko sa pagutang ng mga bilyon bilyon sa gobyerno na tinatakbuhan. Itong pamamaraan na ito ang tunay na kumakain ng malaking porsyento ng ating national budget batay na din sa sinasabi ng world bank.
hopeless_race : Pakisilip naman po ang mga utang ni Villar sa BSP, ang mga utang nila RAMON JACINTO, RONNIE ZAMORA, JOE DE VENECIA at madami pang ibang mga pulitiko. Iilan lamang yan sa mga nababanggit sa balita na may mga malalaking utang sa gobyerno.
hopeless_race : Nagmimistulang "small time" lamang ang malversation of funds kumpara sa laki ng kinakamal ng mga umuutang sa gobyerno. At ito ay malinaw na natatakbuhan dahil hindi nga naman pwede makulong ang may-ari ng kumpanya sa pagkaka-utang lamang. Tunay na mga tuso at magagaling sa batas itong mga politiko natin. Masasabi ko na malamang lahat ng mga politiko ganito ang diskarte...wala pang kulong.
hopeless_race : PCIJ pkitingnan naman po ang mga gaya ni Villar na my malaking utang sa Gobyerno pero tinatakbuhan. Magtatayo ng kumpanya at uutang ng bilyon bilyon sa gobyerno ng walang balak bayaran. Tunay ngang walang nakukulong sa utang...ito ang prinsipyo ginagamit ng mga politiko ntin kaya nakakapagtaka kung san napupunta ang daang bilyong pera ng gobyerno.
hopeless_race : Sana itreat naman po ng media ang hacienda luisita at mendiola massacre na parang MAGUINADANAO MASSACRE. Ipublicized ang mga katotohanan at ipakita sa tao ang karumaldumal na pinaggagawa sa mga farmers dun. Untouchable po ba sila cory at danding at hindi magawang batikusin ng media about these two massacres?
hopeless_race : Kapag napaguusapan ang mendiola at hacienda luisita massacre ay parang walang nangyari at parang hindi big deal. Anu po ba ang pinagkaiba ng dalawang nabanggit na massacre sa maguindanao massacre?
hopeless_race : Its sad that we pinoys are blind to the fact of what had happened in mendiola and hacienda luisita. Ang tanong..bakit ang media ay hindi manlang matackle ang ganitong usapin? Takot ba sila kay cory at danding?
hopeless_race : Wilkins" brand, for P1.4 billion.-1999 Sugarland Multi-Food Corp. for P2.9 billion 2001- Purefoods Corp P7 billion P60 billion Coca-Cola ... See More 2002- Cosmos Bottling Corp. from RFM Corp. for P14.1 billion October 2008- GSIS' shares in Meralco worth PHP30 Billion. December 2008- country's biggest oil refiner, Petron Corporation. international company shopping spree: Australian boutique brewer J. Boag and Son for A$96 million in 2000. $97 million for Thai Amarit Brewery Ltd $35.5 mi
hopeless_race : Gud am..glad to be back.
jr_lad : rip mr. alecks pabico. you'll be greatly missed!
sevens21 : Dati input mo lng name at SSS ID makukuha mo agad STATIC INFO...
sevens21 : tawag ka sa HOTLINE nila walang ANSWER grrr we need pa namn ng static info SSS Gising!!!
sevens21 : Gawa naman po kayo ng article about SSS. Pangit ng site nila dali ma blocked ng account
guest_899 : we must check the background of each potential candidates to avoid having another big mistake like GMA
guest_899 : congratulations to PCIJ, more power and God Bless !
jazzymuver : how did Arroyo swallow that kind of things!! how come that she just spend the money our countrymen for her own sake!!
guest_3664 : i would be glad if u can include the investigation of the manner public officials announce infra projects as per COA regulation. It is frustrating to see their faces on the tarpaulin instead of the prescribed information like name of project, date of implementation,amount of contract, source/s of fund, among other things. This is very rampant here in Marikina. Thanks and more power on your noble endeavors. We need people like you to have make our country great again.
jhanz_08 : im making research on R.A 9136...with rgards to the privatization of NPC..could someone out there can let me understand more bout this matter?why was monopoly dismantled?email me..jhanycem@yahoo.com...thanks much
erika marie : P.S.:) my paper is due next week and i do hope someone could provide me these reports coming from reliable resources thank you ulit.
erika marie : P.S.
guest_4275 : i am currently doing a study regarding political killings in the philippines. could someone out there please send me human rights reports under Aquino and Ramos administration. you could send it at my email: erikamariet@yahoo.com your response would surely be very much appreciated. thank you everyone. god bless.
guest_4275 : i am currently doing a study for my paper regarding political killings in the philippines. i noted that there are no human rights reports during the Aquino and Ramos administration. could someone out there please send me reports regarding these matter? i do hope these reports came from reliable resources you could send it in my email; erikamariet@yahoo.comyour response would surely be appreciated. thanks everyone. god bless.
jayson bourne : gusto ko po maging member ng PCIJ, panu po ba? may application po ba? sana mapadalhan nyo ako ng info sa email ko... www.jboxpenshoppe@yahoo.com
jayson bourne : cory is OK, but kris & Noynoy sensationalize masyado...
guest_9891 : LABAN pa rin!
meow : boycotts worked during marcos years. how about doing it now against the businesses of the con-ass congressmen?
meow : aside from 168, what other establishments can we boycott that belong to the arroyos and their cronies?
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A ‘politicians’ initiative’

Posted by: Alecks P. Pabico | September 20, 2006 at 10:51 am
Filed under: Charter Change, Civil Society

IS the “people’s initiative” proposing changes to the 1987 Constitution led by Sigaw ng Bayan and Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) a genuine exercise of the right of initiative? Does it emanate from the will of the people themselves who purportedly signed the petition?

Taking cognizance of what Supreme Court Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban pointed out regarding the initiative as a right that “belonged to the people, not to the government and its minions,” the Alternative Law Group branded the Sigaw ng Bayan and ULAP-orchestrated “people’s initiative” as bogus, calling it instead a “politicians’ initiative.”

“Connect the dots and the people will clearly see that the current initiative to change the Constitution did not directly come from them but from politicians and their lackeys who will move heaven and earth to fix the already fatal cracks of a five-year old presidency,” said lawyer Marlon Manuel, ALG spokesperson.

Manuel said the initiators of the so-called people’s initiative betray its real intent as “a wily mechanism to remove power from the people and transfer it to the politicians who put their selfish interests and desire to keep their positions over the people’s welfare.”

The ALG, an umbrella organization of 18 law groups composed of at least 100 lawyers nationwide working for the poor and marginalized sectors of society, particularly pointed to Raul Lambino and Erico Aumentado, who were the main petitioners in the initiative that was earlier filed before the Commission on Elections and is now pending before the Supreme Court.

“These are the same kind of people who, according to then senior associate justice and now Supreme Court Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban in the Defensor-Santiago and PIRMA cases, have no right to take part in an initiative, which must directly originate from the people themselves,” said Manuel.

Panganiban, in his opinion on PIRMA’s charter-change petition, said that one of the important questions that should be answered to gauge the motive of an initiative is:

“Does the clamor for the proposed change in the Constitution really emanate from the people who signed the petition for initiative? Or is it the beneficiaries of term extension who are in fact orchestrating such move to advance their own political self-interests?”

Who is Raul Lambino?

Lawyer Raul Loyola Lambino is currently the spokesperson of the Sigaw ng Bayan Movement. He was twice appointed by Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as a member of two commissions on charter change — the Consultative Commission (Con-COm) in September 2005 and the Charter Change Advocacy Commission (AdCom) in February 2006.

The Con-Com, created by virtue of Executive Order No. 453 on Aug. 15, 2005, was tasked to propose revisions to the 1987 Constitution. It received a P10-million funding for its operational expenses. Lambino was designated spokesperson for the Con-Com’s “Team Alpha.”

The AdCom, on the other hand, was created through E.O. 495 issued on January 23, 2006. The commission was tasked to advocate the shift from presidential to a parliamentary form of government. It was funded with an initial amount of P5 million from the available funds of the Office of the President.

The ALG said that based on his own bio-data, Lambino, is currently a consultant and coordinator of the House of Representatives Contingent to the Commission on Appointments. His other previous government assignments include working as:

consultant to the Office of the Speaker from 2000 to 2001
chief of staff of former senator Loren Legarda from 1998 to 2000
chief of staff at the Office of House Speaker Jose De Venecia from 1995 to 1998

Lambino is also known as a well-experienced campaigner. He spearheaded the campaign “Juan for all and all for Juan” to convince Sen. Juan Flavier to run for president in 2004. In March 2003, Lambino’s group gathered two million signatures, which however failed to convince Flavier to run for the presidency.

In 2004, Lambino formed another movement called Lawyers for Electoral Advocacy and Democracy (LEAD) to support Fernando Poe Jr.’s presidential campaign. He also became lawyer of then vice presidential candidate Loren Legarda when the opposition protested the results of the 2004 elections.

Is ULAP people-led?

Manuel said “a heavy cloud of doubt” could be cast upon ULAP’s stance as an organization genuinely led by the people, citing its description on its website, which reads:

(ULAP) is an umbrella organization of all the leagues of local government units including the leagues of and federations of local elective and appointive government officials.

Erstwhile known as the League of Leagues set up by the League of Local Governments on May 27, 1997, the organization assumed the name ULAP on September 3, 1998 through the initiative of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) “to revive and strengthen the umbrella organization for the Leagues throughout the country.”

Its current president is former congressman and now Bohol Gov. Erico Boyles Aumentado.

The ULAP national executive board is comprised of the presidents of the 12 leagues of local government and local officials. There are at least 10 organizations of governors, vice-governors, mayors, vice-mayors, councilors, provincial board members, legislators, barangay officials and other LGU officials under ULAP, namely:

League of Provinces of the Philippines
League of Cities of the Philippines
League of Municipalities of the Philippines
Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas
League of Vice Governors of the Philippines
Provincial Board Members’ League of the Philippines
Philippine Councilors’ League
National Movement of Young Legislators
Pambansang Pederasyon ng Sangguniang Kabataan
Lady Local Legislators League

On December 22, 2002, already under the Arroyo administration, ULAP adopted Resolution No. 2003-1, “Supporting Initiatives for a Charter Change to Further Strengthen Local Autonomy of Local Government Units Towards a Strong Republic.”

On January 14, 2006, during ULAP’s national executive directorate meeting at the Century Park Hotel in Manila, Aumentado was reported saying that ULAP will press anew for charter change via people’s initiative through its 1.7 million-strong members who will initiate the drive to gather at least five million signatures.

Aumentado was also quoted as saying that ULAP does not want to fail for a third time since it campaigned for a people’s initiative in 1997 and that ULAP members are now “very careful with (their) actions and the grounds are being laid out in a very precise way.”

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 20th, 2006 and is filed under Charter Change, Civil Society. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

5 people have left comments

[...] A politicians initiative Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, Philippines - 12 hours ago… Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as a member of two commissions on charter change the Consultative Commission (Con-COm) in September 2005 and the Charter Change … [...]

Global News Blog » Philippines - Behind the UN Speeches, A Thai Coup, Somali Assassins and Hit-and … wrote on September 20, 2006 - 11:16 pm | Visit Link

Meron din akong signature campaign laban diyan sa people’s initiative kuno ng Singaw ng Bayad.

People Inis sa Thieves!

tongue in, anew wrote on September 21, 2006 - 3:27 am | Visit Link

Si Jose Rizal binuwis ang buhay para magsulat ng nobela pa-ukol sa mga pananakop ng mga banyaga, sa pagkamkam ng ating mga lupa at pangaabuso ng mga dayuhang may-ari ng lupa

Si Andress Bonifacio binuwis ang buhay para lumaban sa mga kastila sa kadahilan ng pananakop na sa ating mga lupain at pag-aapi..

At marami pang ating mga bayani nagbuwis ng buhay dahil sa pananakop ng mga banyaga sa ating mga lupain at sa kalaunang pangaapi

Si Mr. Lambino binayaran ni Glue-ria ng 10 milyun para sumulat sa pagpapalit ng ating constitution para ebenta at magkaroon ng 100% ownership ang mga dayuhan sa ating mga lupain…

Kabayan… kailan ba tayo magigising sa mga pang-aabuso at maitim na motibo…….. ni Glue-ria……

Juan_at_Bandila wrote on September 21, 2006 - 2:17 pm | Visit Link

[...] I’m not one of those who think that the provisions of the Constitution are sacrosanct, and should thus be preserved at all cost. The amendment process was built so that we could do exactly that - evolve our core legal principles so that they can track our changing values. There are parts of the 1987 Constitution that are just broken, and given a well thought out chance to fix them, we should. What I oppose, however, is hijacking the amendment mechanisms, and in such a sleazy manner, all to advance a selfish agenda. [...]

The Bangus Supremacy » Halloween Document wrote on November 1, 2006 - 9:47 am | Visit Link

[...] The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism reported that based on his own bio-data, Lambino, became a consultant and coordinator of the House of Representatives Contingent to the Commission on Appointments. It is yet known whether he gave up this contractual work with the government. [...]

Civilization of Love Lambino mulls raps vs party-list groups, nominees « wrote on May 9, 2007 - 1:41 pm | Visit Link