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by Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III
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Monday, 22 November 2010 |
Wow, man. Or wow, pare. The interjection is pronounced in a slow, lazy way, with emphasis on the vowels. Only stone heads could express the phrase vividly, naturally. But for someone from the 1960s or 1970s to utter such words in the closing first decade of the 21st century is to live in the past, to expose one’s retardation.
Nowadays, I associate the exclamation “wow” to “wowowee, willing Willie.” Given the popularity of “Wowowee” and the rise in the TV ratings of “willing Willie’s” new TV show, people might think that “wow” as a buzzword can appeal to large audiences. No dice. It’s not the “wow,” that makes Willie’s show click. Willie himself might be the draw. Or probably the beautiful, innocent-looking face of Shalani captivates the audience. Or possibly the sexy, scantily clad singers entice both the male and female spectators.
At any rate, “wow” is again en vogue in the wake of the sudden controversy brought about by the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) Kay ganda branding. People want to retain “Wow, Philippines.”
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by Ulysses Dorotheo, MD, FPAO
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Monday, 15 November 2010 |
In dealing with tobacco and its health, social, economic, and environmental harms, governments should be guided by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This is an evidence-based treaty that reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health. It is a response to the globalization of the tobacco epidemic, which claims 5.4 million lives each year. One hundred seventy one countries (including the Philippines) ratified the treaty in 2005, and is thus now part of the law of the land (superseding the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003 (Republic Act 9211)). Under this treaty, the Philippines committed to a range of measures to curb tobacco use.
Recently, the Philippine Aromatic Tobacco Development Association, Inc. (PATDA) wrote President Aquino, with an attached petition from the very newly formed PhilTobacco Growers Association Inc (PTGA). Such letter would have readers incorrectly believe that our tobacco farmers and the Philippine tobacco industry will be “obliterated” by the government’s fulfillment of its obligations under the WHO FCTC, particularly at the coming fourth session of Conference of the Parties (COP4) in Uruguay from 15-20 November 2010. Philip Morris and the Philippine Tobacco Institute also support this myth.
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by Nepomuceno Malaluan and Jenina Joy Chavez
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Monday, 08 November 2010 |
The ASEAN Charter includes as one of the purposes of the ASEAN the promotion of “a people-oriented ASEAN in which all sectors of society are encouraged to participate in, and benefit from, the process of ASEAN integration and community building.” As the ASEAN moves ahead with work relating to the implementation of the ASEAN Charter including through the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community and the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), it is high time the ASEAN made good its rhetoric of people orientation, and started the process of developing and adopting a Freedom of or Access to Information Policy for ASEAN. By this we mean a set of concrete rules or policies providing for the substantive and procedural details by which the people in the region are able to access information produced or received by ASEAN and its many organs in the course of its work, subject only to a narrow list of reasonable exceptions.
We claim this as a right, based on public interest norms as well as internationally accepted legal principles.
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by Filomeno S. Sta. Ana III
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Monday, 01 November 2010 |
The invitation said: “To celebrate Amy Besa’s birthday, let us get together to embrace old and new friends, to express gratitude at her Mom’s vibrant life at 95 and to savor the culinary treasures of the Philippines.”
The event’s theme was flavorful, enough to entice invited friends as well as gate-crashers and all food lovers to celebrate the feast: “Sariling Atin: Old recipes, old cooking techniques, old cooking equipment.” The menu was an attempt to represent the finest culinary traditions in the Philippines. To name some: Surigao’s coconut milk-flavored deep sea crabs, Bacolod’s chicken binacol cooked in bamboo tubes, Capiz’s chicken tinola, Pampanga’s burong babi, the familiar Bicol express, and Zambales’s santol preserves for the ice cream.
It was of course impossible to have all Philippine regions represented for this occasion. (For example, I’m a fan of Tausug food, which was not on the menu). Yet, Amy’s feast was a sample of home cooking throughout the country, using fresh, healthful if not organic, and native ingredients.
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by Right to Know. Right Now! Coalition
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Thursday, 25 November 2010 |
22 November 2010
HON. BEN P. EVARDONE
Chairman, Committee on Public Information
House of Representatives
Subject: Position on the Freedom of Information bills
Dear Rep. Evardone:
We are members of the Right to Know. Right Now! Coalition, a campaign network of more than 150 organizations from various sectors, including public-interest groups, environmental protection advocates, independent media groups, print and broadcast journalists, farmers organizations and support groups, women’s organizations, private and public sector labor unions, migrant workers, businessmen, lawyers, academics, and student organizations. We have long been advocating for the passage of a Freedom of Information Act, a promise to the Filipino people that the Constitution assured in 1987 yet.
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by Right to Know. Right Now! Coalition
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Thursday, 14 October 2010 |
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14 October 2010
HON. GREGORIO B. HONASAN
Chairman, Committee on Public Information and Mass Media
Philippine Senate
Subject: Position on the Freedom of Information bills
Dear Sen. Honasan:
We are members of the Right to Know. Right Now! Coalition, a campaign network of more than 150 organizations from various sectors, including public-interest groups, environmental protection advocates, independent media groups, print and broadcast journalists, farmers organizations and support groups, women’s organizations, private and public sector labor unions, migrant workers, businessmen, lawyers, academics, and student and youth organizations. We have long been advocating for the passage of a Freedom of Information Act, a promise to the Filipino people that the Constitution assured in 1987 yet.
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by Michael M. Alba and Jessaine Soraya C. Sugui
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Thursday, 20 August 2009 |
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Motives and Giving Norms Behind Remittances:
The Case of Filipino Overseas Workers and their Recipient Households
The literature has focused on motives to explain remittance behavior.
But as non‐anonymous transfers, remittances are apt to be influenced by
giving norms as well. We formulate an empirical specification that
takes account of remittance motives involving worker‐household pairs.
We find that altruism dominates the exchange motive among overseas
workers who are likely to be the primary breadwinners of their
recipient households. We also find that, in the subsample in which
overseas workers are likely to be secondary breadwinners, (a) household
labor income is an endogenous explanatory variable and (b) the error
covariance of the household income and remittance selection equations
is positive. A possible reason for (a) is that
secondary breadwinners use household income as an imperfect signal of
opportunity cost or to detect unobserved effort, i.e., moral hazard, in
generating income. As for (b), we surmise that it indicates the
presence of incentive‐compatible mechanisms against moral hazard. On
giving norms, we find that, in samples that include overseas workers
who are secondary breadwinners, remittance amounts are afflicted with
negative selectivity. We present evidence that this is consistent with
Filipino giving practices, in which everyone gives but in modest
amounts.
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Monday, 08 November 2010 |
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Action for Economic Reforms (AER) will be launching "Philippine Democracy Assessment: Rule of Law and Access to Justice" on 10 November 2010 (10 am to 12 noon) at the Case Room of the UP National College of Public Administration, UP Diliman Campus. Edna E.A. Co (Professor and Dean at UP National College of Public Administration,) Nepomuceno Malaluan (AER), Marlon Manuel (Alternative Law Groups), Arthur Neame, and Miguel Musngi co-authored this work.
We hope that you can join us. For confirmation and queries, please contact William Alamin or Chalo Garcia of AER. They can be reached at 426 5626 or
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Thursday, 28 October 2010 |
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Action for Economic Reforms recently launched the book, Philippine Institutions: Growth and Prosperity for All at the Sining Kamalig Art Gallery at the Gateway Mall in Cubao, Quezon City. The book was published with the support of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) with economist and coordinator of AER, Filomeno Sta. Ana III, as book editor.
The book is currently being sold at National Bookstore outlets for Php 495. You may also drop by our office at Unit 1403 West Trade Center, 132 West Avenue, Quezon City and purchase the book directly from us.
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Wednesday, 24 November 2010 |
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“Every day people are straying away from the church and going back to God.” - Lenny Bruce
Pope Benedict XVI made headlines when he said it’s okay to use condoms as a means to prevent HIV. Although a no-brainer to non-Catholics and Catholics who retain their common sense, Benedict’s statement matters to those who observe unquestioning obedience to anything the Pope says on matters of morals.
Consequently, Benedict’s bishops, among them Deogracias Yñiguez of the Philippines, made sure the faithful understood that the statement of His Holiness applied only to the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, in particular HIV. He said, "If a condom is used as a contraceptive, certainly it will be condemned by the Church. But to use it to avoid a disease in specific circumstances, the Church can take another mindset.”
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Wednesday, 17 November 2010 |
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“The strong do what they can, the weak suffer what they must.” – Theucydides
Thousands of commuters were stranded, elementary and secondary school students missed class, and daily wage earners, including bus drivers and conductors, lost a day’s pay thanks to bus operators who did not like the MMDA’s number-coding scheme.
To be fair, legitimate bus operators felt they were being unfairly targeted. Arlene Camello of the Metro Manila Bus Operators Association said, "Before they concentrate on us, they should start with those who are operating illegally."
She meant authorities should first get rid of colorum buses before they even think of number-coding everybody. But why does vehicle reduction have to be done sequentially, illegal buses first? Can we afford that luxury?
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Wednesday, 10 November 2010 |
“One and one is two, and two and two is four, and five will get you ten if you know how to work it.” – Mae West
The Venable contract was a $75,000.00 a month retainer to lobby Philippine interests with US politicians, policy makers, and businessmen. It was signed on July 25, 2005 by then National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales, without the written authorization of Gloria Arroyo.
One of the clauses in the contract provided for Venable to “secure (US) grants or congressional earmarks for support of the Charter Change initiative of the President of the Philippines.” That was unconstitutional and, perhaps, treasonous so the Senate blue ribbon committee, then chaired by Sen. Joker Arroyo, decided to investigate.
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by Abdullah Yusuf Abu-Bakr Ledesma
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Thursday, 28 October 2010 |
PRESIDENT AQUINO reacted angrily to the recent Status Quo Ante (SQA) order of the Supreme Court reinstating Bai Omera Dianalan Lucman to the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF). (“Aquino slams high court,” Inquirer, 10/15/10)
However, the order offers him a golden opportunity to exercise true leadership and ensure a favorable outcome for Muslim Filipinos and, indeed, for all Filipinos.
The current rift in the Muslim sector is the result of past actions taken by both former Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and President Aquino. Both, as presidents, did not consult the Muslims as a whole, choosing to confer with their close Muslim allies only. Today, we have a battle for the top NCMF position.
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