Youth reaction to SONA
'Cinderella stories' not reflective of real state of education
Kabataan Party-list Rep. Mong Palatino today reacted to Pres. Gloria
Arroyo's State of the Nation Address, saying that her 'Cinderella stories'
are not reflective of the real state of the education sector.
“Mrs. Arroyo did not do her homework very well. Who's pussy-footing now?,"
was Palatino's tongue-in-cheek reaction.” Palatino said.
“As with her previous SONAs, Arroyo used the Cinderella tales of youths
and individuals who made accomplishments based on their own merit,
claiming them as her own. Mylene Amerol-Macumbal and Jennifer Silbor's
stories are only isolated tales of success. Instead, the plights of many
Jonathan Montemayors, Julie Albiors and Flores Biwangs represent the real
picture of the education sector.,” Palatino said.
Palatino said that Arroyo used only the ‘safe’ numbers that could stupefy
the crowd, that she failed to cite damning but accurate and relevant
statistics.
The young solon was referring to the disheartening stories of Albior and
Biwang, topnotchers in the 2006 National Achievement Test (NAT) who failed
to enter college in the University of the Philippines due to poverty."
He also cited the story of twenty-year-old nursing student Montemayor who
committed suicide last week after he was forced to stop his studies.
Palatino also said Arroyo's 600,000 scholarships did not make an impact,
as they were mere “token subsidies” rather than genuine solutions to
education woes.
“The scholarships are actually a manifestation of the increasing cost of
education. The government is dishing out scholarships because it cannot
control fee hikes in schools. Instead, the government should regulate
tuition and other fee increases of both private and public learning
institutions. Bakit kailangan ding i-privatize ang state universities and
colleges na sana'y nagbibigay ng mura o libreng edukasyon? Iilan lang
naman ang makikinabang sa mga scholarship na ito,” he said.
Palatino also said that Arroyo should not be too proud of her 'higher
investment in technical education and skills training' because 'the
orientation of tech-voc education in the country is export-oriented'.
“Para saan pa ang ipinagmamalaking investment ni Arroyo sa tech-voc kung
inilalako rin lamang sila sa ibang bansa?” Palatino said.
Additional years of schooling slammed
Palatino also slammed the Presidential Task Force on Education's proposal
to reform the curriculum of professions seeking international recognition.
The task force recommended that students who want to take engineering,
architecture, accountancy, pharmacy and physical therapy should undergo 10
years of basic education, two years of pre-university, before three years
of university.
“While adding another year will improve the quality of these courses as it
is now a global trend, this does not necessarily mean an improvement on
our part. Countries with more years of schooling have higher allocation
and spending for education. Our budget for education, on the other hand,
has been dwindling since 2001., Palatino said.
The Philippine government spent a measly 2.5 percent of the country's
Gross Domestic Product on public educational institutions in 2007. This
pales in comparison to its neighboring countries Malaysia with 6.2 percent
and Thailand with 4.2 percent. Laos even spent more at 3.0 percent. The
minimum prescribed standard for education spending set by UNESCO is 6
percent of a country's GDP. ##
--
Office of Rep. Raymond ‘Mong’ Palatino
Temporary Office c/o Office of Rep. Lisa Maza
Room 309, South Wing, House of Representatives, Batasan Complex, Quezon
City
Reference:
Kabataan Party-list Rep. Mong Palatino
Mobile: 09085927099
Email: cong.mongpalatino@gmail.com
JM Ragaza, Media Officer, 09166947806
PRESS RELEASE
July 26, 2009
REFERENCE:
ROY MORILLA, KMP Public Information Officer (63-905-421- 7305)
Arroyo's eight years, landlessness, death and poverty to peasants
The militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP, Peasant Movement of
the Philippines ) claimed that the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo' s eight years
of seating in power only brought worsening landlessness, death due to
human rights violations and poverty highlighted by the rice crisis under
her term.
Worsening Landlessness
Based on the studies of the group's regional chapter KASAMA-TK (KMP
Southern Tagalog) and SAGUPA-SB (KMP Eastern Visayas), about 19 to 21% of
the gross sales of the harvested palay are left to the peasants who tilled
the land. This is due to landlessness where bulk of the harvest would go
to landlords as feudal land rent or ground rent that reach to about 33 to
50% of the gross harvest. Forms of feudal rents are such 50-50, 2/3-1/3, ¼
or 1/10, depending on the presence, unity and strength of the peasants
organizations at the locality. This also result into a low average income
to the peasants, where they only get P23.50 to P40 per day during their
cultivation of palay. This is also accompanied by a bulk unpaid family
labor, where mothers and children aid in farming to speed up their work.
"With landlessness, many peasants endure low wages in agricultural work.
These ranges to P35 to P200 per day, depending on the assertion of
farmworkers' association at the areas. Particularly in Hacienda Luisita,
workers were paid by P9.50, after deducting many payments to the already
low wages. Sugar farmworkers or `sakada' are paid at P30 to P70 per day.
Fisherfolk also receive P100 to P150 for their 20-hour work," said Danilo
Ramos, KMP Secretary-General.
The ill-state of the peasants are brought about by the political and
economic set-up of the country's society where the Arroyo government
failed to do fundamental reforms. Landlessness was never resolved but
worsened, effecting a depressing trend to wages of farm and agricultural
workers.
No positive impact resulted from the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program
on its 20 years of implementation. Classic cases of agrarian dispute were
Hacienda Looc in Nasugbu, Batangas, Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac, Fort
Magsaysay Military Reservation in Nueva Ecija, Central Mindanao University
in Bukidnon, Ayala Lands in Laguna and Batangas, Negros lands, haciendas
in Isabela and more. The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and courts
favored the landlords and foreign investors and against the peasants'
interest as they based their legal decisions on CARP. Thus, CARP is being
used by landlords and foreign corporations to keep and grab lands and
displace farmers.
Arroyo killed agriculture
"The Arroyo government is also guilty of killing the country's
agriculture. With its total submission to the World Trade Organization (WTO)
and pushing the liberalization of agriculture, the country has faced a
food crisis which should not be as our country is basically an
agricultural economy," added Ramos.
Since 1995 to 2005, the rice, vegetable and livestock industry were
crippled due to the increasing presence of imported agricultural products.
Not contented, the Arroyo further increased its importation where the
country is now the world's no. 1 rice importer, farmers and producers were
put to debt and low incomes. From 2001 to 2008, Bureau of Agricultural
Statistics (BAS) show that farmgate prices of rice has only increased by
P6 per kg, from P8.17 to P14.13 per kg, where the price of rice has hiked
by P12, from P17.54 to P29.38.
Also the local production's share to the country's gross supply decreased
from 74% to 70%, while imported's share increased sharply from 7% to 16%.
With this data alone, it is unquestionable that the Arroyo government is
favoring the imported rice, thus, killing the livelihod of the country's
local rice farmers.
Arroyo killing peasants
Worse, the Arroyo government has killed 553 peasant activist who struggle
for genuine land reform, social justice and democracy. Among them were 118
leaders of KMP. Also, 129 have been victims of enforced disappearances and
many have been incarcerated in jails accused of fabricated crimes.
Extra-judicial killings (EJK) have victimized KMP National Council members
such as Eddie Gumanoy of KASAMA-TK, Renato Pacaide of KMP Far Southern
Mindanao. Still missing is Nilo Arado of PAMANGGAS (KMP Panay). Provincial
and city leaders were also killed such as Marcelino Beltran of AMT (KMP
Tarlac), Celso Pojas of FADC ( KMP Davao City ) and Fermin Lorico of
Kaugmaon (KMP Negros Oriental). The National Deputy Secretary-General for
External Affairs Randall Echanis is also in jail being accused of the
`mass murders' in Leyte . These are all the result of Arroyo's
counter-insurgency program Oplan Bantay Laya (OBL), where militant
activists are being killed and victimized.
Arroyo's continuing peasant oppression
With landlessness being worsened, peasants put into poverty and misery,
consequently death and being victims of human rights violations, Arroyo is
still planning the worse she could accomplish, the total selling of the
country's lands to foreigners. Arroyo has long boasted of her plans to
sell 3 million hectares to foreign agro-corporations. She has already
reserved 1 million hectares for Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco-Kuok Group
partnership, 1 million hectares to China-firm Fuhua Co., a hybrid rice
corporation, another 40,000 hectares to ADGZAR of China, 200,000 hectares
to BHG of China, and 60,000 hectares to Pacific Bio-Fields Corp. of Japan
.
"Foreigners' intrusion to the country's lands would certainly bring a new
dark age for the Filipino peasantry. It would be no different to Spanish
colonial times where peasants are toiling for the benefit of foreigners.
This would put the whole country into submission and future generations
would be involuntarily put into slavery," Ramos said.
"The data regarding Arroyo's anti-peasant policies and programs are
overwhelming and undisputable. Arroyo's persecution of the peasants extend
to oppression of other sectors as crisis are being faced by poor people in
the country. Food and rice crises are worsening and this encompass the
whole society, and Arroyo's selling of lands is a blatant violation of our
sovereignty and against what our forefathers in Katipunan fought for.
These times necessitates urgent action from the people, to oust a
dictator, a self-proclaimed leader only out to plunder the country and
sell the people to foreigners," called Ramos.#
Law Students Against Cha-Cha!
Vinzons Hall, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City
09158513904
PRESS RELEASE
July 24, 2009
SONA 2009: Law Students Dare GMA to Sign Written Pledge to Step Down by
2010 and Nix Charter Change
Law student councils and organizations from the country’s top law schools
converged at the Treehouse Restaurant in Diliman, Quezon City today
challenging President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to sign a written pledge
prepared by the Law Student Against Chacha! to relinquish power by 2010
and terminate all plans to change the 1987 Constitution before next year’s
elections.
The challenge of the law students to Mrs. Arroyo has historical roots. It
is a re-echoing of the challenge posed by student leaders led by Edgar
Jopson to the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos before the imposition of
Martial Law to promise the people that he would not seek a third term. The
demand of the students was rejected by the late strongman, and the rest is
history.
“With bombings around the country, a lapdog Congress and equivocal
pronouncements from Malacanang, the threat of a repeating of history is
unfolding before our very eyes. We cannot allow this to happen again.”
This was the statement of Terry Ridon, UP Law student and co-convenor of
Law Students Against Cha-Cha! (LSAC), a broad alliance of law student
leaders, organizations and councils from the different law schools of the
country, including UP Law, Ateneo de Manila School of Law, San Beda
College of Law, UST Faculty of Civil Law, Lyceum College of Law, San
Sebastian College of Law, Polytechnic University of the Philippines
College of Law, University of the East College of Law, Far Eastern
University College of Law, among many others.
Krissy Conti, President of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers-UP Law
stated, “If the President is truly sincere in stepping down by 2010, she
should have no qualms about responding positively to the challenge posed
by the law students. She would sign the written pledge without batting an
eyelash, and even order Congress during the SONA to back down from
attempts to amend the Charter.”
Meanwhile, Josh Villena, External Vice-President-Select of the San Beda
College of Law Student Government asked, “Without clear pronouncements,
the true intentions of Mrs. Arroyo and our lawmakers shall always remain
suspect. Are they really for real reform, or for a dictator reborn?”
On the other hand, William Parada, President of the Lyceum College of Law
Student Government said that Monday’s State of the Nation Address is the
best venue for Mrs. Arroyo to make a full disclosure of her real plans.
“If, however, she repeats Marcosian tactics to perpetuate herself in
power, the LSAC is prepared to initiate quo warranto petition to question
her continued stay in power, notwithstanding trooping to the streets to
protest with the people.” Ridon finally says.
Reference:
Terry Ridon, Convenor, Law Students Against Cha-Cha!,
09158513904, teridon18@gmail.com
PRESS RELEASE
27 July 2009
For Reference: REP. LIZA LARGOZA MAZA 0920-9134540
Francis Uyanguren (Public Information Officer) 0915-9329407
LIZA MAZA SHOWS THE REAL STATE OF THE NATION AD(DRESS)
Assistant Minority Leader and Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Liza Maza today
showed the real state of the nation in a dress.
The white katsa (cloth used for flour sacks) Filipiniana gown is
accentuated with wooden beads and handpainted golden image of Gloria
Macagapal Arroyo weaving an embroidery of Constituent Assembly (Con-Ass)
while the people below her are strangled by its thread.
This image, handpainted by social realism artist Boy Dominguez, depicts
the reality of Arroyo's unrelenting efforts for term extension through
Con-Ass being pushed by her allies in the House of Representatives.
Moreover, it shows both the suffering and resistance of the Filipino
people to these schemes.
Consistent with her trademark of creatively showcasing protests and
indignation, like the dress matched with alampay (shawl) with an anti-war
message she wore during the 2003 visit of US President George Bush, Maza
is now donning this katsa gown to portray her opposition to the Con-ass.
###
=
==
28 July 2009
PRESS RELEASE
Reference: Garry Martinez, Chairperson-09217229740
Ailyn Abdula, Media Officer, 09212708994
After PGMA’s SONA:
Beheaded OFWs will haunt her – Migrante
The biggest global alliance of OFWs belied claims made by President Arroyo
on her SONA saying her administration holds the record for unparalleled
exploitation and abuse against overseas Filipinos including the most
number of OFWs that were beheaded under its term.
“The daughter of Rey Cortez lost her sanity due to the trauma caused by
the beheading of her father last July 13, 2007. The Arroyo administration
has turned its back on helping Rey’s family to cope with the tragedy. If
they heard the President’s SONA, we are pretty sure that instead of the
126 times of applause, the Batasang Pambansa would shudder at the thunder
of angry voices of OFWs,” says Garry Martinez, chairperson of Migrante
International.
Martinez was reacting to the SONA of President Arroyo when she defended
her frequent trips abroad by claiming that these trips were spent to visit
and to listen to the problems of overseas Filipinos as well as to talk to
the host governments of countries where they are working. She also claimed
that she was looking for opportunities for the hundreds of thousands of
Filipinos looking for jobs.
“Jenifer Beduya, Miguel Fernandez, Wilfredo Bautista, Antonio Alvesa,
Sergio Aldana and Rey Cortez, the 6 OFWs who were beheaded under President
Arroyo’s term, must have turned in their unmarked graves in Saudi Arabia
when she said that the billions of pesos spent in her lavish trips were
done in their name. The question now is how many more are going to be
beheaded in her remaining trips abroad?” Martinez chided.
Martinez blames the appointment of First Gentleman Mike Arroyo as
Presidential Adviser for OFWs in 2001 as a major reason why government
failed in saving OFWs from death row. The group asserted that it was
during Mike Arroyo’s stint that the government applied a new tact in
dealing with OFWs facing capital punishments.
“Upon Mike Arroyo’s appointment, the government adopted a policy of
raising funds for blood money from the business sector instead of
providing appropriate legal assistance to OFWs in death row. Paying blood
money is tantamount to admitting a crime that relinquishes the innocence
of the suspected OFW who was not even adequately defended in the legal
process. This has become the signature of the Arroyo administration in its
mishandling of OFW cases up to the present,” added Martinez.
Migrante even reminded the President that three (3) of her fellow
Capampangans are right now awaiting their execution in Jeddah, Saudi
Arabia. The said OFWs are Edison and Rolando Gonzales and Eduardo Arcilla
who were sentenced to die by beheading by the Saudi courts for murder.
“The Gonzales brothers and Arcilla were tortured by the Saudi authorities
to admit to crimes they have not committed. Up to now, the President
continues to ignore the issue of torture perpetrated against the said OFWs.
A brazen proof that what she said in her SONA are all self-serving lies,”
exclaimed Martinez
Migrante likewise claims that the plight of OFWs under the 9 year term of
the Arroyo administration has become worse especially the situation of
migrant women.
“We found it ironic that at the same time President Arroyo was boasting of
her efforts to protect the welfare of OFWs during her SONA, Philippine
Labor Attaché Josephus Jimenez was reporting that about 5 to 10 Filipina
maids flee from their abusive employers in Kuwait daily. We challenge
other embassy officials to belie the claims made by the President during
her SONA and expose the real condition of OFWs under her term,” Martinez
dared.
Recently, Migrante revealed that cases of violence against migrant women
have been increasing. An alarming trend of Filipina maids being abused in
groups were also noted.
The group criticized the 9 year term of President Arroyo as a corrupt
ridden administration that utilized OFW welfare funds for its own interest
specifically during the 2004 presidential election.
“The only legacy that will be left by President Arroyo to OFWs is its
shameless pilfering of OFW funds that were used to commit electoral fraud
in the 2004 presidential elections instead of utilizing it to give
assistance to distressed OFWs. Php530 million of the OWWA funds were
transferred to Philhealth upon the prodding of then Philhealth President
Francisco Duque. The said fund was later used to distribute free
Philhealth cards during her campaign trail. This was done at the same time
when hundreds of thousands of OFW contributors were disenfranchised from
their benefits upon the imposition of OWWA Omnibus Policies in 2003,”
Martinez concluded.###
The Opposite of Change
Statement of Pagbabago! People’s Movement for Change on Mrs. Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo’s 9th State of the Nation Address July 27, 2009
Ordinary Filipinos and the nation as a whole will find it extremely
difficult to accept, much less appreciate, the achievements to be
shamelessly claimed by Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in her State of the
Nation Address (SONA). Simply put, ordinary Filipinos - 70% of whom are
anti-GMA - will find her SONA a lot of hogwash.
Why? Because the last eight years under Mrs. Arroyo is the complete
opposite of the change aspired for by our people.
While Filipinos nurture the promise of a better life, today there is only
grinding poverty. While the people hope for freedom, democracy and social
justice, today there is only repression and injustice. While the nation
dreams of leadership guided by a sense of decency and moral ascendancy,
today there is only unbridled corruption and bad governance.
Mrs. Arroyo’s rule is characterized by lies, machinations and the complete
absence of integrity. This is currently exemplified by her insistence on
clinging to power by illegally amending the Philippine Constitution
through “Cha-cha”, engineering a palace-sponsored coup d’etat disguised as
“emergency rule” and “transition government” and other nefarious schemes.
Propelled by greed and lust for power rather than the people’s interest,
Mrs. Arroyo has systematically undermined the most basic requisites for a
decent life: food, shelter, clothing, health and education.
Malnutrition and hunger are more widespread than ever. Chronic but
preventable diseases like tuberculosis have become a permanent fixture
while epidemics afflict a populace made more vulnerable by their
destitution. Health and other social services have been reduced to token
measures and myopic programs.
Thanks to Mrs. Arroyo, we now live in a society where principled men and
women are abducted, tortured, and summarily executed with impunity, where
honest and upright people are persecuted and jailed while plunderers and
murderers are commended and rewarded with public office.
She has auctioned off our working men and women as cheap labor here and
abroad, bartered away our patrimony and surrendered our national
sovereignty to foreign interests
Shall we allow these to continue?
Our own history shows that the moving force for social change are the
people themselves, collectively exercising their political will. Vigilance
and accountability are necessary requisites for democracy to flourish. No
right or freedom will ever be truly enjoyed unless those who have betrayed
the people’s trust and aspirations are brought to justice.
We cannot allow the sacrifices of those who came before us to be
diminished and sullied by the utter mendacity of those who lead us today.
If we want change, then the rule of Mrs. Arroyo must end. If we seek a
life of dignity, then Mrs. Arroyo must go.
The true State of the Nation is our continuing struggle: the struggle
against tyrants, the struggle against exploitation and oppression, the
struggle for genuine freedom and democracy.
CHANGE. We enjoin the Filipino people to complete this unfinished task.
JOIN THE MOTORCADE FROM MANILA TO THE PEOPLE’S SONA in Commonwealth Avenue
on JULY 27
11:00 AM to 12:00 NN Assembly at the BONIFACIO SHRINE, MANILA CITY (near
Manila City Hall)
June 27, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Youth solon to deliver People's SONA at rally
Kabataan Party-list Representative Raymond “Mong” Palatino will deliver
the People's State of the Nation Address at the People's SONA at
Commonwealth Avenue?a speech to counter Gloria Arroyo's litany of lies
inside the Batasang Pambansa.
In his barong embossed with a rising sun, Kabataan's official logo
symbolizing the youth's hope and defiance, Palatino said "Para po sa amin
na naging bahagi ng Edsa Dos, ang nakalipas na siyam na taon ay parang
bangungot. Bakit ang People Power president ay naging 'halimaw sa banga'?”
Palatino was one of the youth leaders who mobilized students against
Joseph Estrada during the People Power II movement.
“Imbes na pagbabago, imbes na kaunlaran, ang nasaksihan natin ay ang
kabaligtaran. Kung mayroon mang pagbabago, eto ay ang pagdami ng mga
tagong yaman ng First Family; at ang pag-unlad ng kabuhayan ng mga kroni
ni Arroyo,” Palatino said.
Palatino, who would have been attending his first SONA as a solon, will
instead be joining other progressive party-list representatives and
senators in boycotting the SONA. “We expect that PGMA will boast of her
administration’s legacy in her last SONA. However, we also expect that
this will be a speech glittered with grandiose rhetoric and numerous
promises,” he said.
Instead, Palatino said Arroyo will leave us her four most important
legacies: a legacy of bribes and blatant corruption, a legacy of historic
joblessness and poverty, a legacy of human rights violation, and a legacy
of US puppetry.
Palatino also blamed Arroyo's administration for the increasing number of
drop-outs in schools and the higher cost of education. “Tumindi ang krisis
sa edukasyon dulot ng kakarampot na badyet ng pamahalaan sa edukasyon.
Kinasusuklaman ng mga kabataan ang siyam na taong pamumuno ni Arroyo,”
Palatino said.
Palatino also denounced Arroyo's moves to convene the House of
Representatives into a constituent assembly in order to extend her stay in
power. “Nasilaw na sa kapangyarihan si Arroyo. Akala niya habambuhay na
siya sa kanyang nabubulok na trono. Dapat siyang matakot. Dahil hindi
magiging payapa ang kanyang buhay. Titiyakin natin na habang wala pa siya
sa impiyerno, dito sa mundo ng mga tao sa kulungan natin siya ilalagay,
Palatino said. #
___________
SONA NG BAYAN
Kabataan Representative Raymond “Mong” Palatino
Magandang tanghali po mga kababayan at mga kasama sa pakikibaka! Halos
isang dekada na si Gloria Arroyo sa Malakanyang. Isang dekada na ring
nagtitiis at lalong naghirap ang ating bansa. Para po sa amin na naging
bahagi ng Edsa Dos, ang nakalipas na siyam na taon ay parang bangungot.
Bakit ang People Power president ay naging “halimaw sa banga”? Imbes na
pagbabago, imbes na kaunlaran, ang nasaksihan natin ay ang kabaligtaran.
Kung mayroon mang pagbabago, eto ay ang pagdami ng mga tagong yaman ng
First Family; at ang pag-unlad ng kabuhayan ng mga kroni ni Arroyo.
Isang insulto sa mamamayang Pilipino ang nilulutong con-ass ng Kongreso.
Hindi tayo mangmang; huwag nila tayong lokohin. Ang con-ass ay pinasa para
sa kapakinabangan ni Arroyo. Walang ibang layunin ang Kongreso kundi
bigyan ng legal na batayan ang hangarin ni Arroyo na manatili sa
kapangyarihan habambuhay.
Ginagawa ni Arroyo ang lahat para hindi makaalis ng Malakanyang. Bukod sa
Cha-Cha, nariyan ang banta ng Martial Law. May mga pangamba na sasadyaing
palpak ang poll automation ng Comelec para gamitin sa dayaan o kaya’y
magkaroon ng failure of elections sa susunod na taon.
Desperado na si Gloria at ang kanyang mga kasapakat. Para sa kanila, hindi
pa sapat ang siyam na taon ng pandarambong at maduming pamamahala.
Pero para sa mamamayang Pilipino, nasaid na ang ating pasensiya. Ngayon
ang oras ng paniningil. Isa-isahin natin ang ilang tampok na kasalanan ng
rehimeng ito:
Una, higit na nasadlak sa kumunoy ng kahirapan ang masang Pilipino. Tumaas
ang bilang ng mga Pilipinong walang trabaho. Dahil sa mga neoliberal na
patakaran sa ekonomiya, bumagsak ang maraming maliliit na kumpanya sa
bansa. Kaibigan ni Arroyo ang mga dambuhalang negosyo kaya pinayagan ang
pagtaas ng presyo ng langis, tubig, kuryente, at LPG. Mas mataas ngayon
ang singil sa VAT.
Nananatiling maliit ang suweldo ng mga manggagawa. Patuloy na tinutulak ni
Arroyo ang mga kabataan papalabas ng bansa. Walang dangal ang pamahalaang
ito; pati ang kanyang mamamayan ay ginagawang export commodity.
Pangalawang tampok na kasalanan ni Arroyo: pandarambong. Plunder. Nariyan
ang Jose Pidal account, fertilizer scam, Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard,
Jueteng payola, euro generals, nbn-zte, northrail, mega pacific. Tunay nga
siyang Reyna ng mga Corrupt. Kung papayagan nating manatili pa sa puwesto
si Arroyo, baka dumami pa ang ating listahan.
Pangatlong kasalanan: Paglabag sa karapatang pantao. Nasaan na ang aming
mga kaibigang aktibista, tulad nina Karen Empeno at Sherlyn Cadapan? Bakit
nasa Kongreso si Jovito Palparan at wala sa kulungan. Si Arroyo ay
kaibigan ng mga berdugo, ng mga nagtotorture, ng mga pumapatay at
kumikidnap sa mga aktibista, mamamahayag at iba pang kritiko ng pamahalaan.
Walang pigil si Arroyo sa paggamit ng kamay na bakal ng estado para
patahimikin ang lahat ng kumakalaban sa kanya.
Pang-apat na kasalanan: si Arroyo ay tuta ng imperyalismo. Pinayagan ni
Arroyo na gahasain ng mga sundalong Amerikano ang ating dignidad at
soberenya. Sinuportahan niya ang gera kontra terorismo ni Bush. Nilagdaan
niya ang ilang kasunduan tulad ng JPEPA na lalong binuksan ang ating
ekonomiya sa dayuhang kontrol. Ngayon, sa pamamagitan ng Cha-Cha, nais
ibenta ni Arroyo ang marami pa nating lupa at likas na yaman.
Para sa aming mga kabataan, si Arroyo ang sinisisi namin kung bakit
maraming estudyante ang hindi nakakapag-aral; ang ilan ay nagpapakamatay
dahil hindi kayang bayaran ang singil sa mga paaralan. Tumindi ang krisis
sa edukasyon dulot ng kakarampot na badyet ng pamahalaan sa edukasyon.
Kinasusuklaman ng mga kabataan ang siyam na taong pamumuno ni Arroyo.
Nasilaw na sa kapangyarihan si Arroyo. Akala niya habambuhay na siya sa
kanyang nabubulok na trono. Dapat siyang matakot. Dahil hindi magiging
payapa ang kanyang buhay. Titiyakin natin na habang wala pa siya sa
impiyerno, dito sa mundo ng mga tao sa kulungan natin siya ilalagay.
Lahat ng diktador ay paparusahan. Lahat ng kasamaan ay may hangganan. Ang
mga tuta, pasista at corrupt ay makakatikim ng galit ng sambayanan.
Gloria, tapos ka na! ##
--
Office of Rep. Raymond ‘Mong’ Palatino
Temporary Office c/o Office of Rep. Lisa Maza
Room 309, South Wing, House of Representatives, Batasan Complex, Quezon
City
Reference:
Kabataan Party-list Rep. Mong Palatino
Mobile: 09085927099
Email: cong.mongpalatino@gmail.com
JM Ragaza, Media Officer, 09166947806
NEWS RELEASE
27 July 2009
Reference: SOPHIA GARDUCE ,Spokesperson, 0928-5089104
CHILDREN SAY “ENOUGH OF GLORIA’s RUBBISH!”
SALINLAHI Spelled Out NO-TO-CHACHA on Diapers Hanging from a Mobile
Clothesline
On Mrs. Arroyo’s last State of the Nation Address, SALINLAHI, an alliance
of child rights advocates, joined different sectors in depicting her
administration as full of rubbish.
According to Sophia Garduce, the group’s spokesperson, the best way to
gauge a government’s effectiveness is to see how it takes care of its
children. “Children are often thought of as the only truly happy people in
the world. When we think of a child, we think of laughter, play,
imagination, creativity and hope. Unfortunately, Gloria Arroyo’s
eight-year rule has succeeded in diminishing these features of Filipino
childhood. Our nation’s future farmers, workers, professionals and leaders
are growing up thinking that lying, cheating, stealing and killing are
acceptable values. How can Gloria think she still has the grace and the
face to ask the nation to allow her continued stay in Malacañang?”
Garduce said SALINLAHI joined the PEOPLE’S SONA to declare the true state
of our nation’s children, and to make the Arroyo government accountable
for terribly failing in its duty to care for its children. “In the
Asia-Pacific region, the Philippines is one of 8 countries with high
incidence of childhood pneumonia. Further, Gloria can only boast of an
increase in income inequity between the “haves” and the “have nots”. Our
Moro children have much to complain about, as they continue to suffer from
the so-called “war on terror.” Add to this, as the worsening global
financial crisis and retrogressive economic policies afflict our workers
with skyrocketing unemployment rates, we expect an increase in
malnourished or undernourished children, beyond the 30 percent rate of
2006.
Garduce also added that many children in rural areas are in evacuation
centers because of the government’s military operations. In Lianga, Surgao
Sur, scores of lumad children from a tribal school were forced to flee
with their teachers after their school was harassed by the military. The
school was subjected to food blockade because of the school
administration’s refusal to submit to the military a list of all faculty,
staff and students of the school. “Curtailment of rights, whether civil,
political or socio-economic or cultural, is a reality faced by Filipino
families under Mrs. Arroyo’s government. This is her legacy to the
Filipino children,” Garduce said.
In a pre-SONA video uploaded to the YouTube, SALINLAHI asked children from
urban poor communities in Metro Manila how they perceived Pres. Arroyo and
her SONA. “Children as young as 5 or 6 years old are aware of the
corruption and abuses that plague the Arroyo government. While we laugh at
their sometimes absurd remarks on the question of what the people should
do to Pres. Arroyo, such as “ihulog sa ilog!” or “ipakain sa shark!”, we
also view this as a reflection of what majority of Filipinos really think
of her presidency,” Garduce said. “The only difference is that children
are allowed to get away with their brutal frankness.”
Garduce urged Filipino families and their children, to remain steadfast
against Arroyo’s anti-people policies, even beyond SONA. “We know Arroyo
is dead set on Charter Change to escape accountability and to further rape
and plunder our country’s resources. Only the growing voice of protest
from Filipino families, including children, can stop the devious plans of
this government to destroy our children’s future. Just like what mothers
do to spoiled diapers, let us all act together and treat her accordingly…
as unwanted RUBBISH in our political and economic landscape.” Garduce
concluded. ###
xKABATAAN KONTRA CHA-CHA
kabataankontrachacha@gmail.com
For immediate release
NEWS RELEASE
July 27, 2009
References/Kabataan Kontra Cha-Cha spokespersons: Alvin Peters, National
Union of Students of the Philippines 09206209362 national president/ Ken
Ramos, Anakbayan national chairperson 09215129678 / Cristina Guevarra,
Student Christian Movement of the Philippines national chairperson
“Kick out Gloria and her Con-Ass”
Thousands of youth and students join People’s SONA
Thousands of youth and students from communities, schools and universities
in Metro Manila joined the People’s SONA today in Quezon City.
Carrying a giant shoe with the words “Kick Out Gloria!” they gathered at
Tandang Sora-Commonwealth Avenue before marching towards Batasan, where
they converged with the BAYAN program infront of St. Peter’s Church.
In the morning, students from Taft Avenue schools converge at 11 in the
morning. Joining the protest are students from St. Scholastica’s College,
De La Salle University, College of St. Benilde, St. Paul University, UP
Manila and others.
Students of the University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila
University, Philippine School for Business and the Arts and others,
meanwhile, gathered in the UP Diliman campus before proceeding to Tandang
Sora.
Despite the suspension of classes, high school students from Quezon City
high schools also joined in the protest.
According to National Union of Students of the Philippines president Alvin
Peters, “the youth and students are more than resolved to participate in
the People’s SONA despite attempts to sabotage the mobilization.”
“We believe that the government only have lame excuses to justify the
suspension of classes, where it is clearly a move to prevent the students
from gathering in their schools and walking out of their classes,” Peters
said.
For her part, Student Christian Movement of the Philippines chairperson
Cristina Guevarra said even without classes, “the People’s SONA is the
school of the youth.”
“We will not be learning anything if we stay at home and watch Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo as she delivers her SONA. Here, the people are telling
one single truth, that we do not want this regime to stay anymore. Her
time to go is long overdue,” Guevarra said.
Anakbayan chairperson Ken Ramos likewise said that protests on Arroyo’s
last SONA shall serve as “warning that if she and her allies try to
perpetuate her in power, they will definitely face the people's outrage.”
Ramos also criticized the release of numerous pro-Arroyo banners hanging
all over footbridges in Metro Manila.
“They zeroed in on boasting about Arroyo's program for education and the
youth, while blatantly covering up the government's abandonment of
education. How much money is spent again for that shameless propaganda of
Arroyo, money that should have been used for the people?” he said.
Peters, on the other hand, said they believe that the legacy that Arroyo
is said to leave the nation is Charter Change during her term, which is
why the youth and the people should be even more vigilant.
“Greed in power, violations to people's rights, sell-out of our
sovereignty and national patrimony. Those are the things that we will
always remember of this regime. These are very reasons why we want no more
of her. These are the things that we will continue to fight for even after
this SONA,” Peters said. ###
PRESS RELEASE Reference:
Christine Macabetcha, 09198593660
July 22, 2009 Dep. Secretary General, Bayan-ST
Southern Tagalog protesters begin anti-Cha Cha, anti-Arroyo Lakbayan,
experience early harassment from police
Harassment came early for anti-Charter Change, anti-Arroyo protesters from
Southern Tagalog even before they began their six-day protest march which
culminates on July 27.
At around 3pm yesterday, police tore down the protest camp put up since
last week by various sectors in Brgy. San Jose, Montalban, Rizal. The
protest camp served as center of preparations for Lakbayan in the
province. At Crossing, Calamba, Laguna, policemen wielding nightsticks and
a SWAT mobile closely guarded youth and other sectors that assembled and
held a program around 4PM. Protesters rarely experience such harassments
in the said areas which are common staging grounds for their protests.
Since Monday, Axel Pinpin, one of the organizers of the Lakbayan and a
former political prisoner, has also been receiving anonymous text messages
threatening him and telling him that he was being closely followed.
“We usually experience police harassment and blockades when we near
Manila. But now, even before the start of our protest march, there are
already various attempts to deter us from joining the massive anti-Sona
protests. As we start our Lakbayan today, we are ready to surpass whatever
tactics the police or military will employ to stop us from going to the
Sandigangbayan. We expect more harassment as thousands of police, and
intelligence agents, hound us. We know they will use the recent bomb
blasts in the NCR to concoct stories that we will cause such disturbances
and to pre-empt whatever harassment they will employ against us,”
Christine Macabetcha, Bayan-ST secretary general, said.
Nearly 5,000 policemen will be deployed during the Sona while close to a
thousand more cops will be on reserve at police headquarters in Quezon
City. More than 600 police will also be on standby for possible deployment
during protest actions that will be simultaneously held during the Sona.
Macabetcha also hit the fabrication of more criminal cases against
activists and the revival of the case against 72 individuals which
includes almost all regional leaders of militant groups in Southern
Tagalog. At least six similar cases, most involving the same leaders, are
currently filed in Batangas and Rizal courts. “This was well-timed and
planned by the Arroyo administration to hamper our protest actions against
her and Cha Cha.”
The Lakbayan is composed of three separate contingents: the central
section composed of marchers from Laguna and Quezon; the west section
composed of marchers from Cavite, Batangas, and Mindoro; and the east
section composed of marchers from Rizal and some parts of Laguna.
Farmers, workers, students, urban poor, women, indigenous people,
professionals, and religious people from Southern Tagalog began to march
from Calamba, Laguna; Dasmarinas, Cavite; and Rizal. Church people held an
ecumenical mass early morning. At various stops, they held programs dubbed
as the “State of the Region Address” to inform the public about the real
state of various sectors before Arroyo delivers her Sona.
The protesters unveiled “Swine Glo,” an effigy depicting Arroyo as a pig
languishing in power but infected with A(H1N1) virus. A warning sign
hanging over the effigy reads, “Babala! Swine Glo, Nakamamatay!” (Warning!
Swine Glo kills!). “Swine Glo is the deadliest virus that is killing us.
The nation is already ‘too sick’ under Arroyo’s governance and there is no
cure now except to remove her from office,” Macabetcha said.
Workers led by Pamantik-KMU (Pagkakaisa ng mga Manggagawa sa Timog
Katagalugan), said that around 60,000 workers lost their jobs from January
to June 2009 while more than 100,000 are underemployed in the region. A
survey done by the Workers Alliance in Cavite (from January to March this
year) in 108 companies inside the Cavite Economic Zone reveals that 18,344
workers lost their jobs while 85,467 workers have been affected by
closure, vacation or reduced work week.
Peasants led by Kasama-TK (Katipunan ng mga Samahang Magbubukid sa Timog
Katagalugan) said that 7 out of 10 farmers in the region are still
landless. In Batangas, 71,813 hectares of agricultural lands are owned by
81 landlords while in Quezon, 211 landlords own more than 500,000 hectares
of farmlands.
Urban poor are being displaced from their homes and livelihood. In Cavite,
the Coastal Road2 project will demolish the homes of 26,000 families along
the Bacoor coastal areas alone. Thousands have already lost their homes
due to demolitions for the Southrail project and more are expected as
these continue.
“We will deliver the true State of the Region Address of the people of
Southern Tagalog. We know we speak the truth because it is the very people
experiencing poverty, landlessness, unemployment, lack of education and
social services that will be sharing their real-life experiences, complete
with data.,” Macabetcha said.#
For inquiries, contact Rj at 09292714057
--
SERVE THE PEOPLE!
Visit us @ bayanst.wordpress.com
Thousands converged in other key
cities across the country to denounce the Arroyo regime for the poverty,
corruption, deception and repression in the Philippines.
In her ninth State of the Nation
Address, President Arroyo painted a rosy picture of the Philippines – a
world so much different from the one most Filipinos live in, her critics
say.
When Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo delivers what is supposed to be her last
State of the Nation Address this Monday, she will probably claim that she
has accomplished what she said she had set out to do in 2001 and 2004. To
her critics, however, the past nine years have been “the reign of Gollum.”
Ordinary Filipinos – the perennially
jobless, out-of-school teenagers, recently retrenched factory workers,
vegetable vendors, proud homosexuals, among others – braved the heavy rain
on the day of the Sona to let it be known that they have had enough of
Gloria.
The regime would not veer away from
the economic policies that Arroyo has implemented in the past. These are
the very same policies that made the Filipino people vulnerable to the
world economic crisis and to price manipulations and speculative attacks
by corporations wanting to pass on the burden of the crisis to the people.
For Immediate Release
July 27, 2009
Reference: Valerie Francisco, Chairperson, Filipinas for Rights and
Empowerment (FiRE), fire.nyc@gmail.com
NYC FilAm Women Call in Solidarity with Thousands in RP No to ChaCha
and No to Gloria
Mother Mary John Mananzan to Join NYC SONA Actions
New York, NY-- In the Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
delivers the Philippine 's state of the nation address (SONA) on July
27th, 2009, her annual address will report an laudatory state of the
country's economic, political, and social state. In past years, her
singular declaration has been met with the fervor of the thousands of
voices demonstrating in the streets of what progressive Filipino alliances
like BAYAN and GABRIELA call "The People's SONA." In the annual largest,
militant protest, the Philippine masses have exposed the truth about the
dismal poverty, skyrocketing prices of goods and widespread landlessness;
all of which have resulted in a calculated and steady stream of migration
from the country.
To add insult to injury, GMA's incorrigible human rights violations record
has over and again been investigated, arraigned and found guilty by
international bodies, special agents and, most importantly, the Filipino
people in the Philippines and abroad. The most recent case of the
abduction and torture of Melissa Roxas, a Filipino American human rights
advocate, is a key manifestation of GMA's negligence around the human
rights and welfare of Filipinos.
Joined by Mother Mary John Mananzan, the honorary and long time, chair of
GABRIELA, and also chair of the Association of Major Religious Superiors
of the Philippines (AMRSP), FilAm women in New York, along with other
Filipino organizations in the city bring light to the continued
inequalities faced by Filipinos worldwide as direct result of faulty
policies and practices supported by US-Philippine relations. Mananzan will
speak at the July 27 New York activities to illuminate FilAms on the real
state of the nation.
Three days after GMA's SONA, she will arrive in Washington, DC, to meet
with U.S. President Barack Obama, making her the first Southeast nation
head of state to do so. It is clear that GMA's longstanding desire to meet
with President Obama is motivated by her low approval ratings in her
nation and need to cleanse her tainted 8-administration cluttered with
scandal, corruption, graft, thievery and authoritarian politics. Arroyo’s
administration is attempting to reform the 1987 constitution of the
Philippines that will give GMA the ability to govern with less oversight
by and accountability for the people. Her administration’s economic
policies have prioritized foreign-owned big business over healthy, local
economies, to the disadvantage of the country she should serve. If
President Obama supports GMA's dishonest claims to democracy, endangerment
of human rights and welfare of the Filipino people will surely ensue.
In GMA's current regime, broken democracy and an unfair economy have left
Filipino citizens no recourse but to leave their homeland in search of
livelihood. The Philippines’ number one export is human labor; 70% of
those leaving are women working as domestic servants, nannies, caretakers,
and nurses across the globe. Many of these women are rendered defenseless
in the face of abuse and exploitation because of their transitional
citizenship status.
Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE)-GABRIELA USA calls attention
to the continued injustices faced by Filipina women, which are direct
results of the broken systems that the Arroyo administration fails to
address. We demand that President Obama question the Arroyo administration
in its practices of human rights violations, its efforts for a charter
change, and its support for economic inequality. These actions have
wrongly curbed civil liberties in the Philippines, and will continue to
disadvantage Filipinas across the globe.
Filipino American women in FiRE-GABRIELA USA join in the international
call to scrap Cha-Cha! We demand a real change in Philippine politics, out
with Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo! The Filipino people, immigrants and
generations of Filipinos outside of the Philippines say we need CHANGE,
not charter change!
Join FIRE-GABRIELA USA and BAYAN USA at the
NYC People's State of the Nation Forum and Mobilization!
Monday July 27th 6PM @ the Bayanihan Community Center (40-21 69th st)
Take the 7 to 69th St.
###
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
http://www.firenyc.org
Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE) is a mass-based women's
organization serving New York City and its surrounding areas. We connect
the Filipino diaspora to the women's struggle in the Philippines. By
bringing woman-born and woman-identified people together, we challenge
pervading stereotypes and create self-defined Filipina identities. For
more information, please visit http://www.firenyc.org .
FiRE is a proud member of BAYAN-USA, an alliance of progressive Filipino
groups in the U.S. representing organizations of students, scholars,
women, workers, and youth. To learn more about one of the overseas chapter
of BAYAN, and the other organizations in our alliance, please visit
http://bayanusa.org/
The State of Gloria
Arroyo's Lies Communist Party of the Philippines July 28, 2009
Gloria Arroyo's supposed last State of the Nation Address (SONA) yesterday
was full of lies, fantasies and evasions. As expected by practically
everyone -- the opposition, the entire Filipino people and even her own
allies and underlings -- it was no different from her past SONA.
Not even the ghost writer believed what he wrote for her. No one, except
the most naïve, believed what they heard. Not content with the
orchestrated 126 "applauses" by her sycophants in the hall and hakot crowd
at the gallery, her props even included canned computer-generated applause
that sometimes missed the timing and became obvious.
Her pompous show yesterday was not in any way a state of the nation
address. It was nothing but a "state of lies."
From her already corrupted government economic data, she selected only
those that would show achievements. She blamed everyone else for all the
failures and claimed all credit for what she purported to be achievements,
even if she had nothing to do with these at all. Even the triumphs in the
ring of world boxing champion Manny Pacquiao she claimed as her own.
She evades the fact that it is her economic failures, the resulting
joblessness in the country and her own policy to export labor that are
pushing workers and professionals to look for work abroad. She hides the
fact that it is only the dollar remittances of millions of Filipino
workers overseas that have been buttressing the collapsing rotten economy.
She swamped with dishonest data all the real data showing the
deterioration of the economy: the decline in manufacturing, agricultural
production and exports; the record increase in unemployment, including
disguised unemployment and underemployment; the rising deficits; the
decreasing purchasing value of the peso; and the widening gap between
rising mininum living standards and real wages. Her speech did not show at
all how social inequity, poverty, hunger and deprivation of social
services have only grown worse in the last nine years of her rule because
of the horrid way she messed up the economy, kept it neocolonial and
backward and stole billions from the nation's coffers and the people. She
tried to make the people believe that because of her economic feats, the
country has been singularly spared from the economic crisis that is
presently drowning the rest of the world.
She continued to indulge in the fantasy that because of her, the country
is on the road to joining the First World in a decade or so. Claiming to
have solved the misgovernance left her by her predecessors, she completely
ignores not only local criticisms but even the failed grades (among the
worst if not the worst in the whole world) in the reports of various
international agencies on governance, economic progress, social equity,
poverty, hunger, education and other social services, corruption, internal
displacement, human rights violations, human trafficking, illegal drugs
trafficking, and other crimes.
Her rotten rule has been exceptionally bad in terms of human rights
violations committed with utter impunity. This is now even worse than that
suffered by the people under the outrightly fascist Marcos dictatorship.
She has done nothing about her regime's facist crimes but try to pass the
blame on to the victims themselves. Her SONA mentioned nothing about it.
Without really expecting it from her, some quarters challenged her to be
categorical about her post-June 2010 plans. She has refused to do so,
proving without a doubt that Cha-cha, Con-ass and the accompanying fascist
plans to perpetuate her rule continue to be in the works.
Quibbling with words, she denied as actual declaration of martial law her
admitted issuance of "emergency rule proclamations" and even cosmetized
them as "strong government" and "determination." Her closest allies and
deputies then, like former Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr. and former
Speaker Jose de Venecia, have attested that Arroyo had indeed gone to the
extent of making actual moves towards martial rule and even lobbying her
US imperialist master for permission a couple of times in the past. In the
face of strong resistance, she has been unable to implement to the full
her martial law plans. But she keeps the option open contingent to her
main plan of perpetuating her hold on power via Cha-cha and Con-ass.
Recent bomb scares and actually bombings are part of her continuous
scenario-building to set the stage in case outright "emergency rule" or
outright martial rule becomes necessary for her.
In a few days, Arroyo will seek to work out with her imperialist master
further arrangements that would redound to their mutual interest.
Arroyo's latest SONA clearly demonstrates that she will not step down from
power on her own volition. It shows all the more the need for firm resolve
and persistence on the part of the revolutionary forces and the people to
fight and bring down her rotten, bogus, deceptive and vicious regime.
