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The Right to Strike!
by KABATAAN PARTYLIST on Monday, September 26, 2011 at 5:53pm
Privilege Speech of Kabataan
Party-list Rep. Raymond 'Mong' Palatino
Delivered on September 26, 2011 at the House of Representatives
Mr. Speaker I rise to defend the right of our youth to participate in
political activities. Last Saturday, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson
Abigail Valte urged the students to focus on their studies instead of
participating in rallies. The remark was issued a day after the successful
staging of a nationwide strike of students, teachers, school officials and
members of concerned sectors who forged a strong unity to defend of our
State Universities and Colleges (SUCs). The strike was organized for three
reasons: 1) To protest the budget cuts and insufficient funding for our
state schools; 2) To demand the realignment of the budget bill so that
more funds can be used for the expansion and improvement of public higher
education; 3) To urge the Aquino government to review its higher education
policy.
Instead of belittling last Friday’s protest action, Malacanang should
properly address the demands presented by the students. Instead of
discouraging the youth to actively engage our political leaders,
Malacanang should welcome the participation of young people in politics.
Ms. Valte and other Malacanang propagandists should not underestimate the
students who joined the strike. They might be surprised to discover that
the strikers are among the most committed scholars of our schools. The
students must be commended for finding time and sacrificing so that they
can link arms with other iskolars ng bayan in collectively asserting their
legitimate demands to the government. They skipped classes not because
they are abandoning schooling but because they wanted better education.
They marched on the streets not because they are school delinquents but
because they wanted to remind the government that its policies on
education and funding priorities are forcing many young people to drop out
from schools. It is precisely out of supreme dedication to learning that
motivated the students to organize the strike.
Malacanang should know better that students are capable of performing well
in schools while taking an active role in campus and even national
politics. To speak and act decisively on various social and political
issues are among the important duties of our young citizens. These are
part of the youth’s learning development; these are essential components
of citizen education in a democratic society.
Valte and the other propagandists seem to forget that from time to time,
Malacanang itself is organizing public assemblies and even rallies where
student participation is often made a school requirement. The President
himself has been very consistent in his appeal for active youth
participation in the public affairs. In a recent speech, the president
even reminisced about his involvement in the student movement during the
Martial Law years.
It is wrong for student activists to organize rallies but it becomes
acceptable if approved by Malacanang? Public assemblies and rallies are
not beneficial to society but they become an integral component of
citizenship if endorsed by Malacanang? Our elders did the right thing when
they marched on the streets in their youth, but students today are
irresponsible if they skip classes to attend protest actions?
Encouraging the youth to study better isn’t wrong. What is unacceptable is
the refusal to recognize that the youth become better educated if they are
also immersed in the social and political affairs of the country. We need
more student strikers, not less.
Malacanang shouldn’t limit the capacity of young people to perform great
political actions. It shouldn’t reduce youth political engagement into
wearing of yellow ribbons and posting comments on the President’s social
network pages. Young people today, like the earlier generations, are
willing and capable of creating history.
Last week’s strike was something we should have anticipated. We cannot
reduce the funds for social services without provoking the anger of our
citizens. We cannot impose budget cuts and allocate insufficient funds for
social services without generating public unrest.
Mr. Speaker, distinguished colleagues, we live in dire times. Domestically
and globally, budget cuts, price hikes, continuous rights violations and
social strife continue to inspire countless young people to rely on the
collective wisdom and power of the oppressed to build a better and more
humane, progressive society.
Youths all over the world are up in arms. Youth and student riots in
London, Chile, Spain, Madagascar, Columbia, Germany, Malaysia and
elsewhere in the world are testament to how volatile the present global
economic crisis is. Youths 17-25 years old are jobless, students are
protesting against budget cuts and tuition and price increases. The whole
world is in debt.
The Philippines is not an exception. Our conditions are not different, if
worse, from other countries. And as in other countries, the youth and
student movement is undeniably a moving force in the fight for substantial
social reforms.
Indeed, the string of massive student protests that erupted during the
past few months were only a logical response to the aggravating crisis
brought about by the disarray in the current global economic order.
Economies that once seemed unscathed are now experiencing economic
recessions. In order to curb their impending decline, countries intensify
their privatization, deregulation and liberalization schemes—the three
essential components of the current dominant economic framework
notoriously known as neoliberalism.
Malamang ay nagtataka rin kayo: Di hamak na mas mahirap na bansa ang
Pilipinas kaysa mga bansang nabanggit ko, pero bakit hindi pa nagra-riot
ang mga kabataan dito?
Mr. Speaker, distinguished colleagues, we have our youth and student
movement to thank for. Kailangang maunawaan ng marami na mapagpasya pa rin
ang organisasyon ng mga kabataang aktibista sa paghikayat na magkaroon ng
pagkakaisa sa ating bansa. Kung ano ang mayroon tayo at wala ang iba – ito
ang buong kilusang kabataan at estudyante na naninindigang hindi riots at
hindi anarkiya ang sasagot sa krisis. Sa kabila ng lahat, namamayani ang
disiplina at matibay na organisadong pagkilos ng ating mga kabataang
aktibista. Sa ganitong diwa, dapat pa nga natin pasalamatan ang mga
organisasyong tulad ng League of Filipino Students (LFS) at iba pang mga
makabayang organisasyon ng kabataan na nakikibaka para sa mas magandang
bukas para sa ating bayan.
The social policies of the Aquino administration, clear as clear can be,
nourish the ground for critical dissent. What the Palace is telling our
youth now is to be silent while their right to education and social
services is continuously violated. Reports early today contain a statement
from DBM Secretary Butch Abad saying that our youth should make do with
insufficient funds for our public higher education. It is this kind of
utter insensitivity of the Aquino administration that forces our youth and
people to heighten the struggle for their basic rights.
More strikes, not less, will definitely rock the nation as the youth and
people fight for their future.
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League of Filipino Students
118-B Sct. Rallos Ext., Bgy Sacred Heart, Quezon City
PRESS RELEASE
September 26, 2011
Abad,'Valtermort' doing a Goebbels
denying educ budget cuts
"Just like Goebbels."
This was how Terry Ridon, national chairperson of the League of Filipino
Students described the continued denials of DBM Sec. Florencio Abad and
Palace deputy spokesperson Abigail "Valtemort" Valte that the Aquino
government never cut the budget of state college and universities.
Ridon likened the two Palace officials to the Nazi chief propagandist
Joseph Goebbels who infamously said that if one tells a lie big enough and
keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it as the truth.
The militant student leaders said that no less than the 2012 General
Appropriations proposal in the DBM Website shows that indeed the Aquino
government had cut again cut the budget of state colleges and
universities. (Photo-grabbed image attached)
"As far as we know that's lying through their teeth to merely score
propaganda points. And we thought lying and cheating are among the things
this government absolutely abhors."
Ridon promised more strikes in the coming days as the budget is
deliberated in the Senate.
"Yes, Ms. Valtemort, the protests will continue. And yes, many of the
students scored well in their pre-final exams despite the strikes."
Reference: Terry Ridon, 09155310725
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September 25, 2011
PRESS RELEASE
Pauline Gidget Estella
CEGP National Deputy Secretary General
09069357722
‘Focus on providing affordable education,’
campus journalists tell Palace
A day after the historic protest action of more than 8,000 youth, the
Malacanang, through Deputy Spokesperson Abigail Valte, still ignored the
clamor of the thousands of students and instead told them to “focus on
their studies” rather than walk out of their classes.
“After thousands of students marched from Diliman to Mendiola under the
scorching sun, after the numerous unity marches and long string of
creative activities, after the days of strike, this is what the government
tells us? That we are simply misinformed? Valte’s remarks smack of
arrogance and unwillingness to listen,” said Pauline Gidget Estella,
deputy secretary general of College Editors Guild of the Philippines, the
widest and longest-running alliance of student publications.
“Miss Valte, if you are asking us to focus on our studies, then we say
that you should first focus on thinking twice with your statements. In the
first place, how can we focus on our studies if many of us could no longer
afford to study even in a state university? You are telling us to focus on
our studies when the continuing trend of state neglect robs us of our
right to education,” said Estella.
As student journalists and budding media practitioners, “we do not only
verify facts, we also have the duty to analyze them, to flesh out the
truth in the fact,” said Estella. “While Valte said that there is a 10.1
percent increase in the budget for state universities and colleges (SUCs),
we know that the truth is that this 10 percent is comprised of conditional
funds, and that they will not be released without complying with
prerequisites set by the government,” she explained.
Estella added that if the government really prioritizes education, then it
could realign the huge “confidential” and “intelligence” funds to social
services, especially amid reports of corruption in the use of these funds.
“Students, employees, teachers and even school administrators are engaged
in the fight for greater subsidy. Instead of listening and doing its job,
the government dismisses the protests and tells us to focus on our studies
because it could no longer sustain its deceptive explanations,” said
Estella.
-----------------------------------
For Immediate Release
September 26, 2011
Aside from lying, the Aquino administration
has also been consistently inconsistent -NUSP
‘LIARS’ and ‘consistently inconsistent’ is how, National Union of Students
of the Philippines (NUSP) describes the recent slurry of media releases of
the palace following the series of protests of State Universities and
Colleges (SUCs)
The Aquino Government is relentless in its pursuit to discredit the
massive protests of the students, faculty, administration, and staff of
SUCs. This was the observation of NUSP to the recent statement of
Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Butch Abad that the
budget for SUCs has in face ‘increased’, providing ‘maximum budget for all
agencies is unfeasible’, and that ‘more funds won’t do’.
“Firstly, we know that it is a lie that SUC budgets increased as it has
been consistently declining since 2009, just look at your own proposals,”
says NUSP President Einstein Recedes. He contends, “SUCs have consistently
not been receiving Capital Outlay funding, for the case of UP the National
Government even owes it at least Php Six Billion in unreleased funds”.
“Secondly, I believe it is downright dim-witted to claim that we demand
maximum budget for everything. The SUC community is certainly not as
dim-witted as Sec. Abad, we know that there are enough funds: how about
your wife’s district, CCTs, the military, the intelligence funds, the
Office of the President, and other Palace offices?,” adds Mr. Recedes
“Lastly, comparing UP with ADMU, DLSU, and UST in the QS is at best
short-sighted and at worst misinformed,” says Mr. Recedes. He explains
that UP and SUCs simply cannot be compared with these Private universities
for the simple reason that they are privately owned and funded. Mr.
Recedes brushed this propaganda and says, “This is yet another scheme of
the DBM and the administration to veer away from the issue at hand.”
“They need to start doing their mandate and fund for SUC’s with a budget
that is not just for subsistence but for development,” says Mr. Recedes,
even quoting Executive Director Julito Vitriolo of the Commission on
Higher Education.
Mr. Recedes also belies the claims of several palace apologists. “Aside
from lying they have also been consistently inconsistent, they say that
they listen but on the other hand discredit the demands of SUCs, clearly
they are not willing to listen.”
He ends by exposing the entire character of the Aquino administration’s
budget. “It is clear that the government continues not only to be
oblivious but even aggravates to the crisis of the education sector and
its anti-development and anti-people budget is a clear indication. Yes
it’s not just about funding it’s about your government’s skewed
priorities.” ###
Reference:
Vanessa faye Bolibol, NUSP Secretary-general, 09261703655
Rainier Sindayen, NUSP EdRes Officer, 09178897725
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PRESS RELEASE
25 September 2011
Palace officials are ingrates to People Power
I & II
“Palace officials should closely review their history and party rhetoric
when they call on students to just focus on studies rather than protest.
They are ingrates to the memory of People Power I & II when they make such
pronouncements.” Says Einstein Recedes, National Union of Students of the
Philippines (NUSP) National President.
This statement from the NUSP President comes after Deputy Presidential
Spokesperson Abigail Valte made the statement through the Philippine Daily
Inquirer that students [should] “concentrate on their studies rather than
[walk] out of their classrooms to protest supposed budget cuts for their
institutions”.
“This is outright arrogance on the part of the government,” says Recedes.
He adds, “How dare they use the memory of People Power to bolster their
image while also demeaning and discrediting the protest of the students
and SUCs.”
The student leader ended his statement with a wake-up call to palace
officials, “I wish to remind you that were it not for protest
actions–People Power being one such protest — you [Valte] and your boss [Aquino]
would probably not even be there in the first place.”
Reference: Vanessa faye Bolibol, NUSP Secretary-General, 0926-1703655
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Ang Budget Cut ay Wallpost sa FB na Hindi
Nabasa ng Tindero ng Binatog na Nagbinatang Hindi Nasalubong ang Salitang
Internet
-Stum Casia
Ang budget cut ay isang upuang
walang sandalan at walang sulatan.
Isang inaanay na classroom na umuulan sa loob.
Daang paakyat at pababa ng bundok at tawid-ilog.
Puro ID’ng pitaka ng nurse na may ulcer.
Kalabaw na ibebenta pamasahe sa papuntang Saudi.
Basang pantaloon
At sirang celpon ng titser
Ng unibersidad na kinaltasan ng bilyon.
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Mahiya naman kay Rizal
-Stum Casia
Sa isandaang kabataan-pag-asa-ng-bayan na mag-eenroll ng grade 1,
66 lang ang aabot ng grade 6.
Ang makakatuntong ng 1st year high school ay 58.
43 ang makaka-graduate.
33 ang magkokolehiyo.
21 ang makakatapos, wag nang itanong
kung makakahanap agad ng trabaho.
At sa ika-150 kaarawan ni Jose Rizal,
bayaning tumaya sa kabataan-
ipaalala sa Malakanyang
na wag subukang gawin tema at slogan.
Mahiya naman
kay Rizal
at sa batang excited sa unang araw ng pasukan
na pauupuin sa sahig
sa classroom na siksikan.
________________________________
ang mga numero ay mula sa privilege speech ni Kabataan Partylist Rep.
Raymond Palatino noong ika-30 ng Mayo 2011
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Gunting
Yani Ela
Ako ay nagtanong sa barberong nakaupo sa palasyo,
Saan mo po gagamitin ang gunting?
Ah? Gagamitin ko ito sa budget cut,
Sagot sa akin ng barbero.
Matalim na gunting sa budget cut gagamitin.
Kaltasan natin ang gilid ng pispis.
Isang bawas para sa badyet sa edukasyon.
Eh, ang bandang likod?
Sige, apat na bawas sa badyet sa kalusugan.
Wag nating putulan ang bangs, para
sa badyet sa militar yan.
Pampapogi yan.
Okey, sige, tapos na.
Hayan na ang gupit mo.
Kalahating kalbo na may bangs.
Ako ang pangulo ng Pilipinas: magaling na barbero.
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Gunting
Yani Ela
Ako ay nagtanong sa barberong nakaupo sa palasyo,
Saan mo po gagamitin ang gunting?
Ah? Gagamitin ko ito sa budget cut,
Sagot sa akin ng barbero.
Matalim na gunting sa budget cut gagamitin.
Kaltasan natin ang gilid ng pispis.
Isang bawas para sa badyet sa edukasyon.
Eh, ang bandang likod?
Sige, apat na bawas sa badyet sa kalusugan.
Wag nating putulan ang bangs, para
sa badyet sa militar yan.
Pampapogi yan.
Okey, sige, tapos na.
Hayan na ang gupit mo.
Kalahating kalbo na may bangs.
Ako ang pangulo ng Pilipinas: magaling na barbero.
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