Smartmatic's Comelec

Smartmatic's Comelec

   8/30/2009 06:20:00 PM       freemindonline

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I watched TalkBack (ANC channel). I admire the dedications of the Comelect and other govenment agencies working to get the Automated Election for 2010 up and running. But as I am surprised which I shouldn't be, we Filipinos always have something that will always brings us down. Then it came to me, why do we have so much laws that we and even our government can't follow?. It seems that the Comelec and other government agancies helping in the automation are taking it upon themselves which part of the law governing the preparation of the automated election to be valid and practical. Again a dangerous and a common move to circumvent the law to the people's disadvantage. This is again a sign that some of our rights will be denied.

I think the Comelec and other support agancies are just acting 'smart alec'. From what I see from the talk show, one guy is trying to defend the Comelec's shortcut process while another is taking advantage of the laws ambiguity. All in all, the representative of Smartmatic as I see it is amused at how Filipinos bicker over things either they dont fully understand or just plain and simple has no clear planning from the start. In the end, the Comelec will be so reliant of Smartmatic that it becomes a dog waiting for the master's instructions.

It's always the same problem again and again. Why can't the policy makers in government coordinate with all government agencies to make sure that whatever laws be made or guidelines to be realistic and can be followed accordingly?. Come election time, one way or the other the results will be contested and I will not be surprised AGAIN if they use the shortcuts made by Comelec to get the Automated Election null and void. Here goes again the tax payers money in flames!.

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Political Goodness and the 2010 Election

Political Goodness and the 2010 Election

   8/29/2009 12:40:00 AM       freemindonline

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I wont be surprised if the winner of the Philippine's 2010 presidential election be another fruitless effort other than "I told you so!". Filipinos not admitting it but are just easy prey to political sales pitch. We want change but does a different thing when selecting a leader. Overall we are a sucker for dole outs by exploiting the poor. We have tendencies expecting that all around us will understand and give a lending hand, worse exempt us at our benefit. We even expect that a good political leader is exceptionally good with no grey areas of being, all good like saints.

With all those presidentiables, had anyone of them asked what the working Filipinos really want?, I mean the working class and not the so called poor who either has no earnings or just rides along where the tide brings them. If all those presidentiables are pro-poor, who will protect the interest of the rich. Let's admit it, all poor and no rich people will get us to just planting camote -- no development here. But all rich and no poor will be useless because nobody will move -- the same here no development. Coming from the working class, it's insulting to hear that all presidentiables are pro-poor when we all know that there candidacy are supported by the rich and marketing is money intensive. Those presidentiables are talking about the poor and how to alleviate who has less in life. But what we have in the Philippines are the few rich who controls the economy. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT HOW TO DISTRIBUTE ECONOMIC CONTROL OF THE FEW TO MORE OF US WORKING CLASSES. How to give more people the opportunity not just to stand above the rest but get a piece of the economy.

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Basketball and the Filipinos

Basketball and the Filipinos

   8/16/2009 01:57:00 PM       freemindonline

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The Jones Cup was televised on ESPN but the FIBA Asia basketball tournament was shown by CS9, a local channel. Again as before we cant make it in basketball internationally. This is one sporting decipline wherein professional players like ours is not competitive plain and simple. I run across a cable channel hosted by Freddie Webb and this Nathaniel guy. Well Mr Webb noted in his time that some basketball players were originally volleyball players. If they were tall and can spike, these tall vollyball guys were recruited for basketball, I think its still being done today.

The thing is we Filipinos are still trying to reach something that we cant through basketball when we can be better in volleyball, swimming, soccer, golf, baseball, tennis, etc, where height is not a major factor when expereince are leveled. In the 2016 Olympics if I'm not mistaken, Rugby (http://www.rugbyinasia.com/)and Golf will be included. Now what will the Philippine sports commission do about this? -- a golden opportunity especially for golf. The Filipinos love for basketball is a birds eye view about the Filipino outward character. How Filipinos are to change and adoptation is embodied in basketball, the reaction to defeat, self-esteem, motivation, or will to continue. But this is basketball, I am not a fan of this sport but as I see it, if the Philippine team can just win a 3rd place in FIBA or any world respected tournament in this discipline, it will go a long way for the Filipino's self-esteem internationally because lets admit it, government wise is no place to be proud of as of now.

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Cabinet Officials Infomercials

Cabinet Officials Infomercials

   8/16/2009 11:49:00 AM       freemindonline

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As chair of the Senate economic affairs committee, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago is in a position that must be respected by cabinet officials (http://www.senate.gov.ph/press_release/2009/0810_santiago1.asp). It goes for all senate committe!. Whenever a senate hearing or investigation on live TV is shown, I always try to watch but not finishing though. What I dont understand is when a cabinet official is in the hot seat, he or she becomes protected by some kind of priviledge or on some other appointment when summoned to a hearing or investigation by the senate...

Why are these cabinet officials so keen to serve the public but hides themselves when questioned?.

Why are these cabinet officials trying to portray that what they are doing is for public interest when we all know that every goodness in government is politically motivated intentionally or not?.

Why are these cabinet officials demanding respect from the populace when we all know its there job to produce results and we the people are here to demand?

Why are these cabinet officials thinking that popularity and accomplishment is above the law?

Why are these cabinet officials doing what they do and not think if what they are doing is within the context of the law?

Perceived goodness does not always constitute a lawful act. The bottom line here is that infomercials done by cabinet officials always serve a popularity rating may it be for good deeds or self interest. This is so true if the person in the infomercials will be running for a post in government.

Serving the public is both resposibility and accountability. You dont serve to escape accountability!. And accountability is a BIG responsibility!. If they can do this now what will stop them from doing the same thing when elected to a juicy post.

But then again, in government, goodness has a painful aftermath...

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Discount on prescribed drugs

Discount on prescribed drugs

   8/07/2009 07:46:00 AM       freemindonline

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An opinion by John Aspinall at http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/letterstotheeditor/view/20090807-219076/Discount-on-prescribed-drugs.

Now lets see..... Discounting some or discount of all medicinal drugs, very beneficial but why not make it obligatory in nature. We all know that discounts are based on supply and demand but in the Philippine's case it's supply and how high the market can bear. Discounts are come-ons, very good in attracting new patronage, getting a good share of the market at a short span of time. But in the long run we all have to bear the brute force of economics.

We have to look at the bigger picture as one government official said. I say we must look at the biggest picture and not just a bigger picture of how will this government retain the support of big multinational pharmaceutical companies. The biggest picture is the well being of the Filipinos. Lets just push for the ANTI-TRUST Law, in this way the government has a rule of law to implement and not just leave our grievances to humanitarians. We will be striking at the heart of the issue.

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Crossroads

Crossroads

   8/02/2009 02:43:00 AM       freemindonline

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I was watching this talk show hosted by Tony Velasquez last Friday. The guests were Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes, a lame lawyer who represents a whatever organization, and a representative from a Jeepney organization. I will only name Secretary Reyes because he's the star, the man of the hour. Thanks to the other two guests, Mr Reyes became more credible in protecting or rather defending current local fuel prices and how the big three oil companies operates. Let's start with the lame lawyer, this guy is so much referencing the law in pinning down Mr Reyes to a point of being to technical unlike Mr Reyes countering in laymans term and with authority, it's technical against practical reasoning. This lawyer is just being eaten alive by Mr Reyes so to speak, maybe Mr lawyer you are good in court but not in the limelight of a camera where you are judged as you speak. And how about this person representing the jeepney organization and most obvious he's the masses voice. This representative is barking on the wrong tree, he's way behind on the issues, looking at the current issues in a single dimension point of view. Pushing about the plight of his fellow jeepney drivers. The issue is not the predicament of the people but the prices of fuel, gasoline, diesel. Is the big three oil companies within the contex of the law or the law is not in tuned to the people it should protect?

If the government is the forefront of breaking the law. Is the masses, the poor, also doing the same trying to break or circumvent the law by using their current predicament to achieve their own objectives may it be self serving or not?. Luckily we have lawyers to protect the quilty and the not.

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