Mas wais si Gloria kay Lumen

This little girl is very smart.

-- Sen. Joker Arroyo on Gloria Arroyo

Because the senate is firm on its stand to cut by P64 billion the Palace's proposed budget of P1.056 trillion, Gloria Arroyo, the Philippine president with questionable legitimacy, also stood her ground and retorted that she might veto the Senate's approved budget.

In an interview over DZMM, Arroyo said: Kung yung budget ay talagang masyadong masisira, bagama’t ako ay naniniwala na magiging responsible ang mga mambabatas…wala akong magagawa. Baka kailangan nga na i-veto dahil masusing pinag-aralan ang panukalang budget at walang bisa ang budget na tatanggalin ang mga makahulugang programa para sa tao.

It should be noted that among the major budget items removed by the Senate include the Kilos Asenso Fund and the Kalayaan Barangay Fund, the PCGG budget, and the National Printing Office budget. The first two funds were removed because these are among the major source of perks for the president with questionable legitimacy. Arroyo, though, claims that the Kilos Asenso Fund is to be used as her office's counterpart fund for agribusiness and micro-finance projects of local government units while the Kalayaan Barangay Fund is aimed to finance government services in far-flung areas to dissuade barangay residents from joining rebel groups like the CPP-NPA.

Meanwhile, the PCGG and the NPO budgets were also removed for the failure of the said agencies to clear major issues involving its operations. PCGG, for instance, has been accused of corruption particularly on the alleged looting of the Philcomsat and the planned compromise settlement with the Marcoses with regards the latter's ill-gotten wealth. (See also: PCGG got zero budget). The NPO budget was also removed for the office's failure to explain why it printed materials for the Cha-cha despite the lack of legislative order to do so and despite the fact that the alleged beneficiary is a non-government entity.

But because of the cut, Arroyo cried, “Ouch!” and warned that she will veto the 2006 legislated budget and will just try to use the 2005 re-enacted budget. The problem, according to Joker, last year's budget is also full of perks the discretion of which is under the president with questionable legitimacy's. And it is her leverage. Hence, whether or not the Senate gives in to her wishes, she is still at the win-win situation.

Mukhang mas wais si Gloria kay Lumen. Ba't di na lang kaya si Gloria ang pumalit kay Lumen o kaya kay Aling Obang?

No impeachment, yes to ouster: Cheers?

Impeachment Round II is dead. So says Atty. Gabriel Claudio, presidential adviser for political affairs. Long live, Gloria?

Perhaps. BUT....

Just this weekend, I happened to talk with several local chief executives. Their common notion: Cha-cha will proceed and there will be no elections come 2007. And they are happy because they will not be spending millions again for re-election.

"No elections" had been the bait of Gloria to get continous support from local elected officials of the municipalities and cities. The problem is: Cha-cha is dead... not unless the palace will make another zombie to keep it alive. With Cha-cha dead, any proposal for "no-el" is nothing but a joke. It is not feasible, clear and simple. If Cha-cha is dead and "no-el" is not feasible, then Gloria is in trouble. She may not be impeached but the possibility of her ouster is not remote.

To add spice to the dish, more and more local chief executives admitted to have complied with the mandate of the Supreme Court on the establishment of freedom parks. With more freedom parks, the possibility of a concerted people power demonstration is again coming to fore. Which might cause Gloria more and more bottles of brandy to cure sleepness nights.

Can somebody propose a toast for this?

Classroom sufficency stats: ACT reacts, calls Arroyo delusional

News release from the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT)


Teachers outraged by GMA’s doctoring of classroom shortage figures
May 31, 2006


The Alliance of Concerned Teachers criticized President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for making deceptive claims regarding the shortage of classrooms in the public school system.

At a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Mrs. Arroyo publicly scolded Department of Education Officer-in-Charge Fe Hidalgo for reporting a shortage of 6,832 classrooms based on a classroom-to-pupil ratio of 1:45. Claiming that Hidalgo used the wrong formula for computing the shortage, she urged the Deped OIC to revise her figures. Subsequently, Hidalgo declared that “there is no shortage” if the President’s formula of 1 classroom for every 100 students were used.

“Once more, Mrs. Arroyo reveals her penchant for doctoring numbers,” said ACT chairperson Antonio Tinio. “Evidently, not even the educational system is spared from this administration’s routine ‘massaging’
of key statistics like poverty incidence, unemployment rate, economic growth, and the like, for window-dressing purposes. However, no amount of statistical hocus-pocus will make the very real shortage of classrooms disappear—as we shall all see when schools reopen on June 5.”

“The Department of Education’s own data shows that the shortage of classrooms nationwide stands at 55,145. The problem is so acute, particularly in the urban centers like Metro Manila, that classes are held in two and even three shifts per day with students packed 70 to 80 in a room,” explained Tinio. “Anyone who insists that there is no shortage of classrooms is simply delusional.”

Tinio warned that Mrs. Arroyo’s pronouncement would have dire consequences for the Deped’s schoolbuilding fund. “Up to P20 billion is needed to wipe out the classroom shortage. We can kiss goodbye any hope that such funding will be forthcoming if Mrs. Arroyo’s delusional mindset prevails.”

“How can this government deliver on its obligation to provide quality education to its citizens if the chief executive won’t even admit that there’s a huge classroom shortage and that she’s not doing nearly
enough to address it?”

“Mrs. Arroyo needs a reality check. We challenge her to take a tour of public schools in Metro Manila on June 5,” concluded Tinio. #

ALLIANCE OF CONCERNED TEACHERS
2/F Teachers’ Center, Mines St. cor. Dipolog St., Bgy.
VASRA, Q.C.
Telefax 453-9116 Mobile 0920-9220817 Email
act_philippines@yahoo.com
SEC Registration 0108727 TIN 236-090-727-000