By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective There is a saying that lightning does not strike twice in the same place. But in this case, it did. On September 20 Saturday, during the Naked Truth and Denim and Underwear show of apparel company Bench, a popular actor...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective There is something ominous when the president asks Congress for emergency powers on the week that the country is about to commemorate the infamy of the Marcos dictatorship. Nothing good has come out, for the Filipino people,...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective The Philippines recently moved up seven notches from 59th to 52nd out of 144 countries in the ranking of the World Economic Forum (WEF) for “global competitiveness.” Malacañang hailed it as a major achievement and a gauge of...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Despite the Aquino government’s claims to the contrary, there are a lot of things that are terribly wrong now. And the government doesn’t seem to have a comprehensive, integrated plan to address these. What we hear are...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Two major events would be happening next week. On August 25 in the morning there would be a mass petition signing for the People’s Initiative against the pork barrel. This is a noble and bold effort to put a stop to the...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective It is ironic that retired Army Gen. Jovito Palparan, who is called “The Butcher” by human rights groups for the trail of blood he left wherever he was assigned, is now saying that he did not surrender because he fears for his...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Last week, this writer wrote about the implications of the law signed by President Aquino liberalizing the banking sector. The article dealt with how multinational banks would be able to control local business activity and...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective A week before his 5th State of the Nation Address, Pres. Benigno Aquino III signed into law Republic Act (RA) 10641 or “An Act Allowing the Full Entry of Foreign Banks in the Philippines.” This superseded RA 7721, “An Act...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Bulatlat.com When the Supreme Court ruled that essential provisions of and acts implementing the Disbursement Acceleration Program are unconstitutional, the Aquino government could have just accepted the decision and...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Bulatlat.com Squeezed between President Aquino’s belligerent speech against the Supreme Court’s decision declaring his and Budget Sec. Florencio “Butch” Abad’s pet program the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) and the...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Bulatlat.com The upcoming fifth and penultimate State of the Nation Address of Pres. Benigno Aquino III is shaping up to be the most turbulent in his administration. Just recently, the Supreme Court dealt a blow to the...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Bulatlat.com The Supreme Court decision regarding the unconstitutionality of “specific acts” in the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) is a big blow to the Aquino administration. While the 92-page Supreme Court decision...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective The results of April 24-30 survey by Ibon Foundation confirms what most people are feeling during these times. This is a relief from other surveys where one’s immediate reaction after reading its results is “Really?”. The...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac, Hacienda Looc in Batangas, Hacienda Dolores in Pampanga, Hacienda Arloc and Hacienda Ilimnan in Negros Occidental, what do these have in common? These are vast tracts of land, which were...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat Perspective Progressive groups were quite busy this June 12, the 116th anniversary of Philippine Independence, as well as in recent months. In the morning of June 12, there was a march toward the US embassy to protest the sell-out, nay...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective People despise Janet Lim-Napoles, this writer included, for what she has done: for facilitating the theft of billions of pesos in taxpayers’ money in the Priority Development Assistance fund scam. While the Filipino people...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective A week ago, during the World Economic Forum, Pres. Benigno Aquino III delivered a speech boasting about the 7.2 percent GDP growth the country achieved last year. “We have always said that good governance is good economics,...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective The dispensation of ‘justice’, or rather injustices, is so blatant in the Philippines that one could not help but ask: For how long would we allow these to happen? Let us take the case of three persons. On one side are former...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective So many lists of those allegedly involved in the pork barrel scam have come out. The latest is the “official” list from Janet Lim-Napoles herself, which was turned over by Justice Sec. Leila de Lima to the Senate Blue Ribbon...
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective News agencies reported that a pending bill banning political dynasties has finally passed the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms and is due for plenary debates at the House of Representatives. According to the...
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