While admitting he has been living miserably for months now, National Broadband Network (NBN) scam star witness Engr. Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada says he has come to terms with his and his family’s situation now. BY ACE ALEGRE Contributed to Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 11, April 20-26, 2008 BAGUIO CITY (246 kms north of Manila) –…
Category: Other Stories
Free, Open Source Software Promoted
Computer Professionals’ Union’s (CPU) Ricardo Bahague Jr. encouraged students and other sectors to support Free and Open Source Softwares (FOSS) during a forum the Information Technology Society conducted Tuesday at the University of the Cordilleras (UC). BY MIRIAM GUILLERMO, MARIA SHIELA MAE BARRUGA, BEVERLY KAY NANILEN B. PAMBID Northern Dispatch Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VII,…
Queues for NFA Rice Keep Getting Longer
As the price of commercial rice grains increase three times a week, people endure lining up for NFA rice under the scorching sun just to buy their daily supply of the Filipinos’ staple food. BY DABET CASTAÑEDA Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 10, April 13-19,2008 Tricia, a 23-yrear-old mother of three, lined-up to buy rice at…
Militant Groups Call for Price Control, Policy Reforms to Solve Price Spikes
The militant group Bayan rejected calls from government to give emergency powers to President Arroyo but recognizes the need for the government to control the prices of commodities. This call was echoed by the women’s group GABRIELA who called the current situation of run-away increases in the prices of food and other basic commodities as…
Obsession over Fiscal Balance Behind Gov’t Proposal to Increase NFA Prices
“This is another situation of the administration being more concerned about impressing creditors than addressing the deteriorating welfare of the country’s poorest,” said Sonny Africa, head of research of IBON Foundation. BY IBON FOUNDATION Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 10, April 13-19, 2008 The government’s obsession with balancing the budget to satisfy its creditors…
GMA Neglects Veterans, Says Death March Survivor
A 91 year-old veteran recalls the horrors of war and laments the insensitivity of the current administration to the plight of veterans. BY ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW Northern Dispatch Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 10, April 13-19, 2008 BAGUIO CITY (246 kms from Manila) – While veterans of World War II (WWII) in this highland…
JPEPA Faces Tough Constitutional Issues as Senate Vote Nears
Ratifying the JPEPA at its present unconstitutional form creates the risk that the Philippines will be subjected to legal disputes in international courts and face liability for damages. Under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, for instance, the Philippines could not invoke unconstitutionality as legal defense for non-performance of its JPEPA obligations. BY…
Manila Government Faces Bigger, Bolder Insurgency Problem
The failure of the Manila government to address the roots of armed conflict in the Philippines through peace negotiations has emboldened two armed political groups to raise the ante of their armed struggle against the seven-year-old presidency of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. BY GERRY ALBERT CORPUZ Politics in Command / UPI Asia Online Posted by…
Reverse Philippines’s Dependence on Food Imports
The Philippines has become too dependent on food importation to make up for its shortfalls in domestic production and should reverse this trend. BY IBON FOUNDATION Posted by Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 9, April 6-12, 2008 The Philippines has become too dependent on food importation to make up for its shortfalls in domestic production and…
Pamalakaya: $ 15-B Casino Complex in Manila Bay will Trigger Displacement of Fishers
‘Bay fishers need livelihood, not casino’ The proposed establishment of a Las Vegas style casino and tourism complex in Manila Bay will trigger the displacement of small fishermen along the bay’s coastal areas from Pasay City to Cavite. This is because more eco-tourism projects and commercial establishments will be constructed to provide amenities to potential…
Landowners develop ranches to evade agrarian reform
(First of two parts) So hogs are about to supplant farmers in Bukidnon? In Masbate, farm workers are losing their land to cattle. BY DABET CASTAÑEDA SPECIAL REPORT Bulatlat Vol. VIII, No. 9, April 6-12, 2008 TICAO ISLAND, Masbate— A shanty made of coconut fronds in Hacienda Espinosa here is home to 64-year-old widower Melchor…