UP Inquirer Classrooms Officially Open

The University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication officially opened the two renovated classrooms donated by the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

.

The two new classrooms, now called "the Inquirer Newsroom" and the Inquirer.net Classroom" are the brand new additions to the College's continuous plan for modernization.

According to Department of Journalism chairperson, Rachel Khan, the two rooms are vital for the student's continued studies in the print media.

Among those who attended the ribbon cutting ceremony were PDI President "Sandy" Prieto-Romualdez and and her brother, Paolo Prieto.

Digging up the Trash (Opinion)

Ah, one of the most used tactics for degrading a political candidate. These people would more often than not, do the same tactics every time a presidential candidate is getting more spotlight than its competitors. Well, that’s Philippine politics for you---- So predictable. So Dirty, and yet a bit entertaining.

Back to the subject, we’ve been hearing about some presidentiables getting the bag from their pasts. Some of these came from positions during the First Quarter Storm, some from past positions in the congress, some even from their personal lives.

I would like to take an example from the recent clamors against a leading presidentiable. Recent bloggers are starting to attack Sen. Escudero’s statement on secondary education last 2006. He said that advanced math subjects like trigonometry and algebra should be removed from the curriculum. This had been an uproar since then, and I’ve been hearing it again lately as a propaganda against him.

Just like in 2006, what Escudero said was again placed out of context. What he meant was he wanted the students to experience more on other subjects like sports and the arts. Advanced Math subjects should be taught, not as a core subject, but as an elective for those who want to experience a higher understanding of mathematics. What he wanted was a strong foundation in the basic skills on Mathematics that we would be needing in real life, not to mention a higher aptitude in sports and the arts. Sen. Escudero looks at his proposal more on the practical side, which in fact more important than complex numbers and formulas.

If we look at past records of the country, the Philippines rank as one of the lowest in the field of sports (Well, boxing is an exception). Remember the 2006 Olympics, we only sent seven (I think) athletes to compete from the hundreds of sports events. Doesn’t that say anything to our current status in the field of sports?

While I do support Escudero’s proposal to revamp the High School Curriculu m----especially since I’m one of those who has a BIT of problem in Math--- I have mixed feelings on the subject. Recently, I realized that there is something important that we are unconsciously learning and I don’t agree that it should be removed as a core subject in High School. Algebra and Trigonometry (though I hated it and I can’t seem to remember how I passed trigo since I can’t even remember a single bit of it) stimulates the mind in having a deeper analysis compared to other subjects. It tests our mind to think of a solution, not based only on the formula given, but on how we manipulate it to suit our need. Perhaps we might not like the subject as much as the next person, but it is a way to stimulate our minds to think rationally. So instead of thinking it as a worthless subject, think of it as a way to challenge the mind.

But I do agree that there should be a revision in other subjects to increase the student’s awareness on the other fields. Instead of focusing the curriculum based on science courses like Medicine or Engineering, there should be an equal focus in the field of Arts like social sciences. Because out of Millions of students entering colleges, more than half of them would be choosing B.A. courses than B.S. ones.

ANC Leadership Forum Part2

In response to the growing clamors on responsible voting, another leadership forum sponsored by ANC was conducted in UP Diliman last Friday.

Among those who were invited were Sen. Loren Legarda, former Pres. Erap Estrada, MMDA Chief Bayani Fernando, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, and Sen. Panfilo Lacson. Lacson failed to attend the forum and announced that he will not be running for the presidency next year.

Students and audience alike were driven with laughter and interests as the four who attended talked about various issues and controversies surrounding them and the country.

Estrada told the audience about his change of mind in running for the presidency next election, saying that he will be willing to run if there is no unified opposition.

When asked about his change of mind when he told the media last 2007 that he was not going to run in any political position, he said that his words were not set in stone.

“Wala naman akong sinabing di ako tatakbo kagaya ng Presidente,” Estrada said.

Meanwhile, MMDA Bayani Fernando was also greeted with corruption allegations regarding contracts on road developments. Fernando denied these allegations and said that there is no proof with these allegations.

Opposition candidates Sen. Legarda and Mayor Binay were asked if they are willing to step down once a single candidate by the opposition was elected. Both agreed to step down, but not without a fight.

“Wala namang perpektong candidate[for presidency], pero if that person has the same views and work ethics….. why not?”Legarda said.

Other questions were also raised by the audience regarding the candidates’ plans on economic developments and reforms in the constitution.

Sen. Legarda and Mayor Binay advocated micro enterprising and education as a way to solve the unemployment, while Estrada agreed to a family planning solution to reduce the unemployment due to overpopulation.

When asked if they were willing to support an investigation with the Arroyo family, all the opposition candidates were in agreement, while the only Administration candidate in the forum was left to defend the ranks.

“I don’t want to get in trouble,” Fernando commented.

*Photos taken from the ABS-CBN Website

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Opinion:

After watching the forum on TV yesterday, I had mixed emotions on the four presidentiables. I prefer Legarda more than the other three because her advocacies and her plan of action was sound compared to the other three, though I kind of felt like all that she said was rehearsed.

Binay was alright as a candidate, though he eminates a "Yabang" factor when he speaks about his accomplishments in Makati. I don't blame him for that considering the progress of Makati.

Estrada.... I did not understand much about his stand on the issues. He kept on getting sidetracked on every issue he had answered. He was also slow in answering the questions and took up most of the forum's time. His platforms were somewhat more of a "Trapo" and did not provide any concreate solutions to the pertinent issues raised.

Bayani Fernando's start was good, though when the forum went on, he kept slipping with his advocacies to the point that what he was saying was complete nonsense. Like Estrada, he had no concreate solutions to the issues raised.

For me, Legarda won the forum in UP Diliman. Next to Chiz Escudero and Dick Gordon, she's my third choice as a presidential candidate.

Survey Wars (opinion)

On Tuesday, Pulse Asia released a survey ranking the top 10 presidentiables for the upcoming elections. Rounding the top spot was Vice President Noli De Castro, followed by Sen. Escudero, former President Estrada, Sen. Villar, and Sen. Roxas respectively. There have been many praises and thanks emanating from these presidentiables, saying that people are staring to trust them more; though there was one who, instead of being thankful of the spot, back lashed against the survey by labeling it as “inaccurate” and not the voices of the people.

Manny Villar, who recently dropped the polls due to the clamors made by Sen. Jamby Madrigal’s accusation on the C-5 road extension project, bashed at the recent Pulse Asia survey and said that he was leading in another survey and Pulse Asa’s were more likely to be inaccurate.

Just yesterday, Villar proved his statement with a release of the Social Weather Station (SWS) which puts him on top of the rest. Journalists from The Inquirer revealed that Manny Villar Commissioned the recent survey and that the SWS were not allowed to divulge how they got the statistics. While reading this particular column, only one thing came into mind---- something’s wrong with the survey.

Villar’s drop on the polls was inevitable because of the C-5 Road Extension controversy. He acted like a child and refused to undergo the Senate investigation, either to buy time or to discredit the Senate like the predictable tactics of the Administration.

What is wrong in the SWS survey was that Villar was the one who commissioned the study. With him on the top spot, people would surely doubt the results even if the SWS divulged their methods. Though I’m not criticizing on how SWS got its results, what was bothering me is if Villar has a hand on it to boost his tarnished image.

In fact, there has been plenty of damage control resulting in Villar’s controversy. Among them are new advertisements on the newspapers, his reactions to the senate hearings, the SWS survey, and a new “advocacy commercial.”

With all these damage controls on his popularity, he is playing the same tactics as the Administration that he opposes. He discredits the senate, advocates himself, and even risks his own ideology just to save himself. He plays the game of politics in terms of the last man standing instead of righting the wrong.

Bottom line, for me, is that I don’t believe in the release of the SWS as much as the Pulse Asia Survey. Villar should’ve been a sport and looked at the Pulse Asia survey optimistically than to commission another one which puts him on the top.

I appreciated the top ranking presidentiables like Noli De Castro and Chiz Escudero where they did not heed to needless praises more associated with the top ranks. It was also surprising to see how people placed their trusts in these two even though they have not yet decided to run in the elections. Mar Roxas was also a sport by saying that he was glad that the people restarting to look at him differently.

If Villar was like that, then he could’ve saved his face on this survey.

Solution to Corruption?

Transparency.

A controversial word. Most hated by those who has something to hide. A word easily eluded in the public’s mouths. A word often talked about, yet lied to. A word that can bring judgment to those who hide in the dark----- ‘tis a bane of corruption.

With all the recent controversies like Sen. Manny Villar’s allegedly ill gotten wealth and his C-5 road extension project, one solution can come into mind to end all these----- and that is through transparency.

Let’ just be frank. When we’re hiding something, it is often a thing we do not want others to know. That may be because it can hurt them or it can hurt us and our reputation. We often hide these secrets in hopes that no one can find them and expose our weaknesses.

This is indeed true for politics. There are always secrets going on underneath these politician’s tables, most often hidden from the eyes of men. Because of this, the public’s image on these officials is often corrupt.

I understand that there are some things that should be left secret, especially in politics. Military operations, logistics, and other secrets that protect the country should be considered as something we should not talk about. Yet more often than not, there are many secrets that is supposedly private that should be told in public.

Remember the NBN-ZTE Deal with China. I don’t believe that the negotiations should be kept secret because it was a deal concerning the negotiations of both countries. Many issues have been raised in the deal because the public was not informed about such negotiations or the bid for the broadband project. Whether or not the allegations were true are still pending on the senate investigation. But corruption aside, would we be content if, for example, our country was sold to China without us knowing about it?

Let’s look at a more recent issue surrounding Manny Villar. If he was more transparent with his businesses and his earnings, wouldn’t he be not in the hot seat of the senate investigation of Jamby Madrigal today? If he was transparent enough to tell the senate beforehand about the road going into his property when it was still in conception, then wouldn’t there be anymore issue today?

These corruption allegations all stem out of not being transparent with their transactions. It is of human nature that we speculate something if that person is hiding secrets. We gossip about the speculation and it sometimes go out of proportion. More so on high ranking officials like Sen. Villar and Pres. Arroyo. If transparency ran in the veins of these people, then corruption would likely cease to exist.

I remember during the Leadership debate in Ateneo last month when someone discussed about transparency in the bureaucracy. What I liked about Sen. Escudero is his advocacy to be transparent when it comes to government transactions. He was the one who pushed the bill to include in the procurement law the executive agreements and treaties to ensure a corrupt free negotiations in the executive branch. He was also the one who said that if he ever ran for the upcoming elections, he would be transparent enough to let the public know about his transactions and expenditures in his campaign.

If all politicians try to advocate transparency like Escudero did, would you think that it is possible to remove corruption in our country?