Perlas slams environmental award for PGMA

Independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas on Wednesday urged the International Conservation Caucus Foundation (ICCF) to re-think its decision to grant a prestigious environmental award to President Gloria Arroyo.

In an open letter to the ICCF, Perlas said he was appalled by the decision to award Mrs. Arroyo with the prestigious Teddy Roosevelt International Conservation Award despite her checkered history in environmental conservation.

Perlas, a known environmentalist and president of the Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan, said Mrs. Arroyo had previously stated that the pursuit of sustainable development and ecological balance “was anti-poor and should not be given emphasis.”

“The policies and programs of Arroyo’s presidency patently reveal that her administration has not given priority to the environment. She is reluctant to go against big corporations that cause environmental destruction because these companies’ commercial activities contribute to our GDP,” he said in the open letter.

The presidential candidate said that under the Arroyo presidency, fish pens thrived in Laguna de Bay, smoke-belchers continue to ply major thoroughfares and major environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act of 1999, the Clean Water Act of 2004 and Solid Waste Management of 2000 have not been implemented.

He also noted that the World Health Organization (WHO) has identified Metro Manila as the fourth most polluted city worldwide with a lead level that is more than three times the established safety limit.

Perlas said the ICCF could imperil its reputation if it confers the Conservation Award on Mrs. Arroyo.

“The award is given to those who have implemented conservation projects that safeguard biodiversity, protect habitats, and provide social benefits for communities. These accomplishments have clearly been neglected, even defied and defiled by Arroyo’s administration,” he said.

He added: “Honoring Mrs. Arroyo as an environmental steward is an affront to the Filipinos and the entire Philippine archipelago, which have borne the brunt of Ms. Arroyo’s venal, inequitable and destructive policies.”

Presidential Aspirant Nicanor Perlas Calls for Election Postponement

Independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas and the Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan (PANGMASA) called for a postponement of the national elections by three months during the presidential forum of Listen Mindanao at the Holy Cross University in Davao City this morning.

Perlas who warned the public of the strong possiblity of an ‘electronic Garci’ two months ago, said, “There is no way of determing the real winners of the automated election within 48 hours as the Comelec announced. The way things are being handled by the Comelec, the automated system will be the black hole of the election. Pushing through with the May 10 elections will just further plunge the country into chaos that is potentially violent.”

Nicanor Perlas cited the admission of the Comelec to glitches by an estimated 30% of the machines which will result in a manual count. He also mentioned that the Comelec admitted in a forum that the winners will not be known within 48 hours due to the sheer number of candidates. Moreover, he added, that absentee voting in Hongkong recently was marred by a malfunctioning machine that jammed and rejected ballots and that there is likewise a call for the review of the indelible ink contract and bidding process.

Section 5 of the Omnibus Election Code and Rule 26 of Comelec’s Rules of Procedure allow the postponement of election for serious causes that prevent the holding of a free, orderly, honest, peaceful and credible election.

“This election is suppose to resolve the legitimacy of the government that is under question due to the massive cheating and tampering of election results in 2004. But this is not going to happen the way Comelec’s preparations are going.The system is too complex. There are too many loopholes and too many changes even now with elections just three weeks away , that the electorate is not assured of a free, orderly and honest election.”, added Perlas.

Perlas in various presidential fora had earlier issued the warning of a repeat of the Garci scenario. “The probability is increasing every day for cheating facilitated by electronic devices. What will happen is that there may be an election but there will be failure of election.”, he stated. To avert such a failure, Perlas had proposed a manual count fall back option in a hybrid balloting, stating that even Germany and the Netherlands had scrapped automated elections after discovering that a high school student could hack the voting machines.

Nicanor Perlas is holding nationwide consultation and discussion with his supporters for possible actions in a failure of elections scenario.

Media Contact:

Cecille Ferrer(Media)-02-6345058/09178997603/09155336185
Tammy Dinopol(Campaign)-09209064793
Dave D’Angelo (PANGMASA)-09165450452

gilbert teodoro set to do last minute push for a win, here is why it will fail

gilbert teodoro, the standard bearer of the admin/(supposed) dominant political party LAKAS-KAMPI-CMD know that he is losing this election campaign. he has not moved up in any significant way in the polls, being stuck at a very far fourth in the rankings and getting at best 7% while the front runners are at a staggering 36% for aquino and 34% for villar. it is bad enough that the two front runners are way ahead of everybody, on top of teodoro is estrada who is in the range of 15% , showing strength at that level and even gaining slightly.

the question that teodoro’s campaign needs to answer is this – for him to win, where will he get the votes from? the weakest of the three front runners, erap estrada is not exactly weak. among the presidentiables, estrada is the candidate that has the most experience and time as an elected government official not to mention he was actually elected president once before. teodoro compared to erap looks puny.  if teodoro can’t get pat estrada, how does he expect to get past villar and aquino, the two most popular presidentiables in this campaign?

it is interesting that an article appeared at the PDI yesterday where the teodoro campaign seem to be preparing for what the writer calls a “battle of the bulge” – a last minute, well last few weeks campaign to get teodoro elected. in marketing, it is called a marketing blitz. in a political campaign it’s most likely called a “failed election bid”.

we will be using that article as a pick up point for this post.

The ruling coalition, which enjoys a headlock on 70 percent of local government positions, is pinning its hopes on superior resources and widespread party machinery to swing the tide of battle.

Banking on these advantages, it plans to assert its superiority with carefully synchronized offensives timed at the start of the campaign for local positions on March 26.

this is what party officials call the “political machinery”. it’s supposed to be potent that only the admin/ruling party has a monopoly on. all the party officials, including teodoro are saying that is what will make him win this election. they conveniently forget that in the last senatorial elections, they said the same thing about the potency of THE machinery. the results – almost all the admin/ruling party senatorial best lost in that election while almost all the opposition senatorial bets won the election.

the results of that election was so bad for the admin/ruling party that pichay who spent the most in advertising during that time did not get elected while trillanes who was in jail, unable to campaign and practically had zero advertising money won the election.

the opposition won that election mainly on the basis of the people exercising a protest vote where they elected the opponents of arroyo’s candidates. arroyo at that time was very unpopular and the people have had enough of her so much so that they even said they do not want her candidates to win.

after the election, LAKAS party officials admitted the machinery did not deliver. apparently the local candidates and officials of LAKAS abandoned the admin senatorial candidates when they felt the people were going against them.

the situation then compared to now is about the same – arroyo is unpopular and in fact probably even more unpopular than before. everyone knows teodoro is arroyo’s candidate and based on surveys, voters said they will not elect the candidate that arroyo is endorsing.

we think it’s foolish to rely on the “machinery” to get teodoro elected. the machinery is a myth.

The opening salvo of this make-or-break offensive will be new TV commercials targeting the youth on Monday.

Teodoro’s spokesperson, former Press Secretary Mike Toledo, said the commercials would be aired with frequencies rivaling those of the front-runners, Senators Benigno S. Aquino III of the Liberal Party and Manuel Villar of the Nacionalista Party. Between them, they have spent close to P2 billion, dominating the airwaves, according to the media firm AGB Nielsen.

Teodoro’s ads will zero in on the target segment that the coalition hopes will swing the tide of battle to his side, the youth ranging in age from 18 to 39, who constitute 52 percent of the 50 million voters registered, according to Toledo.

Teodoro has been doing well in mock elections in schools recently. Campaign strategists have selected this key segment to focus on, Toledo says.

political campaigns seem to have a love affair with the youth vote. all of them seem to think that is the key to their success. villar, aquino and villanueva aired tv  ads targeting them. but if you look at the movements of villar’s ratings, it is not the ad that targeted the youth that earned him a lot of points, it’s the other ads that he aired.

aquino with his rap tv ad meant for the youth got mixed  reviews with people liking it and others throwing up hearing aquino do a rap in the tv ad. they abruptly pulled off that ad. villanueva aired one too but that did not help him either.

teodoro did not seem to learn the lessons the other presidentiables learned – they will air an ad targeting the “youth” on monday.  we now think this obsession with youth ad is probably the fault of the admen hired by the campaigns for their ad needs. all of them seem to be saying the same mantra.

maybe teodoro will find the secret weapon in ads for the youth and can get him to win the election. it is good in theory, forgetting for the moment the failures of the other presidentiables, but we think teodoro’s thinking is fatally  flawed.

the critical failure in the ad that will be aired on monday for the youth is the demographics definition – “age from 18 to 39“. the age range is too wide and probably covers at least two distinct groups or even three. the psyche, needs and  attitudes of the 18 year old, a first time voter is very different from a 25 year old who probably has a young family already to someone who is 30 years old who has a not so young family. for sure a 37 to 39 year old is extremely different from an 18 year old, to a 23 year old and a 30 year old.

it is hard for us to understand and we think it is not possible to have an ad meant for the “youth” that will be effective in convincing this wide and un-alike age grouping of 18 to 35 years old.

the admen who sold the idea to the teodoro campaign spoke badly in thinking that an age range as wide as that is a proper segmentation of the target audience. we do not think you will find any adman who will agree to that kind of segmentation.

target audience definition is the very first critical step in developing an effective tv ad. get the definition wrong, or even weak and the ad fails. it will confuse the creative team as it gives them too wide a range with very dissimilar traits and characteristics.

we await this new ad of teodoro. it is supposed to be a miracle tv ad for him. given the potential flaw of the thinking, it will either be a miracle ad or a miracle dud.  we will probably see a WAWAM! on monday.

read PDI article here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100322-260115/Lakas-Kampi-coalition-plans-decisive-Battle-of-the-Bulge

~~~mindscape landmark~~~
carlo arvisu

Leaders of three indigenous groups, the Aetas, Maharlikas and Alimaongs pledge support for Perlas

With Nicanor Perlas‘ clear platform on Indigenous People and the respect of ancestral domain he is drawing support from both Muslims and various indigenous groups. Here is an article from the Inquirer.

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/news/view/20100319-259567/Aetas-2-other-groups-back-prexy-bet-Perlas

LEADERS of three indigenous groups — the Aetas, Maharlikas and Alimaongs — have pledged their support for environmentalist presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas.

“We will live and let die for Nicky Perlas,” Marlon Sayson, Maharlika for Cultural Recovery chief of management services told reporters yesterday.

The leaders, who claim he has millions of supporters in the Visayas and Mindanao, briefly met with Perlas at the arrival area of the Mactan Cebu International Airport.

Sayson, Aeta chieftain Manuel Sanger, Alimaong representative Floro Velarde, and some Cebu-based supporters exchanged with Perlas a “salute, by putting their right hands on their chests.

“This is very touching. This is highly significant. The indigenous people are the original residents of our country. They have the purity and honesty as a people,” said Perlas “I am humbled by their total trust in my candidacy.”

Perlas continued his Cebu campaign with a lecture on “Climate change and the future of the Philippines” at the University of San Jose-Recoletos in downtown Cebu City.

After his Cebu stop-over, he boarded a ferry to Bohol to meet with other leaders of indigenous groups.

Perlas, an environmental activist, is running under the Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan. He has been campaigning without bodyguards in different parts of the country, accompanied only by a small group of supporters.

Sayson, who claims to have a following of 7 million Maharlikas from the Visayas and Mindanao – 200,000 in Cebu alone – said that his group perceives 2010 as the year for indigenous people.

He said they consider Perlas as the “final medium who would help their people.”

Velarde, who represents the Supreme Council of the Datus Alimaong, which is also called the Holy Warriors or native warriors, said there are 3 million Alimaongs in the Visayas and Mindanao.

“In Cebu, we have 25,000 members and 10 tribal councils,” he said.

Sanger, on the other hand, heads only 57 indigenous families based in Naga City, south of Cebu.

Nicanor Perlas on Probe Profiles

Everyone says he does not deserve a look, that he is a nuisance but would a man that has a complete platform, has changed policies as a member of civil society and campaigns on new politics really a nuisance?

You don’t need to be a fan of Nick Perlas or a supporter to view this video.  All I am asking is for you to just take a look and discover why those who have watched this interview by Che Che Lazaro of Probe Profiles on presidentiable Nicanor Perlas changed their minds and hearts.

Here is Nick Perlas on his very uplifting and encouraging interview on Probe Profiles:

The Necessity for Change: Nicanor Perlas Complete Platform

The promise of Lupa ng Araw that was felt so deeply by our forebears has been betrayed. We are now confronted with the devastating results of years of self-serving traditional politics and politicians. Poverty, unemployment, graft and corruption, conflict, injustice, and environmental decline, these are but some of the ills devastating the country today. Virtually every level of governance and every institution of society has been infected by the pursuit of narrow and self-serving political ends. There is no guiding vision that unites the country much less the various departments of government. This produces loss of hope and worse, apathy and cynicism.

We have now reached a turning point. Many Filipinos want something more dignified. The country yearns for a new direction to achieve genuine freedom, justice, solidarity, to restore the Philippines that so inspired Rizal, Bonifacio, Aquino and many others.

Filipinos yearn for “GINHAWA”, that is, true freedom, true justice, true prosperity, true respect for nature, true solidarity, true dignity and honor – all based on our deep innate sense that we all come from one Divine Source, one Creator. Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan (PANGMASA) will change this dismal state of affairs with a new vision, a new agenda and new policies and programs that will bring “ginhawa”, that will make this country rise up from the ashes and take its place in the global community of nations.

We envision the true Philippines that has deep sources of spirituality; the Philippines that respects and empowers individual Filipinos towards excellence; the Philippines that understands meaningful societal change, participation and inclusion; the Philippines that respects and values culture; the Philippines that protects human rights, ensures justice and promotes participatory democracy; the Philippines that progresses economically by serving the true needs of the people; the Philippines that protects and nurtures the integrity of creation, our sources of life – our ecology

Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan (PANGMASA) summarizes these aspirations in its vision statement and principles as follows.

We envision a prosperous, peaceful, democratic, moral and visionary nation, living in harmony with Nature and energized by creative, honest, responsible citizens who are aware of their divine origin and purpose; citizens who have united together to sustain a free, vibrant and diverse culture, a broad-based and inclusive economy, a participatory, just and compassionate governance that contributes positively to world affairs.

Click here to VIEW/DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE PLATFORM OF PANGMASA AND NICK PERLAS.

Partido ng Marangal na Sambayanan (PANGMASA) summarizes these aspirations in its vision statement and principles as follows.

Vision Statement.

We envision a prosperous, peaceful, democratic, moral and visionary nation, living in harmony with Nature and energized by creative, honest, responsible citizens who are aware of their divine origin and purpose; citizens who have united together to sustain a free, vibrant and diverse culture, a broad-based and inclusive economy, a participatory, just and compassionate governance that contributes positively to world affairs.



A Presidentiable for New Politics and Green Principles

A NUMBER OF PRESIDENTIAL ASPIrants with a mind-set on reforms and new politics are now backing Liberal Party standard-bearer Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III—but Nicanor Perlas is not one of them.

His campaign slogan, composed by his supporters, is a play on his surname: “Perlas Tayong Lahat (We are all pearls).”

“Perlas” is the Filipino word for “pearl,” which is formed when a shell gets irritated, the man observed. Thus, his slogan represents “the millions of Filipinos getting irritated” by current problems.

It also speaks of the Philippines’ ongoing “inner process of transformation” to be able to “rise up again amidst the challenges,” he said.

Speaking with Inquirer editors last week, the 59-year-old activist-environmentalist said that as he had declared in June, he would seek the highest elective post in the country and nothing else.

And no, Perlas said, he was not considering running for a lower post, such as senator. He pointed out that the Philippines already had good laws, and that the challenge was to implement them properly.

Malacañang is the problem

“The disease of our system is in the presidential level. The executive branch is the source of all our problems,” he said.

Perlas also said that while he was not as well-known or as moneyed as the other presidential aspirants, he was not quitting the race.

He said the “yellow fever” triggered by the death on Aug. 1 of former President Corazon Aquino and now centered on her only son was ignoring “the discernment process that is needed at this time.”

Perlas said that while he had worked closely with then President Aquino, he met her son only once, and recently: It was Noynoy who, in a ceremony in August, handed to him the Manuel L. Quezon award for Exemplary Governance for his environment work.

READ FULL ARTICLE AT INQUIRER.NET

the irony in PDI’s page 1 – the gentle giant chiz escudero’s presidential bid and a gentle giant of the sea both dead in the water

we think there is great irony, poetic even, in today’s page one of PDI (philippine daily inquirer).

headline, above says “Chiz junks NPC, Danding” talking about yesterday’s “shocking” announcement of him leaving the political party that has put him as senator, that we think effectively has put his presidential bid as dead in the water. 

we had previously written on chiz escudero with our own headlines:  will chiz escudero be orphaned? is his presidential bid dead in the water? (click to read) and more recently –  questions on chiz escudero answered. he is orphaned, leaves his political party NPC. is his presidential run dead in the water? (click to read)

just above the PDI headline is a very imposing picture of what PDI describes as a “gentle giant”, the whale shark found dead at manila bay. this gentle giant of course died in the water and was just washed away to the shores of manila.

we thought the news headline and our view that chiz escudero’s presidential bid as being dead in the water gives us the irony of a huge picture of a dead gentle giant. chiz escudero is the only presidentiable who we think has very gentle ways, most specially in the eloquence of his tagalog. he speaks in monotone and the cadence of his speech is a very gently wave of good tagalog. (contrast him to the fiery mar roxas of “putaang ina” fame!) escudero also has very much giant ideas on good governance and on what is right and what is wrong. these are the exactly the things we admire about him.

the headline in words  of a gentle presidentiable giant below the picture of a dead gentle giant from the sea – both dead in the water, one the sea creature, the other the presidential bid.

 

chiz escudero’s double standard, hypocrisy or self-serving politics?

we have admired escudero for two things  – he seemed to be a very principled man and he has a way with the Filipino language. we at times fall asleep before he finishes his elegant filipino, but we still enjoy hearing him, at least on the parts we manage to hear when we manage to be awake.

this one we read at PDI. so this one we got the whole picture and we understand it well. well okay, we are still confused.

senator francis escudero

here is where we are confused — escudero says he will not partner with manny villar because of the C-5 road corruption charge on villar. that tells us he does not like to associate with the corrupt and the criminal.

in the same news article, he says he does not mind partnering with erap estrada. and that is what confuses us. estrada is a convicted criminal. estrada was judged a plunderer of government money by the courts. he is only free because president gloria macapagal arroyo gave him a presidential pardon for his crimes. the pardon does not change the fact that the philippine courts did convict erap of a crime.

why then is escudero telling us he is principled and will not partner with  the corrupt that he will not join with villar while he says he will partner with erap who is in fact a convicted of a crime, that of corruption?

villar’s case is still being debated in the senate and has had no court judgement to it while it has gone to trial for erap and in fact convicted for the crime – what is it, then? double standard, hypocrisy or self-serving politics?

Escudero: Yes to team-up with Estrada 
By Orlando Dinoy
Inquirer Mindanao
First Posted 15:07:00 09/09/2009

DIGOS CITY, Davao Del Sur — Senator Francis Escudero on Tuesday said he would be open to teaming up with former President Joseph Estrada for the 2010 elections but not to a tandem with Senator Manny Villar in 2010.

Escudero, who was guest of honor during the city’s 9th founding anniversary, however, clarified that he was not making any formal announcement about his intentions for higher office before his 40th birthday.

“When I reach 40, my decision will be made known,” he told reporters here in Filipino.

But if ever he made up his mind, Escudero said there was zero probability of him teaming up with Villar due to the C-5 double funding controversy the former Senate president was embroiled in.

Escudero declared his commitment to good governance and added he would not tarnish such a pledge by associating with Villar whose involvement in the anomaly has become clear.

“Based on the evidence I saw, based on the (pieces of) evidence presented to the Senate in connection with the C-5 controversy, the case against him is strong,” he said.

Escudero said his conscience would not allow him to team up with Villar.
‘
He said he would rather run with former president Joseph Estrada, who supported his candidacy for the Senate in 2007.

Estrada was convicted of plunder in September 2007 and he accepted a grant of pardon from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo a month later that freed him from a 20-year prison term.

But for Escudero, “Anuman ang hugis, anuman ang hitsura, ano man ang porma ang importante magkasama sana kami (Whatever the shape, look, and form of the team-up, what would be important is we are together),” Escudero said.

read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/topstories/topstories/view/20090909-224391/Escudero-Yes-to-team-up-with-Estrada

september – month of reckoning for presidentiables

it looks like the month of september is the key month for the 2010 presidentiable elections:

• noynoy aquino will announce his 2010 election plans.
• it is the month when mar roxas withdrew his candidacy. mar is one of the major contenders.
• other presidentiables will firm up their plans within the month as well.
• the admin party says they will announce their candidate by the end of the month.
• noli de castro will announce his 2010 election plans on september 15.
• the admin party has given de castro 1 week to decide on his plans.
• loren legarda might give in to chiz escudero

  

Lakas-Kampi to De Castro: You have 1 week
By Christian V. Esguerra, Cynthia Balana
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:31:00 09/08/2009

MANILA, Philippines—Make up your mind.

Vice President Noli de Castro has exactly one week to decide whether to join the selection process for the administration party’s standard-bearer in next year’s presidential election.

read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20090908-224144/Lakas-Kampi-to-De-Castro-You-have-1-week

 

Legarda giving way to Escudero, says solon 
 By Christine Avendaño, Gil C. Cabacungan Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:51:00 09/08/2009

MANILA, Philippines—A member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) Monday said Sen. Loren Legarda was on the verge of giving way to Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero as the party’s standard-bearer in 2010.

Agusan del Sur Rep. Rodolfo Plaza told reporters that “Loren will give up her presidential ambition [in favor of] Chiz soon” based on ongoing talks between the camps of the two parties.

read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20090908-224147/Legarda-giving-way-to-Escudero-says-solon

Noynoy Aquino: Enabler or Suppressor of New Politics?

NOYNOY: ENABLER OR SUPPRESSOR OF THE NEW POLITICS?
By Nicanor Perlas
05 September 2009

In the past few days, I have been bombarded with text messages from friends as well as interviews with the media on what I think of the Mar-Noynoy announcements. Will I, like Senator Mar Roxas, also renounce my intention to run as a presidential candidate in the 2010 national elections and support the presidential candidacy of Senator Noynoy Aquino?

The short answer is “No”. I will not renounce my intention to run as a presidential candidate. And “Yes”, I will encourage Noynoy to resign from the Liberal Party, run as an independent presidential candidate, and join the on-going conversation and unification efforts among non-traditional political parties and movements.

Noynoy can stifle the growth of new politics. Or he can enable the new politics that is emerging all throughout the country. Allow me to elaborate.

Introductory Remarks

My comments to follow will only make sense if people understand that 2010 is not an ordinary election. It will be the venue for an epochal battle between traditional politics and the new politics. What is branded often as “opposition” is not really opposition in the true sense. The current opposition is also part of traditional politics, albeit a different version of traditional politics. What I mean by traditional and new politics will become clear in the paragraphs to follow.

who is afraid of noynoy aquino? answer: malacanang!

this is not the first time malacanang has made a comment on noynoy aquino, his candidacy and the process that he is taking in making a decision on his plans for 2010. this one is from a presidential spokesperson.

we don’t get it – whatever noynoy does is no business for malacanang to bother with or make a comment on. malacanang is the office of the president of the country, malacanang itself is not a political party and it is certainly not participating in the next election. 

the office of the president does not participate in elections, it only waits for the next occupant of that position. matters of individuals running for office should be of no concern to them. extending that,   Gary Olivar the deputy presidential spokesperson who made the comment on noynoy is not an employee of a political party, he is an employee of the office of the president which in turn is funded by the taxes people pay.

for olivar and most specially malacanang to make comments on political plans of individuals is out of bounds, uncalled for and highly inappropriate. the office of the president is supposed to be above all the politics that happen on the ground. it is an governmental and therefore public office, it is not a private office or group.

this behavior of olivar is one more symptom of that is wrong with the arroyo administration – it thinks, acts and uses government resources and personnel for the individual purpose of the occupant of the presidency, not the office of the president.

this is very similar to  secretary raul gonzales of the justice department being used and acting like he is the personal lawyer and defender of gloria macapagal arroyo the person instead of the secretary of justice acting to uphold the constitution and its laws as it applies to the whole country and all the citizens. this is one more case why president arroyo should fire many of her presidential staff.

what is being revealed here too is that malacanang, arroyo and her political party are afraid of noynoy aquino. they obviously consider him a real threat to their own political ambitions. why else would they find the need to comment or more accurately take a snipe at noynoy?

frankly, whatever noynoy does is none of their business. everything and anything that noynoy does on the issue of his candidacy and even all the other presidentiables have nothing to do with the office of the president – it does not affect them in any way and should not affect them. someone should bitch slap olivar to make him understand what his true role is.   

Palace brands Noynoy retreat as ‘gimmickry’
By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:13:00 09/04/2009

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang is sensing political “gimmickry” in Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III’s so-called spiritual retreat before he decides on whether to run for president next year.

Gary Olivar, deputy presidential spokesperson, Thursday said the senator should “not just ride on sentimental support” in heeding the supposed clamor for him to seek the highest office in the land.

“We respect whatever gimmickry, whatever ways on how he can arrive at a decision,” Anthony Golez, another spokesperson, said in a media briefing.

Golez was commenting on impressions that Aquino might only be playing hard-to-get before eventually announcing his presidential bid in the May elections.

read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20090904-223454/Palace-brands-Noynoy-retreat-as-gimmickry