Thank God It's Over!

The winners of the last elections were finally proclaimed last Wednesday and now all of us could finally take a sigh of relief. The last eight months were excruciatingly mad; there were mudslinging, accusations, and even violence. It was as if all of us were dragged into a telenovela with a totally convoluted plot.

Last Wednesday's proclamation may be considered as the grand finale of those tumultuous months. Consider yourself lucky if you chose to stay home or in your office and watch the proceedings in comfort. The Session Hall of the House of Representatives where the event took place was in total chaos. Decorum and protocol were dispensed with as supporters of the winning candidates came in droves.

I don't know if it can be considered as a good start but the two groups engaged in a cheering contest. There were no insults or disparaging remarks but it seemed that the order was the louder the better. I don't understand why they have to resort to this since both there principals were already winners and honestly, it was too juvenile.  Good thing that they were seated on the opposite sides of the hall, away from each other.

Many supporters of the winning Presidential candidate considered themselves important people so they wanted a seat in the first gallery.  What happened was plastic chairs were lined up in the Session Hall floor which, ordinarily, was a total no-no.  It came to a point that we could not identify anymore who among the people there were members of Congress and just guests.

Some members of the committee that canvassed the election results were given a few minutes to speak.  Surprisingly, the crowd went silent except at times that they had to applaud the one speaking but everybody was still subdued.  It was like this until one Senator started saying nasty things about the running mate of the winning Presidential candidate.  Those on the side of the winning candidate was cheering and clapping, but those on the side of the losing candidate appeared to have clenched their teeth and seething.  The speech was totally uncalled for, maybe the Senator was just too bitter that his son and daughter both lost in the two consecutive Senatorial race and there'll be no one to replace him in the Senate.

When it was time for the members of both Houses of Congress to approve the Canvass Report, the crowd went wild, drowning whatever the Senate President and Speaker of the House were saying.  The cheering erupted like someone scored a triple shot in a highly contested basket ball game.

And when the winners were finally called to the rostrum for the proclamation ceremonies, the whole place was justa bedlam of catcalls, screams and all the kind of noise a human can make when he or she is in a state of ecstasy.  Nobody could hear anymore what was being said infront of us.  All I was able to see was the leaders of Congress raising the hands of the winners.

It was all over in a few minutes.  Everybody went out of the Session Hall still buzzing with the excitement of what has just happened.  The crowd continued to distance themselves from each other.  I don't know where they all went but after just over an hour, the halls were empty again, except for the cleaners.

As we put those months behind us, many of us look forward to better days. The just proclaimed winners will be taking office at the end of this month and every one who gave them this position will be watching them.  Me, I will see if the incoming President would be true to his words - no corruption.

Cheating Koalas

It's been three weeks since we went to the polls for the first automated elections in our country.  Many of the winners have already been proclaimed, but many losing candidates are also claiming that they have been cheated by the very people who should have been safeguarding the sanctity of the ballots.

There were so many claims of "electronic cheating", "hocus PCOS", and computerized fraud allegedly committed by officers of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) that a Congressional probe was conducted to look into them.  At the center of the investigation are the machines and compact flash cards used in the elections which, according to some quarters, were tampered with to give fraudulent results.

The allegations reached fever pitch when a masked "whistleblower" who introduced himself as Robin claimed that he was party to an elaborate plot to cheat in the just concluded polls.

from inquirer.net

In a video presented first in a press conference and then during the hearing of the Congressional body, Robin claimed that he was part of a group that manipulated the results of the last elections by transmitting manufactured counts to the COMELEC main computers.  He added that the two leading candidates for Vice President paid more than a billion pesos just to get ahead of everybody else.  He said that the leading candidate paid better than the earlier favorite.  Why, even the Presidential race was allegedly manipulated such that the one that was supposed to win ended up near the bottom of the heap.

The Chairman of the Congressional body dubbed the whistleblower as "Koala bear" (a misnomer because koalas are not bears, they are marsupials like kangaroos) because of his mask, which was highlighted by a very large nose.  He looked more like a panda to me though.

After the initial release of the video, losing candidates from the National Capital Region all the way down to the southern part of the country emerged with stories of people approaching them to commit electoral fraud in exchange for hefty amounts.  By their accounts, one would think that the country has been invaded by "koalas" peddling their technical expertise in committing fraud during the elections.

One incumbent governor from a Southern Philippines province claimed that he was approached as early as November by a group promising to manipulate the results of the elections to ensure the victory of his entire team.  He told the body that he was asked 50 million pesos for this but he turned down the offer.  Another losing mayoralty candidate claimed that in January, an acquaintance also asked him for money in exchange for his victory in the polls.  This will be done by rigging the electronic results of the elections.  

There were other stories from losing candidates in local positions but their stories are all the same.  Just before the national elections, someone or a group of people approached them, promising them victory in the polls in exchange for a huge amount of money for their operations.

I just wonder why these people waited until they lost the elections before they revealed these anomalies.  Like that Governor from the South, as an official of his province, he should have reported it to the COMELEC or even to the police at the time he was approached. Why did he keep it to his self?

The mere fact that he was asked to give money so that they would make him win is already a crime.  It sounded like an extortion to me: give us money so you'd win, otherwise you'd lose.  And it involved the elections, for pete's sake!  He said that he only realized that the offer was true after his entire team lost.  So what happened if he won the elections?  He'd just clam up and pretend that nobody approached him six months before to ask for money which will be used for an operation that will deny the people of their will.

I agree that this losers do not deserve to win the elections.  It is now obvious that they do not have the people's welfare in mind when they run for public office.  They just want to be elected in a position and all the privileges that go with it. 

Election Day 2010

Election day has finally arrived. The country has been gripped with election fever for the last eight months and now that it's finally here, Filipinos went to the polls in throngs.

This is the first automated elections for the Philippines.  The shift was never easy and there were problems in every step of the way.  Up to the last minute, there were problems about the machines, the process and even the paraphernalia to be used for the elections.

But these problems did not stop Filipinos from going to their respective precincts this morning.  I was one of those who went to the polling centers even before they opened and when I got there, it was a scene of total chaos.

Voters cannot find their precincts because these were already clustered into just seven voting areas.  I also had a hard time looking for my voting area because it was transferred and clustered with 6 other precincts.  When I got there,  the line going to the area was already long.

In fact, it took two hours before I was able to cast my vote.  The counting machine stopped three times during the time I was on line because of paper jam problems.  This delayed the process at least 30 minutes.  Once I got my ballot, the process was already smooth.

I observed that the space to be shaded was really small. It was very easy to make mistakes that could spoil one's ballot.  I feel sorry for those two elderly women whose ballots were rejected by the machine because they shaded beyond the borders of the area.

Speaking of the elderly, I think they should be given a special precinct where they can cast their vote.  There was an instance where one old man had to fall in line to vote.  I told his companion to ask if it was possible for him to go first.  Thankfully, the personnel were kind enough to allow him to vote ahead of everyone else.  What I could not understand though was the attitude of the other voters.  They got angry and even protested when the elderly were given this special treatment.  They were acting like that they themselves would never grow old.

From the number of people who went out to vote this morning, I can say that Filipinos still believe in the election process.  I hope no one would try to break this trust for his or her own gain. It was almost lost 6 years ago so let us all help protect and preserve it.

On the Brink: From the Man in the Center of the Storm

On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System is the first hand account of former US Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson Jr. of what happened before and during the 2008 financial crisis that almost brought the world to its knees.

Paulson's narrative was fast paced and in very simple language. The reader does not have to be well-versed in financial matters to understand what Paulson wanted to say. His recollection of the efforts of his colleagues and staff to save the financial institutions affected by the crisis was very informative.

In fact, reading the book is almost like being there with Paulson during the times when he made critical decisions and his meetings with key personalities in the race to save the US Financial System from complete meltdown.

I am particularly amused at his account of the meetings of Congressional leaders before they took up the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) Law, especially the one where the House members from both parties engaged in a shouting match and almost came to blows because they could not agree on the legislation.

To his credit, Paulson did not sound like he was rationalizing his actions and his decisions during those turbulent months. His recommendations in the book's afterword are also worth exploring. I just find this section of the book a bit like an academic lecture though.

If you want to know the whys, whats and whos of the 2008 financial crisis, read Hank Paulson's On the Brink.


On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System by Henry Paulson is available in Kindle Edition from amazon.com.

Giant Squids and A Man Who Acts Like One

 I read a really strange news article when I went online this morning.  The report said that giant squids suddenly surfaced in waters off the coast of California.   In fact, the picture that accompanied the article was a scene straight out of Animal Planet.

According to a report by the AP, the squid, also known as the Humboldt, weigh between 20 and 40 pounds, but some fishermen have caught 60-pound giants.  The report further stated that this animal can grow to as much as 100 pounds and up to 6 feet long.

The first thing that came into my mind was calamares.  Imagine how much of this stuff can be made out of these giants.  It would make a lot of beer drinkers very happy.

I just wonder if these creatures also squirt ink when agitated or cornered.  I know one giant squid who did just that when he tried to defend himself this afternoon.

The man was accused of unethical conduct for approving a road project that would benefit his businesses.  For days, he refused to answer the accusations hurled against him and just let his lackeys do the job for him.

When he finally spoke this afternoon, he denied everything and instead called the hearing a political harassment because he was running for president of the country.  Well, he’s second in the running, and if surveys are to be believed (they could sometimes be commissioned), he’s gaining ground against the front-runner.

All throughout his speech, he had his head bowed down, not looking straight at his accusers. After squirting ink, by saying that he is being pulled down by the Filipino’s crab mentality,  the man left his accusers and refused to answer questions.

Between him and the giant squid, though, I’d pick the latter anytime.  At least I can make crispy fried squid out of them.

The Honorable Endorsers

I can't believe I will agree with the Hon. Miriam Defensor Santiago.

Earlier this week, Sen. Santiago lashed out at her colleagues who endorse various products. A trip along EDSA would bear her out. There, you would see billboards of the honorable members of the Senate endorsing various products ranging from detergents to beauty products.

A male senator endorses a skin clinic, his smiling face and clear white skin serving as proof of the expertise of the clinic he endorses. He says he sees nothing wrong with what he's endorsing because even men need to take care of their skin too,

Another honorable senator endorses a glutathione pill, which is currently in the middle of a controversy for false claims. Some news anchors alleged that the pill contains less gluta than it purports to contain.

On TV, several advertisements also feature honorable members of the Senate. There's one that features a male senator who earlier announced his desire to become our next president. He is endorsing a detergent powder. His alibi is that he's teaching buyers to save by buying in bulk because it is cheaper!

My favorite features a lady senator who claims that with a new variant of Downy, you only need to rinse your laundry once. The lady senator says what she's doing is public service because she's teaching people to be environmentally friendly, since they will save a lot of clean water by using less water.

Imagine the scenario when one of their colleagues endorses a competing brand. Will they bring the debate in the Senate floor? Will one senator say that his skin clinic is better than that of his colleague? Or worse, will our lady senator propose a bill to ban detergents and fabric softener that will cause environmental damage and use more water than necessary? That will be the day indeed!

I hope somebody joins Sen. Santiago in denouncing these endorsements by the Senate members. Although she alleges that her colleagues are clandestinely campaigning for their bid in the 2010 presidential campaign, I personally think that these endorsements cheapen the offices of these lawmakers. They should be above these things and remember what they were in the Senate for in the first place.