BOBIT AVILA: WHO IS REALLY AGAINST REFORMS?
MANILA, JUNE 26, 2011 (STAR) SHOOTING STRAIGHT By Bobit S. Avila - As I was doing this column, I was watching Karen Davila's "Headstart" where she was interviewing Cezar Quiambao, president of Stradcom Corp., and legal counsel Atty. Eric Pilapil on the alleged Stradcom takeover and it was comforting to learn from that interview that this deal with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) was hatched and bid out at the time of former President Fidel V. Ramos. Somehow, the spin doctors in the Aquino administration made us all believe that this deal was hatched during the time of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) and that it was linked to FG.
I don't know why there is so much fuss about Stradcom when we should look at the fruits of this deal, which has resulted in a faster renewal of driver's licenses and motor vehicles. Sure, it's not perfect because it is manned by people. But what is crystal clear to me in that interview is Stradcom is the IT provider of the LTO. So whatever stories and rumors thrown at Stradcom by its detractors and even magnified by President Benigno "P-Noy" Aquino III was actually done by corrupt LTO officials or employees. Even the Department of Justice (DOJ) cleared Stradcom. So why is this issue still in the oven? That's because the corruption within the LTO continues unabated. Like any computer, it's garbage in and garbage out. But it appears that Stradcom is a very convenient scapegoat.
Obviously someone wants this contract rescinded so that an unseen someone with connections to the Aquino administration can take over that function. Is that person LTO chief Virginia Torres or is it another kabarilan? We don't know, but stories such as these fuel those rumors of Kamag-anak Inc. – or is it the Kaibigan, Kaklase and Kabarilan (KKK)? What is damaging in the Stradcom issue is that no contract, no matter how legal, in the government seems to be sacred under the Aquino administration when the so-called KKK wants a piece of the action! Why can't they wait until this contract expires… then they can put their own friends in a similar deal?
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This week we got separate reports from the Social Weather Stations (SWS) and Pulse Asia showing how the satisfaction rate of President Benigno "P-Noy" Aquino III has further slid down a very steep slope. I don't have to repeat the figures from SWS or Pulse Asia which were already published and chances are our readers already read those figures.
If you are an airplane pilot and your aircraft suddenly takes a nose-dive, any pilot worth his salt would immediately pull on the stick or controls and take the necessary corrections, lest the dive becomes uncontrolled and the plan crashes. How many more wake-up calls does President P-Noy need before he takes control of the stick and takes the necessary correction?
Again, let me point out to our friends in Malacañang that the President's slipping popularity rating doesn't come from those who did not vote for him. It comes from those who voted for P-Noy who ended up embarrassed and disappointed that he turned out to be the President that we warned them he would be during the election campaign.
But instead what Malacañang has said about this latest survey was, "President Aquino's performance and trust ratings remained at near-historical highs… The latest Ulat ng Bayan numbers reflect wide-ranging support for the administration's efforts to curb corruption, pursue inclusive growth, and provide basic services to the people. This, despite obvious attempts by the enemies of reform to stoke the fires of negativism. The President is grateful to the people for this vote of confidence."
Yes, we quoted these words e-mailed to us directly from the Malacañang Palace. Gads! Do these people live in a bubble and have no grasp of today's reality? Who are really the enemies of reform who are stoking the fires of negativism? If you ask me, the biggest enemy of reform is the Aquino administration itself because the best kind of reform that this country needs is political reform and the best way to do that is to hold a constitutional convention (con-con) which is anathema to the Aquino administration.
One real reform that we thought would come was the removal of the pork barrel which under the Aquino administration has been renamed to Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and made worse by the fact that for the first time in history, even the Office of the President has its own PDAF. So pardon me if I throw the question: who is really the enemy of reform? I dare task the Aquino administration to get rid of the pork barrel, which is the principal source of corruption in the government. Is this what matuwid na daan means? No wonder his popularity is still nose-diving! But it's not yet too late for P-Noy to change course.
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Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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