The Hidden Issue in the 'Hayden e-Show'

By Maugan P. Mosaid, Ph.D.

Someone says, "The issue, really, in the Hayden Kho sex scandal is about the consent to take the video; there was no mutual consent."

Really? Is this what it was all about? Consent? And privacy? All these questions and issues are just glib mis-directions. Is it just privacy and consent at stake here? Or is it the act itself that is condemnable and detestable?

Then another one questions the intention of the Senate in dipping its power of inquiry into this whole mess. As always, it is being done "in aid of legislation." And exactly what law they may have in mind right now is not clear to most of us. However, if they are thinking that we don't have good privacy laws, then there may be room for a more detailed privacy law.

Then the third one asks, "Is sex still viewed as sacred these days?"

My view is that sex is so sacred that it should not be indulged in for sheer fun without the blessings of the sacrament of matrimony.

Still, others say "if nothing was taken on video, nothing could have been distributed." This is just like saying promiscuous sex is alright for as long as it is not captured on cam.

The point is (and this is the real issue) there should be no justification for illicit and immoral sex. We seem to forget that the act itself (of Hayden Kho and his women) is detestable. And that was the original sin followed by the videotaping and finally - the distribution.

If there was another interesting thing that this sex scandal brought about, it was how media and the moral psyche of the Filipino people were unearthed by the incident. Obviously, there was much criticism of the recording and distribution of the immoral act more than condemning the act itself. If this is the way our moral psyche goes as a people, then we are moving fast towards unlearning our moral values and norms.

Another danger is that our moral psyche as a people may be dragged into accepting the seemingly moral statement used again by Dr. Kho here: that society should "condemn the sin, not the sinner.." This is idiocy in the highest order. How can you separate the sin from the sinner?!! Shabu can proliferate in the market but if there are no users, it can do no harm and wrong. Promiscuous sex are mere words if nobody does it.

Frankly, my real fear is, when the society no longer abhors promiscuous sex and take it as moral for as long as it is done in utmost secrecy and in our most secluded privacy. Is this one clear symptom of a decaying moral order? Lord of the Heavens! Please come down and enlighten us once more.

The Lakas-Kampi Merger: For Better or Worse

We have yet to see that the merger of the two dominant administration parties (Lakas & Kampi) is more to its advantage than otherwise. For now, one thing is certain though – that this political marriage seems to be between couples only (Puno & Prospero) minus the relatives. At any rate, it is expected that the maxim - "in unity there is trength" may still hold true here.


(Picture courtesy of http://midfield.wordpress.com)

For example, in the case of North Cotabato, Rep. Lala Talino Mendoza (of Kampi) and Vice Gov. Manny Pinol (of Lakas) are now all poised to go against each other for the gubernatorial post here. From all indications this is unstoppable.

Several other instances of Lakas local candidates pitted against Kampi local candidates happened in the 2007 elections. In most cases the rivalries reached such magnitude and intensity that they might have created wounds that even this merger could not heal.

In a situation where the political marriage between Lakas and Kampi was possible only at the top, there is a loose pseudo alliance at the local level which can be exploited by the opposition to its advantage. What may have been acheived by the merger was creating a body with one head but having split tail whose whips do not synchronize. In that situation, former Pres. Ramos was right in saying that the merger was done with undue haste and I would add lack of grassroots consultation within the party heirarchy.

PaLaKa (Partido Lakas Kampi) boosts of more than 70% membership from Governors and Mayors across the country but how they would react, or act, to this merger especially with respect to the coming presidential election is something interesting and could baffle political analysts.

Creating Space for LGU Participation in the Peace Process

By Maugan P. Mosaid, Ph.D.

If we look back to the failure of the MOA-AD, observers and critics were one in saying that the main culprit has been the lack of consultation at the grassroots level. What happened was we had a high level GRP-MILF peace negotiation that was not well-grounded as it lacked one of the most important ingredients to the recipe of the peace process - the citizen’s input.

Speaking of citizen’s input to the peace process, the MLGUs are the frontline government instrumentality who can spearhead this kind of activity by initiating community dialogues. An LGU-led consultation is a new approach to the peace process or even the settling of community-based disputes.

Giving space for an LGU-led initiative to solicit citizen’s input is a pioneering effort as far as the peace process is concerned. Since 1975 when the formal peace negotiation between the GRP and the MNLF started, no LGU was ever involved, much more, consulted.

This is expected to be a breakthrough in the peace process. However, the LGUs cannot just be poked right away into taking on this new role without considering their capabilities to undertake such initiatives. Certainly, they would need some sort of capability building in terms of conceptualizing the whole thing and equipping themselves with the appropriate tools and techniques to generate substantial inputs and ensure success.

Realizing the importance and significance of all these things, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), an international NGO based in Washington DC, has come to the fore to enable some selected LGUs in the conflict-affected areas of North Cotabato, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat, all of Central Mindanao, along the aspects of initiating, facilitating, mediating and resolving conflicts whenever possible at the community level. Some fifteen (15) MLGUs from these provinces were invited to a designing workshop in Davao City on May 13-15, 2009 to run them through the whole process of conflict management and peace negotiation and find out where they would need immediate interventions.

The NDI-sponsored (and supported by the UN Multi-Donor Act for Peace) seminar workshop was aptly titled: “LGUs Creating Space for Citizen Dialogue on Peace and Security: A Designing Workshop”. It basically started with the question: “What would be the constructive role of the LGU in the peace process?”

Taking off from there, we were given a rundown of the presentations of Prof. Rudy Rodil (member of the defunct GRP negotiating panel) on “How Peace Became and Continues to be Mindanao’s Most Compelling Challenge”. We were presented with the root-causes of the so-called Mindanao conflict from its historical perspective. Now, the conflict had grown and expanded from its local and national dimensions to something international since the Organization of the Islamic Conference became interested in helping to resolve the conflict.

The next presentation was that of Director Alex Umpar of the Office of the Presidential Assistance on the Peace Process (OPAPP). It gave us a rundown of the government’s efforts in addressing the issues of peace and security outside the confines of the negotiations. In the interactions with the participants that followed, it was noted that raising the “peace fund” from local source, as for example, the internal revenue allotment, is quite sketchy in terms of its legal basis, unlike the calamity fund which is fixed by law at 5% of the IRA.

The presentation of Mr. Kaloy Manlupig, President of Balay Mindanao, gave us a clear view of how localized negotiation can be made possible by relating to us their experience in negotiating with the RPMM (Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa sa Mindanao), a breakaway faction of the CPP-NPA which operated in Northern Mindanao. It gave us the message that small victories can be won at the community level in the presence of a credible mediator who has mastered the art of transformative mediation.

I have appreciated the non-conventional approach to peace negotiation that was employed. The conventional approach has been the cycle of 1. CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES 2. NEGOTIATION 3. SIGNING OF AGREEMENT, and then 4. ADDRESSING THE PROBLEM. The non-conventional approach used in this particular negotiation was 1. CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES 2. EXPLORING THE ROOTCAUSES OF THE CONFLICT 3. EXPLORING SOLUTIONS TO THE CONFLICT 4. TRANSLATING THEM INTO TALKING POINTS 5. NEGOTIATION 6. SINGNING OF AGREEMENT 7. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AGREEMENT, and 7. MONITORING AND FEEDBACKING. The advantage of the latter is that the benefits of negotiation can already be implemented along the way even without the benefit of signed formal agreement. The latter is dependent on the so-called “peace dividend” or the benefits of negotiation is addressed at a much later stage.

Finally, we were given the presentation of Prof. Saturnina Rodil about “Finding Solutions to Complex Problems”. We were made to understand that somehow there is an interconnection between and among existing problems. One may be the cause or effect of the other/s. Then, given the nature and magnitude of the issues or problems, why do we have to dialogue? We need to – because different individuals and groups have different perspectives and appreciation of the issues or problems.

The strategies, solutions and recommendations could vary according to the nature and magnitude of the conflict. We realized that not all conflicts or security concerns can be resolved at the LGU level. Somehow, the LGUs must do something to address the peace and security issues in their respective localities.

Our last activity was the designing workshop which primarily focused on conceptualizing the conduct of community dialogues. At the onset, we were cautioned to do causal look-back so that dialogues can lead to the root-cause of the problem rather than the symptom.

All community dialogues must be issue-based. Before the formal talking starts, there should be substantial leg-working and communication until mutual trust and acceptance are established with respect to the issues, processes and people involved.

After all was said and done, I must confess that the result of the three-day designing workshop to create space for LGU participation in generating the citizen’s inputs to the peace process is very encouraging. When every LGU is able to manage, contain and resolve issues of conflict, peace and security in their respective areas – who needs a high level national or international negotiation. The sum of the parts is greater than the whole.

Putting the Client at the Core of Public Service

The crusade against red tape and inefficiency at different levels of governance may be considered a gargantuan task because it requires drastic change of a mind set and culture which has been so well-embedded in the government bureaucracy. But with the coming into law of RA 9485 or the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007, it is expected that this bureaucratic problem shall be fully addressed in due time.

The law requires all government agencies and LGUs to process applications for permits and licenses at the shortest time possible or within five (5) days for simple transactions and not more than ten (10) days for more complex transactions. The spirit and intent of the law is to put the clients at the core of public service provided by the different government instrumentalities, the public being the very reason for which they exist.

This LGU responded in time to come out with its own performance standards and service pledges as contained in the so-called citizen's charter promulgated by the different Offices as a consequence of a series of workshops conducted which started with the orientation by the Civil Service Commision sometime in the early part of March this year (2009). It is expected that by June this year, the complete copy of our citizen's charter, with all its pertinent attachments, shall come out in booklet form.

Below is our sample service pledge and citizen's charter from the Mayor's Office:

SERVICE PLEDGE

WE, the Officials and Employees in the Office of the Mayor, this Local Government Unit, in deference and reverence to our “Bayan Muna Citizen’s Charter” below, do hereby pledge and commit ourselves to do the following:

Serve with utmost courtesy and politeness in the discharge of our duties;
Utmost fairness in dealing with everyone;
Lay down all the accurate information on the procedures, fees, charges and other requirements of the services we are duty-bound to provide;
Train ourselves to be effective and efficient in the delivery of the services enumerated hereunder;
Acknowledge mistakes and take immediate corrective measures; and
Note at all times that the clients are one of the primary reasons for the existence of this Office.

PIKIT HOSTS MOBILE PASSPORT SERVICE

To cater to the increasing public demand for passport, the local government unit of Pikit sponsored the conduct of mobile passporting on April 18-19 this year. This was undertaken in partnership with the Regional Consular Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs in General Santos City.

Mr. Daniel Te and seven of his staff came over to personally handle the whole activity. It is to be noted that the municipal government under Mayor Sumulong Sultan paid for the expenses of the DFA personnel as the LGU counterpart.

Before the processing of the applicants’ papers, a 30-minute orientation on the requirements for the new machine-readable passport was conducted. The requirements are as follows:

A. PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS FOR FIRST-TIME APPLICANTS:
1. Personal Appearance is required.
2.. Duly accomplished application form.
3. Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) or Certified True Copy (CTC) of BC issued by the Local Civil Registrar duly authenticated by NSO.
4. Three (3) colored photos of the applicant taken against a royal blue background. Applicant should be in decent attire with collar. Photo must be of good quality, and must have been taken within the last six (6) months. Photo size: 4.5 cm x 3.5 cm. Facial image size: Not less than 3 cm. DFA has the right to reject photos that do not comply with specifications and international standards.
5. Proof of identity / Supporting documents indicating full name, date and place of birth and citizenship
6. Other Supporting documents as may be required.

Additional Requirements:

For married women who want to use surname of their spouse
1. Marriage Contract (MC) in Security Paper issued by NSO or Certified True Copy issued by the Local Civil Registrar duly authenticated by NSO.

For married women who would like to revert back to their maiden name
1. If already widowed: Death Certificate of the deceased husband;
2. If marriage is annulled: Certified true copy and photocopy of the first page and the dispositive portion of the judgment on annulment and NSO-issued MC with the annotation on the annulment decree;
3. If divorced: Certified true copy and photocopy of the first page and the dispositive portion of the judgment on divorce secured by foreign spouse authenticated by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate where the divorce is obtained.

For Minors (below 18 years old)
1. Personal appearance of either parent (if minor is of legitimate status).
2. Personal appearance of mother (if minor is of illegitimate status)

If minor is NOT traveling with either parent:
1. Original and photocopy of DSWD Clearance
2. Affidavit of Support and Consent

If both parents are abroad:
1. Affidavit of support and consent (must be authenticated by the nearest Philippine Embassy or Consulate General if not executed before a Consul).
2. Special Power of Attorney (must be authenticated by the nearest Philippine Embassy or Consulate General if not executed before a Consul designating the representative by name and authorizing him to apply for a passport on behalf of the minor).
3. Passport and photocopy of the passport of the traveling companion of the minor.
4. Identification Card and photocopy thereof of the duly authorized person.

For Muslim applicants; For those whose births were registered:
Please refer to requirements for first time passport applicants.

For those whose births were not registered:
1. Late registered Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA) issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO)
2. Original and photocopy of Voter’s Affidavit or other supporting documents indicating date and place of birth and citizenship, identity and tribal affiliation.
3. Certificate from the Office on Muslim Affairs (OMA)

For converts:
1. Submit annotated Birth Certificate (BC) in Security Paper (SECPA)
2. Court Order granting change of name
3. Shari’ah Court Order
4. OMA Certificate of Conversion
5. Additional supporting documents may be required when necessary.

B. REQUIREMENTS FOR RENEWAL OF PASSPORT:

Brown Passport or issued prior to 01 May 1995
1. Old passport and photocopy of passport pages 1,2,3 (amendment). The pages showing latest Bureau of Immigration departure and arrival stamps.
2. Supporting document with complete middle name.

Green Passport or issued after 01 May 1995
1. Present passport and photocopy of inside and back cover.
2. The pages showing latest Bureau of Immigration departure and arrival stamps.
3. For illegitimate minor, personal appearance of mother is required.

C. PASSPORT FEES:
Regular Processing (14 working days) 44-Page = P 500.00
Expedited Processing (7 working days) Additional P 250.00
Replacement of Lost valid Passport 44-Page = P 700.00

D. LIST OF VALID SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
Marriage Contract
Voter’s Registration Record
PRC / IBP ID
Baptismal Certificate
Land Title
Seaman’s Book
Driver’s License
Income Tax Return (Old)
Government Service Record
Old SSS-E1 form/or digitized SSS-ID
School Form 137 or Transcript of Records
Other documents that show full name and birth details of applicant and citizenship
Note: any three (3) of the above supporting documents will do.

The 2010 Presidentiables

L-R: Noli de Castro, Manny Villar, Loren Legarda, Chiz Escudero, Mar Roxas, Ping Lacson, Joseph Estrada, Miriam Santiago, Richard Gordon, Bong Revilla, Jojo Binay & Bayani Fernando ( in the order of survey ranking)

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This early, the 2010 Presidential hopefuls are starting to position themselves. Some are already going around some strategic places in the country to make their candidacy known, though still subtly and not yet announced in the open, but already obvious. Some disguised in such public appearances as speaking engagements in inaugurations, foundations, anniversaries, graduation ceremonies, etc.

As we try to scrutinize each one of them, we are constantly reminded by concerned nationalistic and moral groups to make the wisest of choice. The irony is that, except for one or two, our choices are limited to the traditional politicians that they are. So far, we are presented with 12 personalities to choose from though this is still open to changes as some of them may just settle for the Vice Presidency as the deadline for filing of candidacy draws near. Those who are most probably falling into this category are Chiz Escudero, Bong Revilla, Loren Legarda and Bayani Fernando. Still, others have some pending conditions that would compel them to run. Those falling into this category are Joseph Estrada, Miriam Defensor Santiago, Richard Gordon and Bayani Fernando. With this scenario, I would consider only five of them as the most serious aspirants to the Presidency. They are Noli de Castro, Manny Villar, Mar Roxas, Ping Lacson and Jojo Binay. I also count Sec. Gilbert Teodoro but KAMPI has yet to pick him as its standard bearer.

There are five variables that play around a candidate’s winning. These are 1) ranking in the surveys, 2) political machinery or dominance, 3) public demand, 4) name recall, and 5) the ability to mount and sustain a national campaign.

Survey

Survey ranking has been a consistent indicator except in the election where Fidel Ramos won despite trailing behind in fourth and fifth places in the surveys. In this area, we know that Noli de Castro and Manny Villar lead over the other aspirants.

Political Dominance

With respect to political machinery or dominance, Lakas has the widest network and has the most number of elected local officials followed by KAMPI. The Nacionalista, Liberal and UNO (United Nationalist Opposition) share the third spot among themselves. Lakas will have Noli de Castro for its standard bearer, Nacionalista has Manny Villar, Mar Roxas for Liberal, and Jojo Binay for UNO. I have a very strong feeling that, although KAMPI, Pres. Arroyo’s Party, is closely aligned with LAKAS, it will put up its own presidential candidate this time. Pres. Ramos, LAKAS’ founding Chairman, has distanced himself from Malacaňang and this was made more manifest when he expressed discontentment over Pres. Arroyo’s non-appearance during the EDSA Revolution anniversary last February. My best guess is that KAMPI will settle for Sec. Gilbert Teodoro.

Public Demand

By public demand, I mean the clamor of the majority for change no matter what givens and variables are we talking about. Pres. Obama won because it has come to a point where the Americans would consider anyone but Bush and his Party as the best choice. Pres. Cory Aquino won (though she was clearly cheated) because the Filipino people considered anyone but Marcos as the best choice. In this election, my gut feeling is that majority of Filipino voters would consider anyone but the administration candidate as the best choice. With KAMPI and LAKAS representing the Gloria Administration, there is the greater possibility that De Castro and Teodoro will be rejected by the voters. The Filipino people are fed up with issues of corruption under the Arroyo administration and its ineptness to manage the economy, handle the Moro problem and contain terrorism. With this one, Manny Villar, Mar Roxas and Jojo Binay shall be left as the better choices. Ping Lacson, aside from being a consistent loser in the presidential race before, suffers credibility with the issues of his involvement in the Kuratong Baleleng rub-out and Dacer-Corbito double murder case still looming over him plus his controversial human rights records while he was with the Metrocom which was largely thought to be one of the executioners of Marcos-Imelda devious martial law orders.

Name Recall

Narrowing the choices among Villar, Roxas and Binay, the two (Roxas and Binay) have relatively better public records than Villar who was accused by fellow Senators of designing a folly in the General Appropriations Act of 2009 to benefit his real estate business over the C-5 road projects. That was thought to have cost his Presidency of the Senate.

Now between Roxas and Binay, Roxas has a small edge on name recall from the illiterate voters because the name Roxas had become a household name from the time of Pres. Roxas to this day. Jojo Binay’s leveling advantage will be when he will be supported by Erap and Joe De Venecia. This is a very likely possibility especially if these two prominent political figures see UNO as the dominant opposition group. An Erap-De Venecia support for Jojo Binay will also make him at par with Mar Roxas with respect to the ability to mount and sustain a national campaign.

Ability to mount and sustain a national campaign

The Party and Candidates who will be able to mount a thorough national campaign are the following: Sec. Gilbert Teodoro if he becomes the official candidate of KAMPI; Noli De Castro of LAKAS; Manny Villar of the Nacionalista Party; Mar Roxas of the Liberal Party; Jojo Binay of UNO if Erap and Joe De Venecia support him; Erap may be limited by his physical condition; Ping Lacson, Miriam Santiago, Bayani Fernando, Richard Gordon and Loren Legarda are all dependent on the support that they can get from the business sector. I would like to believe that Chiz Escudero and Bong Revilla should better be seeking the Vice Presidency first. They are popular but they are not yet ripe for the Presidency. Popularity alone is not the absolute guarantee to the Presidency.

Thus all five variables discussed, we are now in a better position to make judgment on election day.

KPIP in Pikit

For the first time since Pikit officially joined the PALMA Alliance, its turn to become recipient of the Kabalikat PALMA Infrastructure Project (KPIP) rolled into action on January 12, 2009. It is to be noted that the official signing between the PALMA Board and Pikit Mayor Sumulong Sultan took place on September 29, 2008 during the 59^th founding anniversary of the town of Pikit. With the entry of Pikit into the PALMA Alliance, it shall henceforth become PPALMA Alliance.

Under the KPIP concept, the 6-member LGU alliance share equipments and take turns in playing host. The host municipality takes to use all the available equipments for road maintenance and/or rehabilitation for 21 days subject to be extended when extremely necessary upon approval of the PPALMA Development Board. All the Mayors are members of the Board.

The KPIP in Pikit took action from January 12 to 31, 2009. This has enabled the municipal government to rehabilitate more than 80 kilometers of major farm-to-market roads at very minimal costs. Under the KPIP, a kilometer of road repair/maintenance costs only P40,000 as the host LGU spends only for fuel, lubricants, maintenance, Drivers and Helpers food and honoraria. The same program of work would cost P400,000 when undertaken by a private contractor. This cost-saving bayanihan project concept has earned for PPALMA national recognition when it was given the Galing Pook Award (an award given in recognition of LGU best practices) by the President.

Congratulations!! Go, PPALMA, Go..!

Sulong Pikit

The title of this blogsite 'Sulong Pikit' is actually the development slogan of the municipality of Pikit, North Cotabato. This has been the political battlecry of the incumbent Mayor Sumulong K. Sultan when he first ran for the position in May 2007. Apparently 'sulong' - a Tagalog term for 'advance or move forward' was taken from the rootword of the Mayor's first name 'Sumulong'.

'Sulong Pikit' shall henceforth become the official blogsite of the LGU of Pikit, North Cotabato. It shall primarily become one of the major source of information for news-worthy events and activities undertaken or being undertaken by the municipal government, either solely or in partnership with higher level LGUs or non-governmental organizations (NGOs), national government agencies (NGAs) and foreign development institutions (FDIs).

Sulong Pikit..!

Welcome to this blogsite