Monday, October 29, 2007
State Failure Part 3
There was no COMELEC official in our precincts here in Barangay San Antonio.
Just like in the May elections, I volunteered to be part of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV). Last time, I was tasked to pollwatch over a precinct. This time, because we had a shortage of volunteers, our PPCRV was just in charge with the voters' assistance desk. We helped people in finding their precinct numbers by finding their names in the computerized voters' list. We had two laptops with us (one was mine). But that wasn't the problem. Our list is not updated. It was the same one that we used during the May elections. The COMELEC didn't release a new computerized list for this elections. So, the new registrants were not included in our list. But that was just the beginning of our problems.
Like I mentioned, there wasn't any COMELEC official in the premises. The main problems of the people were (1)they were in our computerized list but not in the precinct's list; (2)they were in the precinct's list but not in our list. Both posed problems not only to the voters but also to us. In one case, there was this guy whose name I can't find in our database. He told me that last time (May elections), a volunteer was able to find him. I said I was sorry and that I can't do anything. He stepped away from the table. I thought it was over. After a few minutes he went back.
Guy: Ano pangalan mo?
Me: *stares at him*
Guy: Taga-saan ka ba?
Me: (tries to be polite) Bakit po?
Guy: Hindi mo ba ako kilala?
Me: *stares at him, tries to look nice*
Guy: 'Wag mo akong pagdidilatan ng mata ah. (insert curses here)
The scene ended with the guy stepping away. The other volunteers (the older ones) told me he was the brother of so-and-so. I really don't know them. He tried to scared the shit out of me but it didn't work. He's prick but I won't lose my cool because I know that we're not enemies, it's the COMELEC's fault for all this confusion.
At some point, we saw a guy wearing a COMELEC ID. We asked him where the COMELEC was staying. He told us that he was just roving around. We found out that outside, there was tent that that a complete, updated list of voters. I saw the COMELEC guy out there. I can't find my own name in our database so I tried the list in the tent. I found my name there. The guy there wrote the precinct number in a piece of paper. Upon inspection, I found out that it was a sample ballot for a party. Then I found out that the guy who claimed to be a COMELEC representative was really a pollwatcher for a certain party. This enraged me very much because he was claiming to be from COMELEC but actually he wasn't.
The number of people having problems piled up and there was no COMELEC in sight. I looked for anyone who had authority on the matter. I found a room that I remembered from last elections. It only had DepEd representatives and not COMELEC ones. They gave me instructions regarding settling some of the problems. But it involved re-directing the people to the city hall, which was really not a good solution (according to experience).
At the end of the day, we got cursed and shouted at by people who tried to help. It's not our fault that our database was outdated. Without us, the voters would have looked at every folder, one at a time. We were just trying to help them. We were trying to be the non-partisan group that is after the interest of the voters. What do we get? Hot heads that told us we were useless and should have packed up.
@ 
Saturday, October 27, 2007
State Failure Part 2
Erap pardoned.
I was gone for a week to facilitate a leadership seminar for Ateneans and I come home to this depressing news. In ASLA we talk about leadership that serves and changes. I can't help but curse the people in the higher-ups for this monstrosity wrongly labeled as politics, governance, and leadership.
It is becoming clearer that the recent bombing may really have been yet another ploy of one of the greatest disgraces my beloved university has produced. This definitely isn't the first time she's done it. But what frustrates me the most is that we feel powerless against this continued and systematic oppression and deception. We have yet to feel the burden of being the ones to get rid of the devils in power and to take charge of our own society.
State failure continues amidst my bickering. My PolSci professor would say that bickering is actually doing something. But I say it's not enough.
More devastating news: My brother failed his subjects in UST. He's transferring to Adamson. The family burden weights heavier on my shoulders. But I don't want it to shape the choices that I make. I don't know what to do.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
State Failure
The biggest news of the week is definitely the Glorietta bombing last Friday. When I received an SMS from my mother regarding the bombing, I couldn't believe it. Who would ever think that one of the premier malls in the metropolis would be bombed by unknown people? The thought of bombs and terror attacks always seem distant to metro-people like us who are oblivious of the many tensions that occur around us.
As of present, there has been a rebel group (Rajah Sulayman Movement) that claims to be the perpetrator of the bombing. But there is still unceasing discussion whether their claim is true or if it the blast is just caused by a leak in the gas lines. Many would be praying for the latter, maybe not the likes of Ayala and the chief of maintenance for the mall, but it would be interesting if the RSM did cause it.
For the longest time, the country has been host to numerous armed, secessionist, rebel groups. Amidst numerous peace talks, demand-articulation, and government "interventions", it is hard to find any lasting resolution to these conflicts and tensions. The saddest part of these continuous struggles is that the people of the metropolis continuously ignore the the plight of those in the periphery. It seems as if that the government is not the only ones who fail to act. Rather, it is the people who it "represents" who continue its inactivity.
I do not claim that killing people is justifiable. I believe that it is wrong, immoral. But we should not end at condemnation for these groups. Rather, we must transcend such superficial thinking and think structurally - why do such groups, with intelligent (UP-educated) leaders, continue to thrive? Is it simply a case of alienation? Is it another by-product of modernity's continued exploitation and oppression? Is this another effect of our state's failure - both of our government and its people?
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Unsupportive
This sembreak, I was asked to help in coordinating the efforts in support of Task Force Sumilao through PAKISAMA. It's hard to believe that those who opposed me are the same people that I'd expect to be supportive of my endeavor. They even go to the extent of labeling me as an activist that involvement in the task force would only get me killed. This fear was definitely out of proportion and not thought through. On the second round, they told me that I should just focus on my studies and that I should just help out when I graduate. But I told them that I am called to serve now, I have the ability, why can't I?
My family boasts its strong affinity and devotion to Catholicism. So when they told me that I should just pray for them, I immediately told them, "How can you separate fighting against oppression and being a good Christian?"
Next, they argued that I should just stay home and help in the store. I didn't want to argue. But deep inside, I know that I could do so much more for these farmers than what I can do in our family store. Besides, I do have a brother who can do it.
Next, they told me to just focus on my studies. I said, "I now realize that we have different priorities." They confirmed my statement and it deeply saddens me. I can't believe that my own flesh and blood would not support me. I can't believe that my own parents would not understand their son who wants to serve his God by serving his fellow men. I can't believe that I came from them.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Sumilao March Starts Today
The 2-month march from Bukidnon to Manila started around 6:00AM today. The Sumilao farmers are marching to the Department of Agrarian Reform in Quezon City as a sign of protest for their continued inaction in properly implementing the CARP.
The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program will end next year and there are several solons who are pushing for its discontinuity. After almost twenty years of implementation, millions of hectares of land are still being monopolized by a handful of hacienderos and businessmen while thousands of farmers remain landless, bereft of their right to till their own fields. The government and business elites argue that it would be more efficient for the economy to ensure that these lands remain with people who employ high-yield agricultural technology. But does this statement really hold water?
The 144-hectare land that the Sumilao farmers are fighting for is part of the ancestral domain that was taken from them. They were robbed in the past and once again they were robbed when the land was removed from the CARP. The land remained idle in the hands of the elites and currently, they are rushing to build a "high-tech hog-raising facility" for Monterey.
There is much injustice that is happening in the rural areas and yet people are still oblivious of what is happening. The fight of the Sumilao farmers is not only the fight for land, it is a fight against injustice that all of us suffer from, in one form or another.
Yesterday, for the first time, I met Ate Linda and Kuya Pete, the symbols of the Sumilao's fight for land. In the press conference, Ate Linda spoke with much emotion about how they have been fighting for the land. Even if she spoke in a different dialect, the weight of her plea struck me with much power and conviction. Why do we continue the lives that we live knowing full well that many suffer for the comforts that we enjoy?
I pray that this decade-long oppression end soon, in favor of those who have suffered.
http://sumilaomarch.multiply.com
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
A Decade of Oppression
October 9, 2007 is the tenth year anniversary of the hunger strike participated by the lumad farmers from Bukidnon. This will also mark their targeted 60-day march from Bukidnon to Manila, to again seek for the government’s response to their plea.
With the very long distance that they shall be covering, they need all the help that we could possibly give. Please join us in praying for the success of these farmers who are fighting for their own rights. More importantly, help us in raising funds to purchase for their food, water, slippers, raincoats, blankets and everything else that they might need.
With all of us working hand in hand, nothing will ever be impossible. If you have intentions to help, kindly forward your donations to:
Bank Account Name: Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka (PAKISAMA); Savings Account Number: 0280-14200-0 Equitable PCI Bank, Katipunan Branch. Please e-mail us the details of your donation (amount, time and date of deposit, etc.) at sumilaomarch@gmail.com to check if your donation has been received and to update the information on how much money has already been raised. Thank you very much!!
Any amount will be of great help. Kindly contact Ivy at 0918-2274099 or just send me a message for details.
http://sumilaomarch.multiply.com/
Dear Editor
We commend our senators for their steely resolve to uncover the mystery that is the National Broadband Network fiasco. The whole country has the right to know all the details surrounding this issue. We must prosecute all the people who benefited on this project. Our quest for the truth must not stop with the resignation of Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos.
While we support the current senatorial inquiry on the matter, we call on our senators to also look into the status of the 19-year old Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. Millions of small farmers across the country are still waiting for the promise of our nation’s leaders that they can till their own land. Ten years ago this month, 17 lumad-farmers from Sumilao, Bukidon staged a hunger strike in front of the office of the Department of Agrarian Reform in Quezon City. Their call then was and still is the redistribution of the 144 hectares of their ancestral land. Many things have happened since their 28-day hunger strike in 1997. Former President Ramos’ much vaunted Win-Win formula came to naught when the Supreme Court decided to uphold the conversion order of then Executive Secretary Ruben Torres. Meanwhile, the Norberto Quisumbing Sr Management and Development Corporation sold the land to the San Miguel Food which put up a piggery farm. This is clearly a violation of the conversion order. In spite of these setbacks, the Sumilao farmers remain steadfast and still believe that one day they will be able to reclaim their ancestral land. They have now filed a petition for the cancellation of the conversion order before the Office of the DAR Secretary.
The story of the lumad-farmers of Sumilao, Bukidnon is a reflection of the state of agrarian reform in our country. It demonstrates how little our commitment is to agrarian reform justice. The concentration of land and power to the elite and the discrimination against our indigenous people resulted in the decline of rural communities and the never-ending cycle of poverty and hunger of millions of Filipino people. While tales of unbridled corruption and endless scandals titillate the imaginations of our people, the painful spectacle of seeing our leaders fight over who gets to be on the limelight leaves a very bad taste in our hungry mouths. It is our hope that our leaders will not forget that there are other pressing concerns that need to be attended to, one of them is agrarian reform. We request them to help us in restoring social justice not only by fighting corruption but also through equitable distribution of land.
Raul Socrates Banzuela
National Coordinator
Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka (PAKISAMA)
Email: pakisama_pilipinas@yahoo.com
Sumilao Farmers are still Fighting for their Land
(Below)Up to know, she still fights for her land.
10 years later, Mapalad farmers still didn’t get their land
by Froilan Gallardo / MindaNews (9/20/07)
SUMILAO, Bukidnon (MindaNews/19 Sep) -- Ten years after they staged hunger strikes and stormed the halls of Congress, Sumilao farmers still did not get their lands under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Act of 1988.
What is worse, the 144-hectare land in barangay San Vicente in Sumilao which the farmers wanted was sold by its owner, Norberto Quisumbing Sr., to business tycoon and former ally of late President Ferdinand Marcos, Eduardo Cojuangco, according to Kaloy Manlupig of Balay Mindanaw Foundation, Inc. (BMFI).
"This is highly anomalous. Cojuangco even managed to convert the land to industrial use, exempting it from CARP," Manlupig said.
He said the plight of the Sumilao farmers is a classic case on how the vaunted government agrarian reform program had became a failure.
He said farmers from Negros island and elsewhere in the country are still struggling to get their lands promised by the government years ago.
Many of the leaders among the Sumilao farmers have aged through time and their children have taken the cudgels of providing leadership and direction of the struggle.
"I used to be a young teenager painting posters and streamers. I used to see it as a fight of my father," Napoleon Merida Jr. said. He was only 13 when his father and fellow farmers staged hunger strikes in Cagayan de Oro and outside the office of the Department of Agrarian Reform in Quezon City for 28 days in 1997.
Merida said he was also beside his father when armed farm guards harassed their picket lines in San Vicente.
"Little by little, I learned that they are fighting for our right to get our land. I became actively involved since then," he said.
The face of the Sumilao farmers in 1997, Linda Ligmon, now sports gray hair. But she remained steadfast in her resolve that one day the 144-hecate land in barangay San Vicente will become theirs.
"We have been fighting for so many years. We have become older but our children are slowly taking over the leadership. The fight will continue even after we will be gone," Ligmon said.
It was the black-and-white picture of a weeping Ligmon, with her raised fist, that caught the attention of non-government organizations who came to provide help. It was taken by SunStar Cagayan de Oro photojournalist Joey Nacalaban.
Since then, Ligmon became the image of the Sumilao farmers' struggle.
Former President Fidel V. Ramos provided a “win-win solution” to the Sumilao problem, directing the division of the disputed land with 100 hectares to be given to the farmers and the remaining 44 hectares to Quisumbing.
But a year later, the Supreme Court ruled the presidential decision "void."
Ligmon said the farmers, whose numbers have grown from 74 to 172 at present, is now living on a 66-hectare land beside the disputed Quisumbing estate.
She said the 66-hectare land was voluntary donated by its landowner, Salvador Carlos, who asked the DAR to sell it to the Sumilao farmers at low rates.
"If not for Carlos's kindness we would have no land to till here," Ligmon said.
Manlupig said the Quisumbing land is now guarded by 200 armed former communist rebels hired by Cojuangco from Negros Island.
He said that last Sunday, two policemen and four soldiers entered the 66-hectare land occupied by the Sumilao farmers and searched for documents. The policemen and soldiers left but not before partaking the boiled camote prepared by the farmers for their dinner.
John Maruhom, DAR regional director for Region 10, promised the farmers that he would send a letter to the DAR head office questioning why Quisumbing was allowed to sell the disputed land.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Speed Challenge: Aftershock
One final exam and one paper down. Two orals and another paper to go.
I want to borrow books in the library to read over the sembreak.
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Speed Challenge: Aftermath
I lost. I didn't even get into the top 10.
My times were pathetic. My trial solve was 1:12. My elimination round time was 52 seconds. My 2nd round time was 1:02. My times were very pathetic. I average around 42seconds and I get these horrible times. I was confused and really tensed when I was solving the cube. I committed a lot of blunders and errors. I was out of my usual cuber psyche.
The slowest time of the top 10 was around 52 seconds. 52 seconds and 62 seconds are eternities apart. If only I was a little relaxed and focused, I know I could have made it. I won't use the fact that the cubes were rough as an excuse, but they really were. Anyhow, I don't want to be a sour grape. There were 60 participants, and only 45 of us beat the 2-minute mark to qualify to the next round. The winner clocked at around 27 seconds. He was amazing.
It was a real learning experience for me. It was my first speedcubing competition and I had fun doing it. It was just hard to get into the zone when I was thinking about my paper and my finals and all the people who were watching inside Toys 'R Us. If I want to be better, I need to compete with other people. It's a pity I have yet to find people who also has the same insane hobby.
I may have lost this one but I will bounce back. I'll speed it up during the break, I promise I'll be back - better and faster.
Speed Challenge
I can't write a paper and I can't read anything. I hope I get into the top 10 later.
Friday, October 05, 2007
We Can We Must
This afternoon, I attended the mass for peace for the on-going events in Myanmar. Fr. Danny Huang presided over the mass. It was sad that only a few (not counting the pre-novitiates and the scholastics who were there) attended the mass. I guess everyone was anticipating the mass at the Gesu.
It's really hard no to think about the hardships of the Burmese people. We suffered around 14 years of martial law but Myanmar on the other hand is under shifting military junta since 1962. It's hard to believe that the international community has yet to do anything lasting regarding the plight of the Burmese people especially now in their time of need. I do believe that as a nation that went through a traumatizing dictatorial regime, we are one of the few who can really relate to their experience.
I hope and pray that peace would prevail in these times of darkness and bloodshed.
Sir Tatot always quotes Bono in saying, "We can't fix all the world's problems, but the ones we can we must". I appreciate the statement in saying that we are limited yet that should not be a hindrance for us to answer the call of the needy. But there are people who tend to misunderstand the statement. The problem lies in the "we can" part. Some equate capability (i.e. "we can") to what is comfortable to us. Most of the time this means that helping within arms length from us.
"I will help as much as I can" simply means "I will help as long as I can still do what I am usually doing and what I think are essential to my life such as my studies or my work". Is this genuine action? Should answering the call of the oppressed just something that comes out of our surplus time and resources? Tama lang ba na tira-tira ang ibibigay natin?
I personally believe that we are all called to fix all the problems of the world. We are powerful beyond measure yet we constrain ourselves. Bono's statement appeals to people because it appeals to their ego-centrism - "I" comes first to the other. But what if the other comes first before me? Kant would definitely say, "I ought therefore I can", and not the other way around as Bono would put it.
People would always say that this is idealistic (they also said that "politicizing everything" is ideal) but I think that labeling something as ideal is a cap-out answer to the challenges that are being thrust upon us. Idealism should not be dichotomized from praxis, rather, let the ideals be translated into action. Idealism is not an insurmountable barrier but a bridge towards development and freedom. Thus, if you call me too idealistic, I guarantee that you do not belong to the better world carved out by people like me.
Support the Sumilao farmers! Help them get their land back. They will be marching from Bukidnon to Manila from October 9 to December 10. You can donate money or goods to support their march.
Please visit http://sumilaomarch.multiply.com/ for more details.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Abalos Resigns
First, there was the end of the Erap trial. Now, we finally have the resignation of ex-commissioner Benjamin Abalos.
MANILA, Philippines -- Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr has resigned.
Abalos made the announcement at his residence in Mandaluyong City amid accusations that he brokered the national broadband network contract between Chinese supplier ZTE Corp. and the Department of Transporation and Communication.
[via Inquirer.net]
Resignation is one thing, but trying him for the crimes he allegedly committed is another thing. I do hope that his resignation isn't just another move by the administration to shift blame the to its henchmen-scapegoats such as Abalos.
Here's a snippet of Abalos' resignation statement.
On the 29th of this month, we will have another election. It is my intention that with my resignation today I shall have detached the Comelec from the controversy in which my person is currently embroiled.
In the same way, my resignation should dispel the claims of my detractors that I am dangling so-called "political debts" dispensed when I was supposedly "king" during election period as a shield to fend off moves to oust me from office.
And finally, my resignation negates the accusation that this administration is out to protect me and my incumbency.
Forty years ago, I entered public service fired with the ideals of promoting the welfare of our people and placing the public interest above mine at all times. It is for this very reason that I have resigned, subordinating my personal interest in completing the last few months of my term to the higher public interest of saving Congress from engaging in a complicated and long-drawn out impeachment process that would inevitably take its toll on the nation.
[via Inquirer.net]