Cat out of the bag

You have to question Senator Johnny Enrile's credibility to argue with his accusation that the entire Lozada affair is nothing but an elaborate plot by Senator Ping Lacson.

In Manila Standard Today's frontpage story, Enrile said that Lacson seems to know every move that Lozada made and was planning to make before and after the latter left for Hongkong. The fact too that Lozada's family have "booked" themselves into LaSalle Greenhills even before Lozada arrived was being questioned by Enrile.

Not a few have been questioning Lozada's motives. According to Vic Agustin's Cocktales, Bongbong Marcos have already said that when he wanted to consult then Speaker Joe de Venecia on a Chinese-related project, he would be reffered to same consultant: Jun Lozada. Agustin's blog also hints at another motive: Victor Corpus. The former NPA rebel and intelligence chief apparently is still smarting over being eased out of the National Resources Dev't Corporation by, guess who, Mike Defensor. Nice job. No not Mike D... nice job, Coktales!

And there's also the Ping Academy. According to the same Manila Standard article, PNP chief Avelino Razon is set to investigate "charges that Lacson used a safe house—referred to as “Ping Academy”—to train witnesses to implicate the President’s husband in the 2005 jueteng scandal."

Well, what can we say?

A reader's view

I’d like to share this comment from the post below, “What would they call it?” It succinctly captures another, inarguably unpopular sentiment nowadays, yet, as I have always maintained, such voices – anonymous, passionate, patriotic - may yet prove to be the most rational and may just save our country in the end. They deserve to be heard…..

Anonymous said...

It is quite clear that the “NBN-ZTE Deal” is a dead matter. Jun Lozada is merely being used as a political pawn by the opposition in its desperate attempts to steal power from the current administration. I come from the Visayas and very few people here care about political issues concerning the nation and yet I still feel the weak yet resonating effects of evil plots and acts of destabilization carried out by a few opposition Senators, Congressmen, radical priests and nuns, oppositionist businessmen and the media in Metro Manila. Cory Aquino has turned desperate and has nothing to do but call for the resignation of almost all the presidents that succeed her. She has lost her identity as she allows herself to be ingeniously manipulated by extreme oppositionists. The church should also refrain from joining and partaking in deliberate acts of politics. Bishops, priests, and nuns should remain NEUTRAL and reflect on their true purpose as the guardians of the people’s FAITH and MORALITY not as tools for political maneuverings headed by jejune oppositionist “trapos” seated in the Legislative Department. The Senate is a venue of legislation and is not to hold judiciary processes such as their so-called “inquiries” which in actuality are unconstitutional hearings benefiting only the opposition. The media are also to be considered as the merchants of chaos in the country. The media’s abuse of their right to published, aired and televised expression has gone too far and that it is quite obvious that THE LEADING TELEVISION NETWORK AND NEWSPAPER HAVE BECOME ONE-SIDED PROTEGES OF THE OPPOSITION who have confidingly upheld Lozada’s fake credibility to a point of worship and idolatry. Jun Lozada and that Madriaga coot have trifled with the sanctity of speaking under oath with their deceitful statements that tell of nothing but twisted versions of the truth as they are controlled as puppets by still anonymous handlers. I could really attest that it is highly probable that in the near future(several months from now when the opposition has extracted every single drop of political gain from Jun Lozada), Jun Lozada may be assassinated under the orders of his own oppositionist handlers who promise him large sums of money, security and privileges in exchange for his lies so that the Arroyo administration will be falsely blamed. Enough with the political circuses causing ruckuses to our country! I call for Charter Change towards a Parliamentary form of government wherein the Senate and Congress (the main beneficiaries of wealth through corruption) shall be dissolved and the opposition shall lose its power.All those in favor of Jun Lozada and Madriaga’s erroneous testimonies are not to be welcomed to post comments on blogsites and newspaper sections especially those who post rudimentary and dumb comments defending Lozada. They are gullible morons just like the majority of scoundrels in Metro Manila. Their use of the Filipino language instead of proper and precise English is informal and dictates that they, just like the majority of opposition supporters, are uneducated and are wretchedly in denial! I am a college student here in the “City of Friendship” and I am not being paid to articulate my opinion and I would never trade my self-principles for money! I do not need bribes to explicate my true opinions! Persons the likes of fanatic “Lozada-worshippers” insinuating false allegations against PGMA and her administration are to be obliterated. PGMA has done a lot of good for our country. A lot of infrastructure and economic development has and is still going on in our provinces. She has lifted the Filipino towards greater heights as she is the most qualified and able president in our forsaken country’s history. She has done nothing anomalous and only uneducated persons with low IQ’s easily believe the deceitful allegations against the president made by that “crying lady” Jun Lozada. Jun Lozada is a fool for having caused division and disunity in our country but I assure you who read my comment that we who live in the Visayas strongly support the president and her administration. Almost all of us here in the Visayas and a great percentage of the country support the president and we rebuke Lozada’s lies and false allegations. The media may exaggerate and falsely implicate that majority of the country distrust PGMA but it is all but a gargantuan lie for the facts point out that only Metro Manila is squabbling about these political issues. We have had enough of Metro Manila’s monopoly of political opinion and demonstration. They think they own the country! What about the greater majority of the country who think contrary to you who lurk in Metro Manila? Those who rally for the opposition are clearly destitute partisans being paid or morally manipulated to do the opposition’s bidding. How dare you blame our president! She has done nothing evil and corrupt. She did not directly cancel the “NBN ZTE” deal with China in order to preserve our country’s diplomatic relations for to automatically cancel the contract would be a huge insult towards the Chinese Government and may cause them to halt investments to our country thus starving numerous workers and laborers.
February 27, 2008 1:43 PM

What would they call it?

What would they call it, by the way, Edsa 3? Would Erap, a self-confessed “supporter” of Lozada, allow it ? After all he had already launched Edsa 3 right after his ouster by Edsa 2. Calling it an Edsa 4 would be too much for our national pride. As the President, aptly puts it, “the world will never forgive another Edsa (uprising)” because it would make a big, big mockery of our claim to democracy.

The reality is, and even the opposition realizes this, that the people do not want another Edsa. They may be angry with corruption but they knew that instigating chaos and toppling the government would do more harm than good. Choosing the next leadership alone is cause for another uprising and that would make us no worse than Somalia or Afghanistan. The prospect of constant bickering and continued instability is enough to restrain most ordinary folks from flocking to Edsa.

Puppets and Masters

Who is Jun Lozada? What motivates him?

Hindi ba sya pakawala lang ng mga taong makikinabang sa pagkakaroon ng kaguluhan sa bansa?
Sabihin na natin na wlang nag-udyok sa kanya noong una syang lumabas, pero hindi natin maikakaila na sya ngayon ay kisnkasangkapan ng mga taong gustong mgkaroon ng gulo sa bansa. Ilan dito ay ang mga:
*Makakaliwa
*Mga adbenturerong military
*Mga ganid na politico
*Mga politikong gustong gumanti kay GMA

Bago natin syang itanghal na bayani at pumayag tayong maging sunod-sunuran sa iskrip na kanilang sinusunod, kailangan natin pag-aralan ng mabuti kung sino ba tlaga si Jun Lozada.
Sapat na ba ang mga sinabi nya upang tayo’y mag-alsa laban sa ating pamahalaan?
Ano ba ang kasiguruhan na kapag napatalsik natin ang kasalukuyang pamahalaan ay UUNLAD at AASENSO ang ating buhay at kabuhayan?

May ilang sector ng lipunan, lalo na sa akademya at kinatawan ng iba’t-ibang relihiyon na nangangatwiran na hindi sapat na dahilan ang kawalang-kasiguruhan upang hindi natin pabagsakin ang gobyernong kasalukuyan. Ayon sa kanila dapat nating palitan ang gobyernong nagkasala sa pamamagitan ng pag-aalsa at hindi sa legal na paraan dahil nasa ating mga kamay ang kapangyarihan bilang “taong-bayan.” Ang tanong po:

Ano na lamang ang mangayayari sa ating lipunan kung sa bawat ma-dramang akusasyon laban sa pamahalaan tayo’y mag-aalsa at maghahasik ng kaguluhan at mananawagang palitan ang gobyerno? Liban sa magiging katawa-tawa tayo sa mata ng sandaigdigan, hindi ba ito pagbibigay-daan sa walang-katapusang panlipunang kaguluhan? Kung sa bawat reklamo laban sa pamahalaan tayo ay magpi-people power, paano na lang ang mga serbisyong panlipunan? Paano ang edukasyon, kalusugan, hudikatura, lehislatibo at iba pang gawaing gagampanan ng pamahalaan? KUNG MAY REKLAMO DALHIN SA HUKUMAN. SA PAMAMAGITAN LAMANG SA PAGTANGKILIK NATIN SA ATING MGA LEGAL NA INSTITUSYON MAGIGING MATATAG ANG ATING LIPUNAN. ANG PAG-AABUSO AT [OVER-USE] NG EXTRA-LEGAL NA PAMAMARAAN AY MAGBUBUNSOD LAMANG NG PAGKAKAWATAK-WATAK, ANARKIYA, AT HIGIT SA LAHAT ANG HINDI PAG-MATURE NG ATING POLITIKA.

Sa puntong TUNGKULIN (social responsibility) natin ang pag-aalsa laban sa katiwalian: (“Yes, we will march again if called for by circumstances. And again, and again and again, until those in government realizes that it is THE PEOPLE who are more powerful than them.”) hindi sukatan ng social responsibility ang pag-aalsa. Naparaming Pilipinong tinitingala sa buong mundo at nakapag-contribute ng malaki sa ating lipunan – mga scientists, artists, etc. – na ini-angat ang ating bansa na masasabi nating mas higit pa ang nagawa para sa bayan kesa sa mga “career destabilizers” na maituturing gaya nina Satur Ocampo, Rafael Mariano, Randy David, RC Constantino, BMP, KMU, BAYAN. Ayon sa website ng CPP: The ultimate aim of the CPP and its legal fronts is to “grab political power” establish a god-less communist regime and “redistribute land and nationalize all major industries.” Pag nalusutan tayo ng mga komunista baka magsisi kayo, De Venecia, Makati Business Club, Cojuangco-Aquino, Bishop Cruz and CBCP, mga kasapi ng civil society atbp.

Sleeping with the enemies of the state to advance self-interests is treason.

Of Means and ends

“The question is not whether the ends justifies the means, but rather, does this particular end justifies this particular means.” – Alinsky, Rules for Radicals


Jun Lozada is not an end, he is merely a means to an end. And he is serving his purpose well. These days, he is everywhere: radio, TV, newspapers, internet. Then there’s his personal appearances at campus rallies, noise barrages and what-not. As Mang Ben, our nosy neighbor puts it, “Lamay nalang ata ang di nito pinupuntahan.” (Who knows, Mang Ben, Lozada may have already done so). This is not surprising, what with his handlers making no secret of their desire to use him as a beacon for an uprising. But do they really want an uprising? Is the downfall of the Arroyo government their ultimate aim?

Wary of the chaos brought about by Jun Lozada and watching growing efforts to overthrow the government had me wishing for a Filipino Lee Kwan Yew. And this got me thinking, maybe this is what they really wanted: ordinary people like you and me yearning for a “stronger, more decisive hand” to steer our nation towards genuine social progress. Are we not being lead to think in a particular way, to benefit certain political interests?

In this light, I’d rather have Lozada than a military junta, though the two are dangerously becoming synonymous!

Scandalous

I have tolerated to the point of exasperation Jun Lozada’s antics, tears and all. I have given him the benefit of the doubt since that early morning news conference he gave at La Salle . I even came close to heralding him as the new face of integrity and conscientiousness within the bureaucracy, the proverbial lone burning lamp in the stormy seas of our political system. Yet my high regard for him have diminished by the day.

Overpriced goats, reckless dispersal of public lands to relatives and friends, kickbacks from previous government projects he had been involved with, and more… all these have slowly eroded Lozada’s credibility. But the most damning thing he ever did was to dance to the tune of his new marching band(his patrons)…and go around schools convincing kids (as young as pre-schoolers) to support an uprising against the government. Such blatant manipulation reeks of goat-shit. Unable to convince the masses to join them in renewed bid to grab political power, the political opposition (a friend calls them the disgruntled opposition) are trying to mobilize the youth by USING the religious sector and the media and just about everybody else who dares falls into the trap of their Jun Lozada script.

I agree that it is the duty of every citizen to be concerned with the affairs of government but we must NEVER fall into the trap set by politicians who have shown no qualms of using public opinion in the furtherance their selfish ends. The danger of Jun Lozada is not in the exposure of seemingly unbridled corruption in government: It is in manipulating the political power of the people and abusing popular will in order to serve self-serving interests.

Enlisting kids to join in subverting authority is one example.

This we cannot allow.

The loudest of them all

Amidst the hysterical calls for revolution and uprising brought upon by Jun Lozada (or Jel as Bondying fondly calls him), there are a tiny voices amongst us that in the end may prove to be the loudest and sanest and may yet save our country from going to the dogs (or, as you please, to the goats).

Disparate groups of individuals and organizations have braved the tumultuous current of popular opinion and called for sobriety and letting the rule of law, not of the mob, reign.

The Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches (PCEC), a network of denominations, churches, mission groups and para-church organizations in the Philippines, for example, have called for those planning to use extra-judicial means "to be prudent." In a statement, it added: "Our nation can no longer bear any political upheaval. Let’s just wait for the 2010 elections. Such calls for prudence seems like a whisper in din caused by Lozada.

A group of concerned women from the Mahal Ko Bayan Ko have issued also issued a statement calling for “sobriety and true patriotism,” saying we must avoid playing into the hands of “malevolent groups out to grab power by all means”. Such words should lead us to ponder upon the reality of it all. Are we not being played for suckers by some master puppeteers?

Another group calling itself the Kongreso ng Mamamayan, even came out with a full-page ad in the Philippine Daily Inquirer asking us for a long, hard look at Jun Lozada. The ads have made the group a target of criticisms for questioning the popular hero that is Lozada. The said group, in a statement defending itself, have this to ask: "Why is it that whenever a group like us advocate peace, unity and progress, it is branded pro-government and, worse, mercenary? Do our critics advocate civil strife, disunity and backwardness?" Oh, well...

But what if these groups happens to be right? Do we need an Edsa 4 to correct our mistakes again?

Gone, baby, gone….

It’s funny. Picture this: The knight in shining armor, riding the white steed of truth, cloaked in histrionics, waving to an adulating crowd; bible-quoting, hero-worshipping, parable-laden; mouthing such virtues as truth, patriotism, sacrifice, dignity and liberation… all the while dragging along a prized herd of filthy goats each worth P35,000...

No, this can’t be the hero of our times. Much as I would like to sympathize (in fact, I do, considering his predicament and the obvious risks he’s taking for his “unseen” and equally-patriotic paymasters) with Jun Lozada, his demeanor turns me so off.

He paints himself as a simple probinsyanong intsik and a poor, sympathetic one at that, yet by his own admission, he had made hundreds of millions as a telecom businessman. That alone grates on my senses. Why misrepresent himself?

The guy seems to have a perfect grasp of mass propaganda and social psychology (or is it him alone?) that he can twist and smile and cry and quote his way to public sympathy. When confronted by his own wrongdoings, he readily admits to them, unmindful of the legal consequences (reminds me of one Jose Velarde, the owner admitting ownership of the account, nearly sending his lawyers to suicide and self-invoked hypertensive attacks). The mea culpa played right into the hands of public opinion. Carrions in the media pounced on the new hero they have found, sending ratings and circulations up. And of course the sentinels of our democracy, the opposition, the ever-ambitious, politically-immatured opposition, rides on the coat-tails of the hero.

Tell me, who among our politicians are clean? Who have not succumbed to the trappings and benefits of political influence? Tell me, Noynoy, and I’d slap your face with the whole weight of an un-CARPable Hacienda Luisita. Tell me, Allan Peter, and I’d dig your father to teach you the perils of membership in Kapamilya Inc. Let him who without sin file the first certificate of candidacy.

The continued manipulation of public opinion is so outrageous to the point of hideousness. One of these days, history will catch up with all of you, heroes and traitors alike.

Then we’ll bury you all deep in goat shit.

Who gains?

Sick and tired... we all are.

Sick of the politicking, tired of the posturings. Sick of selective Senate inquiries, tired of manipulating the masses.

Suppose President Arroyo goes now, who gains? If we take a moment to look at the present players in the ruckus created by JLO Lozada, we might not go out rushing to the streets, screaming for revolution, whether moral or not. (A note: one wonders if there ever is a moral revolution - all revolutions are exigencies of history and has nothing whatsoever to do with morality. Though fine men and women throughout history have espoused revolutions, not one of them was a dethroned Speaker. But that is another story).

There is a buzz that Lozada may not be lonesome cowboy taking on the State. His secret meetings with opposition senators have done more to fan the suspicion that he may be following a well-written script produced to affect not only the outcome of the 2010 elections but to test the waters for an immediate power grab. There is no lack of personalities and groups that are drooling over the idea of ascending into political power right away. Especially those who have 3rd or 4th-rate chances to win in 201o....

With the Pinoy penchant for telenovelas, Lozada's antics (and the script he closely follows) was just what the politicians needed. In the face of GMA's political consolidation, with the opposition in disarray or close to it due to unbridled self-interest among presidentiables, Jun Lozada was a blessing from heaven or from nether. Or is he a simple probinsyanong intsik thrust into the limelight of our history? Or is he a brilliant part of a diabolic plot to topple the government with us, the people, the unwitting accomplices of our own doom?

We'd welcome a little stablity and let our politcal system grow a bit more mature and let the electoral process assume a life of its own. American democracy, for all its flaws and strengths, did not come to pass overnight. We cant' have people power every forthnight and make a mockery of our own judicial system.