GMA 'off the record' at the Inquirer

GMA 'off the record' at the Inquirer

Updated 11:10pm (Mla time) Nov 28, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 29, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


AFTER ARRIVING Friday morning from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, then going to the typhoon-ravaged provinces in the Bicol Region, and receiving Angelito Nayan at Malacañang, President Macapagal-Arroyo still managed to go to the Inquirer offices in Makati the same evening for a late dinner with the newspaper's senior editors, executives, columnists and reporters. She stayed for three hours, chatting until 1 a.m.

Alas, most of what she said was "off the record," so we can't report the more interesting part of her talkathon.

"When I start sipping wine, what I say is usually off the record," the President said. Since she started sipping red wine quite early, you can imagine how much of what she said you are going to miss. Whenever somebody started scribbling, the President would call him or her by name and say "off the record." What she said "on the record," you've already read in the three front-page stories written by Malacañang reporter Juliet Labog-Javellana and in the column of Belinda Olivares-Cunanan in Saturday's Inquirer.

"Off the record" interviews are very useful to journalists as background information. Because of them, journalists get a fuller understanding of facts and information when they write other stories later on. So even if nothing is written about these "off the record" sessions, they are not wasted.

Another benefit of "off the record" interviews is that the subject becomes more frank, less guarded and less inhibited. When a subject is speaking "on the record," he thinks twice before opening his mouth, and he chooses his words carefully lest he gets to say the wrong thing or gets to be misunderstood. Even so, subjects sometimes do say the wrong things or are misunderstood and have to issue denials or statements clarifying what they had said earlier-as what happened to presidential son Rep. Mikey Arroyo two days ago on his statement supporting a bill legalizing marijuana.

But when it is understood that what he is going to say is "off the record," a subject can blurt out confidential information, even secrets, and he can be sure that these secrets will stay as such.

It is during these sessions that the discerning journalist gets an insight into the character of his subject and understands him and what he says better and in the right context.

The image of public figures is usually impressed on the public by the glare of media. Sometimes, this image is false, often the result of expert manipulation by their publicity handlers. The words, the speeches they utter are not theirs but those of ghost writers. Sometimes, even the ideas are not theirs but those of many advisers, writers and spin masters.

This falsity and manipulation continue in press conferences and interviews. Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish the real person from the artificial public figure.

Even "authorized" biographies are sometimes manipulated. Since the biography is "authorized" by the subject, you can be sure that what the biographer writes is what the subject wants the public to read about him-and naturally, that is what is complimentary to him. Not so with "unauthorized" biographies that are hated by their subjects, some of whom even try to stop their publication. Examples are the "unauthorized" biographies of celebrities written by Kitty Kelley, the latest of which is on the Bush family. The public image of the family of the two American presidents is very different from the Bush family that Ms Kelley wrote about.

But back to President Arroyo and her "off the record" chat with the Inquirer, I have revised some of my impressions of her because of that chat. Contrary to my earlier impression that she is overdoing her handshaking routine in the provinces in a desperate effort to remain popular, I think she has now accepted the fact that she cannot make everybody happy. She has now resigned herself to being unpopular.

In emphasizing that she would push her unpopular tax measures through Congress, she blurted out, "I'm already unpopular anyway."

However, she does not want to be unpopular with the members of Congress because they may block her tax measures. She was very evasive when asked about the restoration of the pork barrel in full by the congressmen. It may be recalled that she had earlier asked them to cut it by 40 percent.

I also got the impression that she is a cockeyed optimist. She is confident that Congress will pass four tax measures before year-end, that these measures will yield an additional P80 billion in taxes, and that the pork barrel will stay cut. Does she really have that much faith in our legislators, or was she just pretending?

But how determined is she? She seems to be very strong-willed, as if she can do anything through sheer will power.

* * *

Winners in this year's NVM Gonzalez Awards for the Short Story category will get their prizes at ceremonies to be held starting 4 p.m. tomorrow at the Executive House, University of the Philippines, Diliman campus, Quezon City.

First prize winner is Angelo R. Lacuesta for his short story "Rest Stop."

Second prize winner is Arvin Aejo Magohig for "Megastar."

Third prize goes to U.Z. Eliserio for "The Proper Use of Elbows."

Another story by Lacuesta, "Leather," was also a finalist.

* * *

Also tomorrow is the reunion of the alumni of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters (Philets) and Faculty of Arts and Letters (Artlets) of the University of Sto. Tomas at the Manila Hotel starting at 7 p.m.

* * *

No Kapihan sa Manila at the Manila Hotel this morning to allow people to enjoy the holiday.

What, congressmen want more pork?

What, congressmen want more pork?

Updated 01:23am (Mla time) Nov 26, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 26, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


NOT content with restoring in full their pork barrel allocations (at P70 million per congressman and P200 million per senator), 20 members of the House of Representatives have signed a resolution asking the Speaker and the appropriations committee chair to increase their pork allocations. And they're not ashamed of it, they admitted.

Their greed knows no bounds. Like the greedy ogre who kept squeezing the goose that laid the golden eggs for more eggs, shouting "More! More! More!" until the poor goose died, the greedy congressmen are squeezing the taxpayers, shouting "More! More! More!" when the taxpayers have nothing more to give.

These 20 congressmen claim they need more pork because they represent the 20 "poorest provinces." They may indeed be "poor" but they hardly need additional pork. Most of them are island provinces with small areas and even smaller populations.

To give you one example, let's take the province of Batanes. The whole province has a population smaller than that of one “barangay” [neighborhood district] in Quezon City. Yet its congressman gets P70 million in pork year after year, the same as the congressman for Malabon City and Navotas town, which share one representative in the House. All the streets of Batanes are now concreted, including the one leading to the house of its congressman, so where will the additional pork go? He cannot build more waiting sheds because there is hardly any public transportation there and the main island of Batan is so small one can walk from one end to the other. So where will the additional pork go?

Besides, haven't they heard that the national government is bankrupt and can't balance its budget and pay its foreign debt? And that the government is squeezing its citizens-already hard pressed by the rising prices of everything -- of more taxes? And that Congress itself is in the process of passing more tax measures? How can our lawmakers have the temerity to impose more taxes when they themselves will spend much of that money? They have no moral right to do that. But they are not ashamed to do that. Really shameless!

So what can the people do if Congress goes through with this shameless betrayal, and if the President gets cold feet and does not veto the pork allocations? In such a case, I think the people are justified in waging a tax boycott. They can't afford to pay any more in the first place. They don't even have enough for their daily needs.

So Mrs. President, "honorable" congressmen, “maawa naman kayo. Mahiya naman kayo.”

* * *

Remember the Smokey Mountain reclamation scandal exposed by former solicitor general Frank Chavez and Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago? They said it was unconstitutional and made several government financial institutions lose billions of pesos. Well, it is turning out that the expos‚s were only the smoke from a fire smoldering in, of all places, the sea, if we are to believe Parañaque City Representative Ed Zialcita. He blames the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) for igniting the fire.

You see, the flash point is the competition between an established monopoly in port operations and a newcomer with better facilities and cheaper rates. On one side are the International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), the Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI), and the North Harbor and South Harbor; on the other side is the new Harbour Centre, owned by R-II Builders. These four ports compete with one another in attracting ships and cargo to their respective service areas.

R-II Builders! Isn't that the firm that reclaimed and developed the Smokey Mountain housing project? Exactly. As payment for developing the project and reclaiming the land, R-II was allowed the use of 2.79 hectares out of the 79 hectares of reclaimed land. R-II developed the 2.79 hectares into Harbour Centre.

Harbour Centre got the PPA permit to handle all kinds of domestic cargo and foreign bulk and break-bulk cargo. The port now handles 80 percent of all bulk and break-bulk cargo coming into Manila ports because of greater efficiency and lower rates. The half-price service rate offered by Harbour Centre can be seen as the fruits of competition. Zialcita adds that this could be an indication "that the rates of existing port operators -- ICTSI and ATI -- are grossly overpriced."

In the competition, the PPA is the referee, vested with regulatory powers. Not only the referee, and a biased one at that, but also the judge, jury and executioner.

To date, the PPA has not given Harbour Centre a permit to handle foreign containerized cargo. Why? To protect the monopoly of ICTSI and ATI on the lucrative container traffic, says Zialcita. What's more, the monopoly was extended without public bidding and the contracts increased the scope of services that were not in the original contract.

Zialcita asked a number of questions in a privilege speech in the House:

1. Is the PPA regulating against competition to protect its own interest (it owns some ports) even at the expense of public interest?

2. Will the PPA, ICTSI and ATI lose from the competition from Harbour Centre?

3. Is it true that the same members of the so-called "consortium" that wanted to monopolize the entire port system in the country under the controversial Executive Order 59 (one operator nationwide, no bidding formula) are the same parties the PPA is protecting?

4. Has EO 308, rescinding EO 59 to promote competition and transparency in the privatization of North Harbor, been implemented?

5. Whatever happened to the Phividec container port in Cagayan de Oro City? What is happening in the ports of Cebu, Batangas, General Santos City, and Subic?

6. How much has the government lost and will continue to lose from the favor extended by the PPA to members of the "consortium"?

GMA can still veto restored pork barrel

GMA can still veto restored pork barrel

Updated 03:59am (Mla time) Nov 22, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 22, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


PERHAPS, the story was too good to be true: Malacañang would cut the congressional pork barrel by at least 40 percent, and Congress would revert back to line-item budgeting to prevent half of the budgeted funds from going to kickbacks and being wasted in substandard public works projects. Perhaps, the public was being too gullible in believing the words of the President, the Speaker of the House and the congressmen that they were reducing the pork budget because of the fiscal crisis.

As all rotten things eventually stink, the truth is out: legislators will get their pork barrel in full-not a centavo less. Happy days are here again (for the members of Congress, but sad days for taxpayers). After all, the President herself has declared that the fiscal crisis is over. That was the signal to dive for the treasury like predators tearing into the carcass of their victim, or like swine digging their snouts into slop. If the President can spend tens of millions of scarce dollars traipsing all over the Americas, why should the legislators control their own greed and refrain from getting their share of the loot?

Well then, if the fiscal crisis is over and the government doesn't have to tighten its belt anymore, then there is no more need to increase taxes and to impose new ones. Why burden the people when it is not called for? Why ask the people to contribute to the Bayanihan Fund when there is no more crisis?

Even Budget Secretary Emilia Boncodin, who had submitted the budget with 40 percent of the pork barrel slashed, has now changed her tune. She now has good words for the much-maligned pork.

"I think the root cause of that (allegations that the fund has been abused and a major source of corruption) is the assumption that all pork barrel funds are lost to corruption which I think is a very unfair assumption," Boncodin said.

The President and her spokespersons have chosen not to comment.

But this will test the mettle of the President to push for reforms, reduce the budget deficit and the foreign debt, and nurse the economy back to health. But all indications point to the fact that she is a quack doctor, a fake who will lead her patient to his death. It looks like she will just lean back and do nothing so as not to displease the lawmakers. Why is she so scared of them when they are more rotten than her?

But if she is really sincere to push fiscal reforms, she can still do something even if Congress passes a budget bill with the pork barrel intact. She can still resort to line-item veto of pork hidden in specific appropriations. Congress cannot increase the total national budget submitted by the budget department, so the House must have taken the funds to restore the pork barrel in full from the appropriations of some other departments. What those departments are, nobody except the congressmen know yet.

Fortunately, the budget will still pass through the Senate which, hopefully, will restore sanity to it. The people have a little more respect for the senators in general (with some noteworthy exceptions, of course). But will the Senate live up to the people's expectations?

* * *

That was fast. On the same day that our column-about the plight of a disabled retiree being given the runaround at the Government Service Insurance System-came out, I got a faxed reply from Alex M. Valencerina, GSIS senior vice president for field operations.

Thank you very much for calling our attention to the plight of GSIS pensioner Mrs. Nenita U. Socrates, he wrote. "Immediately after reading it, we conducted a thorough background check to determine what we can do to help her.

"Based on our inquiries here at the home office, we learned that, indeed, Ms Socrates sent GSIS president Winston Garcia a handwritten letter last Nov. 1 asking for help. We received the letter, postmarked Nov. 4, last Nov. 10 (almost one week later; how slow) before it was forwarded to the concerned unit (the Pension Accounts Department) for proper action.

"Unfortunately, we were still preparing our reply when your column came up. We offer no excuses for the delay. It is just that, in an agency managing 1.5 million members with multiple accounts and transactions, things sometimes get out of hand, especially in the midst of an ongoing reform program which we are currently undertaking.

"Part of this program is to update the membership profile of all our individual members, pensioners and retirees and to feed these valuable data into our computerized database, a very basic process that unfortunately was never put in place during the past GSIS administrations.

"The systems-generated letter we sent Ms Socrates informing her that her pension would be suspended if she failed to update her records is simply part of our procedures to improve our database because, in the process of updating our records, we found out that the GSIS has been paying out pensions to members and retirees who have long passed away as we had no effective way of checking the actual physical conditions of our pensioners all over the country. Thus, we now require them to physically report to our offices at least once a year to secure or renew their identification cards.

"For pensioners who are unable to physically go to our offices, as in the case of Ms Socrates, we have a home visit program. As of this writing, GSIS personnel from the Quezon City branch are on the way to visit her and facilitate the issuance or renewal of her ID to avoid any disruption to her pension benefits.

"We have also called Ms Socrates to offer our apologies and to assure her that she will continue to receive her pension checks regularly."

Disabled GSIS pensioner pleads for help

Disabled GSIS pensioner pleads for help

Updated 03:21am (Mla time) Nov 19, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 19, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


IS there a jinx haunting former President Corazon Aquino? Barely 11 months into her term as the country's president, 12 farmers picketing Malacañang were killed in the infamous "Mendiola Massacre." Four days ago, seven farmer-strikers were killed in what is now being billed as the "Hacienda Luisita Massacre." (The casualty number has gone up to 14 as of yesterday.) Neither of them is her fault; the fault lies with trigger-happy soldiers and policemen. But alas, her name and that of her family will always be associated with these tragedies.

Who sent the soldiers to Hacienda Luisita? Who gave the order to shoot? Who among them actually shot at the crowd? Were there infiltrators among the strikers?

These and a thousand and one other questions have to be answered satisfactorily by those assigned to investigate the incident.

* * *

When people lose faith in government institutions, when public officials don't listen to them and give them the runaround, they run for help to the media. But the media have no authority to force public officials to do their jobs. All they can do is to let the public know about the problem, the complaint, and hope something will be done about it.

Like other journalists, I get plenty of such appeals for help, and I write about those that I find meritorious as much as space permits. Still, some don't get the publicity. There's just not enough space for all of them.

But I think our public officials should attend to this SOS from an 81-year-old widow. She has suffered a stroke, is partially paralyzed and is confined to a wheelchair. She used to be a professor of the University of the Philippines. She is now retired and survives on her pension from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).

Her plea for help has a certain urgency because her pension would be stopped next month if she fails to submit certain documents to the GSIS before Nov. 30. Her name is Mrs. Nenita U. Socrates, in case this rings a bell to certain GSIS employees or to General Manager Winston Garcia himself. She said she has written a letter to Garcia but, until now, she has not received any response, not even an acknowledgement; no help either, "not even just an advice on what to do," despite numerous follow-up phone calls.

She sent me a copy of the letter she sent to Garcia. In it, she acknowledged receipt of a letter from the GSIS main office telling her that she has no pensioner's identification card or that she has not renewed it if she already has one. "Enumerated in the letter were papers I had to accomplish and secure and personally take to the main office" at the reclamation area off Roxas Boulevad in Pasay City. Mrs. Socrates lives in Quezon City. She has until Nov. 30 to do all these; otherwise her pension would be stopped.

"I was flabbergasted," she wrote, "because I have been receiving my pension for the last 35 years without these requirements. Furthermore, this was the first time I heard of such requirements."

Because she was disabled, she said she called the main office to ask to be allowed to submit the required documents to the GSIS branch in Quezon City. She was given permission to do so.

She had to "move heaven and earth" to procure the needed documents and satisfy the GSIS requirements. "There is no one to help me," she said, "except my 55-year-old caregiver without whose help living is difficult for me, even dangerous. It is impossible for me to even feed myself.

"When all the requirements were met, I sent my caregiver to the GSIS, QC branch. She came home after spending more than four hours in that office, trying to submit those damn requirements to no avail. She was informed by one employee that she has to go to the main office; another [told her] that papers of pensioners were not being processed yet (but could not tell when it could be done). Still another guard advised her to join the kilometric line; many of those in the line said they had been there since three hours after midnight. Not one guard or personnel she approached could tell her what the line was for. Those in line gave different reasons for lining up, most to get an E-card, but none were trying to apply for a pensioner's ID. I tried personally phoning the main office but which is next to impossible."

She added: "I am aware many government offices are belatedly trying to initiate reforms which is commendable. But look at the confusion, displacement, disarray, loss of income, wasted hours, effort and money resulting in anger on the part of persons affected by such disorder. Why is it not possible for the office concerned, especially its head, to sit down and involve brilliant and efficient organizers to map out a plan that would make the execution of these reforms client-friendly and comfortable?"

What does the GSIS want her to do now? "Sit down at the curb of a street and ask for alms when my pension ceases?" she asked. "I cannot survive without my monthly pension especially because it will be withheld starting December, Christmastime. Please help me."

Let me summarize the problem: Mrs. Socrates has completed the documents the GSIS is asking from her. Since she is disabled and the main office is very far from her residence, she asked the GSIS if she may submit them to the Quezon City branch and was told she may. But when she sent her helper to the Quezon City branch to submit the documents, she was given the runaround. She wrote to Mr. Winston Garcia but has not gotten any reply.

She is now rather frantic because the GSIS has threatened to stop her pension starting next month if she does not submit the papers before Nov. 30. What should she do? Can anybody help her?

Bad news for abducted Filipinos

Bad news for abducted Filipinos?

Updated 01:48am (Mla time) Nov 17, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 17, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


THE MUCH ballyhooed phone call of President George W. Bush to President Gloria Mapacagal-Arroyo may be good news for Malacañang, but it could be very bad news for abducted Filipinos Angelito Nayan and Roberto Tarongoy. The phone call and the selection of the Philippines to lead the anti-terror task force of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation may prompt President Arroyo to sacrifice them to prove a hardline stance against terrorists.

Angelo de la Cruz was a lucky victim. President Arroyo pulled the Filipino troops out of Iraq to save him before Bush could cold-shoulder her. Since then, she has been trying hard to get back into his good graces. Nayan and Tarongoy may not get the same compassionate treatment.

President Arroyo is so scared her plummeting popularity would hit rock bottom that she is courting everybody, when all she needs to do to be loved by the people is to do her job properly and get the ship of state back on keel.

* * *

Quezon City Treasurer Victor Endriga sent a letter commenting on my three columns regarding a lot sold by his office at public auction without the knowledge of the owners.

In his letter, Endriga said the "Del Rosarios should have endeavored to have the Tax Declaration transferred in their name. It is certainly not the fault of the city government that they failed to do this. How can the Del Rosarios be informed when they were not yet officially registered as the owner of the property concerned?"

(The Transfer Certificate of Title was already in their name, the transfer tax and other fees paid, said the Del Rosarios. For such a serious matter that would deprive a family of its property, the Quezon City treasurer should have exercised more prudence by verifying the ownership of the property through other documents -- which are literally at his fingertips -- before selling it, the couple say. Besides, Endriga didn't follow the rules, thus denying them due process, they added.)

"The auctioned property is specifically identified as Lot 29, Block 3, located at No. 19, and not at No. 10 as written in your column, Arzobispo Street, New Intramuros Village, Quezon City as per Tax Declaration No. D-67-1849," continued Endriga.

(The lot was sold long before the column was written. The address in the column didn't matter.)

"Our office complied with all the requirements and processes before the said property was sold at public auction."

(The owners don't think so. Anyway, the requirements and processes are intended to prevent mistakes and a miscarriage of justice. Endriga's actions resulted in a monumental error and miscarriage of justice that should be rectified.)

"We do not wish to make further comments on this since this case is now pending before the Court.

"Your suggestions on what the city administration should do about the problems of squatters are well-taken. They are exactly what Mayor Feliciano Belmonte has been doing since he was elected mayor in 2001. In fact, the city government has created a corporation, the Housing and Urban Renewal Administration (HURA) -- perhaps the first local government to do so -- tasked solely with building medium-rise and affordable housing units for urban poor families, particularly the informal settlers or squatters. I am aware of this program since I am the corporate secretary of HURA.

"The first such project at Escopa III is now almost ready for occupancy. Similar projects will soon be undertaken all over the city. Mayor Belmonte is also exerting efforts to acquire ideal relocation sites for the city's informal settlers."

(Another thing that the mayor should do is to prevent the entry of new squatters, otherwise there would be no end to the squatter problem and Quezon City would just exhaust all its resources without solving it. Also, prevent councilors and “barangay” [neighborhood district council] officials from coddling squatters and encouraging them to squat in Quezon City in exchange for their votes.)

"It is unfair to say that Quezon City became rich because it raised real estate property taxes. It still has one of the lowest rates of real estate taxes in Metro Manila. May we also point out that most of the income of the city government comes from business taxes. The city gained financial stability through efficient collection and the cooperation of the business community."

(But what is the government doing in exchange for the taxes paid? Is it helping the taxpaying owners to eject squatters from their properties? Is it protecting their properties from new squatters? Auctioning a property by mistake can hardly be called "efficient.")

"We are not unforgiving in our tax collection efforts. In fact, we offer substantial discounts for those who pay promptly their tax obligations. We also allow delinquent taxpayers to settle their obligations in easy installments after paying at least 30 percent of their delinquency."

(Why were the Del Rosarios not given such treatment? After the discovery of the error, why is the city government playing hardball instead of rectifying it?)

"The case of the Del Rosarios is clearly an isolated case. We exert all efforts to notify real estate owners on their overdue obligations. We have not been arbitrary nor capricious in selling at public auction delinquent real estate properties."

(Really? What effort? The Del Rosarios were living on the property that you sold. How come they could not be located before the auction but were easily found after the sale?

I am not heaping the blame on Mr. Endriga; He could not have foreseen everything that could go wrong. But his subordinates were clearly negligent and should be punished to prevent a repetition of this snafu.)

Arafat and how the Mideast conflict started

Arafat and how the Mideast conflict started

Updated 11:12pm (Mla time) Nov 14, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 15, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


YASSER Arafat was a paradox, a man of contradictions: denounced as a terrorist but a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, along with his Israeli enemies, then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres; despised by the Israelis but loved by the Palestinians; a villain to much of the Western world but a hero to the Arabs; a fighter who, by his own admission, carried an olive branch in one hand and a gun in the other.

Even in death, he personifies contradictions. Half of the world mourns his demise, while the other half rejoices. Israelis believe his death will at last bring peace to the Middle East. But others fear it could spark a new wave of violence.

Arafat called himself a "freedom fighter," but he was widely known as a "terrorist." As leader of the Al Fatah movement that became the core of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, he sent gunmen to hijack airliners, machine-gun airports and, at one time, to seize and kill Israeli athletes bound for the 1972 Summer Olympics.

But the early leaders of the Jewish Zionist movement were "terrorists" themselves although they also called themselves "freedom fighters." Many of them became prime ministers of Israel. Without terrorism, Israel probably would not have been born. Without Arafat-who probably learned from the Zionist movement-there would be no Palestine nation now. Like the Israeli leaders, Arafat, the Arab terrorist, became the president of his people. Ironically, the early leaders of the two bitterly warring nations, Israel and Palestine, were birds of the same feather, brothers under the skin.

Arafat died before his dream of a separate, independent Palestinian state became a reality. But when an independent Palestine is born, Arafat will surely be hailed as its founder.

When the history of the Middle East is written, the Western world and the Arab world would have different versions. Arafat would be a villain in one but a hero in the other. History, after all, is written by the victors. Had Germany and Japan won World War II, Adolf Hitler and Hideki Tojo would have been hailed as heroes, and Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill would have been reviled as war criminals. And it would have been Gen. Douglas MacArthur who would have been hanged by Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, and not the other way around.

The Middle East conflict has been going on for a long time. When you think about it, it goes back to the biblical times, back to the time Moses parted the Red Sea as he led the Hebrews out of Egypt and out of bondage; and to the time Joshua brought them to the Promised Land-now the site of the present Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip (the latter two are occupied by the Palestinians).

The Hebrews said this land of milk and honey was promised to them by God. Unfortunately, there were already tribes living there. They were the ancestors of the Palestinians who claim they have more right to the land (earlier called Palestine) than the Hebrews, or Jews, or Israelis, who came later. In modern times, the Hebrews would be called "squatters" or "informal settlers."

But the Hebrews waged war on the tribes and founded their own kingdom of Israel that flowered during the reigns of King Solomon and King David. Israel later divided into two kingdoms, Israel and Judah. Divided, they were successively conquered by invading armies and the Jewish people dispersed and ceased to be a nation.

But the dispersed Jews never ceased to dream of going back to the homeland. The Zionist movement to establish the state of Israel was born. The League of Nations was sympathetic to the idea, but World War II interfered. The Holocaust, during which Jews in Europe were gassed to death in Hitler's concentration camps, gave the movement urgency.

After the war, the United Nations carved the state of Israel in the Middle East. The Arab world opposed this and when the Israeli state was born, armies from the surrounding Arab countries attacked it. That was the famous Six-Day War that Israel won decisively. The Arabs waged succeeding wars but were always defeated. This resulted in Israel occupying border territories that they refuse to return on the ground that they serve as a buffer zone against the hostile raids by Palestinian guerrillas.

Arafat and the PLO were able to win some form of autonomy for the Palestinians, but they insist on an independent state. In return, Israel wants to be accepted as an independent state with a right to be there. Both sides refuse to give in. And there the matter stands. Many people on both sides have already died-and more will surely die-because of this stubbornness.

It is said that the enmity between the Jews and the Arabs goes farther back than Moses and Joshua, back to Abraham. According to the Bible, Abraham had a wife, Sarah, who couldn't beget a child, so Abraham took his maid and had a son by her. Later, however, Sarah gave birth to her own son. As most wives usually do, she nagged Abraham to get rid of the maid and her son. And like most husbands, Abraham caved in to the wife's nagging and cast the poor maid and her son into the desert.

In the desert, as the boy lay dying of thirst, the maid prayed to God to save her son. An angel appeared to her and said they would be saved. Water flowed from under the boy. It became a spring from where they drank, and they were saved. It is said that the Arabs descended from this boy and that the Jews descended from the son of Sarah.

* * *

TODAY'S JOKE: Lady outside phone booth to man on phone: "Excuse me, sir, you've had the phone for the past 30 minutes but you haven't said a word."

Man: "Puwede ba, I'm talking to my wife."

Plug tax leaks first before raising taxes

Plug tax leaks first before raising taxes

Updated 03:27am (Mla time) Nov 12, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 12, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


THE HOUSE of Representatives has passed the bill increasing the "sin taxes," but the sins were not treated equally. Tobacco was taxed much higher than alcohol. For which reason Sen. Ralph Recto said the tax bill "should not prescribe unequal acts of contrition by the two sinners. The wages of sin should be equal."

Compare the tax load on the two sin products:

For every P1 cigarette sale, almost 40 centavos goes to tax. Last year, out of gross tobacco sales of P49.6 billion, P19.4 billion went to the Treasury as excise tax, Recto said.

But for every peso paid for gin, rum, brandy and whisky, only 14 centavos goes to tax. Last year, out of gross sales of P34.77 billion of distilled spirits, only P4.78 billion was paid in taxes.

And in the case of cigarettes, shouldn't we plug the tax leaks first before raising taxes again? Because of the high prices of cigarettes due to high taxes, smuggling is rampant. Increase the taxes some more and smuggling will also increase.

Last year, we lost P2.9 billion in revenues through smuggling, according to Rep. Joey Salceda. He said cigarettes are able to escape taxes through Section 131 of the tax code that exempts cigarettes and liquor from excise taxes if these are transacted in Subic or Clark. In short, this is one form of "legalized smuggling."

Salceda said that if the idea of excise taxes is to penalize consumption of products with high social and health costs, it must apply to the products wherever they are sold. Imported cigarettes brought in through Clark, Subic and the Southern backdoor also cause lung cancer like those made and sold in the Philippines.


* * *

The Christmas season is also the season for reunions, and journalists, although most of their waking hours are spent chasing stories, are not spared this human yearning to see old friends and relive joyful times together. Although competition among reporters is very keen during working hours, camaraderie takes over after deadline. Bonding is exceptionally strong among journalists. When journalists happen to work together, they usually remain friends for life. And because many journalists work for different newspapers in the course of their careers, their friends are spread out not only in the industry but also in other fields, as many of them move on to politics and government, to business, law, advertising, public relations, etc.

By coincidence, veterans of different newspapers that have been closed by martial law are holding reunions this month and next. Most of them now work for other newspapers, but the call of old times together still pull them.

This Sunday, Nov. 14, alumni of the old Manila Chronicle (not to be confused with the new Manila Chronicle in the same way that the old Manila Times should not be confused with the new Manila Times) will reunite for lunch at Casa Armas, off Tomas Morato Avenue, Quezon City. The host is Mayor Feliciano Belmonte, who was a young police reporter of the Chronicle back when I.P. Soliongco, Armando Malay and Celso Cabrera were its top columnists.

On Nov. 20, it will be the turn of the veterans of the Daily Globe to get together for dinner at the Sanville, Quezon City residence of Rolando Estabillo, who was its managing editor before he joined Philippine Airlines as vice president for corporate communications.

And on Dec. 9, the alumni of The Evening News, which used to be the No. 1 newspaper back in the 1950s until a labor strike closed it (martial law closed the later Evening News that replaced it), will have their dinner-reunion at the Sunrise Terrace in Legaspi Village, Makati. Melody Santos-Drexler, who was one of its deskgirls when I was its managing editor and slot man, surrounded by the most beautiful, shapely and bright young girls in Philippine journalism then (among them, Julie Yap, Bobbie Malay, Carmen Hernandez, Minnie Montemayor, Mona Cabili), is hosting the dinner. Carmen, who is now residing in the United States, is coming home just for the reunion.

On Nov. 30, the biggest reunion will be held at the Manila Hotel for the alumni of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters (Philets) and the Faculty of Arts and Letters (Artlets) of the University of Sto. Tomas. Most of the present newspaper organizations are staffed with graduates of Philets and Artlets. The two colleges were combined into one Artlets years ago.

And on Nov. 25, Samahang Plaridel, the new press club composed of the top journalists in the country, will inaugurate its piano bar and clubhouse on the first and third floors of the Traveler's Life building at the corner of two Manila streets named after outstanding Filipino journalists and heroes, Marcelo H. del Pilar and Teodoro M. Kalaw. President Macapagal-Arroyo has been invited as the guest of honor.

Journalists are invited to all the above-mentioned reunions.

The Plaridel clubhouse and piano bar, named The Front Page, are designed to be the watering hole of journalists, a place to unwind after deadlines. Music, dancing, drinks, fine food and convivial company on the first floor, and a lounge with a reading room, piped-in mood music, a billiard room, its own kitchen and another bar, television sets, chess sets and an office with computers on the third floor.

Plaridel is also erecting a seven-foot statue of Del Pilar, a joint project with Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, at the Children's Park on F.B. Harrison Street in Malate. The bronze statue is being sculpted by well-known sculptor Julie Lluch. Plaridel is now conducting a fund drive for the monument. Wouldn't it be a nice gesture this Christmas to gift Del Pilar with a donation for his monument?

Justice vs miscarriage of justice

Justice vs miscarriage of justice

Updated 00:44am (Mla time) Nov 10, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 10, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


A FINAL note on the case of spouses Martin and Melody del Rosario whose lot was sold at public auction by the Quezon City government without their knowledge to pay for their delinquent real estate taxes amounting to P3,102.75 (read my last three columns). The spouses have filed a petition with the Quezon City regional trial court to nullify the sale for lack of due process.

This is an example of the common conflict between substance and technicality, between true justice and a miscarriage of justice. Nullifying the sale won't do any harm to the buyer nor to City Hall. The P200,000 that the buyer paid for the property would be returned to him. And City Hall has already been paid by the Del Rosarios the back taxes, plus interest. But if it is not nullified, the couple would lose their home worth several millions of pesos. All because the Quezon City Treasurer's Office was careless and too much in a hurry to sell. It is very clear here where justice lies.

* * *

In reaction to the first part of the three-part series about squatters and the unfinished Congressional Avenue Extension, district engineer Oscar P. Cammayo of the Quezon City First Engineering District sent a letter on the progress of the construction of the street. He wrote:

"Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte had on several occasions gone out of his way to help our office in resolving right-of-way problems, particularly on squatter relocation.

"We had for instance solicited his assistance last Aug. 4, 2004 in the removal of 16 squatter families who were members of the Pioneer Residents Association of Congressional Avenue (PRACA). Mayor Belmonte was able to convince the 16 families to vacate the space occupied, enabling our office to proceed with the earth moving and eventual concrete paving of two lanes from T.M. Kalaw Street up to a distance of about 453 linear meters toward Salinglahi Area. This activity is still ongoing.

"Outside of the ongoing project, a stretch of about 342 meters remains to be constructed in order to reach Luzon Avenue. To construct a two-lane road will involve the removal of 37 families at Salinglahi Purok 4, 119 families at Luzonville and 50 families at the MWSS [Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System] aqueduct.

"Mayor Belmonte likewise held a meeting with Director Patric Gatan, DPWH [Department of Public Works and Highways] officer in charge of squatter relocation, in the later part of September 2004 to advise him on the need to immediately occupy the area along Congressional Avenue Extension between Violago Subdivision and Tandang Sora Avenue that was vacated by squatters who were relocated by the city government when their houses were burned.

"Director Gatan informed Mayor Belmonte during the meeting that apart from the squatter families, the parcel of land vacated were privately owned lots and there is a need to provide funds for the payment of the road right-of-way.

"DPWH Secretary Florante Soriquez has already recommended to the Department of Budget and Management the allocation of at least P30 million in order to partially pay for the land of the affected property owners. Secretary Soriquez also advised Director Emil Sadain from the DPWH President's Bridge Program Office to immediately proceed with the construction of the bridge across the Pasong Tamo River tributary.

"Mayor Belmonte and Pasong Tamo Barangay Captain Marivic Co-Pilar have likewise identified a relocation site within the vicinity for Pasong Tamo squatter families affected by this road construction. The relocation will start as soon as the site is ready for occupancy....

"More funds, particularly for payment of private lots, are needed and about 1.2 kilometers of road remains to be constructed. Nevertheless, we would like to express our profound gratitude for your continued concern and your unequivocal support in seeing through the completion of this project."

* * *

I bumped into the President’s son, Rep. Mikey Arroyo, and I jokingly asked him if he, like other children of top government officials, is also a member of the "committee on silence" in Congress.

The congressman replied that he may be silent but he has been working and that he takes his job seriously. "I am aware of my responsibilities and I take them seriously," he said. "I am still in the learning stage. I have to admit that I am still hesitant to participate in debates. But I attend sessions and committee hearings to observe and to learn."

He admits that being the son of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the grandson of President Diosdado Macapagal has made his election as congressman of Pampanga province fairly easy. However, it has made his job difficult because he would be walking in their shadow.

"I don't think I would ever come close to the achievements of my mother and my grandfather," he said, "but you can be sure that I will try my best."

Mikey is a member of the cooperative development committee, the committee on energy, and the public works and highways committee. He has sponsored and co-sponsored three House bills:

• HB 02068, which would create the Department of Housing, Planning and Urban Development to coordinate the activities of the many housing and urban development agencies and to rationalize the housing policies.

• HB 02388, which seeks to encourage the public to give information and evidence against public officials and employees who violate the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

• HB 022896, which seeks to give a 20 percent discount on food purchases to members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology and the Bureau of Fire Protection.

Couple to be deprived of lot without due process

Couple to be deprived of lot without due process

Updated 11:49pm (Mla time) Nov 07, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 8, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


(Last of three parts)

SPOUSES Martin and Melody del Rosario, absolute owners of a house and lot in New Intramuros Village, Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City, are going to lose their property without their knowledge and without due process, despite the constitutional guarantee that "no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process." They were never informed that a warrant of levy on their property had been issued, that the lot would be and had indeed been sold at public auction, and that the one-year period for redeeming the property had already expired. The appropriate notices were all sent to the wrong person.

To determine ownership of the property, the QC treasurer relied solely on the tax declaration (which has not been transferred to the Del Rosarios despite the payment of the transfer tax). It would have been prudent and easy for the treasurer to verify with the QC Register of Deeds, whose office is located in the same building and only one phone call away. But he did no such thing.

Besides, there are other documents to determine ownership, such as the deed of absolute sale, the certificate authorizing registration and the transfer tax receipt. All these are at the fingertips of the city treasurer.

The spouses wonder: "It is strange that City Hall could not find us (they reside on the property itself) and never thought of us when they were auctioning our property. But they miraculously did after they had awarded our property to a party that paid a paltry sum of P200,000 in relation to the true worth of the property."

City Hall claims that it used the tax declaration to ascertain the property's owner and where he lived.

But where does it say in the law that where a property is up for auction, the tax declaration would suffice to determine true ownership? Conversely, where does it say in the law that City Hall is inhibited from cross-checking other relevant documents, the most important of which is the title? In fact, justice and prudence demand that City Hall should do this if only to make sure it would not be transgressing on the property rights of a citizen.

3. The city treasurer is obliged by law to remit that part of the sale proceeds in excess of the tax delinquency (including interest), and sale expenses. The property was sold for P200,000 to satisfy a tax delinquency of P3,102.75. With the interest and sale expenses, the total liability added up to P9,553.47. Therefore, there was an excess of P190,446.53 which the city treasurer was duty-bound to remit to the Del Rosarios. Had he done this, the couple would have learned of the sale and would have had an opportunity to contest the sale and redeem the property within the grace period. But the treasurer did no such thing. It was gross negligence.

In the civil suit seeking payment for damages from city treasurer Victor B. Endriga and the buyer, Agasee Properties and Holding Corp. (APHC), the Del Rosarios wondered if the sale was "a willful intention to defraud the petitioners of their hard-earned property."

4. The Del Rosarios also charged APHC with apparent "bad faith" and negligence. Prospective participants in auction sales are enjoined by existing rules to first ascertain for themselves the existence of the title to the property they intend to buy before making any bid. Considering the amount of its bid, APHC should have verified property ownership, including an ocular inspection. This would have led APHC to discover that TCT 125655 in the name of spouses Maling was already cancelled and replaced by TCT 203106 in the name of spouses Del Rosario. Did APHC not know this fact or, knowing, "chose to conceal this fact to deprive the (real owners) of the chance to be notified of the auction sale and redeem it"? Article 19 of the Civil Code says that "every person must, in the exercise of his rights and in the performance of his duties, act with justice, give everyone his due and observe honesty and good faith."

5. The law says that the city treasurer may auction a delinquent property (after the owner has been properly notified and he ignores the notification) "if the delinquency covers many years and the tax involved has run into a considerable sum."

But the delinquency did not cover "many years" and did not involve "a considerable sum." The period was less than three years and the amount involved was only P3,102.75.

The owners may have been negligent in not paying the tax promptly, but isn't depriving them of the property too harsh and constitutes an injustice?

6. Another question: City Hall sold only the lot where the house of the Del Rosarios stand because it is the lot that has a tax delinquency. What happens now to the house?

The auction rule and procedures City Hall has prescribed say that the lot and house should be auctioned off one after the other to avert a situation of conflicting ownerships.

The Del Rosarios wrote: "Possibly, the winning bidder made an ocular inspection of our property, saw a house worth millions of pesos on the lot being auctioned and forthwith offered to buy it at P200,000. So on a technicality that we failed to redeem the property within one year (which was due to bureaucratic inefficiency), he is asking the court to take the property from us and give it to him."

Let's face it: City Hall violated due process in selling the Del Rosario lot. Due process is a sacred right guaranteed by our Constitution. Even squatters are given formal notice of eviction. What about the law-abiding, tax-paying citizens like the Del Rosarios? The lot where they live was arbitrarily sold by City Hall without warning and without due process. Can anything be more vile?

Quezon City violated rules in auction of lot

Quezon City violated rules in auction of lot

Updated 06:43am (Mla time) Nov 06, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 5, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


HERE is a paradox: In Quezon City, it is very difficult to eject law-breaking, non-taxpaying squatters from one's property but a law-abiding, tax-paying property owner can easily lose his lot if he is late in paying his real estate tax. In fact, the city government is reluctant to help lot owners eject squatters or just prevent them from squatting on legitimately owned lots, but it is very quick in selling at public auction -- even resorting to shortcuts and denying the owners due process-properties whose realty taxes are delinquent.

It is because of this too-quick-on-the-draw auctions that the city has amassed billions of excess funds. Quezon City is now the richest city in the Philippines. But what good are those billions of pesos if they are not used to serve its constituents and instead are used to dispossess law-abiding owners of their properties?

Taxpayers are supposed to be rewarded and lawbreakers like squatters punished. Not in Quezon City. It is the other way around. Lot owners live under a "reign of terror." If squatters take a liking for your lot and choose to live there, say goodbye to it. Don't expect the government to help you reclaim your lot. It won't. It wants only to collect the taxes on it. And if you are not prompt in paying them, you may lose it completely with the government itself, in an ironic twist of fate, stealing it from you. Listen to this true story.

Spouses Martin and Melody del Rosario are the absolute owners of a house and lot located at 10 Arzobispo Street, New Intramuros Village, Quezon City (bought on Aug. 28, 1998, from Edward and Cynthia Maling), with Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) No. 202106. They have been living there since 1998.

Imagine their shock when some time in August 2004, a copy of an order of the regional trial court of Quezon City, Branch 98, was posted on their property. It was a notice of hearing on a petition seeking to cancel the TCT covering their property and to issue a new title in the name of Agasee Properties and Holding Corp. (APHC).

What happened? The property was fully paid for as were all the required taxes and fees for the cancellation of the seller's torrens title over the property and the issuance of a new one in favor of the buyers. Why are the Del Rosarios now being dispossessed of their home?

A hurried check with City Hall showed that the pertinent tax declaration had not yet been transferred under their names despite the payment of the transfer taxes. As a result, they forgot to pay the real estate taxes from 1999 to 2002 and the Quezon City Treasurer's Office sold the lot (but not the house) in a public auction. The buyer was APHC, a trading and holding corporation. The market price of the 150 sq m lot in a tony subdivision along Commonwealth Avenue is in the millions of pesos, but it was sold to APHC for only P200,000. The total amount of unpaid realty taxes was only P3,102.75, which the Del Rosarios immediately paid after discovery of the snafu. The Quezon City Treasurer accepted the payment. Like the lost nail that resulted in the loss of a horseshoe that in turn resulted in the loss of a battle, the Del Rosarios were going to lose their home for a measly P3,102.75.

The Bill of Rights provides that "no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process." Yet, the Del Rosarios are being deprived of their property without due process. They were never informed that they were delinquent in the payment of realty tax, that their property was going to be sold by the Quezon City government at public auction, or that it was in fact sold to APHC, until that order of the court was posted on the property.

The Local Government Code clearly sets the procedures to be taken by a local government unit in the collection of real estate taxes by summary remedies. Most of these were violated in the rush to sell. Witness:

1. A warrant of levy must first be issued by the city treasurer, accompanied by a certificate stating the delinquent owner's name and liability. The warrant is either mailed or served on the owner or, in case he cannot be located, to the administrator or occupant of the property. The levying officer shall make a report on the levy to the “sanggunian” [city council] within 10 days after receipt by the owner of the warrant.

An examination of the action taken by the Quezon City Treasurer's Office showed that the procedures were not followed. The warrant of levy was addressed to Edward Maling who no longer owned the property and had no obligation to pay the tax or else be considered as a delinquent taxpayer. Maling was no longer living in that address for a number of years. The warrant should have been served on the occupants, the Del Rosarios. The signature of the recipient is not even recognizable. Moreover, the server of the warrant did not make a report to the “sanggunian” within 10 days as required by the Code.

2. The procedure in auction sales for tax delinquency, being a derogation of property rights, is also strictly prescribed. Strict adherence is imperative not only to protect the taxpayers but also to allay any suspicion of collusion between the buyer and the public officials enforcing such laws. The courts have consistently ruled that a notice of sale to the delinquent property owner is an essential requirement of law, the non-fulfillment of which vitiates the auction sale.

The Del Rosarios were never informed that their property was going to be sold. Hence, their rights were violated. Therefore, the sale to APHC cannot bind the true owners, the Del Rosarios, since the property was owned by the latter and not by Edward Maling at the time of sale.

More on this later.

Lot owners victimized by squatters and city gov't

Lot owners victimized by squatters and city gov't

Updated 11:19pm (Mla time) Nov 02, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on Page A14 of the November 3, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer


WHAT'S happening to Quezon City? Under Mayor Feliciano Belmonte, it has become the richest city in the Philippines, with billions of pesos in excess funds deposited in banks. But Quezon City also has the biggest number of squatters, so that it is called "the squatter capital of the Philippines." That means it also has the most number of lot owners victimized by squatters.

Ironically, Quezon City is now the richest city because of these property owners paying increasingly higher real estate taxes, and they include the lot owners whose lots have been taken over by squatters. Yes, the victimized owners have to continue paying realty taxes even if squatters are the ones using and benefiting from the properties. To add insult to injury, the property taxes keep rising as the city assessor keeps increasing their assessed value at the same rate as lots free from squatters. And in the unkindest cut of all, the city government refuses to help the lot owners eject the squatters from their properties even as it forces the owners to pay the higher taxes.

With so much money in the banks, the city government can afford to buy vacant lots at fair market prices, construct medium-rise homes, and relocate the squatters. The true owners can then build their own homes on their lots and pay more and higher taxes and the city's coffers will be even richer. At the same time, it would be serving all its constituents, taxpayers and non-taxpayers alike.

But Quezon City does no such thing. It would rather serve the non-taxpayers, the squatters, at the expense of the taxpayers, the property owners. While it does not help the owners to reclaim their properties, its congressmen, councilors and “barangay” [neighborhood district] council officials coddle the squatters.

Using taxpayers' money, they build basketball courts for the squatters-on areas set aside for public streets. They build concrete streets for the squatters through private lots, complete with waiting sheds, and the city council passes ordinances authorizing tricycles carrying squatters to pass through private streets in private subdivisions maintained with private funds. At the same time, they refuse to allocate funds for legitimate streets long scheduled for construction. The congressmen, quick to allocate pork barrel funds for basketball courts and waiting sheds, paradoxically refuse to contribute part of their pork barrel to help fund these streets.

A good example is the unfinished Congressional Avenue Extension. This avenue runs from the EDSA highway, across from Roosevelt Avenue, and, when finished, will connect to Luzon Avenue. It runs parallel to Commonwealth and Quezon Avenues and would greatly ease the heavy traffic in these two streets. The longer portion, from EDSA to Tandang Sora Avenue, with eight lanes, has been finished and in use for many years. But the remaining 1.5-kilometer portion to Luzon Avenue remains unfinished until now. The reason? Squatters!

The right of way is there, but it has been invaded by squatters, no doubt encouraged by local officials courting votes.

Taxpaying residents of more than a dozen subdivisions lining this unfinished portion, who have to pass through other subdivisions and pay several vehicle sticker fees to go home, have formed a confederation that has long been lobbying the government to finish the street. A number of public works secretaries have come and gone but they all pleaded "no budget." The House of Representatives appropriations committee forgets to appropriate the funds every year.

To his credit, former congressman Chuck Mathay used some of his pork barrel for the paving of part of one lane, but it is like a drop in the bucket. Vice President Noli de Castro, Senator Juan Flavier and at least four congressmen living in one of the subdivisions along Congressional Avenue would be benefited by its completion but none of them contributed even a peso of their pork.

Mathay was also negotiating for a relocation site for the squatters but he was defeated in the last elections, and I don't know what his replacement is doing about it.

There is a big vacant lot at the corner of Congressional and Luzon Avenues that is big enough for two or three medium-rise buildings for the squatters. With its billions, the city government can easily buy the lot from the Development Bank of the Philippines and construct such buildings. Local governments, after all, are mandated to provide homes or relocation sites for their squatters. But nobody is moving, nobody except the residents of the subdivisions beating their heads against a blank bureaucratic wall to have the street finished. National and local officials would rather coddle non-taxpaying squatters than serve the law-abiding citizens paying the taxes used for their salaries.

Much of the billions Quezon City has come from real estate taxes paid by the property owners who are threatened with losing their properties if they don't pay on time. The city has an unforgiving tax collection effort. You are delinquent in your realty tax payment, your property gets auctioned off. While it is very difficult to eject squatters, it is very easy for legitimate owners to lose their properties through public auction.

But is Quezon City overdoing it? Is it too quick in selling properties at public auction? Worse, have slick operators and land-grabbing syndicates infiltrated the auction proceedings to grab land from unsuspecting owners through what we may call "legal robbery"? Believe it or not, some people have already been victimized this way.

That will be discussed in the next column.

Mythological monsters for All Saints' Day

Mythological monsters for All Saints' Day

Updated 03:10am (Mla time) Nov 01, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service



Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the November 1, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.


I DON'T know why we have to borrow the Halloween and its pumpkins, witches and black cats from the West. After all, we have our own home-grown mythological monsters that in the old days scared-believe it or not, in this modern 2lst century, they still do-millions of youngsters. In fact, the 'aswangs' and 'manananggals' still scare many gullible adults, thanks to the competing televisions newscasts, the so-called "tabloids of the air" that, because of the ratings war, dignify stories of these monsters haunting squatter colonies. That and the frequent stories on TV of "miraculous" appearances of the image of the Virgin Mary, of statues crying bloody tears, of young visionaries, of spiritual healing, and of snakes born as twins of human babies, "idiotize" the Filipino masses.

Thanks to our penchant for imitating other cultures, our own tradition of "pangangaluluwa" during All Saints' Day-when groups of young men and women serenade their neighbors while others steal chicken under the house, all in good fun-is fast being replaced by the westernized "trick or treat" rituals in the exclusive villages. In a few more decades, our own traditions and mythological monsters will be erased.

When I was growing up in Malabon, I and my generation were scared no end of these mythological monsters. Although Malabon is now a city and a part of Metro Manila, it was then a rural town with fishponds, rivers, rice fields, commercial vegetable gardens-and a gullible population. What's more, the elders were good storytellers who scared the youngsters with tales of these and other monsters not only on All Saints' Day but also on moonlit nights.

At that time, we lived in a family compound in the middle of fishponds. Its only connection to the street was a long fishpond dike. Sanciangco Street ran for about a kilometer from Tonsuya (where you got rides to and from Divisoria, across the wooden bridge to barrio Catmon) to Tenejeros on the other end. If you lived in Catmon or Tenejeros, you had to walk the whole kilometer. At night, the stretch through the river and fishponds was very dark; but the people taking that route had nothing to fear about robbers and drug addicts. What they were afraid of were the monsters that they imagined were lurking in the dark.

At the street corner was a street lamp, beside a big tamarind tree at the edge of the pond. At night we would gather under its light to play patintero or batong preso. When we got tired of playing, the storytelling would begin.

The stories became believable because they involved our neighbors, people we knew. There was this woman heavy with child who was victimized by an aswang. We were told that an 'aswang' was a human who took the form of an animal, a big pig or dog, that would go under any house where a pregnant woman lived to eat the baby in the womb! The defense was a buntot-page, the dried barbed tail of a sting ray or the sword of a swordfish; so these weapons were prized by families that had them.

In those days, of course, many pigs and dogs were rooting under houses for food. Mistaken for 'aswangs', they were chased by the menfolk.

Another form of 'aswang' climbed house roofs-which in those days were mostly made of nipa shingles. Atop the house, the aswang would lower a piece of string to the mouth of anybody sleeping there and put him into a deep sleep, never to wake up.

These stories kept us awake most nights or made us sleep on our abdomen because we did not want the strings from the aswangs to reach our lips. Little did we know then that the storytellers were only pulling our legs.

Then there were the 'kapre', a giant that sat on top of a tree smoking a big cigar; the 'tikbalang', half-horse and half-man; and the 'manananggal', a woman whose upper torso separated from the rest of her body and flew off to hunt for victims at night, returning before daylight to attach itself again to the lower half. The way to fight the 'manananggal' was to look for this lower half before daylight, spread salt on it so that the upper half could not reattach to it, and the 'manananggal' itself would die.

The 'tiyanak' misled travelers by imitating the cries of a baby. The traveler followed the baby's cries and before he realized it, he had lost his way and could not find his way back out of the woods or forest. To break the spell, the victim had to take off his or her shirt and put it back on inside out.

The 'dwende' was, of course, the tiny dwarf that lived in mounds of earth and sheltered under toadstools. The 'dwende' should not be mistaken for the 'nuno sa punso', an old dwarf also living in those mounds of earth (actually, termite hills), casting a spell to anybody who stepped on those hills or even just brushed against their invisible selves. In those days, we could not walk over a woodland or a meadow without muttering over and over: "Tabi-tabi po ingkong, di ko po kayo nakikita. (Please may I pass, old man, I cannot see you)."

When my younger brother fell from a santol tree, the old folks said he was pushed by a nuno sa punso because the latter lived in that tree. In fact, whenever somebody got sick, the nuno sa punso was always blamed. Na matanda, they said.

The hardest part of the storytelling sessions was when they were over and it was time to go home through dark paths. The way home for me was through the dark fishpond dike. Where the dike made a dogleg, there was a huge tree where a 'kapre', so the storytellers said, sometimes sat waiting for passersby. I dreaded that tree but there was no other way to go home. So I just closed my eyes and ran past it as fast as I could. It was no small miracle that I never fell into the pond.