Outgoing President Macapagal-Arroyo’s appointment of Renato Corona as the new Chief Justice was burdened from the start by the public perception that she was putting him there to protect her when she is no longer president. He had loyally served her as presidential legal counsel. More important, in crucial landmark cases, as an associate justice … Read more
Having just survived a risk-filled election week, during which we suspended disbelief and reposed our collective trust in an untested automated system, we Filipinos can be forgiven for paying scant attention to the political violence that is rocking neighboring Thailand. But we cannot ignore the Thai crisis. It is telling us something important – not … Read more
If anyone is still looking for confirmation of the determining role that the Filipino family plays in the nation’s political life, he will not find better proof than the results of this year’s national and local elections. It is the victory of entire clans that is being heralded – particularly that of the Arroyos of … Read more
The precinct count optical scanner (PCOS) did what it was supposed to do—read the votes from the precincts and rapidly transmit the results to computers that automatically add them up at both local and national levels. With only about 15 percent of the results [as of Thursday] waiting to be transmitted due to mechanical malfunctioning, … Read more
As in previous elections, political programs once more took a backseat to issues of personal character in the current presidential campaign. What has been projected is not how we will solve our problems as a nation, but who we can trust not to abuse political power if elected. Indeed we demand so little of our … Read more
Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel is 44. She belongs to that generation of Filipino leaders that, if they are not already in command of the nation, should firmly be in the line of succession to the nation’s leadership. Historically, the builders of our country have been much younger. Rizal, Bonifacio, Aguinaldo, and the countless others who fought to … Read more