Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES

On the occasion of Language Month, I received three invitations to speak on the politics of language.  Because of other commitments I was unable to accept any of them.  What I would have said at these symposia I have however tried to synthesize in today’s column written in Filipino . My thesis is that a … Read more

On April 30 this year, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed Executive Order 314 creating a Presidential Commission on Values Formation (PCVF), which, we are told, she herself will head. To this new commission have been invited, as members, the leaders of the country’s various religious communities.  EO 314 is being billed as a component of Ms … Read more

Of the many problems the President ignored in her last State of the Nation Address, the most glaring perhaps is the population growth. Ms Arroyo’s silence on this issue is not unexpected.  From the moment she assumed the presidency in 2001, population growth became a non-issue.  So when Malacanang says it welcomes a debate on … Read more

The highlight of the opening of the regular session of Congress tomorrow is the President’s address to the nation.  Section 23, Art. 7 of the Constitution commands the president to perform this task.  I’ve often wondered if this speech, known as the State of the Nation Address, follows a set model.  How does the president … Read more

We can’t expect America and Australia, and all the other nations that supported the invasion and occupation of Iraq, to understand the full complexity of President Arroyo’s dilemma.  To them, the choice is merely between giving in to the demands of Iraqi terrorists to save one Filipino worker’s life and keeping our troops in Iraq … Read more

It was just a matter of time before Filipinos would be targets of Iraqi retaliation.  Almost instantly, from the moment American and British invading forces rolled into Baghdad, our workers started streaming into Iraq like famished little ants out to nibble on the remains of a fallen animal. They came as servants and cooks of … Read more

Interesting proposals are being revived in current moves to amend the 1987 Constitution.  They seem at first like piecemeal responses to problems encountered in the course of the nation’s return to democracy. But one cannot fail to notice that, unlike the progressive intentions that animated the crafting of the present constitution, those that inform the … Read more

A fascinating Socratic dialogue took place in the closing hours of the recent congressional canvass.  The young articulate party-list representative from Sanlakas, JV Bautista, asked Western Samar representative Eduardo Nachura: “What is truth? Is it not the opposite of doubt?” Nachura, a dean of law, took a long professorial breath and answered: “Doubt is not … Read more

A typical scene in the ongoing canvass in Congress unfolds like this: Election documents are brought out for inspection.  Members of the joint committee and lawyers of the candidates take turns describing the condition of the documents.  Somebody then makes a motion to canvass the certificates of canvass.  If there are no objections, the chair … Read more

On Lilibeth Nacion’s radio program the other morning, there was a spirited discussion on whether Filipinos are still proud of their country. The callers were divided.  Many felt that national pride is something that should not fade no matter what Filipinos do to their country or to themselves.  Others admitted it has indeed become harder … Read more