Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES The Office of the Ombudsman recently ordered the dismissal from government service of six state auditors of the Commission on Audit who, from 2006 to 2010, unlawfully accepted millions of pesos in bonuses from the Local Water Utilities Administration. Former LWUA officials themselves have been charged under the antigraft law with granting scandalously excessive bonuses … Read more
One of the costs the whole world continues to pay for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States is the intrusive security inspection that travelers everywhere have had to endure when they check in at airports. Worried for their own safety, they have learned to accept the need for these procedures even … Read more
This bizarre phenomenon began when popular candidates running as “independent” found themselves in the enviable position of being “adopted” as guest candidates of one or more political parties. This practice has now become widespread. Today, even full-fledged party members don’t seem to have any qualms about accepting, or negotiating, a guest slot in another party’s … Read more
The relationship between the government and the media in modern society is almost always one of mutual irritation. These two systems need one another, yet each is rarely pleased about the way the other does its work. The government criticizes the media for harping on the negative, while the media easily bristle at any attempt … Read more
The relationship between the government and the media in modern society is almost always one of mutual irritation. These two systems need one another, yet each is rarely pleased about the way the other does its work. The government criticizes the media for harping on the negative, while the media easily bristle at any attempt … Read more
If kids could have a country or city of their own, free from the unexamined prejudices and pernicious habits of the adult world, what might it be like? What values would it highlight? What forms of human activity would it promote? Of course, there is no such country or community in existence. Writers have tried … Read more
There is nothing we can do to stop natural phenomena like typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis from visiting our country. They are part of Nature’s system. But there is a lot we can do to prevent them from causing death and destruction—that is, from becoming disasters. Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as a “natural” … Read more
Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, who took a leave from her Senate duties because of illness, surprised everyone by filing at the last minute her candidacy for the presidency in the 2016 election. On the same occasion, she sprang an even bigger surprise on her young awestruck fans: Bongbong Marcos is her choice for vice president. … Read more
The Commission on Elections had its hands full last Oct. 12 and 13, receiving the certificates of candidacy of at least 37 individuals vying for the presidency in the 2016 national elections. Jostling with the known and the lesser known were the completely unknown, claiming equal right to run for public office. The term “nuisance … Read more
Since I have been filing my income tax in Pampanga for some years now, I feel duty-bound and entitled to cast my vote at my old precinct in Betis, where I spent my childhood. I continue to list our ancestral home in this province as my permanent residence even if I have lived and worked … Read more