Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES Watching the Filipino figure skater Michael Christian Martinez compete the other night in the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, brought me back to those times when my wife and I used to spend Saturday afternoons at the mall watching our granddaughter Julia learn how to skate on ice. The ice skating rink at SM Megamall … Read more
In the small neighborhood on the UP campus where I live, I often see a young boy in a wheelchair breeze past my house. His body appears shrunken and deformed, but his handsome face tells me he must be in his early teens. His eyes riveted to the sky and the trees above him, he … Read more
It has been almost six months since the first cases of plunder and graft involving lawmakers’ pork barrel were filed at the Office of the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman has to carefully evaluate these charges before endorsing them to the Sandiganbayan for trial or dismissing them outright for insufficiency of evidence. The one thing the Ombudsman … Read more
In previous columns, I have argued that Thailand’s attempts to grapple with the complex problem of legitimacy since 2001 illuminate for us the roots of the crisis that rocked our society during the presidencies of Joseph Ejercito “Erap” Estrada and of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA). They prod us to reflect on the exigencies of our … Read more
Neighboring Thailand goes to the polls today (Sunday) with the hope of resolving the festering political conflict that has taken an increasingly violent turn in the last three months. The opposition is not just boycotting these elections; it is threatening to disrupt the voting itself. The government has offered to postpone the elections, if necessary, … Read more
The big topic of coffee shop talk these days is not the signing of the last annexes to the peace accord with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Nor is it the government’s latest bid to sidestep the constitutional issues triggered by the Disbursement Acceleration Program by arguing that the program has ceased, and therefore the … Read more
So complex and demanding are the functions and responsibilities of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) that the law that created it pegged its members’ compensation at the same level as that of justices of the Supreme Court. Every section of Republic Act No. 9136, known as the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (Epira), … Read more
It is a fascinating facet of our society, and indeed of our times, that one can make a name portraying fictional characters with superhuman powers and use this to launch a political career. Our culture is probably in such dire need of heroes that it is inclined to overlook the difference between fiction and reality, … Read more
On a cold day like this in January 2001, exactly 13 years ago, the Philippines found itself in the throes of another wrenching political transition. The impeachment trial of President Joseph Ejercito Estrada had been abruptly aborted. The political convulsion that followed thrust Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the presidency. Although her succession to the highest office … Read more
For the last two months now, I have welcomed sunlight into our home in a way that has made me conscious of the sun’s life-giving presence. Thanks to the advice and assistance of Bert Lina, the visionary entrepreneur behind Air21 and other creative interventions beneficial to society at large, I have installed solar panels on … Read more