Come June 6, some 22 million students will flood the country’s 45,000 public grade and high schools, ready for a brand new year, but the Department of Education estimates that more than 60,000 classrooms are needed to ensure the ideal balance of one classroom for every 45 students. It appears that many students will be learning fractions and proper grammar beneath the trees yet again.

This, while old, dilapidated school buildings, battered by the annual typhoons as well as by wear and tear, cry out in need for care. For the most part, the schools often rely on the parents’ donations for new paint, and the students themselves provide much of the manpower, fixing and preparing the very classrooms they will be using.

But there is hope, and it comes in an amazing communion of intention and deed. Last May 23, the day dawned clear over Bago Bantay Elementary School in Quezon City with the scent of promise and the presence of a great many people.

A long line of over a hundred vehicles rode in after navigating Edsa with colorful balloons and streamers—a motorcade with a purpose. Upon arriving at the school, the gathered people alighted from their vehicles. With them they brought donated construction materials for the school buildings. The crowd, which included Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista and Education Secretary Armin Luistro, was there for Brigada Eskwela, perhaps one of the DepEd’s most significant school-opening endeavors.

Brigada Eskwela aims to close the rich-poor gap for needy Filipino students by gathering volunteers from both the government and the private sector, corporate entities and businessmen, diplomats and barangay officials, soldiers and clergy. It involves basically everybody who cares, both the powerful and the everyman. The goal is to assemble manpower to repair, clean and maintain classrooms in those public schools that require it, to take the classes back indoors and away from the trees.

“One important feature of Brigada Eskwela is that we have ordinary people, civil society and nongovernment organizations helping us fulfill our responsibilities to prepare for the school opening,” Luistro told the crowd gathered at the school that morning. “Brigada Eskwela is a new form of people power. All sectors wholeheartedly got involved.”

From its start in 2003, Brigada Eskwela had grown by leaps and bounds nationwide, and all up to May 28, volunteers were descending upon schools all over the country, ready to show with their hands just how much the future of the students mattered to them. From 2003 to 2008, for example, the Brigada Eskwela program had saved the DepEd some P9 billion in maintenance and other expenses. Every year sees thousands of volunteers joining up.

The most impressive thing about Brigada Eskwela is that it accepts only donations of volunteer time and actual construction materials—no monetary donations are accepted. This corruption-free model also promotes community involvement in the schools. Many of the local businesses give their time and donations in kind to the schools located in their own towns and cities, giving a clear sign that they care about their young students.

The coordinated efforts to refurbish our schools call to mind the legendary Filipino bayanihan spirit, where once entire barangays would join forces to literally move houses to other locations within their towns. Now, the bayanihan spirit has reached the schools—to be sure, a most welcome development proving to be very effective and productive.

From slogan to blueprint. When asked how he felt about the impending appointment of his election rival Manuel “Mar” Roxas as presidential chief of staff, Vice President Jejomar Binay showed his bright side: “I am sure I can work with him. I am a team player.” Binay uttered this even if he was not named chair of any of the five clusters. I thought that, being the second highest official of the land and being responsible for housing and urban development, he deserved the headship of one cluster.

The most important cluster, Good Governance and Anti-Corruption, is chaired by the President; the second, Human Development and Poverty Reduction, by Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman; the third, Economic Development, by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima; the fourth, Security, Justice and Peace, by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa; and the fifth, Climate Change Adaption and Mitigation, by Environment Secretary Ramon Paje. Upon these five teams depend the success of Aquino’s presidency.

I think EO 43 is really the polestar of President Aquino. It reorganized the Cabinet with five primuses; it defined his “vision… country with a re-awakened sense of right and wrong, through the living examples of our highest leaders”; it pointed to his “Social Contract with the Filipino People… and the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2011-2016… that will translate the Social Contract into efficient, effective, and responsible actions.” From EO 43 can be sourced the values and standards that guide his governance: transparency, accountability, integrity and, most important, leadership by example.

A year ago, he proclaimed “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap.” Since then, I have been waiting for a road map, a more detailed explanation of how he would transform his slogan into a blueprint. I found it in EO 43. I consider it the executive summary of his vision, mission, goals, values, principles and methods. Upon it, our people will judge him and his officials.

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First Pacific at 30. Vision and mission. Goals and values. Principles and methods. Talent and teamwork. These are the same norms and parameters that propelled the First Pacific Company Limited to rise as a major player in Asia. Organized in Hong Kong in 1981 by Manuel V. Pangilinan and Anthoni Salim, an Indonesian entrepreneur, First Pacific started with a capital of HK$7 million (less than US$1 million) in a 50-square-meter office with six employees.

Now, three decades later, First Pacific and its various investee companies have an aggregate market capital of US$44.57 billion (repeat, billion) with 104,000 employees in the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong and other countries. It has interests in food, agriculture, telecommunications, power distribution, business process outsourcing, water distribution, hospitals, infrastructure, mining and other industries.

A week ago, it invited its 300 board directors and senior officers to its head office in Hong Kong to thank them for helping it achieve its goals. It sponsored a sparkling dinner-musicale, with no government regulators and politicians. Not even from Hong Kong. But all the entertainers were the best from the Philippines: Lea Salonga, Sarah Geronimo, Lani Misalucha, Martin Nievera, Christian Bautista and Jed Madela.

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Who represents offended party? My May 15 column explained that only the President or his duly authorized representative could give the consent of the Republic—as the offended party—in the Garcia plea bargain agreement (PBA). Since no such consent was given, ergo, the PBA is void. In his letter to the Inquirer (printed on May 23), de campanilla lawyer Bonifacio A. Alentajan wrote that the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB), like the fiscals and prosecutors, is authorized to bind the Republic as the offended party in the PBA because the OMB is the public prosecutor in graft cases.

My reply: True, the OMB—not the fiscals— prosecutes graft cases. True also, the Supreme Court has ruled that fiscals could give the consent of the Republic as the offended party in a PBA. However, the OMB is not in the same situation as fiscals. Fiscals are subalterns of the secretary of justice who in turn is an alter ego of the President, and thus could act for him. On the other hand, being an independent office that is not under the control and supervision of the President, the OMB is not a subaltern of the President and cannot represent the latter. In short, while the secretary of justice and the subaltern-fiscals can represent the President, the OMB—being an independent entity—cannot.

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Alejandro R. Roces is a well known literati, short story writer, athlete, columnist, culture icon, educator and National Artist for Literature. To me he was all that, plus more. He was my indefatigable adviser during my student leadership days, who helped me organize the National Union of Students of the Philippines. As secretary of education in 1961-65, he retained me as legal counsel and executive consultant right after I hurdled the bar exams. At 86, he passed to the Great Beyond last May 23 in the grace of our Lord.

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Comments are welcome at chiefjusticepanganiban@hotmail.com

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In today’s Gospel (Jn. 14, 15-21), Jesus tells his disciples that He will see them again “in a little while.” He is saying goodbye, but with the promise that they will see each other again. With the resurrection, we Christians do not say “goodbye,” but “till we meet again.” Yes, God has blessed all our “hellos” and “goodbyes.”

* * *

Life is a journey, a constant moving on till we reach our final destination. Someone beautifully described our journey as a series of steps and stops. It is very assuring to know that the Lord is with us in every step and every stop we make along the way. How consoling to know that the Lord is with us wherever we are, and whatever we do.

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One of the best inventions in our day and age is the cellular phone which enables us to keep in touch and connect with people anywhere in the world. The Lord made sure that He will be with us, and that He will be within our reach through prayer. Yes, He is always present. He is just a prayer away.

* * *

What is also amazing is the invention of the GPS (global positioning system) which helps us know our location and direction. We have to know from time to time where we are and where we are headed as we journey on in life. Remember, to be able to reach our final destination, we have to be constantly in touch with God through prayer.

* * *

Saint Padre Pio was one person who remained in touch with God till the end. Neither pain, nor persecution, nor worldly fame made this saint remove his focus from his God. He remained in touch with God not only in prayer, but also with the sick and the needy around him. In compliance with his wish, a hospital for the poor has been erected in his shrine at San Giovanni Rotondo, and a retirement house for sick and elderly priests is now under construction as well.

* * *

Saint Padre Pio is now buried in the new, beautiful, and even opulent church beside the old and austere convent where he lived for many years and welcomed pilgrims from all over the world. Would this poor and simple Franciscan Capuchin friar have liked the upgrade? Our guide explained that this was to show that those who lived poor, chaste and simple lives in this world will inherit their heavenly reward.

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In our Mass with Mercy Tuazon, Philippine ambassador to the Vatican, we heard the sharing of Costa Rican Ambassador Fernando F. Sanchez Campos whose son and wife were healed through the relic of Saint Padre Pio. Here was an ambassador who proclaimed unashamedly the presence of God in this our day and time, and the reality of miracles in our lives. It was very inspiring and edifying to hear him. Shouldn’t we all be busy proclaiming God’s presence and love wherever we are, and whatever we do?

* * *

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” The proof of our love for God is our obedience to His will that flows into concrete loving of his people. In other words, loving God is not lip service, but simply, service. To remain in God’s love, we must love sincerely and concretely.

* * *

It is interesting to note that there are people who easily lose their peace. The Lord told us to hold on to that peace “which the world cannot give nor take away.” If we easily get irritated, discouraged, or be affected by problems, temptations or trials, that means that our staying power with the Lord is still, so to say, weak and fragile. How deep is your love for God, and how wide is your love for people?

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Next to losing one’s travel documents, the worst thing that can happen to a traveler is losing one’s wallet or losing one’s luggage. Two of our fellow pilgrims experienced these in our recent pilgrimage. Yes, anything can happen to anyone anytime. No matter how much we prepare, we can never be fully prepared for any eventuality beyond our control. In such situations we must learn to be still, and just remain in God’s embrace and love.

* * *

To remain in love with God every day, we must remind ourselves that our most important appointment for the day is our appointment with God, and that our most important agenda is to love.

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Saint Padre Pio’s prayer for Jesus’ presence: “Stay with me, Lord, for it is necessary to have you present so that I do not forget you. You know how easily I abandon you. Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak, and I need your strength that I may not fall so often. Stay with me, Lord, for you are my life, and without you, I am without fervor. Stay with me, Lord, for you are my light and without you I am in darkness. Stay with me, Lord, to show me your will. Stay with me, Lord, so that I hear your voice and follow you…”

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A moment with the Lord:

Lord, stay with me, so that I can love you, and will stay in love with you. Amen.

But it turns out that there was more to the use of Boysen “KNOxOUT” than is immediately apparent. The painting of the Guadalupe MRT Station was meant to serve as a trial of the paint’s air cleaning quality, monitored by the Manila Observatory and the Swedish environmental project management company Conexor. “KNOxOUT,” the trial showed, “cleaned the nitrogen dioxide (a toxic gas produced from vehicle emissions) emissions of over 30,000 vehicles passing by the station every day.”

How does Boysen do it? Information materials provided by the company say that when a film of “KNOxOUT” is exposed to light, the ultrafine titanium dioxide in the paint reacts with water vapor in the air to form free radicals at the surface of the titanium dioxide. These free radicals in turn break down noxious air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides that come into contact with the surface. In effect, said the company, this made the Guadalupe MRT Station the “largest air purifier in the world.”

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Taking the air cleaning project a step further, Boysen has partnered with the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on “Project EDSA (Everyone Deserves Safe Air),” billed as the “the world’s first large-scale art project using paints that can clean noxious air pollutants.” The project, launched last May 7 and curated by TAO Inc. (headed by my friend Marian Pastor Roces), consists of eight massive artworks, each measuring about 1,000 square meters in eight different locations along the 24-km-stretch of Edsa. All of the artworks will use Boysen “KNOxOUT.”

“This is the first public art project in the world that has an air cleaning dimension,” says Johnson Ongking, vice president of Boysen Paints. “It’s a very unique mix of art and science—we’re transforming Edsa into a showcase for art while using a globally innovative technology to help clean the air. It’s using the beauty of art to help address the ugly problem of air pollution in our city.”

The artists who will be involved in Project EDSA are: Jose Tence Ruiz, Asuncion “Baby” Imperial and Damien “Coco” Anne, Alfredo and Isabel Aquilizan, ad agency TBWA, printmaker Virgilio “Pandy” Aviado, photographer Neal Oshima, Erika Tan, and Tapio Snellman and Christian Grou.

From a public health perspective, “Project EDSA” should help tremendously in addressing the problem of air pollution, which causes almost 14 avoidable deaths a day in the metropolis, according to a study of the World Bank and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Aside from the toll on health and survival, air pollution and its health effects also pose a major health expense, with a study conducted by the UP College of Medicine finding that half of all medications sold in the country are for respiratory illnesses.

Of course, there are other things the government can do to cut down air pollution, and not just along Edsa. But while we struggle to implement stricter vehicle emission guidelines and less pollutant gases while seeking to bring down the number of vehicles plying our roads, public art using air cleaning paint is a good initial step. As they say, every little bit helps.

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Beginning May 25 and until June 4, everyone has a chance to bid online (www.ebay.ph/unicef) for artworks, furniture and decorative items made by renowned artists and designers while helping Filipino children secure a better future.

The fundraising online auction titled “Auction for Action” is Unicef Philippine’s first such activity to benefit children’s programs in the Philippines and worldwide. The activity is in partnership with Greenbelt Ayala Malls, Ebay.ph, Cibo and Cibo di M.

Featured artists are: Manny Baldemor, Michael Cacnio, Celestina, Seb Chua, Kenneth Cobonpue, Araceli Limcaco Dans, Kristine Dee, Janina Dizon, Mich Dulce, Tom Epperson, Accessory Lab, Ito Kish, E. Billy Mondoñedo, Ramon Orlina, Debbie Palao, Ling Quisumbing Ramilo, Benji Reyes, Popo San Pascual, Joey Samson, Vito Selma, Victor Sollorano, Paul Syjuco, Ricky Toledo and Chito Vijandre of FIRMA/Felicity, Reg Yuson, and Unicef Special Advocate for Children, Ms Daphne Oseña Paez.

Galerie Joaquin artists such as Jovan Benito, Jomar Delluba, Hamzah Marbella, Dominic Rubio and Juvenal Sanso are also participating.

Experiential packages include dinner by Chef Tonyboy Escalante of Antonio’s and a dugout experience with the Philippine Football Team or Azkals on July 3 at the World Cup qualifier in Manila.

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Unicef Country Representative Vanessa Tobin shares, “This is a first for Unicef Philippines. Our partnership with acclaimed artists via online auction helps us engage the public in a new and interesting way. As well as raising important funds for our work, we will be able to raise awareness of important issues affecting children in the most disadvantaged communities of the Philippines and worldwide.”

“I know a lot of people recognize Unicef’s valuable work in children’s rights, but few realize that Unicef relies entirely on voluntary contributions to support its work on the ground,” adds Oseña-Paez. “I’ve helped them educate moms all over the country on maternal health, mortality and breast-feeding. This time, I want to help Unicef raise awareness and funds for all their other goals: providing children with health care, access to safe water and sanitation, education, and protection from violence, abuse and exploitation.”

Relations among the region’s three major powers—China, South Korea and Japan—are burdened both by territorial disputes and by the bitter historical legacies of Japanese colonialism. Of course, economic interdependence has deepened over the past three decades, but nationalism remains a convenient tool for political mobilization—and of manipulation for domestic and diplomatic purposes.

Moreover, although the Cold War is two decades in the past, South Korea and China remain divided nations. Furthermore, North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons, its economic fragility, and uncertainty about its very future as a state are causes of deep anxiety among its neighbors.

Yet, despite all of these obstacles, there are signs that momentum is building for greater regional cooperation in overcoming them. The recent trilateral summit of China, South Korea and Japan is the fourth such meeting to be held, in addition to meetings that take place at international gatherings such as the Asean summits.

Unfortunately, however, the leaders of China, South Korea and Japan have not yet made any major breakthrough on the most sensitive security issues that divide them. But this lack of quick success does not mean that these efforts are futile. Indeed, any breakthrough to the sort of trust needed to resolve these festering security disputes will require that the three countries establish their annual gatherings as a meaningful multilateral body in its own right—one that can address major issues in dispute and plan for a better regional future.

For example, at the first trilateral summit, held in May 2008, as the global economic crisis was gathering pace, currency-swap arrangements were agreed upon among the three powers. At the second summit, in May 2009, the three heads of state agreed to start a feasibility study on a trilateral free-trade agreement (FTA). If such a trilateral FTA can be realized, its political and economic significance has the potential to equal that of the creation of European Coal and Steel Community in 1952, the first step in Europe’s integration process.

At last year’s third trilateral summit, the leaders went further still, agreeing to establish a Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat in Seoul for institutionalizing cooperation among the three governments. They also adopted a blueprint for cooperation over the next 10 years.

Among the issues discussed at this year’s summit in Tokyo, a few stand out. First, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea, and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao agreed to strengthen mutual cooperation on nuclear safety and disaster-relief activities, reflecting the three states’ concerns about how effectively they can cooperate in preventing and confronting a nuclear crisis like the Fukushima disaster.

They also promised to cooperate on development of renewable energy, improvement of energy efficiency, and denuclearization of North Korea. In addition, they agreed to speed up the feasibility study for an FTA. South Korea and China have already finished a feasibility study for a bilateral FTA, and probably will enter into formal negotiations soon.

In the summit’s joint declaration and the three leaders’ remarks at the concluding press conference, one can see China’s clear intention to improve bilateral relations with Japan by promising cooperation on the issue of Japanese imports that might be contaminated by radiation from Fukushima. Such political goodwill is essential for regional stability, particularly given the deterioration in Sino-Japanese relations following last year’s confrontation over the arrest of a Chinese fisherman by Japan’s coast guard.

China’s cooperative approach on Japanese imports was a response to Kan’s ongoing effort to calm international concern about the safety of Japan’s agricultural products. Kan undoubtedly hopes that success in convincing trade partners to lift their bans on such products will boost his exceptionally weak domestic political support.

Lee, meanwhile, sought to bring to the fore the issue of North Korea’s drive for nuclear weapons. Thus, he solicited commitments from China and Japan on denuclearization and realization of the 2005 agreement on North Korea, reached by the six-party talks (involving the United States, China, Russia, Japan, North Korea and South Korea).

Though the history of the trilateral dialogue between China, Japan and South Korea is short, it marks a new and constructive effort toward regional cooperation. This kind of pragmatic and functional approach, if strengthened, promises to generate momentum for cooperation on more sensitive security issues.

At least so far, security relations between South Korea and Japan, both US allies, and China have been more or less confrontational. Strengthening these two countries’ relations with China would increase the possibility of building a new, peaceful order for Northeast Asia. Indeed, measures aimed at creating a climate of genuine trilateral cooperation are the only effective way to improve regional security. Project Syndicate

Yoon Young-kwan, South Korea’s foreign minister in 2003-2004, is currently professor of International Relations at Seoul National University.

As taken from the May 24 transcript of the interpellation of Deputy House Speaker and Cebu Representative Pablo Garcia during the plenary debates on the Reproductive Health bill.

Every one of us is a servant of God. Whatever we do is in the service of God. Every minute, every minute of our life. God is everywhere. God is not situationary.

Are you accusing CBCP (Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines) of religious intolerance? You’re not only accusing CBCP of religious intolerance, you’re also accusing them of living in the dark ages. For as long as we live in the Philippines, for as long as we profess as Catholics, then we must abide by and follow the precepts of the Catholic Church, as declared by our Catholic authorities or bishops, our cardinals.

It would seem you are allergic to God. It has been a practice to start our sessions with a prayer, do you mean there is no place for God in our sessions? The distinguished sponsor should not begrudge me for asking questions like this.

This bill offends God. You’re saying contraceptive is popular? Let me tell you that the matter of right and wrong is not a popularity contest. You are trying to right a wrong by citing other countries, just because it’s right there does not mean it’s right here. May I remind you that we are not living, nor moving to Ireland.

Don’t interrupt me because you are trapped in your own words. If you are a Catholic, then you are a Catholic congressman.

This measure is detrimental not only to the moral values of the Philippines.

This is US imperialism in disguise. We will spend millions to buy these American products. These cause-oriented groups are being used in order to promote the advocacy.

The evil of RH bill is that it leads mostly Catholic women to temptation because the government will help them and supply them contraceptives.

The poor do not need contraceptives. They need food, clothing, shelter. They don’t need condoms. They need education.

The gospel of the condoms should not apply to those who profess a Catholic religion. My question is, do you believe in the words of God?

So says Bagatsing

As taken from the May 24 transcript of the interpellation of Manila Fifth District Rep. Amado Bagatsing during the plenary debates on the Reproductive Health bill.

The RH bill is a direct attack on the teachings of the Church.

There is no compelling reason for a new law specifically just to give funds to contraceptives. They are already available. Population is not the problem, but programs that can generate money.

Sexuality education of children can be handled by parents. Parents could take seminars.

The use of contraceptives is abortion. It prevents pregnancy. It stops the egg from meeting the ovum. We’re only playing with semantics. You prevent them from meeting. When you prevent, in English, the word is abort. When you stop something from fulfilling its obligation, it is as if you are stopping life. It is as if you are aborting life.

Is that so hard to understand? Abortion is hidden somewhere in the RH bill and may be legalized. Contraceptives have ill-effects on women.

I cannot be wiser than the Creator. The Lord said, “Go forth and multiply.”

So says Golez

As taken from a 2010 personal interview with Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez and from the plenary debates on the RH bill.

I have a very systematic presentation on why I am against the Reproductive Health bill. The most major element here is the definition of conception.

What is conception? Ah, I consulted the Internet ah, one of the major medical websites in the Internet, medicinenet. com, it defines conception, the number one definition of conception is as follows: the union of the sperm and the ovum, which is synonymous with fertilization. That is the medical definition of ah, of conception and that is how I define a conception also in my bill.

The medical definition, the prevailing medical definition as far as this presentation is concerned as provided by medical dictionaries available in the website, is the moment of conception, is the moment of fertilization.

If you look at the Reproductive Health bill, by definition reproductive means reproduction, but the bill in fact prevents reproduction. It’s an apparent misnomer.

It’s in fact an oxymoron. It’s the opposite.

We have here the definition of conception as defined by the most accepted encyclopedia right now in the world, Wikipedia.

There should be no confusion about what is a conception as medically defined. If you search the word “conception” in Google, this is the first item that comes out. Here is the sperm, and here’s the egg. This will be my documentary presentation.

It’s a question of religious conviction. There’s no conflict. If you look at the concept of the separation of Church and State, it is basically that the state should not interfere in church matters and not the other way around. It is not the church interfering in a state matter but the state should not interfere in church matters, that is the more fundamental definition of ah, separation of Church and State.

For example, if the church would like to have Masses on a Sunday, the state cannot interfere. That is a matter of a religious conviction.

The moment you become a member of a church, you have to comply with the guidelines from the church and in the case of the Catholic Church, the principal interpreter of a Catholic doctrine would be the bishops.

I comply with the doctrine of the church.

As taken from the book of Leviticus, Chapter 24, verse 19-20, 21-23

And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again.

Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country: for I am the LORD your God.

And Moses spake to the children of Israel, that they should bring forth him that had cursed out of the camp, and stone him with stones. And the children of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses.

But this same geography which might be argued to be a curse, now presents an enormous opportunity in the form of the Tampakan mining project. The mine has the potential to become the fifth largest copper mine in the world. The confluence of a surging China hungry for copper and record-setting copper prices suggests that the mine’s development must proceed for the benefit of the country. Projected federal taxes are $4.5 billion or roughly 1 percent of GDP including thousands of new jobs. While environmental concerns should not be understated, significant proposed anti-pollution investments by the mining companies, coupled with the transparency microscope of regulatory bodies, provide sufficient insurance.

The African country of Zambia was faced with a similar investment decision 10 years ago—whether or not to allow development of its copper industry. The decision to ultimately develop the mining sector has created enormous tax windfalls which are being used to fund anti-poverty measures, in particular the development of its agriculture industry. The government, in retrospect, has publicly acknowledged that it made the correct decision. Additionally, tax revenues have exceeded initial forecasts. In 2010 the World Bank cited Zambia as the fastest economically reforming country.

There is no reason why the Philippines cannot duplicate the Zambia formula, but tax proceeds need to be spent wisely and funneled toward segments of the economy with large multiplier effects. One such segment is agriculture, the beauty of which is its accompanying simple math. According to the Philippine Rice Research Institute, rice lands are producing three tons of rice per hectare annually, substantially below the land’s potential of 12 tons. Funding to farmers for better fertilizers or low interest loans for better production machinery or irrigation equipment can be a quick and easy development policy to maximize yields. Higher yields generate more income and benefit local communities immediately. As Diamond notes, once a culture creates a surplus of food and self-sufficiency, the other trades begin flourishing. Additionally, the self-sufficiency eliminates more costly imports, which contribute to higher rice prices that disproportionately impact the poor who spend a significant percentage of disposable income on rice.

Another segment with large multiplier effects is infrastructure. Strategic development of key transportation networks can uncork bottlenecks and create access to new markets and ameliorate the economic inefficiencies of 7,000 islands. Delays and expenses related to land-vs.-water transport can be reduced. Lastly, mining funds can be allocated to improving the country’s educational system by funding an additional two years of elementary school, reducing class sizes and enforcing school attendance.

It is no secret that the Philippines has lagged behind its Southeast Asian neighbors in development despite the fact that the Filipino work ethic is unquestioned and the Filipino people’s professional success abroad is substantial. The mere fact that Filipinos work in nearly 70 countries abroad suggests a home country with a broken or flawed economic system and a people desperate to flee it. My nearly three-year stint living in Northern Mindanao and consequent interaction with both the poor and rich in my community have been a rewarding experience. However, several endemic qualities within the country’s system here continue to gnaw at me and have forced me to sympathize with people wishing to leave and work abroad. I do believe that government policy prescriptions exist which can meaningfully right this ship, assuming the participation of a committed government that is intent on not tolerating corruption. Given the current stage of development, “throwing money at the problem” can be effective if done strategically. The Tampakan mine project is an important first step in the brick by brick development process.

The Philippines’ geographical luck may be taking an important and monumental turn, and the role of luck should not be underestimated. As Ecclesiastes notes, “I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11)

The Philippines is harboring a coveted natural resource in today’s expanding global economy with the prospect of continuing copper prices at historically high levels led primarily by China’s ascendance. The proverbial “Filipino Time” is now.

Mark Zinski is an American residing in Northern Mindanao. He is the managing director of 21st Century Equity Research which specializes in small and micro cap equity research.

LDFs are spent by 79 provinces. (The Supreme Court, however, reversed itself on Dinagat Island’s status. So, make that 80.) This trust fund is also vital for 122 cities, including the 16 towns on whose cityhood ambition the Court flipped, and then flopped. A reconsideration motion is pending. Add to that roster 1,512 towns.

Six out of every 10 local governments flunk the “full disclosure” criterion on tax spending. This fractures the General Appropriations Act of 2011 and the Local Government Code. Both require “full disclosure to ensure transparency and accountability,” Robredo says.

This Magsaysay awardee’s candor causes some to fume. “Does the DILG control all LGUs?” snapped Dumanjug Mayor Nelson Garcia. He is the national vice president of the League of Municipalities. The league will challenge DILG memo circular 2010-138 before the Supreme Court.

Robredo’s Dec. 7 memo lists seven “Thou shall nots” in disbursing LDF. Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto, thus, flags a mayors’ manifesto that bucks curbs on their spending.

What is the LDF? How did this trust fund come about? And what is its track record?

“Thou shall not ration justice,” Justice Learned Hand once cautioned. Does Memo 2010-138 deny local officials equity?

Recall the 1972 UN Environment Conference in Stockholm. Delegates from 113 countries, including the Philippines, adopted an action plan that proposed a “20-20 Pact.” Governments agreed to earmark 20 percent of resources for the poorest. Such fund would address the needs of the most deprived: nutrition, health care, medicine, potable water, sanitation, primary schooling, etc.

Human development relieves grinding poverty, the Stockholm consensus stressed. Curbing disease and death rates makes human development possible. Unmet human needs usher more pre-school children in the Philippines to premature graves than in Egypt, Kenya or Tanzania, the Asian Development Bank noted.

Former Sen. Aquilino Pimental wove that 20 percent vital safety net concept into the Local Government Code. Viewpoint noted (Inquirer, 10/23/07) that politicians converted the LDF into their mini-pork barrels, as successive COA audits found.

Davao Oriental Sanggunian officials ladled P669,892 as “financial assistance”—for themselves. Dapitan doled P1 million for an “executive band.” San Carlos City allocated P110,000 for a Boy Scouts jamboree in Angeles. Northern Samar purchased seven brand-new vehicles. Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña’s barangay leaders bought themselves high-powered motorcycles and handguns.

Plunder of the LDF does not stem from ignorance. Ruling after ruling underscore its “preferential option for the poorest.”

Could the LDF supplement salaries of national high school teachers? Mountain Province and Ifugao officials asked. Could it patch funding deficits in other projects?

No way, Jose, said DILG Opinion No. 5 dated Aug. 10, 1999.

That policy remains in force today. But it is honored more in the breach than in practice.

Match some of Robredo’s “Thou shalt nots” with specific cases.

Underwriting “salaries, wages or overtime pay” is verboten, the memo says. In contrast, the COA annual report on local governments has an unvarying gripe: “Regular expenses, such as salaries, wages, facilities maintenance, travel, celebration of festivities, etc. are charged to LDF.”

In 2008, for example, 102 LGUs failed to implement development projects, the COA reported. The same sordid pattern persisted into the next year. It continues today.

Thou shall not underwrite “administrative expenses such as cash gifts, bonuses, food allowances, medical assistance, uniforms, supplies, meetings, communication, water and light, petroleum products, and the like,” Robredo’s memo tells LGUs.

Fifth-class town Aloguinsan in Cebu splurged P540,000 for a live concert and a dance-breakout, the COA said. Borbon town granted P24,000 to each department head. Jagna, Bohol, fittered away P1.85 million in LDF resources for heavy equipment.

Cotabato City appropriated P55 million of its LDF for three development projects. It spent P44.3 million mostly on creating jobs, not meeting basic human needs.

“Evaluation conducted by the Audit Team Leader disclosed that majority of programs, implemented by the city government under the 20 percent (Fund) consist of augmentation of manpower requirements,” the COA said. Some 480 workers were assigned/detailed at the 27 offices of the city. That chewed up P16.3 million.

Junkets or akbay aral are out, Robredo says. “Traveling expenses, whether domestic of foreign” may not be billed to the LDF.

Neither may officials dip into the fund for “registration fees in training, seminars, conferences or conventions.”

Minglanilla officials (Cebu) burned P5.6 million from the LDF for two trips to join Palawan’s Kabunhawan festival. Lapu-Lapu City’s Association of Barangay Councils “misused” P550,000 on a Christmas party and gifts over two years and P776,500 on honoraria for 30 barangay captains.

A new Performance Challenge Fund will provide P500 million to 344 LGUs that provide counterparts from LDFs for essential projects. These range from rural health units and water and sanitation to post-harvest facilities.

Local officials stubbornly insist on having their LDF pork barrels.

“These are all honest men,” the old adage says. “But why can I not find my bag?”

The ad was in the form of an “Open Letter to President Aquino,” and essentially focused on four cases brought against Acosta and his mother by the Office of the Ombudsman, and which are now being heard in the Sandiganbayan. And after the letter-writers stated piously that they “didn’t wish to discuss the merits of the case already undergoing trial at the Sandigan,” they proceeded to do exactly that for the rest of the ad.

If there was no truth to the charges against him, they ask (piously?), why then were these brought up in the first place, and why were these given due course by the Sandiganbayan? Thus their worry for the President and for the country, because a man like Acosta, with such stains (“bahid dungis”) on his honor and integrity has no place in the “daan na tuwid,” etc., etc.

Such concern. Such patriotism. One would think that they should be proud and unafraid to publicly be connected to such an exposé of wrongdoing, since they are such daan-na-tuwid advocates. But no. No signatures are included at the bottom of the ad. All the identification there is “Crusaders for Good Government” (which of course I Googled, only to find out that there is no such animal).

So now the question is, why should such concerned citizens wish to remain anonymous, especially since a full-page ad, at least in the Inquirer (which boasts the largest circulation), costs more than P188,000 on weekdays?

And another question: Should a newspaper print such an ad, which is clearly defamatory and in the nature of a poison-pen letter?

Wanting to know who these concerned citizens are, I called up the newspaper in question, and asked who paid for the ad. I was told that the ad was paid for by a certain “Roly”—in cash, mind you—with cell-phone number 09209191522. I then called up “Roly,” but he denied that it was he who paid for the ad. He is merely an agent, an ad-taker for the newspaper. When asked if he could supply me the name of the person/s who gave him the (cash) money, he begged for more time, and said he would return my call (alas, past my deadline). And here is media, noisily pushing for the Freedom of Information Act. What’s sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander, don’t you think?

Now to the nitty-gritty: Is there any basis to the accusations against Acosta, his mom (and apparently her sister)—i.e., that as a congressman, he used P10.5 million of his “pork barrel” (aka Priority Development Assistance Fund) to finance a family-owned NGO (a lot of legislators apparently do this, alas) which serves only as a conduit so that the money ends up with the family? The answer has to be a resounding NO. BINHI has been in operation for nigh 20 years now, very successful (more than 7,000 beneficiaries), with one of its projects, the so-called Bulig, operating in the same manner as the famous Grameen Bank. The operations of this NGO caught the eye of my fellow columnist Rina Jimenez-David, who devoted three columns to it in September 2003. Everything is on the up-and-up, with neither Neric Acosta nor any member of his family getting any salary or allowance or any benefits from the NGO. The same thing can be said for BVPC, a cooperative for the husbands of the female members of BINHI. There was every reason for Acosta to put some of his pork barrel into what had become a truly people-centered activity.

So then, how come the Ombudsman saw it fit to file criminal charges against the Acostas? And how come the Sandiganbayan gave it due course?

To answer the first question, his political opponents filed charges with the Ombudsman in March 2004. It took almost four years, and a change of ombudsman—to Merceditas Gutierrez—before the decision was made to file charges, with the Acostas receiving the relevant communications two whole weeks after the Sandiganbayan took cognizance of the information, which means the Acostas were effectively deprived of due process and their right to question the filing of charges.

And why did Gutierrez make a move against the Acostas more than three years after she became ombudsman? One of two reasons: either she was really slow, or she wanted to retaliate for what she considered to be Acosta’s attempts to impeach her.

Who would think that keeping Acosta out of the DENR was important enough to shell out some P180,000 for an ad? A partial list: There are his political enemies—i.e. the Zubiris of Bukidnon and their allies, who want to deny Acosta any opportunity to shine. There are those who want to keep the status quo—the incumbent is affiliated with the Iglesia ni Cristo whose power to capture and retain plum appointments is legendary. And there are those who look at the DENR as a potential cash cow (permits, licenses, certifications, etc.) or who think they can get what they want from the present dispensation and whose activities may be drastically impaired with Acosta there because he is anything but corrupt.

Obviously the paid ad was just the tip of the iceberg. One can imagine the other efforts to keep Acosta out of the DENR.

Well, it seems that these have been successful. And the country has lost. Again.

What does this new report really mean? Let us examine the trend (that is, movements over time) and status (that is, the current situation) of unemployment.

The trend of unemployment. The BW report is pointing out that the SWS unemployment figure of 27.2 percent in March 2011 is due to successive increases from 23.5 percent in November 2010 and 18.9 percent in September 2010. From a three-quarter perspective, that’s unfavorable, and surely the administration and all development agents should be concerned.

Yet, from a perspective of the last six years, such high unemployment is not unusual. The annual averages of the SWS quarterly unemployment percentages in recent years have all been in the twenties: 22.6 in 2005, 26.4 in 2006, 25.3 in 2007, 28.6 in 2008, 29.0 in 2009, and 22.5 in 2010. From 2005 to 2010, unemployment even exceeded 30 percent three times (with a record high 34.2 percent in February 2009), and was below 20 percent only four times.

SWS tracking of unemployment began in September 1993, as a by-product of its quarterly surveys of adults. The outstanding revelation of the entire SWS series is that unemployment had formerly been much lower, in 1993-2004, before rising to the heights of 2005-2011. This is quite clear from the line chart on BW’s front page and in the SWS website.

Here are the averages of the earlier SWS quarterly unemployment percentages: 13.6 in 1993 (2 quarters), 10.3 in 1994, 10.2 in 1995, 8.7 in 1996, 8.7 in 1997, 8.7 in 1998, 9.0 in 1999, 10.7 in 2000, 9.8 in 2001, 8.0 in 2002, 10.8 in 2003, and 15.8 in 2004.

The fact that unemployment went into high double-digits starting 2005 clearly implies that the structure of economic growth turned relatively jobless compared to earlier years. Is it mere coincidence that the long-term perspectives of unemployment and of hunger are so similar to each other (see my April 9 column “Hunger: the most urgent problem”)?

Current unemployment. The March 2011 SWS survey found that, out of the projected national population of 55.3 million adults, some 30.2 million have work at present (“may trabaho sa kasalukuyan”), and 11.3 million do not have work but are looking for it. Therefore the estimated labor force is 30.2 + 11.3 = 41.5 million, i.e. this excludes those not looking for work. Dividing the number unemployed by the size of the labor force gives the SWS unemployment rate of 27.2 percent.

Unemployment in March 2011 is a fantastic 59 percent among those aged 18-24, an average 27 percent among those 25-34, and drops steadily with age, to 17 percent among those 55+ years old. It is 39 percent among women, or more than double the 18 percent among men.

Among the families of the unemployed, 19.3 percent suffer from moderate hunger, and 8.4 percent suffer from severe hunger. Among families of the employed, moderate and severe hunger are only 14.0 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively. The correlation is clear.

When classified by job history, the most common type of unemployed are those who had resigned from their jobs. They account for 10 of the 27 percent unemployment. Did they expect better work and/or better pay? Were their jobs and talents mismatched? Could they not get along with superiors and workmates? These are issues of the job market and the workplace.

Almost as common are those who involuntarily lost their jobs, due to non-renewal of their engagements or projects, outright lay-off, or closure of their employers. They account for 9 percentage points of unemployment, and are the consequence of poor performance of the economy in general.

Finally come the first-time job-seekers, accounting for 7 points of unemployment. Born 18 to 24 years ago, they survived to adulthood, and now need jobs. There would not have been as many, if families had been more able to achieve their desired number of children.

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Comparison of definitions. The SWS data series has always defined the unemployed as those (a) without work, and also (b) looking for work. This is the traditional definition, in use in Philippine statistics ever since the 1950s, if not earlier. Maintaining a consistent standard of measurement is critical, for the data to be valid for analysis over long time-periods.

The official definition of the unemployed had been the traditional one, until it was revised in April 2005 to also require (c) a declaration of availability for work within two weeks if an opportunity arises. This typically reduces the size of official unemployment, and the size of the official labor force.

For instance, with application of the availability-criterion to the SWS March 2011 survey, the officially-seen unemployed would become only 16.8 percent of the officially-defined labor force. So it is understandable why some uncharitable people might call it window-dressing.

Unfortunately, the revision also resulted in a discontinuity in official unemployment data, with official numbers starting April 2005 no longer comparable with earlier official ones based on the traditional definition. This discontinuity benefits the Macapagal-Arroyo administration.

Another difference (but a minor one) between the SWS and the official statistics on unemployment is the age-coverage, namely 18+ years for the SWS data versus 15+ years for the official data.

(I thank Malou Laxamana of SWS for special tabulations used here.)

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Contact SWS: www.sws.org.ph or mahar.mangahas@sws.org.ph.