The final State of the Nation Address

To be fair to the Aquino administration, they have done a number of praiseworthy accomplishments during his tenure and it is but proper and fitting that he display and emphasize it on his final State of the Nation Address (SONA) speech. 

However, there are also damages inflicted and unresolved problems that will most probably be left by this administration come his term’s final day. One of the most deplorable issues that the administration was unable to resolve up until now was the setback in the transportation sector. 

The administration remains pretty much optimistic that the reforms implemented during his term will soon bear its fruit which will soon be proved to be valuable to the public the the years to come.

As imperfect as our President may be, as shown by the unsettled mishaps in the transportation sector, President Aquino calmly claimed that they have done their part and the rest of the problems were created by the previous administration.

There were unclear answers and topics which were spoken by the president such as, deteriorating mass railways. There are also some issue regarding congested airways which was already rehabilitated which enabled the Philippine carriers to lift the ban enforced by the United States and European safety watchdogs.

Another magnificent thing initiated by President Aquino and his men was the Public-Private Partnership Program (PPP), though it was also bombarded with a lot of criticisms. 

Despite of that, 10 projects were awarded thus far including big-ticket railways, toll roads and the most recently constructed world-class airport in Visayas.

President Aquino may have been well decorated by a number of remarkable feats and accomplishments during his reign, but all of these were overshadowed by his failure to find concrete solutions to most of the existing and most troublesome national setbacks today. 

To cite a great example of such, the Aquino administration have miserably failed to ease the restricted transportation access in Metro Manila, which is considered as the central hub for the country’s economic progress. It is also the place where most of the Filipino population is densely located.

The Aquino administration only have a few more months left in its term but they still have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to the development of our transportation infrastructures. LRT (Light Rail Transit) Line 1 have been pestered by a series of machine breakdowns. 

Subsequent to that, the PNR (Philippine National Railways) also had it fair share of problems when its operations were suspended last May 2015 after the coaches got derailed allegedly due to stolen railway materials.

But the most prominent dilemma being faced by the Philippine transportation today is the MRT (Metro Rail Transit ) Line 3, almost 16 year of age, which crosses EDSA from time to time, serving close to 500,000 million passengers everyday. Its designed load capacity is only 350, 000 which often tends to be neglected, resulting to continuous malfunctioning of the train system, shutdowns and long line of commuters.

The news about the suspension of former MRT 3 General Manager Al Vitangcol III and him getting charged with graft isn’t going to help either. 

We need more positive actions coming from the Aquino administration for us to finally conclude that term work, was a “job well done”.

We want Peace with Justice

Saying there can be no peace without equity, a pioneer of the House of Representatives needs numerous homicide arguments recorded against parts of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in charge of the bloodbath in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

January 25, 2015, three detachments of the first class SAF (Special Action Force) of the PNP (Philippine National Police) were sent to Tukanalipao in Mindanao – a spot accepted to be a guerilla enclave. Their central goal was to serve a warrant of rest to a high-positioning Jemah Islamiya explosives master Zulkifli Bin Hir otherwise known as Marwan and Basit Usman. Be that as it may, the SAF troops were blocked by 300 parts of the MILF (Moro-Islamic Liberation Front) and BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters). What happened next will everlastingly be scratched in the personalities of the remaining parts of the PNP-SAF unit, which was made out of 70 extraordinarily prepared cops.

Going from incredulity to misery – on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other informal organizations. Presently, everybody is pondering: What truly happened that day?

44 law requirement operators were mercilessly slaughtered like wild creatures.

Pres. Aquino had a change of heart. He made a 360-degree turn and portrayed the ARMM a "fizzled investigation." He then steered the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process to make an "administration peace board" that will take a seat with Moro Islamic Liberation Front agents. A "structure understanding" was marked by the board on October 2012, making a Bangsamoro self-sufficient government over a much bigger zone in Mindanao. Aquino designated Professor Miriam Coronel Ferrer supplanting Leonen as he was selected to the Supreme Court.

On the off chance that the Bangsamoro Basic Law will be established into law, nothing could stop its "self-ruling government" from creating its own particular state army, fiscal framework, police drive and even visa and movement regulations. It appears that the Bangsamoro government will tackle a parliamentary sort of government, which is a sign that it won't work inside the 1987 Constitution.

An alternate convincing reason the BBL ought to be void is that it is not the president's obligation to make an open office, for example, the Transition Commission, however the Congress'. This implies that the making of the Transition Commission is illegal, after the decision of the Supreme Court in Biraogo v. Truth Commission.

So you see? The President urging the quick establishment of the BBL implies he could be submitting an at fault infringement of the Constitution.

Presently, do you need this to happen to our nation?

RIP Mark Gil

Pumanaw na ang aktor na si Mark Gil. Si Mark ang ama ng young actors na sina Gabby Eigenmann, Sid Lucero, at Andi Eigenmann at kapatid nina Cherie Gil at Michael de Mesa. 

Sa kasalukuyan ay wala pang opisyal na pahayag ang pamilya ni Mark tungkol sa malungkot na balitang ito ngunit ayon sa mga ulat, namayapa ang aktor dahil sa sakit na liver cirrhosis. via @pepalerts

Liz Uy on Rumored Romance with President Aquino

In an interview with Liz Uy on “Tapatan ni Tunying,”  she belies that she has had a short-lived romance with President Aquino.

Uy met the President through Kris Aquino, who is also one of her clients.

In 2010, the president has admitted that Liz Uy was his personal stylist, and they have been dating.

He said both he and Uy have been spending time together but there was no special relationship between them.

Source: Kicker Daily

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The Supreme Court declared DAP unconstitutional

President Aquino filed a motion of reconsideration but got rejected.

Despite much criticism about his latest statement on the issue, President Aquino is still defending the legality of Disbursement Acceleration Program; he says even our country’s highest court committed the same act to those under the controversial fund system.

It seems that he used his speech in swaying the people to believe on him.

Voting 13-0, the Supreme Court ruled that Malacañang violated the Constitution

He then continued to defend DAP in spite of the court ruling.

In Rappler’sinterview with him he says the verdict is unreasonable.

"My message to the Supreme Court: We do not want two equal branches of government to go head to head, needing a third branch to step in to intervene. We find it difficult to understand your decision," 

"I am after all being arrested for parking in an area that up to now hasn’t yet been declared a no-parking zone. Is this reasonable?" he adds

It seems like he's trashing the constitution and wants presidential autocracy. There are different groups filing a petition for his impeachment.

President Aquino claims that DAP is legal and there is nothing wrong with it. But many would say that it is unconstitutional.

On July 14 President Aquino speak about his government’s controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program in a national broadcast. He says 'DAP is not a project—it is an efficient way of spending the budget; it follows the law and adheres to the mandate granted to the Executive Branch. We did this to properly allocate funds, and by so doing maximize the benefits that the people may receive.'

Do you think PDAF is a scam while DAP is not? Leave comment below.