Religious war

The question as to who will become the next commissioner of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has become a test of who is closer to the heart of President Arroyo "Jesus is Lord or El Shaddai." The strongest contender to the post, currently occupied by General Eliseo Rio who is just awaiting for his replacement after he tendered his resignation for personal reasons, appears to be NTC deputy commissioner Armi Jane Borje who used to be a legal counsel of Brother Eddie Villanueva of Jesus is Lord. Unfortunately, Brother Mike Velarde of El Shaddai heard about this and is now asking the President to appoint former postmaster-general Jorge Sarmiento to the position of NTC commissioner. Velarde is reportedly banking on the President’s promise that she will give anything Velarde asks, especially after the latter left former President Estrada and sided with Tita Glo.

Smear campaign

A well-funded and well-orchestrated campaign is being waged against National Food Authority (NFA) chairman Angelito Sarmiento, whose only mistake appears to be that he is upsetting the livelihood of certain grains businessmen.

These businessmen want Sarmiento out of NFA because of certain policy reforms he is instituting at the NFA, which if successful, will make our palay farmers richer and other who make money out of the rice sector a little poorer. Sarmiento for instance is now pushing for farmers’ cooperatives to buy rice directly from NFA and sell it to their members, acting in effect as retailers. This of course means less business for grains retailers. He is also working on a mechanism whereby farmers will be allowed to import part of the country’s rice requirements, a business which used to be in the hands of a few traders.

To further empower the farming sector, the NFA is likewise looking at privatizing some of its facilities, such as the municipal-level grains centers for starters, which the farmers can amortize using their produce. Sarmiento’s detractors claim that the former Bulacan solon is pro-big business. His family owns Vitarich Corp. and other businesses, that’s for sure, but what does that got to do with NFA. At least, he knows how to run a business and that is what our farming sector needs.

Graceful exit

Sources close to the negotiations claim that First Pacific is just looking for a graceful exit for the Gokongweis with whom the former entered into a memorandum of agreement for the sale of its 24.4-percent economic interest in the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT).

First Pacific controlling shareholder Anthoni Salim is reportedly convinced that contrary to the ill advise of his First Pacific lieutenants Michael Healy and Ron Brown, it will be very difficult for First Pacific to meet the conditionalities contained in the MOA in order to execute the agreement, in particular the due diligence investigation requirement which PLDT has opposed.

For this deal to proceed, the Gokongweis will have to agree to buy PLDT and Bonifacio Land Corp. without due diligence. Unortunately, the Gokongweis would not. The same source claims that Salim is set to seriously consider and evaluate the reported proposal of the Ayala-Campos consortium for the assumption of a $109-million loan which Metro Pacific Corp. owes Larouge BV and secured by 50.4 percent of Bonifacio Land’ s outstanding shares, now that the exclusivity period with the Gokongweis has lapsed.

If this happens and Salim accepts the Ayala-Campos offer, then First Pacific may have to wait for a better opportunity to sell its PLDT stake.

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