Behind his back

Bank notes: The president is probably clueless that his majority stockholder is quietly looking for his replacement. The search is taking place while the president is still abroad.

The president performed well in a crisis situation two years ago.

His problem lies in dealing with the smaller stuff. As an outsider, he has not endeared himself to employees, many of whom have been with the bank for ages, by using a western approach in pushing for much-needed changes. The mistakes he has made as a first-time president have also been blown out of proportion by the time the board hears about it.

When everything is said, the president no longer has the full support of his board and will receive the coup de grace only when his replacement has signed on the dotted line.

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A newspaper geared towards overseas Filipino workers will be based in Port Area, Manila. The lease on the building has already been signed.

This way, the soon-to-be-opened paper can be shipped to countries which host huge communities of OFWs, all over the voting age of 18.

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An exclusive girl’s school has tightened up its drug watch after one entire sophomore class of 40 students or so was quietly asked to, uh, not return for schoolyear 2003-2004.

It started out as an investigation by school officials on why food sales in the canteen significantly dropped while water sales went up. In the course of the investigation, one class was caught in the act of buying and selling upscale drugs like ecstasy.

Then again, one class of girls who decided to save their allowances for something else than food would not be enough to affect the bottom line of the school’s food court that much.

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Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Bayani Fernando was in Australia the week he was tagged a tree killer by residents and students along Katipunan Ave. in Quezon City. Thus, his silence.

Before his trip, Bayani Fernando held a meeting with Katipunan stakeholders such as Ateneo de Manila University president, Fr. Bienvenido Nebres, SJ on what can be done to ease the traffic gridlock.

Mr. Fernando suggested the balling of the trees and transferring the trees from the islands (which will be demolished) to, say, Ateneo sprawling grounds.

The stakeholders countered with such proposals as getting rid of those vendors of uncooked sweet corn on both sides of the avenue instead of moving the trees.

By the way, balling a tree does not kill it. You use a balling machine or a tree spader to uproot the tree – roots and soil included so it won’t die – and quickly move it to a pre-drug hole of the same specifications.

The cost varies. Putting up an electric post is said to cost Manila Electric Co. about P5,000 a pole. Property developers such as Ayala Land, Inc. have been known to spend up to P50,000 to relocate a full-grown 20-year tree.