Palace ear-spies disclosed that whenever the President has some free time in the evening, she meets with various PMA classes as a form of military "loyalty checks" (as opposed to lifestyle checks?). Just last week, she was seen by our eye-spies having a sumptuous cuisine with Class ’88. Our ear-spies said GMA will meet Class ’85 this week. It would seem that while First Gentleman Mike Arroyo is preoccupied with a scandal over Ms. Toh, the Commander in Chief is meeting with her Mistahs. Apparently, some people just have better tastes than others.
| They Came, They Saw, They Will Invest |
One of our impeachable ear-spies beyond the Pacific informed us that Robert Driscoll, chair of the RP-US Business Committee of the influential US-ASEAN Business Council, will meet the President this month. Unlike some foreign investors who are wary about bringing their capital into the Philippines before 2004, it seems these American businessmen have the gung-ho confidence of the Marines to invest in our shores. Hope they last longer in this country than the former defense chief lasted in his post.
Our top ear-spies reported that when the Lockheed executives sent their invitation to GMA to attend the inauguration rites of their company’s facilities in Clark, a top-brass security adviser moved heaven and earth to be designated as the President’s representative in case she couldn’t make it. Is it common in this parts for Annapolis graduates to scurry over to aviation events?
In a plush party, the Italian Trade Attache quietly complained to one of our ear-spies that Republica Italia would like to address the trade imbalance between the Philippines and Italy. Commercially, there is hardly any trade between the two countries, notwithstanding the 250,000 Filipinos in Italy – probably the biggest Filipino assemblage in Europe. Truth to tell, Filipinos remit more dollars out of Italy than it receives in trade with RP. And to think the Italian government is providing airlift aircraft to the government. The Philippines can begin with a trade exchange – Maseratis for mangoes, perhaps?
According to our ear-spies, some members of the board of the biggest homeowners association this side of Asia (managing the biggest private subdivision in the country and in Asia) were irked when their new president stopped the exorbitant "taxes" the group collected from the gates under the past leadership. Collecting "taxes" is the sole responsibility of government, and it is illegal for private organizations to conduct such a practice under present laws. As if this group of people weren’t getting enough from the more than 9,000 homes in the village (in car stickers alone, we’re talking millions of pesos), these particular members of the board were allegedly the same people who used indiscriminately the homeowners" trust fund to buy half-working "multi-cabs," making the non-profit organization into an earning institution. Our ear-spies overheard that since the new president refused to connive with the board in its illegal taxation and multi-cab scheme, the board TRO-ed the new president from functioning in his post. What is more suspicious is: The HLURB readily sided with the so-called money-making board members. No wonder good guys are such an endangered species in this country.
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