Bring out the names

Senators Chiz Escudero and Antonio Trillanes have joined the call for a thorough investigation of corruption in the Bureau of Customs.

Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez issued a statement saying the buck stops with the President.

Every one in the Customs zone knows who the big players are, their godfathers and the collectors who are used to allow shipments to go through without inspection.  

A one-week investigation by the Presidential Security Group (PSG) or the NBI can uncover the names of those operating in the Customs zone.

Rep. Danilo Suarez is correct. The Lateral Attrition Law can be applied to fire Customs personnel who have missed their targets.

Customs Commissioner Rufino Biazon has been in office for almost 2 years. He has consistently missed his target every month for 20 months.

The name of BIR Commissioner Kim Henares has been floated for  the Customs job. It’s a good suggestion.  

DOF Sec. Cesar Purisima must do a better job of screening the Customs personnel being assigned as Deputy Commissioner or collectors.

Ask Danny Lim

In an ANC interview, Customs Commissioner Rufino Biazon challenged those who have pointed to political forces intervening in Customs transactions to name names. Sir, the first person to declare the presence of political intervention and pressures in the BOC is Deputy Commissioner Danny Lim. You should therefore ask Lim to submit the list of political interveners that he found difficult to deal with.

Ask his 54 collectors for the names of politicians who have talked to them and he will get a long list.

Good policy

Lingayen/Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas has discouraged his faithful from soliciting funds from politicians.

“Let us make it our rule of life when we relate to politicians. Walang hihingi. Every time we ask our politicians for monetary help, we tempt them to dig into the pork barrel coffers or jueteng chests to accommodate our request,” Villegas said.

Politicians are usually tapped for big donations to build or repair churches.

Let us hope the CBCP as a whole adopts the Villegas policy.

Easy solution

Malacañang announced a tightening of rules with regards to NGO allocations of the PDAF or pork barrel. Accreditation by DSWD is now required. Good but not quite enough.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. asked 54 party-list representatives to study and propose a solution to the pork barrel problem.

The Congressmen will of course fight to the death to keep their P70 million PDAF.

The solution is quite simple. Set a limit of P2 million to be allocated to a project or beneficiary.

Top bank

BDO Unibank, Inc. recorded an impressive 144 percent growth in net income for the first six months of 2012 to P14.1 billion, more than double the P5.8 billion earned in the same period last year.

Congratulations to Chief Executive Officer, Teresita Sy Coson.

Tap them

Twelve or 18 years in the Senate is a lot of experience and knowledge under one’s belt. Retired Senators Manuel Villar, Panfilo Lacson, Francis Pangilinan, Edgardo Angara, and Joker Arroyo should be tapped for appointive positions.

Ed Angara, a well-known lawyer and former Executive Secretary can be tapped for Secretary of Justice if Secretary Leila De Lima is promoted to the Supreme Court. He can also be appointed Ambassador  to Madrid, Spain.

Senator Francis Pangilinan can be appointed rice czar and tasked to help stop rice smuggling. He can also dismantle the rice cartels.

Senator Manny Villar’s management expertise can be harnessed to head a task force on job creation.

Senator Ping Lacson would be ideal for Customs or Immigration Commissioner, two corruption-laden offices.

Senator Joker Arroyo can head a task force on human rights and extrajudicial killings.

Whitewash?

DFA spokesperson Usec Raul Hernandez said that the “sex for flight” allegations have not been proven. That is unacceptable. It is clearly a whitewash. Four OFWs have already come forward to testify that labor attaches have made “sex for flight” proposals to them.  That’s enough prima facie proof.

Again, we say relieving the labor officials of their Middle East assignments is not enough. Administrative charges must be filed.

Meanwhile, the Department of Labor and Employment is also dragging its feet on its investigation.

Partly-List Rep. Walden Bello slammed DOLE and DFA  officials for their inaction on the case.

Paging DFA Secretary Albert Del Rosario. Do something about this. This has clearly been inappropriate conduct on the part of DOLE and DFA personnel. The Ambassadors must take command responsibility for their personnel.

Crime wave in Tacloban

Jack Uy, president of the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Tacloban, Leyte and Jojo Uy, a young Filipino-Chinese entrepreneur decries the rash of crimes occurring in Tacloban, Leyte.

Jack Uy said that as many as 5 robberies are happening nightly without the police doing anything about it.

“The rampant crimes affecting all business establishments are really scaring away investors and it seems to me the police are helpless to stop these criminals”, Uy said.

Meanwhile, a policeman was the principal suspect in the killing of 2 women in Pagsanjan, Laguna.

Bonifacio Loreto and Richard Kho of Aksyon Ngayon Newspaper were killed in Quezon City. Alexander Sabalsa, 34, was shot dead at Barangay Commonwealth, Quezon City.

Clarita Rasillas, 52, a meat vendor was shot dead in Sta.Cruz, Manila.

Cecilia Tuazon, 58, Orion Water District Manager of Bataan, was shot dead in front of her house in Orion. Her husband Emmanuel was seriously wounded.

TIDBITS: Two  more victims of the CDO blast have died, bringing the total to 8. They are Dr. Marciano “Jun” Agustin of Cavite and Reynaldo Dalupan, a  medical representative.

Bantay Bigas, a consumer watchdog in Quezon questions the increase in the price of rice by P2 a kilo. The group asked “if the supply is enough, why is the price increasing?”

One suggestion on “Mali”,  the Manila Zoo elephant. Bring him to Calauit, Palawan.