UP Ibalon Bicol: Ferdinand Marcos

Showing posts with label Ferdinand Marcos. Show all posts

Protesting Imelda Marcos & recalling those who were entombed in the quick-drying cement of the MIFF building

9/13/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

In giving honor to Imelda Marcos, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) opened old wounds and new controversies---- bringing memories of the excesses of Marcos decades ago. An overhyped supporter of arts and culture, the former first lady was feted by her CCP friends with a glittery tribute which mny believed wasn’t well-deserved. Irate critics and victims of human rights violations went out of the rain to denounce Imelda on Friday, Septermber 11, 2009.

In a pattern to make the shoe-loving woman acceptable again, CCP officials insisted on Imelda’s support for the arts as needing recognition. They said her political notoriety was a separate issue. But those who could remember the horrid past believed the woman known for the "true, the good, and the beautiful" must be jailed.

“Tama na linawin natin sa mga kabataan ang papel ng mga Marcos sa kasaysayan. Si Imelda ay bahagi ng conjugal dictatorship noong panahon ng kanyang asawa (It’s only right to explain to the youth the role of the Marcoses in history. Imelda was part of a conjugal dictatorship during her husband’s time),"

“Ang dapat sa kanya, ikulong at pagbayarin (She deserves to be imprisoned and made to pay)," ---Antonio Tinio, Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) National Chairman, Philstar (09/12/09, Calonzo, A.C.)

Imelda Marcos was part of the notorious dictatorial regime that caused pain, suffering and deaths of many Filipinos. As Ferdinand Marcos' wife, she was whimsical---her interest in the arts could be regarded as incidental. There was nothing outstanding in what she did---as she wallowed in self pride and misplaced extravagance.

The tribute for Imelda coincided with her husband's birth anniversary bringing to recall the bitter memories of corruption and influence-peddling during the Marcos administration. It was reported that when Imelda rushed the building for the Metro Manila International Film festival (MIFF) in the cultural and arts complex near Roxas Boulevard, a horrible construction accident occurred. The MIFF building caved in and caused the demise and entombment of many workers in the quick-drying cement. The horrific incident was hushed for she needed the show to go on. The victims couldn't complain; they were poor and powerless. Imelda came out clean as if nothing happened. (Photo Credit: Angeles624) =0=

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Labels: Alliance of Concerned Teachers, arts, CCP, extravagance, Ferdinand Marcos, Imelda Marcos, MIFF, protest, Totie Mesia, tribute

RP’s Bataan nuclear power plant sold for a measly $2,859 million

4/20/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

One of the most stupid deals that the disgraced Marcos regime left the Filipinos was the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP)--- a white elephant which was never used because of safety concerns. Studies on the facility disclosed numerous safety-defects which made it too costly to revive after more than 3 decades of non-operation.

Built in 1976 and finished in 1984 in response to the oil crisis three decades ago, the overpriced behemoth energy facility that could have supplied the country of needed electricity was offered for sale in 2005. Only now did the nuclear plant have its buyer.

The sale surely brought back bitter recall of a useless facility in Morong, Bataan which never generated electricity, but caused Filipino taxpayers $155,000 per day for more than 30 years. It was built by the Marcos at cost of $.2.3 billion on a borrowed funding of $1.06 billion, the country’s greatest single debt obligation,

“When Marcos was overthrown by the so-called People Power Revolution in early 1986 a team of international inspectors visited the site and declared it unsafe and inoperable as it was built near major earthquake fault lines and near the Pinatubo volcano which at the time was dormant.”----Energy Bulletin (06/03/04, Wilson, K)

As scrap, Philippine government sold BNPP to a local company, the Ruberon Inc., for a give-away sum of $2,859 million (0.124% of its construction cost) ----the measly tag (doesn't include the land) for the plant’s building structures, plant equipment, and accessories apt to be recycled and sold for a profit. Ruberon’s officer on legal affairs Feliciano Clemencio had this to say of BNPP:

“Because the asset had been decommissioned, the company would dismantle the facilities, retrieve some usable materials, and then recycle it to be sold to local and foreign buyers. The trading of metals is better than opening new mining sites. This is one alternative: recycling some of the metals and melting them” ---Manila Standard (04/18-19/99, Flores, AM)

Considered an environmental hazard, the failed nuclear plant located 60 miles north of Manila is one among the best examples of mismanagement during the time of Marcos whose aftermath is still being felt by Filipinos today. The principal players in the deal were never made to account for their irresponsibility.

“The failure of the Philippines in its attempt to use nuclear energy can be traced to corruption. The nuclear plant, if designed and constructed properly, could have been used to avert a power blackout in the 1980s. The power crisis not only plunged the whole country into darkness, it crippled the local economy, especially the manufacturing sector.” ---Yehey (07/03/09, Palatino, M)

Under Pres. Cory Aquino’s watch, the BNPP’s operation was banned and written in the constitution. Subsequent administrations were unsuccessful in finding ways to make outdated BNPP useful. The debt burden of the mothballed nuclear plant had caused tremendous financial pain for the country long before the current economic crisis came. (Photo Credit: IAEA.org/ Rotaru, I) =0=

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Labels: Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, BNPP, electricity, energy, environment, Ferdinand Marcos, loss, nuclear hazard, nuclear plant, sale, Totie Mesia

The Marcos bust of Tuba---the crumbled statue seems just right to bring home a message

12/12/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

“The Marcos bust was built by the government in the early 1980s when Marcos was in power but it fell into neglect after the 1986 revolt sent the fallen dictator and his family into exile in Hawaii. The bust has been controversial for years as a symbol of Marcos's self-glorification…” Sun Star Online Network (12/30/08, Palangchao,H)

Rep. Mauricio C. Domogan of Baguio wants the 30-meter tall defaced Ferdinand Marcos bust in Tuba, Benguet restored for two reasons. One is to make it another tourist attraction. Another is to appreciate Marcos’ good deeds.

At its present state the Marcos statue can attract as much tourists. When one comes up on that bizarre location in a forlorn side of a mountain, the bust as it is---- is far more interesting.

The monument’s state of destruction tells a story. With nose chipped, eyes gouged, face broken, and hollow skull showing, the bust gives the visitors time to reflect on the once-powerful man moulded in cheap cement.

With twisted iron jutting out from broken blocks of concrete, one can’t escape asking why the sun, wind, and rain were fast and cruel on the dictator. Quickly shattered by the elements, his monument got rough treatment from angry bombs detonated by Marcos haters in 2002.

There are many who feel they don’t need to be reminded of the “good” deeds of Marcos through that bust. Most Filipinos probably just want to forget the past like a botched dream. “Thank you,” people might say. The country has more than enough of the ugly vestiges of “greatness.”

Gazing from the Cordillera mountainside, the crumbled Marcos statue seems just right to bring home a message. The stones shatter and howl in the wind. If the bust is restored, dynamite might explode again. (Photo Credits: Edouba; Catfishingmyles)=0=

RELATED BLOG: "For lack of heroes, Marcos comes back as UP Vanguard's hall-of-famer" Posted by mesiamd at 3/15/2008

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Labels: Benguet, bust, dictatorship, Ferdinand Marcos, Mauricio Domogan, monument, statue, Totie Mesia, Tuba

Richard Lugar Praises Obama on Foreign Policy

10/16/2008 | Posted by andygimpaya | Edit Post

Republican Indiana Sen. Richard G. Lugar and a prominent member of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee said in his speech at the National Defense University that there are benefits to talking with enemies of the US, as against use of military force.

Generally, Lugar praised Barack Obama who John McCain called "naive" for saying that as US President he would talk with the likes of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Isolation does not resolve contentious issues, Lugar added in agreement with Obama's line. In campaign speeches in a presidential debate, Obama repeatedly says that, while he does not take military option off the table, not talking to an enemy regime as a form of punishment does not make sense. Lugar rebuked McCaine by saying that exclusive use of isolation or military force in dealing with enemies of America may not be desirable. "In some cases, refusing to talk can even be dangerous."

McCain recently took a flack when he turned cold shoulder on the prospect of meeting the Prime Minister of Spain. Spain's sin: it pulled out its troops from Iraq when the US-initiated invasion started to get messy and unpopular. Since that time, President Bush has snubbed Spain's leaders, a cue apparently not lost to Senator McCain.

Noting recent diplomatic success in dealing with North Korea, Lugar suggested further diplomatic engagement with Syria and Iran. He suggested though that McCain may be right when the Republican nominee warned that "there are times when diplomatic approaches to rogue regimes have little efficacy."

In July, one Obama campaign ad mentioned Lugar by name and Lugar says he is "pleased" to have worked with the Democratic nominee on nuclear proliferation issues.

We here in the Philippines remember then Congressman Richard Lugar as the head of a US conressional committee who attempted and failed to broker a deal betwen President Ferdinand Marcos and Cory Aquino as the Marcos regime started to crumble in the aftermath of Ninoy Aquino assassination. At that time, Marcos was a SOB but "he is our SOB." Incidentally, Obama promises not to have none of these SOBs.

Labels: Barack Obama, Cory Aquino, diplomacy, Ferdinand Marcos, foreign policy, Iran, John McCain, Lugar, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, McCain, North Korea, Obama, Republican, Richard G. Lugar, Syria

Shoe-collector Imelda Marcos suffers a sprain

9/14/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

Imelda Marcos, widow of Pres. Ferdinand Marcos, known for her extensive shoe collection, swanky lifestyle, obsession for beauty, and extravagant spending has been admitted for ankle sprains at Makati Medical Center in Manila on Saturday, September 13, 2008.

A faded political figure who never admitted any wrongdoing, the ageing former first lady, counts among the dwindling reminders of the old past who continues to escape the alleged crimes leveled against her after she and her husband were deposed by People Power in 1986.

With practically no accountability on the "congugal dictatorship" which ushered in the government as it is now, she is a top-notched beneficiary of the public’s “forgetfulness and forgiveness” of the past. She and her children roam free with their clout, money, and influence intact; they're acting like “rehabilitated” members of Philippine society. =0=

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Labels: Accountability, dictatorship, Ferdinand Marcos, Imelda Marcos, Medicine, People Power, Philippines, shoe collection, sprain

Ninoy Aquino: undimmed, forever young & at play

8/22/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

"They shall not grow old
As we that are left grow old
Age shall not weary them
Nor the hourglass condemn
At the going down of the sun

And at the rising of the sun
We shall greet them in our hearts
Undimmed, forever young and at play
In the fields of the Lord.”

----Warrior King: The Triumph & Betrayal of An American Commander in Iraq (Sassman, Nathan Lt. Col., Martin Press, NY, 2008, p.293)

“It is even more clear to me now that Ninoy was never really mine or my children’s to lose; he has always belonged to the people he chose to serve and to die for,” former Pres. Corazon (Cory) Aquino said of her husband Benigno (Ninoy ) Aquino whose 25th year of his assassination is being remembered this year.

Ninoy Aquino came home from exile in August 21, 1983 from Boston, USA as the prime political adversary of then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos and wife Imelda Marcos. Upon arrival in Manila, he was escorted by military men and minutes later he was gunned down in the tarmac. Years of investigations of the gruesome killing failed to unmask the top people behind the murder. A lone gunman Rolando Galman, killed with Ninoy at the airport, was blamed for the murder. Ninoy’s martyrdom sparked a series of mass actions and protests against Marcos, forcing him out of Malacanang Palace and ending his dictatorship with Imelda.

Today, trying to bring back her health from treatments for colonic cancer, Cory faces new wounds of the ignominious murder whose real mastermind(s) and killer(s) are still on the loose. As the memory of the bloody shooting fades in the memory of the country, the culprits who escape judgement under the law, have gone old or have died of natural causes.

The Marcos family has been “rehabilitated” with the passage of time, rejoining Philippine politics as though nothing so nefarious and brutal ever happened. The case of Ninoy and the conspiracy behind it have been a metaphor of the Filipinos’ lack of trust in the court system. It speaks of the countless murders left unsolved in the country. Not only is justice slow, it’s riddled with corruption and nepotism that favor the rich and powerful. =0=

Labels: Corruption, death, Ferdinand Marcos, hero, Imelda Marcos, Justice, Manila, murder, Ninoy Aquino, Philippines, politics, Pres. Corazon Aquino, Totie Mesia

For lack of heroes, Marcos comes back as UP Vanguard's hall-of-famer

3/15/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

In ABS-CBN online news today, Saturday, March 15, 2008, an interesting news item came as a surprise.

Ferdinand E. Marcos, the ignominous Philippine dictator who laid the groundwork of the dirty politics and immorality we have today, was chosen as the UP Vanguard's 19th hall-famer. Yes! That's him---the Guinness World Records' greatest thief title holder!

How did it happen?

The Vanguards said elevating Marcos to such honor was in recognition of his "contributions" to UP's Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC.) It had "nothing to do with politics," suggesting that the guy must be so damn foul and dirty, except for his family, friends, and those who profitted from his patronage.

Never mind the horrors of the Nalundasan case, the decades-long conjugal plunder of the Philippine treasury, the poisoning of our collective psyche-- to name a few. All these didn't matter to the Vanguards. As far as they knew, Marcos helped their fraternity! Period.

What a shame! The UP Vanguards, a supposedly enlightened and intelligent group, has run out of heroes. Our colleagues have blunted their value judgement to honor a man who disgraced his school and made the entire nation destitute and miserable.

For brushing aside ideals, UP Vanguard has invited scorn and derision of decent people around the world. This comes at a time when the nation is aching over corruption, incompetency, and immorality which show no end.

Labels: Corruption in Government, Ferdinand Marcos, Lack of Heores, Totie Mesia, UP Vanguard

UP Ibalon Bicol

Protesting Imelda Marcos & recalling those who were entombed in the quick-drying cement of the MIFF building

RP’s Bataan nuclear power plant sold for a measly $2,859 million

The Marcos bust of Tuba---the crumbled statue seems just right to bring home a message

Richard Lugar Praises Obama on Foreign Policy

Shoe-collector Imelda Marcos suffers a sprain

Ninoy Aquino: undimmed, forever young & at play

For lack of heroes, Marcos comes back as UP Vanguard's hall-of-famer

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