U.S.-TRAINED economist Dr. Gonzalo Jurado believes that President Benigno Aquino III is engaging in  too much politicking and has neglected the other important matters he has to attend to including the country’s economy.

This flaw of the President, Jurado said, is the reason why the economy slowed down in 2011 and that it  may continue to weaken this year.

Unless Aquino stops doing too much politicking, the economist fears millions of Filipinos would remain in utter poverty under the present administration.

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Aside from the economy, it was also said that education is being neglected by the President.

Malacañang  seems to forget the fact that education is the way out of poverty and the path to progress.

It’s a consolation that one local government executive, Sherwin Gatchalian, knows the value of education  and chose it  as  the centerpiece of his program as the mayor of Valenzuela City.

The exemplary education program of  Valenzuela City was  the main  reason why the locality topped the Local Governance Performance Management System (LGPMS) of the Department of the Interior and Local Government in 2011.

It is important to note that Valenzuela City, through the leadership of Gatchalian, topped all  LGPMS  categories including local legislation, revenue generation, resource allocation and utilization, environmental governance, transparency, participation, financial accountability, and delivery of basic social services such as health, housing, and peace and order.

It is therefore not surprising that many are calling for Gatchalian to seek higher public office.

Sherwin Gatchalian for Senator? Why not?

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Chief  Justice Renato Corona is going to be tried for impeachement by the Senate stating on Monday. 

But this early, Corona,  most likely, is already  guilty in the bar of public opinion.

‘Bootlickers’ at the House of Representatives  simply cannot wait for the hearing to start and proceeded in bombarding the media and the public with their supposed evidences against the Supreme Court’s highest official. Corona is being  charged of  betraying public trust.

Of course, the complaint against Corona is rooted on his affinity with former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Arroyo is presently under hospital arrest on orders of the present administration for allegedly committing plunder against the Filipino people.

But before that, she was deprived by the government of her right to travel and to seek treatment abroad. Like Corona, Arroyo will also have her day in court to defend herself.

Too bad that Gen. Angelo Reyes took his own life even before he could be formally charged and heard in  court on charges of illegally  amassing wealth. He committed suicide while being the subject of an intense trial by publicity.

Despite what happened to Reyes, allies of President Benigno Aquino III at the House of Representatives, a number of whom were rubbing elbows with Arroyo before when she was still  president,  seem to enjoy ‘throwing the stones’ at anybody perceived by Malacañang to be its enemies as long as they get their share of the pork barrel.

Just like what it reportedly did to the lower house,  Malacañang is said to be discreetly buying the ‘numbers’ in the Senate to ensure the conviction of Corona whose name, by the mere mention of it, makes Aquino blow his top because of  recent  Supreme Court decisions that were unfavorable to the interest of the Palace.

With the  impeachment case already filed at the higher chamber, the fate of Corona  now lies in the hands of  the senators. The fate of the Supreme Court now rests in the wisdom and independence of its  co-equal  branch of government, the Senate.

Let us watch how our senators, our last line of defense against authoritarianism, define their  shining moment and uphold democracy in our country.

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While the present regime tries very hard to convince the people that it is running the government  well under its ‘Daang Matuwid’ program, corruption is still very much alive in its various agencies.

Take for example the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) where service until now is still ‘very slow’ when there is no ‘under the table’.

Just like the Bureau of Customs, the Phiilppine National Police, and other government agencies, the GSIS continues to be a haven for unscrupulous government workers who simply cannot stop turning honest tax payers into their milking cows.

Until now, P-Noy misses the point that for the masses who catapulted him into power, his ‘Daang Matuwid’ simply means faster processing of NBI clearances, quicker releasing of GSIS loans, secured and orderly LRT and MRT terminals and cops who make sure that every passenger is conveyed by ‘isnabero’  taxi drivers.

These are just simple things that the people want from P-Noy. Yet, he can’t deliver them.

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