Category: Government

Ten reasons why Filipinos blame Gloria Arroyo for everything

Posted on By Ilda 915 Comments on Ten reasons why Filipinos blame Gloria Arroyo for everything
Ten reasons why Filipinos blame Gloria Arroyo for everything

I can’t help but think that Filipinos who blame former Philippine President and Congresswoman, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) for everything bad that has happened in the country have a squatter mentality. By my own definition, people who have a squatter mentality have this strong sense of entitlement. They believe that the government owes them benefits or…

Read More “Ten reasons why Filipinos blame Gloria Arroyo for everything” »

Culture, Development, Featured, Government, Media

The Latest Jaw-Dropping Stupidity from the Dept. of Tourism

Posted on By BenK 23 Comments on The Latest Jaw-Dropping Stupidity from the Dept. of Tourism
The Latest Jaw-Dropping Stupidity from the Dept. of Tourism

Yesterday as I was browsing my Facebook wall, I followed a link posted by BlogWatch to a Philstar article about a plan by the Department of Tourism to launch a new ‘country brand’ next month. Since the last outcome of a DOT branding project was the catastrophically hilarious Pilipinas Kay Ganda, I found reason for…

Read More “The Latest Jaw-Dropping Stupidity from the Dept. of Tourism” »

Development, Economy, Government

Focus on retribution by the Aquino Government had undermined both the economy and institutional governance

Posted on By benign0 15 Comments on Focus on retribution by the Aquino Government had undermined both the economy and institutional governance
Focus on retribution by the Aquino Government had undermined both the economy and institutional governance

Why the focus and circus around retribution while more pressing and forward-looking initiatives like growing the economy, for one, languish at the bottom of media hyping priorities? It could be because Filipinos are culturally predisposed to being retrospective rather than prospective in the way we think. Back in 2009 just as the campaign of then…

Read More “Focus on retribution by the Aquino Government had undermined both the economy and institutional governance” »

Crime, Culture, Economy, Government

President Noynoy Aquino and the instability he created is really bad for the economy

Posted on By Ilda 42 Comments on President Noynoy Aquino and the instability he created is really bad for the economy
President Noynoy Aquino and the instability he created is really bad for the economy

I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again. Philippine President Noynoy Aquino (PNoy) is bad for the economy. The incumbent president is not at all focused on building a solid financial system for the country despite predictions that the economic instability in Europe and the struggling economy of the United States of America could…

Read More “President Noynoy Aquino and the instability he created is really bad for the economy” »

Development, Economy, Government, Politics

Do we ditch the scholar in favor of the politician?

Posted on By Ms. Mike Portes 89 Comments on Do we ditch the scholar in favor of the politician?

The news feed was just too hard to ignore, it headlined: “EDSA to be renamed Cory Aquino Avenue?” and it opens with “The House of Representatives is now tackling on first reading a bill seeking to rename Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA) to Cory Aquino Avenue.” and ends with “”It would be but a fitting…

Read More “Do we ditch the scholar in favor of the politician?” »

Education, Government, Politics, Society

Arroyo mugshots – visual opiates for a politics-crazed society

Posted on By benign0 20 Comments on Arroyo mugshots – visual opiates for a politics-crazed society
Arroyo mugshots – visual opiates for a politics-crazed society

In my book, I recounted the words of University of the Philippines sociology professor and occasional Inquirer.net columnist Michael Tan who was cited in Diana Mendoza’s article “Between Sensationalism and Censure” published on the Philippine Journalism Review (April 2002). The article was a commentary on the bizarreness of Filipinos’ regard for sexuality as it is…

Read More “Arroyo mugshots – visual opiates for a politics-crazed society” »

Civics, Crime, Culture, Government, Politics

The Noynoy Aquino government is turning the Philippines into a vindictive society

Posted on By Ilda 270 Comments on The Noynoy Aquino government is turning the Philippines into a vindictive society
The Noynoy Aquino government is turning the Philippines into a vindictive society

There is a list of the alleged crimes of former Philippine President Gloria Arroyo (GMA) making its rounds on social networking sites like some kind of chain letter. The list comes with a photo of GMA in a wheelchair wearing her neck brace and facemask looking gaunt and distressed. The photo is obviously not a…

Read More “The Noynoy Aquino government is turning the Philippines into a vindictive society” »

Crime, Culture, Economy, Government, Politics, Society

Moving to the next circus act: COMELEC finally filing charges against Arroyo

Posted on By benign0 18 Comments on Moving to the next circus act: COMELEC finally filing charges against Arroyo
Moving to the next circus act: COMELEC finally filing charges against Arroyo

It gets interesting for us who chronicle Pinoy dysfunction now that the Philippines’ Commission on Elections (COMELEC) have approved the filing of electoral fraud charges against former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA). After many years of hearsay reporting from the Philippine Media and haka haka “debate” among the chattering classes of the self-described Philippine “civil society”,…

Read More “Moving to the next circus act: COMELEC finally filing charges against Arroyo” »

Civics, Crime, Government, Media, Society