We beg to differ.
Accounts of how the Philippines’ renowned brand of feudal politics came into play in the virtual paralysis of relief efforts in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan (a.k.a. Yolanda) are emerging. Tacloban City mayor Alfred Romualdez testifying before Congress reported how red tape and stonewalling from Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas…
The root issue in the on-going trouble down under in Mindanao is the way the Philippine government has traditionally cozied up to even the meanest and baddest terrorist and rebel groups “for the sake of peace”. Currently, it is the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that is being painted as the bad guy, and rightly…
Read More “MNLF head Nur Misuari is the Janet Lim Napoles of the Zamboanga crisis” »
I know that the topic that I am going to write today will not be greeted by approval and mass agreement. I am also fully aware that perhaps a couple of my friends and colleagues will condemn me and my thoughts. I also expect that some will try to mock my thoughts and paint my…
Read More “Miss Malaysia Fatwa: The Question of Beauty, Discretion and Self-Determination” »
President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino will be delivering his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 22, 2013. It has been three years since majority of Filipino voters elected the son of so-called “heroes” into the highest office in the land. Little did those voters know that after he banished the use…
Before the Laksa goes by the way of “chopsuey”, I would like to say my piece that I myself had been deceived that the origins of the Laksa (A rich and spicy noodle soup supposedly of Peranakan origins) came by way of Singapore and to the world. It did not come as a surprise, that…
In the next couple of weeks on the 22nd July 2013, Philippine President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III will once again face a joint session of Congress to deliver his annual State of the Nation Address (SONA). What will BS Aquino be reporting to the people’s “representatives” this time? This one will be a tough…
Trust Philippine President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III to take credit yet again for a project progressed initially under the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Despite undertaking a massive campaign to cancel key infrastructure projects initiated by Arroyo when he assumed office in 2010, the Aquino Administration has glided on the wind of many…
While I was reading news about Malaysia’s recently-concluded election, I could not help but shake my head; it was as if I was reading about the Philippines. Some of the things that were being said about the Malaysian government and its society could likewise be said about the Philippine government and its society too. It…
Read More “Malaysia and the Philippines: corruption and cheating are all part of ‘the game’” »