Ex-Philippine President Estrada set for freedom

A ridiculous day for the Philippines..Pardoning Mr. Erap may have been a good short term decision..(1 month) but for the longer term, this creates a negative image, an image wherein any government official can be corrupt as ever because he/she knows that Pardon is always there..especially if your close to the one's on power. Mrs. Arroyo should not have bowed down to what the surveys, the CBCP, and to most of her allies (two faced allies) granting Mr. Erap a pardon. It was even an unconditional pardon..she should have made it a conditional pardon. Conditions for the pardon should have been: (1) expression of guilt for the charges against him, (2) televised admission of guilt and asking for forgiveness to the filipino people, (3) cannot run for any government post, (4) cannot vote, (5) must refrain from any political maneuvering, (6) must refrain from attending any political event, (7) refrain from any politically motivated advertisements, (8) continuing the process of sequestered assets during his presidency.

The calls for national unity is being used again just to give this man a pardon, how about those people behind bars that have neither been convicted of any crime but still in jail. If national unity was the purpose, I think only half of the filipino's accepted the president's decision of granting pardon, the other half do not concur to it.

-zerotech99

By Karen Lema 19 minutes ago

MANILA (Reuters) - Joseph Estrada, the playboy former leader of the Philippines, was preparing for life as a free man on Friday as President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo faced criticism for rushing through his pardon.

Arroyo set aside her ousted predecessor's life sentence on Thursday, just six weeks after he was convicted on corruption charges, raising suspicion the clemency was designed to curry favor with the opposition amid mounting bribery scandals.

"We are disappointed, especially with the haste with which it was done. The timing is very suspect," said Albert Lim, executive director of the Makati Business Club, the Philippines' main commercial forum.

Arroyo, who was Estrada's vice-president and succeeded him after he was ousted in an army-backed revolt in 2001, is facing fresh controversy over accusations of government kickbacks in a $330 million telecoms deal and allegations of cash handouts to allies.

But analysts say unless dramatic new evidence is unveiled Arroyo's position is secure, saved by a middle class fed up with political squabbling, no obvious candidate to replace her and record economic growth.

The criticism of her decision to release Estrada, famed for his "midnight cabinet" of drinking buddies and gamblers, is also not expected to bubble over into popular outrage.

"I don't think there is going to be a hell of a lot of popular fallout for her other than just giving more ammunition for the opposition to beat her up a little bit," said Tom Green, executive director of Pacific Strategic Assessments, a risk consultancy.

"All the polls say that people favor turning Estrada loose."

OPPOSITION FIGUREHEAD

Estrada, 70, has pledged not to seek public office, but the former movie star is still popular among poor voters who often refer to him by his nickname "Erap" and, as a figurehead for anti-Arroyo groups, could stir up trouble for the president.

"I reiterate my wish to spend the rest of my life as plain citizen Erap. However, this does not mean turning my back on my commitment to our people," Estrada said in a statement.

Financial markets shrugged off the damage to the Philippines' credibility from his impending release, with the stock market closing up 0.45 percent and the peso quoted at 44.03 against the dollar, compared with 44.04 on Thursday.

"It is the fundamentals that's been keeping the market up so I think that would continue to be the case," said Jose Vistan, of AB Capital Securities.

"If these (political scandals) would continue to drag on for an extended period of time, eventually it will have an impact on share prices but as of now, the market is awash with so much liquidity both local and foreign money."

Three bishops have called for Arroyo's resignation and an online petition calling for her and vice-president Noli de Castro to stand down to allow a snap election has gathered 250 signatures since it went live five days ago.

"It's a groundswell of citizens who are disgusted, fed up with all of these things," said Marietta Goco, one of the signatories and a former head of the country's anti-poverty commission.

But Arroyo, who has survived two impeachment bids and at least two coup plots, has a track record of shrugging off challenges.

"If you are asking me, are we going to call for resignation? No, because we already did before and she ignored that so why will we waste our breath," the Makati Business Club's Lim said.

(Additional reporting by Rosemarie Francisco)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071026/wl_nm/philippines_estrada_dc

Glorietta 2 Makati Bombing

A sad day yesterday. a bomb ripped through the Glorietta Mall 2 in Makati City yesterday. As of last report, there are now 9 confirmed dead and 119 wounded. Investigators are still determining the real cause of the blast but initial investigation found the RDX compound on the center of the blast. RDX have been quite know to be a key component of plastic explosive. The group Raja Soleiman Movement already admitted the bombing but still both the AFP and PNP are still continuing the investigation as of now.

I hope and pray that God will help those that people that where wounded and also that God would help the grieving families.

- zerotech99

High-grade bomb blamed for Manila blast

By OLIVER TEVES, Associated Press Writer

MANILA, Philippines - A bomb made from high-grade explosives — and likely set off by terrorists — caused the blast that killed at least nine people and wounded more than 100 at a mall in Manila's financial district, officials said Saturday.

The strong explosion ripped through three floors of the Glorietta 2 shopping mall in Makati city on Friday, hurling slabs of concrete, twisting steel reinforcements, and shattering glass panels. Earlier police reports had said a fuel tank caused the blast.

"It's a bomb, but as to what kind of bomb, we are still trying to determine," Avelino Razon, the national police chief, told The Associated Press. "More likely it's a terrorist attack — but what terrorist group? We have no indicator."

Days ago, Razon ordered "maximum security coverage" at possible southern Philippine terror targets, such as critical infrastructure, malls, transport hubs, and religious shrines, following police intelligence reports of possible terror bombings after the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Red Cross volunteers recovered the body of a man, the ninth fatality, buried under rubble Saturday.

The Red Cross reported that at least one more person remained missing.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo called a Cabinet security meeting Saturday with police and military officials at the national police headquarters.

Police bomb investigators told Arroyo they detected residue from the high explosive RDX at the blast site.

Several opposition politicians and Arroyo critics had suggested the government may be responsible for the bombing to divert attention from scandals plaguing her administration, over alleged overpriced projects and bribes to lawmakers to defeat an impeachment movement.

National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales stopped short of directly blaming the al-Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf, but noted that the group has aired appeals on the Internet for international support from jihadist groups.

"What is more ominous here is they may be planning a bigger attack," Gonzales said Saturday. "They will first show a sample. That means that while the bomb yesterday already was powerful, it is still just a sample."

Abu Sayyaf militants, notorious for kidnappings and for beheading many hostages, have waged a bombing campaign for years in the southern Philippines in their aim to establish a separate state for the area's majority Muslims. Abu Sayyaf and the Indonesia-based Jemaah Islamiyah network have also launched attacks in Manila.

In 2004, Abu Sayyaf militants blew up a passenger ferry in Manila Bay, killing 116 people in the country's worst terrorist attack.

Yahoo news

OPINION: EROSION OF RESPECT FOR THE LAW AND FEAR OF THE RULE OF LAW

MANILA, OCTOBER 8, 2007 (STAR) AS A MATTER OF FACT By Sara Soliven De Guzman - 

The wonderful, saintly and eloquent apostle of non-violence, the
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in addressing the civil rights demonstrators
in Alabama said: “Some of you have knives, and I ask you to put them up.
Some of you have arms and I ask you to put them up. Get the weapon of
non-violence, the breast plate of righteousness, the armor of truth and
just keep marching.”

 Then some thug came along, a low-down White Supremacist, and shot Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. dead in cold blood. The martyr’s righteousness
cause triumphed in the end for the murderer managed to kill the man, but
he could not kill the glory of his idea.

 However, most persons including women and children are not anxious to
become martyrs. They just want to be safe from violence, rape and the
prospect of being tortured and murdered, so they prefer that God and the
law smite the evil ones and a lightning bolt from heaven or the
government, at least, strike down the criminals before they can inflict
more harm.

 Easier said than done. Today’s society is a picture of an erosion of
respect for the law and fear of the rule of law. Senseless killings abound
because of the greed of those in power. The killers grow bolder each day
because of an ailing judicial system. What’s happening to us?

 Why haven’t the killers of Cris Mendez surfaced? What has the NBI done
in the search of these criminals? What has the University of the
Philippines done in summoning their students? What have the parents done
in encouraging their children to speak the truth? Where has justice gone
in this country?

 What will happen to Atty. Manuel Hernandez Jr. who killed Edgardo
Calesares and Catherine Palmero due to a traffic squabble last week? Will
he hide just like what the others have done? Will our countrymen continue
to encourage these fugitives to keep on running away and not be punished?

 All these criminals get away with murder. Nowadays, it is easy to just
blow helpless victims away with guns. What’s even more disappointing is
that the justice system is so slow – these criminals after posing bail
still remain at large and is bound to find another victim.

 That’s the sordid story of the ineptitude of our police and justice
system. It’s the twisting of the law and crafty lawyers who, too often get
these criminals off the hook due to human kindness or…..is it human stupidity?

 What must we do to catch and convict these bloody murderers? The
abolition of the death penalty as a capital punishment seemed to have
strengthened the courage and the audacity of people committing heinous
crimes against the society. So, we are left with nothing but wait in vain
for justice to be done. But then again, our case is a long drawn case of
“justice delayed is justice denied.”

 What about the police? I hope General Razon will stay longer in the
force. If my memory serves me right, former PNP Chief Arturo Lomibao was
PNP chief for only a year (from March 2005 – June 2006); Oscar Calderon
served also for only a year (July 2006 – Sept. 2007). If you notice, the
number of years they have served in the force is just not enough.

 The police chief needs at least three years, even four to re-establish a
police force, reform it, kick start it into an efficient, honest law
enforcement group. My dad always quipped that “a short term chief is a
lame duck ab initio, easily ignored and out-waited by the jerks, crooked
cops, goof-offs in the police establishment.

 It’s a known fact that too many masterminds and “protectors” of illegal
rackets, like “jueteng,” kidnapping and even murder are cops or ex-cops.
And what about the protectors of the drug lords, even helping them escape
from Camp Crame?

 We are fighting a losing battle in the drive to root out corruption in
our police. It’s time we have a really tough, uncompromising Top Cop. I
hope General Razon will be a tough one to beat.

 * * *

 When all is said and done, the Filipino people (despite spates of
gruesome atrocity and murderous acts of kidnapping and rebellion) are a
kind and patient people. In fact, we’re so “kind” that we’ve become, in
the eyes of sterner and less forgiving societies abroad, figures of
ridicule and fun.

 On the Desperate Housewives… Instead of wasting our saliva trying to
refute the accusation, or squander emotion indignantly denying it, let’s
just go ahead and do our best. The important thing to remember is that we
must not do anything to please or pander to the critics. Filipinos receive
a lot of racial slurs that put us to shame. The trouble is that, too
often, we’re shameless.

 Nursing exam leakage, fake diplomas, ZTE scandal, insurgency groups,
traffic, justice, politics, election fraud, COMELEC, etc…Now you wonder
why the Philippines has a tainted image?

 I don’t write in despair, but in hope. My dad had so much faith in the
Filipino people. He said that a nation becomes great by inspiring in its
people a sense of moral purpose and a vision of the future. It can only
weaken itself by self-flagellation and endless nitpicking.

 Manny Pacquiao has once again won the hearts of the people around the
world. He has made our countrymen proud. What more can we ask for
especially in a time when our spirit is being put to the test? This
victory is an antidote that should inspire us to do our best in all that
we do.

 It is time to rise up and stir up stronger feelings of indignation and
wrath when evil, crime and corruption rear their ugly heads. And if we
must fight, let us fight for the good fight of faith.


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