Tag: To Take A Stand

Am I for Federalism? My answer is a qualified yes if it meets certain preconditions. No partisan color here, just a citizen’s assessment of what is best for the country given our present circumstances from over half a century of observation and experience.

Laban Gilas Pilipinas! Puso! That is the fighting motto of the Philippine basketball team. Though the odds be great or small, but with heart so strong, Gilas Pilipinas will fight to win over all.

Panos Mourdoukoutas, a contributor to Forbes magazine, wrote a commentary entitled “China will lose the South China Sea game.” Let me quote him verbatim in the succeeding paragraphs.

The many feature articles that appeared in various publications last week in commemoration of Jose Rizal’s 157^th birth anniversary brought to mind the series of articles he wrote in La Solidaridad from 1889 to 1890 on the Philippines 100 years from then. We quote passages from the articles which have significance to our times.

Ten years ago, my family took our first ever cruise to celebrate three milestones: my 38^th wedding anniversary, 60^th birthday and my youngest daughter’s 28^th birthday. We chose Alaska via Vancouver (first time for all of us) and, on our return spent a week in Whistler, a skier’s destination, before returning home. Not sure now if we flew PAL or Cathay Pacific, but our cruise line was Royal Caribbean.

Many condemned President Rodrigo Duterte kissing an ordinary Filipina worker in Seoul as a power play ­­ -- the President taking advantage of his position to overwhelm the married woman to kiss him on the lips. Others say the issue is the crowd’s reaction to the “unpresidential” behavior -- the adoring Filipinos cheering vigorously their President flirting with women.

It is interesting to note that at the necrological services for former Senate President Edgardo Angara, Joseph Estrada and Gloria Arroyo, in whose presidencies...

Tomorrow, May 23, is the first anniversary of the Marawi siege. The battle began when Islamic State loyalists, the Maute group, supported by terrorists...

Referring to the granting of the quo warranto petition that led to the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice, Presidential Spokesperson Harry...

In its May 4 report, Bloomberg news revealed that in Metro Manila’s main financial district and its fringes, signs of new inhabitants are everywhere. “Around...

Today is Labor Day in the Philippines as it is in many countries. Labor Day is synonymous with, or linked with International Workers’ Day,...

The political season is upon us. This May we will hold our barangay and SK elections. Next May, the mid-term elections will be for...

The recent departure of Vitaliano Aguirre from the Duterte Cabinet brings to mind what I wrote a year ago. I wrote on April 18...

For those who know the drill, disaster response consists of a series of deliberately taken steps -- awareness, mitigation, preparation, response, management, relief-rehabilitation, and...

Joel Ruiz Butuyan wrote in his Inquirer column of March 5: “Malacañang has not explained what the Philippines stands to gain in the President’s...

Last week, I was drawn to various conferences that swirled around unending security issues. I’ll share some of the more important ones and try...

Many pundits liken the impeachment of Maria Lourdes Sereno to the impeachment of Renato Corona. Except for the fact that the respondent in the...

Just exactly do we mean when we talk about dynasties? Far from what we read in myths and legends, and see in the movies,...

“For one brief shining moment Filipinos from all walks of life set aside their walls of division and came together for a common purpose...

So here we are, 32 years later after those four fateful days in February 1986 that began as a revolt and then morphed into...

In response to Senator Leila de Lima’s resolution calling for an inquiry in aid of legislation into how government agencies can perform their mandate...

On Dec. 19, 2017, President Duterte signed the Tax Reformation for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill into law, branded as the first tax reform...

Senator Richard Gordon and Former Customs commissioner Nicanor Faeldon engaged in power play during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on alleged corruption in...

Scarborough Shoal (also known as Bajo de Masinloc, Panatag, Panacot), Benham Rise (now Philippine Rise) and the Celebes Sea have been making the news...

The line above is from William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet where Hamlet’s mother says it in reference to the protestation of a lady that she...

“Epiphany” has taken on a new meaning for me. Previously, it was about the 3 Kings or 3 wise men who went to see...

Before the year 2017 ended, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the Duterte administration will apply the lessons learned from previous experience to make the...

Happy New Year! It only seemed like yesterday when we were greeting 2017. Where did time go? Why does it feel like we’re on...

In the spirit of Christmas I will engulf you with the twisted yet funny web of comedic utterances of the resident jesters of DU...

Last week, I was invited by the AFP’s Office of Strategic Studies and Strategy Management, the National Defense College of the Philippines and the...

I was extremely surprised at the appointment of Maria Lourdes Sereno to the Supreme Court by President Benigno S. C. Aquino III in 2010....

In a speech before an anti-corruption summit in Pasay City last week, President Rodrigo Duterte said that establishing a revolutionary government at this time...

Every Filipino, as a citizen of Southeast Asia, is foreseen to benefit from ASEAN 2017, from each of the following six thematic priorities under...

In view of the presence of 21 heads of state in the country, I will refrain from commenting on any sensitive issue pertaining to...

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was founded on Aug. 8, 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Since then, its...

The Philippine National Police Peace & Order Agenda for Transformation and Upholding the Rule of Law (P.A.T.R.O.L. Plan) is designed to transform the PNP...

In early July, Jackie Rodriguez joined me on a fact-finding mission for the Rotary Club of Manila (RCM) to determine the humanitarian assistance gaps...

The Third Quarter 2017 survey done by Social Weather Stations (SWS) a month ago (Sept. 23-27) found 62% satisfied and 17% dissatisfied with the...

(Part 1) “In an ever-changing, incomprehensible world the masses had reached the point where they would, at the same time, believe everything and nothing, think...

Thousands of Filipinos went out to the streets last Sept. 21 in what may be considered the biggest demonstration of dissent to President Rodrigo...

In 1972 I gave martial law a chance to prove itself. The first 2-3 years were peaceful and orderly that gave hopes to a promising...

No, this is not a response to Secretary Abella’s statement that our strategy in the war against illegal drugs needs to be rethought and...

I wrote in this column on Sept. 11, 1990: “Today some boisterous activities will remind us that it is the birth anniversary of Ferdinand Marcos....

I found this article that’s worth sharing, authored by David G. Pumphrey, a partner emeritus of Heidrick & Struggles’ CEO & Board Practice and...

To Take A Stand Oscar P. Lagman, Jr. I wrote in this space last May 30 that martial law throughout the country is coming. This expectation...