Back From Vacation
Well, back from vacation, and what would you know. The Philippines is as it was before, maybe even worse. All the politics is almost mind numbingly too Filipino. No bad mouthing, just the facts. I thought, I’d take a little break before the run up to the May elections and let the smoke clear a bit to see who would be left as candidates.
I also thought, this was a perfect time to write my first post from vacation, since it’s the 4th year anniversary of The United States invasion of Iraq. Although, The Philippines may not be as involved in that war, it’s only fair to realize, that there are some aspects of Iraq that are comparable to the current state of The Philippines. I think this is mostly in terms of our own insurgent problems.
I would also like to address the escapades with Satur Ocampo later on today.
Is the military in their own little world that they don’t understand that they need to let justice take its course. There is no need to hasten things, let the man file for an appeal. Sure, this government is haste when it comes to certain cases, but when we talk about political prisoners such as Estrada, they are too ready to slow things down a bit.
Honestly, It’s the practice of politics overseeing all aspects of government that has me concerned. I don’t condone Ocampo’s acts of violence, if indeed he is guilty of these crimes, but to be quick to whisk away a man in the middle of the night, not even waiting for an appeal smells of political bullying.
Anyway, I would like to let everyone else know that I will be doing some summary blog posts of the last two weeks, not only for my benefit, but for the benefits of our readers, who may not have been following the current events as of late…
Welcome back Nick. Why is it always in the dead of the night? Is it to avoid attention? Is it to make sure the courts are closed? Is it because anything can happen in the dark?
Anyway, the Philippines is still the same while you were gone. People are still hungry, people are still jobless and opposition still leads the surveys. A new round of arrest warrants have been issued as Big Mike continues his intimidation of media.
Welcome back to the world.
@Schumey, thanks for the welcome greeting. I heard of the arrests as well, which isn’t going to go well with the voters anyway.
I hope everyone can stick to their guns and show solidarity in this attack of freedom of speech. It seems it’s happening everywhere these days — Russia, Egypt, Israel, Iran, Thailand, United States, The Philippines…
Just to update you, the opposition is seeking Yuga’s help in setting up a website. John Marzan and Arbet floated the idea as many OFWs would like to know who the candidates are. They are set to vote on April 14. Arbet and I are now corroborating to inform the public as well of the platform and advocacies of the GO candidates.
Manolo thinks the middle class is considering boycotting the elections. I hope they don’t. I am embarking on a campaign to implore every voter to use his right to vote. An eyeball is being set up by Manolo and Leah Navarro for bloggers this coming April. If you’re in town, you may us. I’ll update you on the schedule.
Hi Nick. Congrats in your nomination to the Philippine Blog Awards. I sent you an email re: Awards Night
@Schumey, I won’t be in town, but you can count me in on the online logistics of the dissemination of the information.
@Jun, I have replied to your email regarding The Awards night. As I have informed Schumey, I won’t be in the country for a while (no earlier than December), but this is indeed an exciting time for Filipino Bloggers, as they fully realize the impact they have in the future of the “Online Filipino Culture” as well as being a power in the vast Blogosphere in general.