Pagsasapribado ng tubig bakit?
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water privatization now' -- Ito ang panawagan ng grupong Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay),
grupo ng mga maralitang-lungsod, bilang tugon sa kasalukuyang kakulangan sa suplay ng tubig na
nararanasan sa malaking bahagi ng Metro Manila.
"Matapos ang higit isang dekada ng privatization, nasaan na ang ipinangakong mas matinong serbisyo?," ani
Carlito Badion, pangalawang pangulo ng Kadamay. "Taun-taon tumataas ang singil, pero hindi naman
nagagarantiya ang maayos na serbisyo sa tubig."
At bunsod ng maling sistemang ito, ayon sa grupo, ang maralitang-lungsod na naman ang siyang
pumapasan ng dagdag na pahirap.
"Marapat na gawin ng gubyerno ang lahat ng hakbang upang agarang ibalik ang access sa mamamayan,”
ani Badion. “Pero dapat lubusin na ang pagreresolba dito... dapat nang humakbang ang pamahalaan tungo
sa pagsasabansa ng serbisyo sa tubig.”
Water shortage -- o iresponsableng concessionaire?
Maraming kwestyon din ang bumabalot sa kasalukuyang 'water crisis', ayon sa grupo, bagay na lalong
nagpapakita sa pangangailangang baguhin na ang privatized na serbisyo sa tubig.
Una: Totoo bang may shortage sa tubig? "Ito ang kakatwa -- may 'water crisis' daw pero Maynilad areas
lamang ang apektado," ani Badion. "Hindi ito 'water crisis', kundi 'service crisis' lamang ng Maynilad."
Ang paliwanag dito ay dahil ang pangunahing pinagkukunan ng Maynilad ay ang Angat Dam -- na sa ngayon
inabot na ang pinakamababang antas ng tubig sa kasaysayan -- habang ang pangunahing pinagkukunan ng
Manila Water ay ang La Mesa Watershed. "Subalit ito na nga ang problema. Hinati ang distribusyon ng tubig
sa Metro Manila sa dalawang private concessionaire, buhat noong panahon ng administrasyong Ramos,
upang diumano'y magresulta sa mas efficient at abot-kayang serbisyo na idudulot ng kompetisyon. Ngunit
natutupad ba?
"Kung nationalized ang serbisyo sa tubig, mula sa administrasyon ng water sources hanggang distribution,
madaling makapag-a-adjust ang gubyerno sa ganitong problema. Pero sa halip, nasa direksyon pa nga tayo
ng higit na pribatisasyon -- hindi ba't plano pa nga nilang i-privatize ang Angat Dam?," ani Badion.
Matatandaang ang ilan sa mga interesadong kampo sa Angat Dam ay ang First Gen Corporation ng Lopez
Group, na siya ring bahagi ng consortium na nagmamay-ari sa Maynilad, at ang Ayala Group na isa sa
nagmamay-ari ng Manila Water.
Ikalawa: Hindi ba foreseeable ang problemang ito? "Sinisisi ng DPWH ang Napocor dahil daw sa
pagpapakawala ng malaking tubig sa mula sa dam, pero late 2009 pa ito nangyari. Sa bahagi ng Maynilad,
hindi ba nila napansin nang maaga ang mababang antas ng tubig sa dam, at nakapaghanda sana o
nabigyang-babala man lang ang publiko?," ani Badion.
"Isa sa dalawang bagay lang ito – may lihim na motibo ang Maynilad sa pagpapabaya sa 'shortage' na ito, o
gross negligence sa bahagi nila.”
Ayon kay Badion, lahat ng senyales ay nakaturo “hindi sa water shortage, kundi sa iresponsableng
concessionaire.”
“At ito ang esensya ng privatization,” aniya. “Hindi naman totoong responsable ang mga concessionare na ito
sa publiko. Ang hangad nila ay kumita.”
At ang huling bahagi ng palaisipang ito, ayon sa grupo, ay ang presensya ng dating Maynilad president sa
pamunuan ng DPWH – si Sec. Rogelio Singson, na pinaghihinalaang tinalaga ni Pangulong Aquino bilang
pabor sa mga malalaking pangnegosyong interes na nasa likuran nito.
“Ano ang papel ni Singson dito? Paano natin maaasahang titindig siya para sa interes ng publiko, gayong
dati siyang presidente ng concessionaire na ngayo'y sangkot sa gulong ito?,” ani Badion.##
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Akbayan files new impeachment raps vs Merci
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Former Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros filed a new impeachment complaint against Ombudsman Merciditas
Gutierrez on Thursday, saying that her removal from office is the first step to get GMA.
"Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez has consistently blocked remedies provided by our laws and our
Constitution to prevent abuses by public officials. The Ombudsman is supposed to be the protector of the
people, the guardian of integrity, but what Navarro-Gutierrez did was to reduce the institution to be the
gatekeeper of the corrupt," Hontiveros said.
"The 2010 elections was a vote against corruption. That mandate cannot be fulfilled and realized as long as
Merceditas Navarro-Gutierrez is at the helm of the anti-corruption institution. She has abused her powers to
protect the interests of corrupt officials, especially the Arroyos and their cohorts," Hontiveros pointed out.
Rep. Hontiveros wants the Ombudsman impeached for culpable violation of the Constitution and for betrayal
of public trust. "The facts based on her sins of commission and omission are the evidence. She doesn't
deserve another day in office. She has compromised the integrity of her office, and we can't let her leave a
permanent damage to the institution," she added.
"Contrary to what she alleges, there is nothing personal to this complaint. She is being impeached as a
public official, not as a former classmate of FG Mike Arroyo or as an appointee of GMA. Everything is based on
her actions and her conduct as the Ombudsman," Hontiveros pointed out.
The grounds of the complaint include:
1. The low conviction rates of the Ombudsman since 2008, which indicate a criminal level of incompetence
and which constitute a clear betrayal of public trust
2. The Ombudsman's failure to act promptly on cases filed against GMA, FG Arroyo, and other public
officials on the NBN-ZTE deal
3. The inexcusable delay in the investigation of the wrongful death of ensign Philip Pestano aboard a
Philippine Navy vessel, a case in which the UN itself rapped the Ombudsman for unreasonable delay
4. The decision of the Ombudsman to uphold the legality of the arrest and involuntary detention of then
Rep. Risa Hontiveros by the PNP at the height of the 'Hello Garci' controversy
5. The failure of the Ombudsman to investigate the P1M dinner for the presidential party at the Le Cirque
restaurant in New York
6. The repeated failure to take prompt action on various cases involving GMA, such as the Mega-Pacific
scam, among others
7. The refusal of the Ombudsman to grant ready access to public records such as the Statement of Assets
and Liabilities of Rep. Mikey Arroyo.
The former solon is confident that the complaint will be given a fair chance in the 15th Congress. "This is not a
test on the leadership of the new administration. We don’t want a repeat of what happened in the previous
terms, where Malacanang kept of interfering on a question that is for Congress and Congress alone to
decide. We hope that the next House leadership would seize this as an opportunity to restore the
independence and integrity not just of the Ombudsman but of Congress itself," Hontiveros added.
The complaint was endorsed by Akbayan Representatives Walden Bello and Arlene "Kaka" Bag-ao, per the
request of the House of Representatives Secretary-General's office.
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ATM para sa may kapansanan sa mata isinusulong sa Kamara
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Bagama’t pinagkaitan sila ng paningin, karapatan pa rin ng mga bulag na magkaroon ng modernong
kasangkapan kung ano man mayroon at kombinyenteng ginagamit ng isang normal na tao, ayon kay Rep.
Lorenzo Tanada III (4th District, Quezon) na humiling sa maagang pag-apruba ng Kongreso sa House Bill.
221.
Ang House Bill 221 na inihain ni Tanada ay access sa Automated Teller Machine na patatakbuhin sa
pamamagitan ng audio transmission system sa pagdala at pagtanggap ng impormasyon. Ibig sabihin,
maririnig ng bulag ang ibibigay na impormasyon na sasabihin ng ATM machine.
Tatawagin itong “ATM Access for the Visually Impaired Act,” maglalaan ng ATM machines sa pamamagitan ng
Audio Transmission System ang lahat ng bangko.
“Karamihan sa mga bulag ay gumagamit na ng cellular phones. Puwede rin silang gumamit ng ATM para
mapadali ang kanilang financial transactions pati na rin ang kompiyansang makihalobilo sa publiko,”
wika ni Tanada.
“Hindi natin dapat pagkaitan kung ano man ang mayroon tayo. Kailangan din nila ito para sa kanilang
pangangailangan,” sabi ni Tanada
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Akbayan: Mikey, lawbreaker not lawmaker
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Akbayan on Thursday filed an urgent motion before the Supreme Court asking the high tribunal to rule with
finality whether Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo is eligible to represent Ang Galing Pinoy (AGP) in the 15th
Congress because of his failure to follow the rules set by the election body.
"The failure of Mikey to submit pertinent documents as mandated by the Comelec made him ineligible to
become a party-list representative. It was his fault, as a former representative of Pampanga, he should be a
stickler for rules," said Akbayan representative Walden Bello after submitting the motion with the party's legal
counsel Jae dela Cruz.
Bello explained that three days before the 2010 elections, Akbayan filed a petition before the Supreme Court to
compel Commission on Election to disqualify motu proprio the nominees of AG for their failure to comply with
the COMELEC’s requirements.
In the same petition, Akbayan filed a petition for Mandamus and Prohibition with application for temporary
restraining order and/or preliminary injunction. The group said the Supreme Court’s lack of action on the
issue coupled with COMELEC’s recent decision prompted them to file a new urgent motion to rule with finality
on the legality of Arroyo’s membership in the 15th Congress.
"Comelec and Ang Galing Pinoy are at fault here," noted Bello. “This is not even a question of whether or not
Mikey represents the marginalized. The fundamental issue is Arroyo’s failure to provide documentary
evidence proving his link to the sector which is in compliance with Section 6 of Resolution no. 8807 of the
Comelec,” he added.
Last March 25, Comelec issued Resolution No. 8807 prescribing rules of procedure concerning the filing of
petition to disqualify a party-list nominee for lack of qualifications. Specifically under Section 6, COMELEC
demanded that Party-list groups and nominees to submit documentary evidence to prove that they belong to
the marginalized and under-represented sectors, sectoral party, organization, political party or coalition they
seek to represent.
Akbayan claimed that Arroyo and AG failed to comply with the said requirements. Atty. Ferdinand Rafanan,
director of COMELEC’s Law Department, stating in a letter to Akbayan said Arroyo and his group did not file
any documentary evidence as required by the resolution, confirmed this.
“The Supreme Court is the people’s last defense against trapos like Mikey Arroyo that piggy-back on the party-
list system to enter congress,” Bello concluded. "In principle, it is questionable that Mikey claims to represent
the security guard sector. Without the necessary documents to prove it, and in a blatant attempt to circumvent
rules that protect the integrity of the party-list system, he cannot sit as a representative of AG Party
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