To GMA: Reverse Agra’s order
Apr 24th
I challenge President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to reverse the controversial order of Acting Justice Secretary Alberto Agra dismissing the murder charges against two members of the Ampatuan clan to dispel public suspicions that she herself was setting up a whitewash of the case.
Under existing procedures, the president can review and reverse decisions made by the Justice Secretary in cases involving heinous crimes. I therefore challenge President Arroyo to reverse and set aside the controversial decision of Secretary Agra that has triggered so much public outrage in order to dispel public suspicions that she was the one who directed Agra to clear More >
Ampatuan endorsement? No thanks, also.
Apr 21st
I received reports that the principal suspect in the Maguindanao massacre, Andal Ampatuan, Jr., had endorsed me as a senatorial candidate. I did not ask for this endorsement, and I will never accept any endorsement from anyone involved in the gruesome murders of 57 innocent lives.
Andal Ampatuan Jr. must be losing his mind; one day saying that (Nacionalista Party standard-bearer Manny) Villar was his candidate, together with (senatorial candidates) Bong Revilla, Gilbert Remulla and Jinggoy Estrada, and then the next day, he endorses me and Noynoy. It looks like Andal Jr. is being haunted by the ghosts of the 57 More >
Is NP-NPC “coalition” truly representative?
Apr 21st
Appointing the Nacionalista Party (NP) and its questionable coalition with the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) as the “Dominant Minority Party” in the coming elections was like designating a “company-sponsored union” to look after the interest of workers during negotiations for a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with management.
Given the unholy alliance between the Villars and the Arroyos, the forthcoming decision of the Comelec to appoint the NP-NPC coalition as the Dominant Minority Party is like naming a company-sponsored union to represent the interest of employees in the workplace.
I welcome the Supreme Court order on Tuesday stopping Comelec from enforcing its resolution More >
Concern for unrealistic ARMM voting population
Apr 20th
I am concerned over what I describe as “improbably high voting population” in the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). I urge the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to cleanse the region’s voters’ list to ensure fraud-free elections in May.
The recommendation of Acting Justice Secretary Alberto Agra to drop the murder charges against suspended ARMM Gov. Zaldy Ampatuan and his cousin Akmad Ampatuan, the former acting vice governor of Maguindanao Province, in connection with the Maguindanao massacre has revived fears that the Arroyo administration might again resort to massive fraud in the ARMM to have its candidates win in the More >
Ask CA to reverse Agra’s decision
Apr 19th
I urge government prosecutors to defy the order of Acting Justice Secretary Alberto Agra to drop the murder charges against two members of the Ampatuan clan in connection with the November 2009 massacre of 57 people, including 31 media workers, in Maguindanao.
The Department of Justice prosecutors should disown Agra’s order dropping the murder raps against Zaldy Ampatuan, the suspended governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and his cousin Akmad Ampatuan, the former acting vice governor of Maguindanao Province, for being unjust and grossly erroneous.
If necessary, the prosecutors should ask the Court of Appeals to reverse the justice More >
Why overrule Devanadera’s verdict?
Apr 18th
Acting Justice Secretary Alberto Agra’s order dropping the charges against Zaldy Ampatuan, the suspended governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and his cousin Akmad Ampatuan, the former acting vice governor of Maguindanao Province, was uncalled for and only reinforces the prevailing fears of a possible whitewash of the case in the minds of the families of the massacre victims.
Given the sensitivity of the case, Secretary Agra should have allowed the private prosecutors to present the evidence in court and let the judge decide whether the murder charges against Zaldy and Akmad Ampatuan would be dropped or not.
The More >
Overhaul party-list system
Apr 18th
Once voted into office, I will make it my priority to amend and strengthen the law governing the party-list system. People have the right to representation, and true representation can only be achieved when the elected representative of every party-list system is the perfect personification of that party-list, not someone who clearly has a hold on power.
As the Supreme Court has stated, it is not enough for a party-list nominee-candidate to claim representation of the marginalized and underrepresented, because representation is easy to claim and to feign.
The party-list organization or party must factually and truly represent the marginalized and More >
Villar likely to continue with GMA policies
Apr 13th
Nacionalista Party (NP) presidential candidate Manuel Villar will likely continue with the same lackluster government programs and policies started by President Gloria Macapacal Arroyo in the event he wins the May presidential elections.
This can be gleaned from the expected exodus of several local political leaders and influential business leaders known for their loyalty to President Arroyo and First Gentleman Mike Arroyo from the camp of ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD standard bearer Gilbert Teodoro. There are persistent rumors that up to 30 more Congressmen will follow the lead of House Speaker Prospero Nograles who has already declared his intentions to support Villar.
Now the More >
GMA cannot appoint next Sandiganbayan chief
Apr 6th
We, at the Liberal Party, maintain that the constitutional ban against midnight appointments is in effect and President Arroyo is barred from appointing the replacement of Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Norberto Geraldez who passed away due to a lingering illness last Sunday.
The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) should not submit to Malacanang a list of nominees for the replacement of Geraldez since the ban is still in effect despite the Supreme Court’s March 17 ruling that the President can appoint the successor of Chief Justice Reynato Puno who retires on May 17.
In that SC decision, while the High Tribunal ruled that More >
We should amend election laws
Mar 16th
We need to amend election laws to effectively regulate campaign expenses of candidates seeking public office.
I have been involved in seven national elections and this year’s election campaign is the most expensive that I have ever witnessed. It is deplorable how rich candidates achieve greater media mileage with loads of TV infomercials and political advertisements shown prior to the official campaign period, placing the poorer candidates at a great disadvantage when the official campaign period starts.
If elected back to the Senate, he would propose the amendment of existing election laws to cover the loopholes that are being gravely abused by More >
