SnK with WE CARE

Yesterday, Sentro ng Katotohanan was joined by Jing Mable and Dindo Donato of the group We Care Movement. They joined the broadcast and also commented on the latest news with anchors Arnel B. Endrinal, Orion Perez Dumdum and Chino Fernandez.

Per Ms. Mable, they started WE CARE or WE Citizens Advocates for REforms sometime in 2007, at the time when they felt that some groups are disregarding the people’s voice by putting down the Constitutional provision on Peoples’ Inititative. We Care therefore is a balancing group to listen to the People’s clamor for change including constitutional change.

Also among the topics discussed yesterday include how to achieve peace in Mindanao. Mr. Donato, who grew up in Davao City, mentioned that, often, peace initiatives tend to separate Muslims from Christians which eventually add to the tension there. He suggests that any peace agreement should benefit all those affected, not just one group or the other.

Listen to the archive of yesterday’s broadcast from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Sentro December 23, 2010, with WE CARE's Jing Mable and Dindo Donato

Sen Sen. Richard Gordon with Mrs. Carmen Pedrosa on SnK

Sen. Richard Gordon and Mrs. Carmen Navarro Pedrosa joined Sentro regulars Arnel, Orion and Chino yesterday, December 16, 2010, for a very lively program discussing the latest news and issues that concerns the country.

Sentro December 16, 2010 (With Sen. Gordon and Mrs. Pedrosa)

RH Proponents interviewed on SnK

Sentro ng Katotohanan recently interviewed RH Bill Proponents Ms. Lauren Harris, Director for Research and Programs, Bixby Center for Population, Health and Sustainable Development, University of California in Berkeley, and Ms. Ana Santos, a journalist, women’s health advocate, and founder of sexandsensibilities.com.

The interview is focused on the paper released by the Bixby Center entitled: Demographic Governance and Family Planning: The Philippines Way Forward.

Sentro ng Katotohanan is a twice weekly radio program anchored by Arnel B. Endrinal with Orion Perez Dumdum (of Get Real Philippines) aired live on DWBL 1242KHz Tuesdays/Thursdays, 8.30-9.30PM.

This SnK interview, and other past SnK broadcasts this month may be listened to via links below:

Sentro with RH Bill Proponents (November 23, 2010)
Sentro (November 18, 2010)
Sentro (November 16, 2010)
Sentro (November 11, 2010)
Sentro (November 9, 2010)
Sentro (November 4, 2010)
Sentro (November 2, 2010)

Note: Please report broken links to lead(dot)philippines(at)yahoo(dot)com.

SnK with CNP, again!

We are very happy to have again in our program, the controversial author and Phil. Star columnist Carmen Navarro Pedrosa as our in-studio guest yesterday, at Sentro ng Katotohanan (DWBL 1242KHz TTh 830-930PM). Mrs. Pedrosa joined us the whole program, first in analyzing the news with us, and then in the highly spirited charter change discussion.

The archived broadcast can be accessed from the following link:

Sentro October 28, 2010, Arnel Endrinal, OrionD, ChinoF with special guest, Mrs. Carmen Navarro Pedrosa

The program last tuesday

Sentro with Cong. Mitos Magsaysay

Last thursday, we had the pleasure of talking to Cong. Ma. Milagros "Mitos" H. Magsaysay. The main topics discussed were her comments on the proposed 2011 budget, her take on the issue between Lanao Del Norte Rep. Dimaporo and Presidential Peace Adviser Ging Deles, and her stand on Charter Change.

Sentro October 21, 2010

Other Sentro broadcasts in the past two weeks may also be accessed from the following links:

Sentro October 19, 2010
Sentro October 14, 2010 part1
Sentro October 14, 2010 part2
Sentro October 12, 2010
Sentro October 7, 2010
Sentro October 5, 2010

Please report any broken links to lead(dot)philippines(at)yahoo(dot)com.

SnK Last Week of September

Last week, the main topics discussed by co-anchors Arnel B. Endrinal and Orion Perez Dumdum on Sentro ng Katotohanan were President Aquino's trip to the USA as well as the RH Bill issue.

Sentro September 28, 2010
Sentro September 30, 2010

Hotdog eating trip and 1 year of Sentro!

On the occasion of the program's first year anniversary, Sentro ng Katotohanan anchors Arnel Endrinal and OrionD yesterday talked about the President's hotdog eating trip to the USA, the Jueteng scandal and the IIRC reports.

Sentro September 23, 2010

SnK with Momblogger

Yesterday, Momblogger, Ms. Noemi Lardizabal-Dado joined Sentro ng Katotohanan for the second time to promote her e-book Touched by an Angel. The e-book is a compilation of her articles in her own personal blog of the same title, her story of recovery from the loss of a child.

Meanwhile, together with Momblogger, the Sentro panel composed of anchor Arnel Endrinal, and Get Realists OrionD, ChinoF and FiloE (welcome back FiloE), discussed the biggest news of the day including among others the martial law anniversary, the De Lima hostage-taking report and President Aquino's trip to the USA.

Sentro September 21, 2010

(Note: The first part of the audio archived was clipped, apologies)

Sentro with Carmen Navarro Pedrosa

Last thursday, Sentro ng Katotohanan anchors Arnel Endrinal and OrionD talked more about Charter Change, with a long time charter change advocate Mrs. Carmen Navarro Pedrosa. For those who do not know, Mrs. Pedrosa is the author of the book The Rise and Fall of Imelda Romualdez Marcos, a columnist of the Philippine Star, and a charter change advocate from the time of the Ramos presidency.

Also featured last Thursday on SnK is a new voice, that of a Lakas Volunteer, Mr. Joe Smith Medina, also a charter change advocate. Another regular, ChinoF joined the group late in the broadcast.

Sentro September 16, 2010

Sentro Full Panel

Sentro ng Katotohanan yesterday is a full panel, with Arnel Endrinal anchoring, and with Get Realists OrionD, ChinoF, and BenK commenting from the booth and another Get Realist BongV via phone patch from Florida, USA.

The topics of discussion were the Aquino 2011 proposed budget, a unique Transport System utilizing existing roads and buses, the mass media involvement in the hostage crisis and the need to a Federal form of government.

Listen to another information-filled recording of a live SnK broadcast.

Sentro September 14, 2010

SnK with the Thursday Group

No, our radio program did not have a showbiz gossip feature with the That's Entertainment group of Kuya Germs (German Moreno). We were actually with a group of people, whose advocacy is caring for the sick. Not just the sick, but sick inmates of the New Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa City.

The first part of the program is of course about the latest news on the hostage taking investigations. In the last 30 minutes of the program we talked to Ma'ams Bobbie, Joanna and Tessie of the Thursday Group.

Sentro September 7, 2010

Sentro ng Katotohanan airs live Tuesdays/Thursdays, at DWBL 1242KHz, 8.30-9.30PM and anchored by Arnel Endrinal, Orion Perez Dumdum and Chino Fernandez. The program may also be heard live online http://dwbl-am.mellow947.fm

SnK on the Hostage Crisis

Sentro ng Katotohanan panelists Arnel Endrinal, OrionD and ChinoF (August 24) discussed the hostage crisis in-depth. The discussion shows that there is more to it that just the incompetence of the PNP, more than just the arrogantly excessive coverage of the mass media and more than just the apparent insensitivity of the Filipino.

Sentro August 24, 2010
Sentro August 26, 2010
Sentro August 31, 2010
Sentro September 1, 2010

SnK latest broadcasts

On August 17, 2010, Anchors Arnel Endrinal and Orion Perez Dumdum talked about the latest news especially the alleged rumblings in the AFP connected to military appointments. Sentro August 17, 2010

On August 19, 2010, SnK panelists, Anchor Arnel Endrinal, Charter Change Advocate Orion Perez Dumdum and Culture Warrior Chino Fernandez, talked about their take on the latest news and issues. In the last 15 minutes of the broadcast, Orion also compared the systems of government of different countries that have achieved some economic success and which culture and society has something in common with the Philippines. Sentro August 19, 2010

SnK on VAT

Sentro ng Katotohanan anchors, Arnel Endrinal and Orion Perez Dumdum discussed the issues surrounding VAT and its implementation in the last August 12, 2010 issue of the program.

August 12, 2010 Program part 1
August 12, 2010 Program part 2

Recent Broadcasts

Sentro ng Katotohanan continue to discuss important issues in the country today. The following are links to some of our recent broadcasts:

Arnel, OrionD and ChinoF on the Hacienda Luisita isse (August 10, 2010)
Arnel, OrionD and ChinoF on the Truth Commission (August 5, 2010)

Other recent broadcast links are as follows:
July 29, 2010
July 27, 2010
July 22, 2010
July 20, 2010
July 15, 2010
July 13, 2010

Note: SnK's discussions start (first 30minutes) with the tackling of the main news of the day. Meanwhile, the listed issue of the day is tackled by the 2nd half of the show (usually in the last 30 minutes).

More on Charter Change

Anchors ArnelE and OrionD (with Iya-J) continue their discussions on Charter Change with these broadcasts of Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro July 8, 2010
Sentro July 6, 2010

Sentro ng Katotohanan is aired live at DWBL-AM, 1242KHz, T.Th 8.30-9.30PM and streams online live at http://dwbl-am.mellow947.fm.

Sentro on the Inauguration Speech

Sentro anchors ArnelE and OrionD, last Thursday, July 1, 2010, discussed the events surrounding the Inauguration and President Aquino's much vaunted (by the mass media) speech.

Sentro ng Katotohanan, July 1, 2010

A Fair Assessment of PGMA

On the last day of her administration, Sentro ng Katotohanan panelists ArnelE, OrionD and ChinoF assessed the legacy, successes and failures of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo as President of the Philippines.

Sentro ng Katotohanan June 29, 2010

Sentro on Mass Media Treatment

Yesterday, Sentro anchor Iya Justimbaste and myself talked about how mass media, rightly or wrongly, treat different national personalities.

We think that the mass media is totally negative to President Arroyo and her administration. We also think that the mass media has ignored President-elect Noynoy Aquino before the death of former President Cory Aquino but has become very positive to him after and during the campaign, and then changing now that he is elected President.

We also assessed the Mass Media treatment of other personalities such as VP-elect Jejomar Binay, Sen. Mar Roxas, former President Erap Estrada, former Sec. Gibo Teodoro, and institutions such as the AFP and the Supreme Court.

Sentro ng Katotohanan June 24, 2010

Solutions to Corruption

Yesterday, Sentro panelists OrionD and ArnelE talked about the possible solutions to combat graft and corruption in the country. Our conclusion: to fight corruption, we do not really need to focus all our efforts on it..

Sentro June 22, 1010

Sentro on Football, etc.

Yesterday, the SnK panel OrionD, ChinoF and ArnelE talked about the game of Football (soccer) and why we should devote more of our time to that sport rather than on Basketball. SnK's Orion and Arnel also talked about the issue of campaign finance and what we can do about it.

Sentro June 17, 2010

Sentro on FOI

Yesterday, Sentro ng Katotohanan radio broadcast featured an interview with Mr. Vincent Lazatin, Executive Director of the Transparency and Accountability Network, a group pushing for the passage of the now House-junked Freedom of Information Bill.

The interview centered on the bill, its features, what happened with it and why it is important to be passed in its present form. The interview also touched on next actions to push the bill forward, the prospects of the incoming administration's support and the possibility of getting it done through People's Initiative, among others.

The following links to the archive of yesterday's broadcast.

Sentro June 8, 2010

Braggadocio

We were a full panel last Thursday at Sentro ng Katotohanan (SNK). OrionD, Iya, Chino and myself were all there to belt it out on national issues.. We also talked about Pinoy braggadocio, which is what Chino wrote at Anti-Pinoy..

Sentro June 3, 2010

"What's news?" on Sentro

There are news reports. And then, there are real news. Sentro anchors, OrionD and Arnel took on the task of discussing which news are real news and which are just news, i.e. which is important and which is not.

Sentro June 1, 2010

Do we need a Senate?

The Senate, do we need it? What is it's use? Are we better off without it? Those are some of the questions we hope we answered in last tuesday's broadcast of Sentro ng Katotohanan.

During the same broadcast, we also had with us, our Culture Warrior, ChinoF, talking about the dole-out mentality of the Pinoy.

Sentro ng Katotohanan, May 25, 2010

Meanwhile, yesterday, among the issues we tackled include some protectionist economic provisions in the constitution, whether they are good or are they actually hurting us; and the Pinoy's penchant for short-cuts.

Sentro ng Katotohanan, May 27, 2010

Plato's Republic

Last Thursday, aside from discussing the news reports of the day, SnK anchors OrionD and Arnel talked about Plato's opinion on what is the best for the leadership of a country. Surprisingly, Plato seems to have been the inspiration of George Lucas' Jedi masters in the Star Wars saga. Listen to the discussion here:

Sentro May 20, 2010 Part 1
Sentro May 20, 2010 Part 2

Are Pinoy Voters Wiser? and other SNK updates

Yesterday, it is only OrionD and myself at Sentro ng Katotohanan. We talked about the latest news, our take on them, while we also discussed how we felt about how our voters chose their candidates in the recent elections.

Are our voters wiser this time? That is the question which Sentro ng Katotohanan hoped to answer.

May 18, 2010 broadcast (Are Pinoy voters wiser?)

Other past broadcasts are as follows:

May 13, 2010 broadcast
May 11, 2010 broadcast
May 6, 2010 broadcast
May 4, 2010 broadcast

Parliamentary and Presidential forms of Government

OrionD and BenK are featured in Sentro ng Katotohanan's discussion on the different forms of government. The discussion, which is mostly in English, gives the listeners some insights on the differences as well as the advantages/disadvantages of the Parliamentary and Presidential forms of Government. The discussion also attempts to cover the applicability of the Parliamentary form of government to the Philippine setting.

This is a two-part Sentro ng Katotohanan feature, which our program believes every Filipino should study and discuss openly in the search for solutions to our country's problems.

Part 1: Sentro April 22, 2010
Part 2: Sentro April 29, 2010

Sentro April 27, 2010

Last week's (tuesday) broadcast is now archived for listening online. It is the broadcast that features the return of "Ate ng Katotohanan", sometimes also referred to as Musa ng Katotohanan, Ms. Linette Gepte. ChinoF of Get Real Philippines also returns to Sentro on that edition. Of course, IyaJ, OrionD and myself are also there..

Sentro April 27, 2010

Meanwhile, we are having some technical problems in our recordings of the other broadcasts (April 22, April 29, and May 4) which will be posted here as soon as we have a working sound file.

Sentro April 20, 2010

Last tuesday, Orion, IyaJ and myself belt it out again for another edition of Sentro ng Katotohanan. Meanwhile, tonight, BenK will be joining us to talk about Presidential vs. Parliamentary forms of government.

The following is the archive of last Tuesday's broadcast:

Sentro ng Katotohanan April 20, 2010

Inquirer front page update

In the past 6 days that I have monitored the Inquirer, I graded the score as to who is favored by their front page as follows:

Aquino: 5
Estrada: 1
All the rest: 0

It is also important to note how very negative the Inquirer's front page is becoming to Sen. Villar. Read my latest observation at my Inquirer Front Page blog.

A New Blog: The Inquirer Front Page

I have created a new blog monitoring the Inquirer's front page. Of course, the title of the blog is "The Inquirer Front Page".

In the past few days, I began to monitor the Inquirer to study who the paper is endorsing in the May 2010 Elections (read: Why this Blog?). I suspect the Inquirer is giving positive news for Aquino, negative for Villar and Teodoro, and neutral for all the rest. I may be wrong so I am taking a look. So far, in the past four days, I think the Inquirer Front Page gave Sen. Aquino the positive news, 4 times in a row.

I wonder how it will play out until election day?

Sentro April 15, 2010

Last Thursday, Sentro again had all of us three, Iya, Orion and myself talking about issues in the coming elections that sadly are not the issues discussed in the mainstream.

Sentro, April 15, 2010

Inquirer Front Page, April 16, 2010

It is really quite interesting to look at how the Inquirer is setting the news agenda these days. Here is a look at their today's front page. Who is favored in their news today?

As everyone can see, this front page is basically a negative press for President Arroyo. Meanwhile, Senators Aquino and Roxas has some exposure here, reminding everyone of the supposedly corrupt Jocjoc Bolante..

As for the presidentiables, I say this one again goes for Sen. Aquino. So far in my books, the score is: Aquino: 2, All others: 0!



Meanwhile, as everyone would know, the President is coming back from Madrid today. If the Inquirer is to be relied upon, the news that we have regarding the Madrid trip is all about the unsupported assertion that the President's delegation requires a "lean" 50 room in the Madrid Ritz Hotel worth more than Euro200 nightly. We also know about her award from the Spanish government for promoting the Spanish language. Of course, in passing, there is mention about a meeting between Arroyo and the Spanish President and another meeting with the Spanish King. Surprisingly, the agenda of the meeting was totally left out. What should have been the headline today is totally not on the Inquirer's radar.

Update April 17, 2010: This article is now being transferred and improved to a new blog called The Inquirer Front Page.

Inquirer's Front Page

It may be interesting to see how the Inquirer is taking on the news these days.. People are free to guess who their first page news is favoring. I say it is Sen. Noynoy Aquino on this one. What do you think?

Update: Meanwhile, the following is the link to our interview with Gov. Joey Salceda last October, 2009, right after Ondoy and right when there were talks about a reconstruction commission (BTW, I wonder what happened to that commission, another case of Ningas Cogon?).

Sentro with Gov. Joey Salceda

(Note: Actual interview starts at 24.01)

Update April 17, 2010: This article is now being transferred and improved to a new blog called The Inquirer Front Page.

OrionD, back at Sentro

It has been awhile since OrionD last joined us at Sentro ng Katotohanan. Since last Tuesday, he's back perhaps more often joining us in our broadcast.

SnK with Orion, April 13, 2010

Sentro with PPTRP

Last Thursday, Sentro ng Katotohanan had as guest Ms. Rorie Fajardo of the Philippines Public Transparency Reporting Project. You may now listen to the archived broadcast.

Sentro with PPTRP

Update April 22, 2010:
This Sentro broadcast has been featured in the PPTRP website via this link.

Sentro Archived Broadcast March 23, 25 and April 6, 2010

Here are the links to recent broadcasts, my apologies for late upload.

March 23, 2010
March 25, 2010
April 6, 2010

How can Noynoy (still) win the Elections?

Recent surveys show that Sen. Noynoy Aquino is going down in popularity as far as Filipino voters are concerned. If the trend continues, Sen. Manny Villar seems posed to win the May 2010 elections leaving the LP camp confused as to what could have hit them.

I think Aquino’s waning popularity is the result of major mistakes committed by his camp rather than on what the competition did. These major mistakes include

1. Their complete reliance on winnability/popularity, and
2. The negative tenor of their campaign.

Sen. Aquino ran for President on the basis of the popularity he gained from the extensive positive media coverage of his mother’s illness and subsequent death. The initial survey results understandably reflect such popularity but it does not mean the majority of voters are ready to embrace him no matter what. Everyone already recognizes the Aquino brand and the senator does not need to remind us about it. However, he still made sure we are reminded by invoking his parent’s legacy every time he is asked to speak. Perhaps he didn’t realize that voters are looking forward to know more what is behind the brand rather than have the brand merely repeated to them.

Obviously, Aquino will not get elected on the basis of what he did in the past. His performance in his three terms in congress and three years on the Senate did not produce any significant results. The fact that his home province of Tarlac, for which he could have wielded influence, has not shown any remarkable success, did not help to create the idea that at least he could have done something. His usual defense, “’fiscalization’ is what he did” simply does not hold water. The word “fiscalization” itself cannot be found in the dictionary, while more people, other senators, who produced more results, certainly has a better claim to it.

Because of lack of past performance to talk about, the Aquino camp banked on mere popularity to forward their cause. They used celebrities led by her controversial sister, popular actress and host Kris Aquino. They used surveys to create a bandwagon and to arrogantly turn the tables on the voters. Up to this day, Aquino ads are saying that it is the people who wanted him to run (obviously referring to the surveys), and not him wanting the Presidency. Now that the survey numbers are not favoring his argument, people would wonder: will he stop his run and go back to his slumber in the senate?

Aside from too much reliance on popularity, the other major blunder of Aquino is his negative campaign. First, his camp has shown their complete obsession or aversion of anything with Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in it. His platform says it all, he is just about anything but Arroyo. Meanwhile, his campaign says he will not steal, meaning everyone else are thieves. Also, they try to create the image that his main rival Sen. Manny Villar is the Arroyo reincarnate. While Aquino is not far behind in ad expenditures, his camp insists that Villar is using money to buy the Presidency and everyone on his way. The Aquino camp does all these while trying to create the illusion that their own campaign is a campaign of and by the people.

But there is truth to the saying that when you point an accusing finger, your other fingers will surely point at yourself. Of course, Aquino has been hounded and hurt by his lack of leadership and transparency, to put it in its mildest, on the Hacienda Luisita issue – the issue that could even eventually tarnish the legacy of his mother.

Instead of correcting their mistakes though, the Aquino camp is now resorting to stoking fear to get votes. They now talk about different far fetched scenarios such as “failure of elections” and military junta as they regularly attack the integrity of the Supreme Court and the Commission on Elections. They are now talking about leading “People Power”, presumably in case they would not win.

I think the Aquino camp has got to stop its arrogance. Rather than bank on popularity while branding everyone else as “evil” to continue their negative campaign, Aquino should instead sit down and reflect on real solutions that he can offer the country. Instead of simply mouthing platitudes and meaningless generalities which Villar is similarly doing, the Aquino team should differentiate their candidate by really studying the problems and coming up with and presenting real solutions, with details down to the last centavo needed to implement them.

I am not sure if Sen. Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III still has time to do this, but if he cannot explain his past, he should at least fully explain and show us the next six years of the country if we would have him as President. This I think is the only way now that he could win the May 2010 elections.

Forum Fatigue?

It seems now that the camp of Aquino (and seemingly concurred by the Villar camp) are promoting the idea that forums and debates is a waste of time in order to justify not joining them.

The leading candidates has missed attendance to some important forums among them the healthcare forum in the Medical City (by the Phil. College of Physicians), attended only by Gordon and Teodoro, and the Mindanao forum in Zamboanga, attended only by Delos Reyes and Perlas.. (BTW, we also heard of both candidates' absence in the Quiboloy forum..)

I can now imagine that from now up to election time, both these candidates will not be talking anymore about their positions, moreso their policies if elected president. While Noynoy is doing a FPJ, seemingly ignoring/avoiding the invitations, Villar is doing a GMA by not attending the forums unless Noynoy is there.

I think that with this attitude of the two leading candidates, if proven true, they may both be considered cheaters and cowards at the same time. Cheaters as in they want to win the election without giving too much of themselves, and cowards as not being able to stand up as true leaders when the electorate requires their submissions.

Obviously, the battle is not about good versus evil, but Noynoy's Glitter versus Villar's Gold.

Of course, mass media should have been criticizing both candidates to high heavens with these underhanded electoral strategies. And of course we see that again, mass media is reneging on its job.

Well, we can only lament the fact that nothing has changed.

Supreme Court under Attack?

The following is a commentary to be read tonight at Sentro ng Katotohanan:

SUPREME COURT UNDER ATTACK

Kahapon po, naglabas ang Supreme Court ng desisyong nagsasabing pwede raw mag-appoint ng Chief Justice and Pangulong Arroyo, at hindi raw nag-aapply ang election ban on appointments sa pagkakataong ito.

Malinaw na malinaw po ang desisyon ng korte. Pwede raw pong mag-appoint ang pangulo. Ang hindi po malinaw ay ang reaksyon ng maraming tao tungkol dito.

Kanina, sa radyo, nakikinig ako ng mga opinyon. Si Ted Failon ng DZMM parang kinukutya ang desisyon ng korte suprema. Ganun din si Arnold Clavio ng DZBB. Si Ted Failon, nagbasa ng mga text messages sa kanilang programa. Halos lahat ng mga text messages nila na natanggap ay kumukutya sa desisyon ng Supreme Court. Ako ay nagulat sa mga komentaryo dahil ang dating sa akin e para yatang naging mga eksperto sa batas ang mga tao. Hindi sila naniniwala sa Korte Suprema, siguro tingin nila mas matatalino sila kaysa sa mga Justices doon.

Pero ang mga tao ay gumagaya lang naman po kasi sa mga ibang tao na matatalino.

Kagaya for example ng dating CONCON delegate at dating Comelec Chairman Christian Monsod na nagsabi sa GMA ng ganito:

“I was disappointed”, ‘This looks like a Marcos court, and now it’s an Arroyo court.’ They seem to be especially accommodating the wishes of the president. [Its] reputation and image has suffered a great deal," Monsod, one of the framers of the 1987 Constitution, told radio dzBB.

Ang pagkakaalam po natin, si Christian Monsod po ay supporter ni Sen. Noynoy Aquino.

Ang kandidato po sa pagka Vice President ng Liberal Party na si Sen. Mar Roxas ay nagsabi naman po ng ganito sa isang statement:

“It scares many of our people that even on a very crucial issue of constitutionality and decency in government, the Justices of our Supreme Court would bow to the mighty powers of this President, who has bent the rules and even our Constitution to suit her whims,” Roxas said in a statement.

“It sends a chill into our people’s hearts that a scenario of a failure of election could really happen, especially now with automation of the elections under question by many sectors and experts,” he said.
“With this decision, one of the most sacrosanct rule governing our democracy — that of co-equal branches of government serving as a check and balance to each other — has been thrown out the window. It sends a foreboding message to the people whose faith in the democratic system has been tested too many times, yet has never wavered.
“Whoever rules now makes the rules. The blindfold of Lady Justice has now been stripped off, and she is now being coerced to tip her scales in favor of President Arroyo and her clique who intend to keep power at all costs.
“This is not how a democracy is supposed to work. Mangling the spirit of our constitution to serve the whims of the present administration sets a dangerous precedent: Where once we had a glimmer of hope for the return of decency’s reign, now that glimmer has dimmed considerably. Future generations of Filipinos will now have to live under a system where the strong and mighty defines what is right and wrong.
“Hindi tayo papayag na yurakan ang demokrasya at ang ating Saligang Batas para mapanatili sa poder ang mga tiwali sa ating pamahalaan. Huwag nating biguin ang matagal nang inaasam ng ating taumbayan na pagbabago sa ating bansa.
“Kasama ang buong sambayanan, lalaban tayo!”
Ang mismong presidential bet ng LP si Sen. Noynoy Aquino ay nagsabi ng ganito sa report ng GMA New.TV:

“Is this because the SC is now packed with Arroyo appointees? Ito pa rin ba ang hustisya at katarungan sa kalakaran at pamamaraan ng kasalukuyang pamunuan? Ang palagay ko ay hindi makatarungan ito (Is this justice under the Arroyo administration? I think this is a form of injustice)," he said in a statement.

Sa palagay ko, kailangan pong linawin ng mga taga Liberal Party ang ibig nilang sabihin. Gusto ba nilang pamunuan ang mga taong bayan na huwag nang maniwala sa Korte Suprema. Ganito po ba ang ibig nilang sabihin?

Kung ganito po ang kanilang ibig sabihin, palagay ko po ay sinisira nila ang ating bayan para lamang sa kanilang ambisyong pamunuan ito, at pamunuan ito kahit sa anong paraan. Kapag hindi na po naniniwala na mga tao sa korte suprema, wala na po tayong pwedeng paniwalaan. Anarkiya po ang magiging kasunod noon, at mawawalan na po tayo ng pag-asa bilang isang bayan.

Wag po nating ipagbale-walang bahala itong mga ganitong statements. Alam niyo, sa mga statements na ganito makikita ang tunay na integrity ng mga kandidato.

At ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro on "Small" Corruption

Yesterday, Sentro's Arnel and Iya discussed corrupt practices that ordinary Pinoys engage in. Sometimes, everyone is hell bent on cursing corruption in high places while we disregard those that we ourselves regularly do. If we want real change, the challenge is that we must all change.

Moreso, the smallest corruption we all engage in when put together adds up to the culture of corruption that we see and abhor in our society.

Listen to yesterday's broadcast from the following link:

Sentro on "Small" Corruption

OMAG on Sentro

Last Tuesday, Sentro ng Katotohanan have as guest Atty. Troy Banez of OMAG (Outdoor Media Advocacy Group). It will be noticed that OMAG has been spreading the Vote Wisely message through billboards in EDSA lately. Learn about the group and their advocacies by listening to our archived broadcast.

Sentro with OMAG

"Teacher" Neric Acosta goes to Sentro

Yesterday, we had LP Senatorial candidate Neric Acosta with us for an interview at Sentro ng Katotohanan (DWBL 1242KHz 8.30-9.30PM T-Th). Mr. Acosta, or "Teacher", as his campaign would like to call him, is a former congressman, a three termer, from the first district of Bukidnon. He is a stalwart LP member, and is the party's Vice President for Mindanao.

Mr. Acosta's stint in congress produced major legislation, The Philippine Clean Air, Water Management and Solid Waste Management Acts, among them. Before being a congressman, he was a provincial board member, but he maintains he is a teacher first before entering politics. During the interview, we found out that his father is a scientist (agricultural geneticist), while his mother is a politician (former Mayor, and former Congresswoman). He is the only politician among the brood of three. He is married to a Thai national whom he met in the US during his post graduate studies there, and they have a son.

Learn more about Mr. Neric Acosta by listening to our archived interview via the following link.

Interview with "Teacher" Neric Acosta

Ako ay Pilipino joins Sentro

Ako ay Pilipino is a group of young Pinoy volunteer writers who together wrote a coffee table book about Filipino inherent traits that can help him improve and uplift himself.

The book, Ako ay Pilipino, Noon at Ngayon, was written and published last November 2009 and relaunched this month. Yesterday, Sentro ng Katotohanan talked to Jane Odulio (one of the writers) and Hannah Veron (in charge of marketing), both of Ako ay Pilipino, about Pinoy traits and values such as Maginoo, Malasakit, Maganda, and Mahiyain, and how such can be used and harnessed to forward the nation.

Listen to the archived broadcast from the following link.

Interview with Ako ay Pilipino

Ano ang Napala sa EDSA?

The following is a commentary to be read at tonight's Sentro ng Katotohanan broadcast:

May napala ba tayo sa EDSA?

Marami po sa mga Pinoy ang nagsasabi na ang EDSA Revolution ng 1986 daw ang isa sa pinakamahalagang pangyayari sa kasaysayan ng Pilipinas. Dahil daw po sa EDSA, sumikat at nagkaroon muli ng pride ang mga Pinoy. Tayo raw ay napatunayang sadyang peace-loving, dahil nagawa nating mag-revolution ng halos walang putukan at patayan, na ginaya pa nga raw ng mga taga-ibang bansa. Ito raw ang “Handog ng Pilipino sa Mundo, mapayapang paraang pagbabago” – sabi sa isang kanta.

Kung ako po ang tatanungin, parang walang nangyari matapos ang EDSA Revolution. Nakakalungkot pa rin po ang sitwasyon ng ating bayan. Marami pa rin ang corrupt sa loob at maging sa labas ng gobyerno. Hindi pa rin po pantay-pantay ang pagtrato sa mga mamamayan. Marami pa rin po ang mahihirap. Marami pa rin ang nagnanais mag-abroad at hindi pa rin po natin ma-ipagmayabang ang sariling bayan. Maging sa gobyerno, nandyan pa rin po ang maraming nakinabang sa diktadurya. At dumadami pa po sila, parang nanganganak pa.

Pero sa kabilang banda, ang pinakamahalagang accomplishment po ng EDSA, sa aking palagay, ay ang pagpapatalsik sa diktador na si dating Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos. At dahil din sa EDSA at sa pagkaka-tanggal kay Marcos, bumalik din po sa bayan natin ang Press Freedom. Kung maaala ninyo, noong panahon ni Marcos, hindi po pwedeng magsalita laban sa gobyerno gaya ng ginagawa natin dito. Kung noong dati po tayo nagbro-broadcast ng ganito, siguro po ay patay na tayo ngayon. Kaya tunay na sunod-sunod na himala po talaga ang nangyari noon. Himalang kumilos ang mga tao, at himalang umalis si Marcos ng kusa, kung ano man ang dahilan. Marami po noong panahon na iyon ang hindi makapaniwala sa mga pangyayari. Kahit ako hindi rin po ako makapaniwala.

Siguro po ang tanong naman ninyo e, “E ano ngayon kung may press freedom, wala rin namang nangyari? Meron nga tayong Press Freedom, pero mahirap pa rin tayo!”.

Well, ang madaling kasagutan po dyan e, mas mahirap po siguro tayo ngayon kung hindi nagkaroon ng EDSA. Kung tititingnan po kasi natin ang economic trend noong panahon ni Marcos, makikita po natin talagang pabagsak ng pabagsak ang ekonomiya. Kung tumagal pa po siguro ang diktadurya, baka po talagang magkaroon din, pero this time, ng mas madugong rebolusyon.

Muli, sa kabilang banda, pwede rin pong sabihing “wala naman palang kwenta ang press freedom. Sa Singapore, kung saan nagkaroon din ng matagal na diktadurya sa panahon ni Lee Kuan Yew, bakit mayaman na sila at tayo ay mahirap pa rin. Hindi naman pala kailangan ang Press Freedom para yumaman ang bayan!”

Tama po, pero eto po ang kasagutan ko dyan. Sa Singapore, mayroon silang Lee Kuan Yew, isang taong gustong ayusin ang kanilang bayan. Sa Pilipinas po noong panahong iyon, Marcos po ang meron tayo, hindi po Lee Kuan Yew. Yun ang malaking pagkakaiba. Kung pag-iisipan po natin, maswerte po ang Singapore, dahil hindi naman po basta-basta lumalabas ang isang Lee Kuan Yew. Bihira po iyan. At kung wala pong Lee Kuan Yew, kailangan po natin ng Press Freedom, para mayroong nagbabantay sa Gobyerno.

Pero ang muli pong katanungan ay ganito: “E kung maganda pala ang Press Freedom, e bakit nga ganito pa rin tayo? Hindi naman pwedeng kainin, ika nga, ang Press Freedom!”

Alam ninyo, sa katanungang iyan, marami po ang kasagutan. Siguro po hindi natin ginagamit sa mahusay ang ating Press Freedom o ang kalayaan sa pamamahayag. Siguro po ay wala naman talagang nagbabantay sa gobyerno, nagkukunwari lamang ang ating mass media. Siguro po ang Press Freedom, nagagamit po sa business lamang, hindi para sa kapakanan ng bayan.

Iisa lamang po ang ibig sabihin nito. Hindi po sapat ang EDSA Revolution ng 1986. Hindi po tayo dapat mamahinga at mag-congratulate sa sarili natin dahil sa EDSA. Dapat po ay gamitin natin ang kalayaang ating nakuha, gamitin natin ang kalayaang ito para sa ikabubuti ng ating bayan.

Kaya nga po tayo nandito. At ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro ng Katotohanan (DWBL 1242KHz, TTh 8.30-9.30PM) will stream live online at dwbl-am.mellow947.fm.

Sentro ng Katotohanan with Dr. Martin Bautista (LP Senatoriable)

Yesterday, we had a fast-paced interview with Dr. Martin Bautista, a Senatorial candidate for the Liberal Party. Our questions ranged from his roots, his political association, and his stand on different issues. Our questions include:

- Where he grew up? Why he became a doctor? Why he went to work in the USA? Why he came back?
- Why he run for Senator under the LP and not under his old party, the Ang Kapatiran? Why he supports Sen. Aquino?
- His stand on the RH Bill, on Charter Change, on the Erap Pardon, on Marcos' years, etc.

Listen to Dr. Bautista as he gamely answers all our questions, many of them obviously quite challenging, with passion. Said broadcast archive can now be accessed and listened to from this link.

Sentro ng Katotohanan, February 16, 2010, with Dr. Martin Bautista

Anim na Mungkahi para sa Pagsasagawa ng mga Debate o Forums

Nitong mga nakaraang araw at linggo, parang sunod-sunod ang mga presidential forums na naganap. Kamakailan, meron pong FOCAP, nung minsan, may forum ng Inquirer sa UP, noong isang linggo sa Merriam College, tapos meron din sa La Salle at Ateneo. noong dati sa UST, meron din sa AIM at kung saan-saan pa. OK po ang mga forums, kaso parang medyo nakakasawa na kung pare-pareho lang ang style. Parang nawawalan po tuloy ng saysay.

Para po maging exciting at makabuluhan ang mga forums na ito, may mga suggestions po ang Sentro ng Katotohanan. Sana po ay makarating ang mga suggestions namin sa mga nag-o-organize ng forums para na rin makatulong sa kapakanan at kaalaman ng ating mga kababayan:

1. Sana po, imbis na forums, debate ang gawin. Kung ang forums po ay tatanungin lamang ang bawat isa sa mga kandidato, e para saan pa kung bakit inimbitahan sila ng sabay-sabay? Pwede naman po silang tanungin ng hiwa-hiwalay, hindi po ba? Ang mainam po sa debate, makikita ng mga tao ang pag-kakaiba ng mga kandidato. Hindi po kagaya kapag forums lang, parang pare-pareho lang ang kanilang sinasabi. Nalilito tuloy tayo lalo kung sino ang dapat iboto.

2. Dahil hindi naman po iisa lang ang gagawing debate, dapat po ay paghiwa-hiwalayin ang mga issues sa bawat debate. Isang araw po ng debate ay puro lamang sana sa ekonomiya. Isang araw po ay puro lamang tungkol sa OFWs. Isang araw po sana ay puro lamang sa paglaban sa graft and corruption. Isang araw po sana ay puro naman tungkol sa Reproductive Health at population. Ibang araw naman ay tungkol sa Charter Change. Ang nangyayari po kasi ngayon, bawat isang forum ay pilit na itinatanong lahat ng mga tanong. Tapos ganun din ang nangyayari sa susunod na forum. Hindi naman po nakukumpleto ang sagot ng mga kandidato dahil nauubos na ang oras. Parang hindi na tayo natatapos sa pare-parehong tanong, nasasayang tuloy ang panahon at pagkakataon.

3. Sana po sa mga debate ay isang tao lang ang magtatanong o magmomoderate. Sa mga forums po na nakikita ko, ang daming nagtatanong. Lahat po yata ng mga tumulong mag-organize ng forum ay gustong magtanong. Ang nangyayari tuloy, walang nagiging follow-up sa mga kasagutan at wala rin tayong natatapos. Wag na po sanang pumapel lahat ng organizers, hindi naman po tayo lahat mahusay mag-tanong o magmoderate ng forum o debate. Sana po ay humanap ng isang professional at patas na tao, na may expertise sa issue na pag-uusapan, para magtanong o magmoderate sa bawat isang debate.

4. Dapat po ang mga tanong ay puro tungkol sa policies. Wag na po sana yung mga personal o yung mga iba’t-ibang issues laban sa kandidato. Kasi po yung mga tanong na iyon ay dapat sa individual interviews ginagawa, hindi na po sa debate o forum. Nakakadagdag lamang po sa paghihintay ng ibang kandidato, hindi naman din po nasasagot ng husto dahil nagmamadali na sa oras.

5. Sana po ay gawing televised sa primetime sa gabi ang mga debate sa maraming channels. Sana ay may replay din kinabukasan ng tanghali. Sana po ay i-sponsor na lang ng COMELEC ang mga forums o kaya ay i-air sa mga government stations. Kasi po, may mga ibang channels na parang may kinikilingan o may nilalabanan. Kung walang channel na may exclusive sponsor ng debate, mas mainam po at parang mas patas ang usapan. Hindi naman po dapat exclusive ang mga debate at forums sa isang channel, dapat po ito ay open sa lahat ng mass media.

6. Sa parte naman po ng iba sa mass media, sana po, ang lahat ng TV, radio at dyaryo ay mag-cover sa mga debate. Ang mali pong nangyayari, parang kanya-kanya ang mga media stations. Yung forum sa ABS-CBN, hindi konocover ng GMA, yung sa GMA hindi naman kinocover ng kabila. Kahit po iyong sa Inquirer hindi gaano kinover ng mga TV station. Para pong may kumpetensya pa. Public service na lang po sana ito, hindi na competition sa business. Kasi ang eleksyon po ay para rin naman po sa ating lahat, kasama na ang atin mismong business interests.

Ito po ang anim kong suggestions, ulitin ko lang po:
1. Debate po sana at hindi lamang forum, para makita natin ang pagkakaiba ng mga kandidato
2. Hiwa-hiwalayin po sana ang mga issues, iba-ibang araw ng debate po sana bawat issue para makita natin talaga ang mga solusyong ibibigay ng mga kandidato
3. Isang moderator po lamang sana bawat debate, hindi po kailangang lahat tayo ay magtanong.
4. Policy debates po sana ang gawin, wala na po sanang mga personal questions at mga issues na pwede namang gawin sa individual interviews.
5. I-televise sana ng live ang mga debate, sa prime time TV at open sa lahat ng mga channels, hindi exclusive.
6. I-cover po sana ng lahat ng mass media ang mga forums, para po mas marami ang makaalam sa lahat ng issues, Itigil na po muna sana ang kumpetensya sa mga media outlets.

Kami po sa Sentro ng Katotohanan (DWBL 1242KHz 8.30-9.30PM T-Th), ay umaasa na sana ay makita natin itong mga improvements na ito tungkol sa debate at forums. Maraming salamat po!

Sentro on Fair Election Act Implenting Rules/Regulations

Yesterday, Iya and myself discussed the recently promulgated Comelec Resolution #8758 (RULES AND REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9006, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "FAIR ELECTION PRACTICES ACT”, IN RELATION TO THE MAY 10, 2010 SYNCHRONIZED NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS, AND SUBSEQUENT ELECTIONS).

We wonder how the provisions can be implemented and how the same could affect us as broadcasters (sort of).. Everyone can now listen to the said broadcast here (link).

www.leadphil.blogspot.com

Sentro is open to all National Candidates

Sentro ng Katotohanan (8.30-9.30PM, T-Th, DWBL 1242KHz) seeks and is open to interview and feature all senatorial candidates in the coming May 2010 elections. If you are a national candidate, or works for a campaign or knew someone who does, or just plainly want us to invite someone, please comment here or email us at lead.philippines(at)yahoo.com (or send an SMS to 0929-799-8308) and provide us information how to get in touch with the candidates.

Sentro is a fresh new program on AM radio that centers on topics related to the coming elections. In the past, Sentro has interviewed JC Delos Reyes, Nic Perlas, Bayani Fernando, Jun Chipeco, Alex Lacson, Sonia Roco and other national candidates. The Sentro interview touches on many topics of interest to voters, including the candidates' personal lives and past achievements. Of course Sentro also asks about platforms (and legislative agenda for senatoriables) of the candidates, as well as their reaction to different national issues. It may be noted that Sentro interviews does not shy away from asking direct, even controversial questions, and as such has in the past elicited candid responses from featured guests.

Sentro ng Katotohanan is co-anchored by Arnel Endrinal and Ms. Iya-J.

www.leadphil.blogspot.com

Sentro February 9, 2010

Last tuesday, the topic of discussion between Iya and myself centered on Presidential forums, especially the latest by the Philippine Daily Inquirer held at the University of the Philippines last February 8.

The main points raised are as follows:
1. Mud throwing between candidates, including by the candidate that is supposedly running on "character".
2. A debate is better than a forum, so that voters can differentiate the candidates based on their platform
3. We question why Presidential forums are not covered by everyone in the mass media, and covered only by those who are part of its production?
4. In different forums, why are the same questions asked over and over again..
5. Why there are many people who ask question and not assign one anchor who will ask all the questions?

The above broadcast may now be heard online from www.leadphil.blogspot.com. LINK

SWS answers questions from Sentro

Yesterday, we had the pleasure of interviewing the President of one of the most respected poll organization in the Philippines, Dr. Mahar Mangahas of SWS (Social Weather Stations). For 45 minutes, Sentro asked the most persistent questions (even complaints) we all have on surveys, and Dr. Mangahas gamely answered all of them.

Some of the questions we asked are as follows:
1. Where do they get their funds?
2. What is the value of surveys for Voters? How should voters treat surveys?
3. What is his take on the bandwagon effect of surveys?
4. How they conduct their surveys and make sure such conduct do not have any effect on the responses?
5. What are the steps they do to conduct the surveys?
6. How can a small number of respondents (e.g. 2,100) reflect the feel of large number of voters (about 50M)?
7. How they make sure their surveys reflect the true situation (Quality Control)?
8. What is the chance of an average voter to be surveyed by SWS?

In the end, although we insist that SWS should at least issue a disclaimer (or I should have used a better word, guidance) on the people's treatment of surveys, in my mind to limit the spin politicians make on their results, Dr. Mangahas maintains that their surveys reflect the real pulse of the people at the time of the survey and it is up to anybody to use them as they wish. Surely though, people should blame people who put a spin on data rather on the organization that gathered it.

The archived broadcast may now be listened online from this link.

Sentro February 2, 2010

Yesterday, Sentro ng Katotohanan talked to another Ang Kapatiran Party Senatoriable Reginald Tamayo. Listen to the archived broadcast from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Sentro Broadcast January 28, 2010

Last night, Sentro ng Katotohanan's Arnel Endrinal and Iya Justimbaste was joined by Get Realist Lester Ople and Ang Kapatiran senatorial candidate Lito David to discuss the day's news as well as Villar's C5 controversy. Listen to the archived broadcast now from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Sentro ng Katotohanan is aired live from DWBL 1242KHz, TTh, 8.30-9.30. The program may also be heard live online http://dwbl-am.mellow947.fm

Sentro and the Villar C5 Mess

The following is the transcript of the commentary from yesterday's Sentro ng Katotohanan broadcast:

Villar’s C5 mess

Matapos ang mahigit isang linggo, mainit pa ring usapan ang tungkol sa kaso ni Senador Manny Villar sa Senado na may kinalaman sa proyekto sa C5 Road. Sabi nga po ng Senado sa pangunguna ni Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile na dapat daw pong ibalik ni Senador Villar ang mahigit 6 Bilyong piso na di-umanoy kanyang ninakaw sa kaban ng bayan. Sinabi na po natin noon at sasabihin pa rin po natin ngayon, nakakatawa naman itong pigura na ito at parang nagbibiro tuloy ang senado.

Actually, hindi po senado lamang ang parang nagbibiro, parang nagbibiro po tayong lahat? Bakit ko po sinasabing para tayong nagbibiro?

Kasi po kapag pinag-uusapan ito parang normal lamang sa atin. Sa mga news, pagkatapos ng ganitong balita, balita naman tungkol sa showbiz at tsismis ang lumalabas. Halo-halo po ang mga balita, mga tsismis nakahalo sa ganitong importanteng paratang sa isang senador mula sa senate president mismo. Para pong tsismis as usual lamang, parang normal na lang.

Nakapagtataka po kasi, kung seryoso ito at totoo, at worth 6 Bilyon pesos na corruption, bakit ang tagal na at ngayon lamang pinag-uusapan?

Kahapon, isa pong supporter ni Senator Noynoy Aquino ang nag-email sa akin ng senate committee report na inakda ni Senador Enrile. Sabi pa po niya, ang dokumentong ito raw ay punong-puno ng detalye at pruweba ng corruption ni Senador Villar. Huwag daw nating itong iboto dahil totoong kurakot daw. Parang paniwalang-paniwala sya sa report na iyon. Nakakapagtaka po dahil ang pagkakaalam ko dati, galit na galit din siya sa mga trapong katulad ni Enrile, e ngayon naman po ay parang bilib na bilib na. At kung totoong nariyan ang mga detalye at pruweba, bakit sa tinagal ng panahon wala pa pong nagfifile ng kaso laban kay Senador Villar sa Husgado? Bakit po sa Senado lamang ang usapan? Bakit ayaw pong dalhin sa korte at nang magkalabasan ng ebidensya?

Ang ibig ko pong sabihin ay ganito. Kung gusto nating isiwalat ang corruption, kailangan pong hanapin natin ang puno’t dulo nito. Kailangan natin ang mahinahong pagtingin at hindi mga batikos na mabababaw lamang. Hindi po tayo dapat padagos-dagos na gumawa ng konklusiyon, bagkus ay dapat tingnan natin ang lahat ng mga ebidensya ng mahinahon.

Matagal na pong nangyayari ito. Noong mga nakaraan, ang dami pong batikos laban kay Presidente Gloria Macapagal Arroyo at maging sa First Gentleman, pero wala naman pong nangyari. Marami pong naniniwala sa mga batikos, pero hindi po sapat ang paniniwala nila, sapat para gumawa ng aksyon. Kasi po, ang mga witness at ang mga nagpaparatang, parang mga corrupt din. E sino po ba ang dapat paniwalaan. Tuloy ang nangyayari, hanggang ngayon nabibitin lamang tayong lahat sa katotohanan. Wala pong nakaalam na mga tunay na pangyayari. Ang mga nakakaalam po ay magsalita na kumpleto. Gusto nila ay partial lamang ang sabihin. Para pong nagbibiro o namumulitika lamang.

Kasi po, kapag batikos tayo ng batikos ng walang matibay na basehan, nawawalan po tayo ng kredibilidad. Binibitin lamang po ba natin ang katotohanan at ginagamit sa politika hanggan sa mapipiga ito? Ayaw po ba nating ituloy ang kaso sa husgado dahil may itinatago din tayo? O baka naman talagang biro lamang ang ating paratang at walang katotohanan.

Kung ito po ang ginagawa natin, alam na po nating walang magbabago.. kasama po tayong nagsusulong ng maling sistema sa ating bayan. Hindi po nakakatulong o makakatulong ito. Nalilito lamang ang tao at hindi na nila malaman kung sino at ano ang paniniwalaan. Nawawalan na rin po ang lahat ng tiwala sa kapwa Pilipino. Wala pong mabuting idudulot. Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro ng Katotohanan
TTh 8.30-9.30PM, DWBL 1242KHz

On Pork Barrel

The following is a commentary to be read tonight at Sentro ng Katotohanan:

Pork Barrel

Sa tuwing eleksyon ng pampanguluhan, lahat po ng kandidato ay pagbabago ang sinasabi. Kailangan daw alisin ang korapsyon sa gobyerno. Ang kailangan daw natin ay good governance.

Pero kung iisipin po natin, pagbabago po ba kaya talaga ang isinusulong ng mga kandidato?

Ang isa po sa nakikita kong dapat baguhin sa Pilipinas ay ang sistema ng pork barrel. Doon po sa mga hindi nakakaalam, ang pork barrel po ay ang pondo ng gobyerno na inilalaan sa mga congressional projects. Ang mga congressman po at senador ay binibigyan ng pondo ng pangulo para sa kanilang mga proyekto. Minsan, sila po mismo ang gumagawa ng kanilang sariling pork barrel sa pamamagitan ng pagsisingit ng kanilang projects sa iba’t-ibang departamento na dadagdag sa pangkabuoang budget ng gobyerno.

Kung iisipin po natin, ang sistema pong ito ay ginagawa para lumakas ang tsansa ng mga legislator na ma-reelect sila. Ito rin po ay ginawa para mapasunod ng Pangulo ang mga legislators sa kanyang agenda. Meron pa bang ibang dahilan?

Sa totoo lang, ang sistemang ito ay magastos at punong-puno ng corruption. Bilyon piso po ang inilalaan natin para sa pondo ng pork barrel. Sana man lang ay bumabalik sa atin ay mas magandang healthcare at sports program. Pero ang karaniwang bumabalik sa atin ay mga panandaliang medical mission at mga basketball courts lamang. Ang tanong, bakit ayaw pong alisin ito ng mga kandidato?

Sa mga forums na nagdaan, naitanong na po ito sa mga kandidato. Parati po ang sagot nila ay may naitutulong din ang pork barrel. Akala ko po ba ay pagbabago ang kanilang isinusulong? Bakit po ayaw nilang alisin ito ng tahasan? At kung ayaw nila, hindi po ba talagang pinagpapawalang bahala na nila ang kagustuhan ng bayan?

Sa mga kandidato po sa pagkapangulo, iisa lamang po ang narinig ko na tahasang nagsasabing aalisin niya ang pork barrel system sa Pilipinas. Iyon po ay walang iba kundi si JC Delos Reyes ng Ang Kapatiran Party.

Ang mga iba po ay medyo malabnaw ang pronouncements. Sabi po ni Nicanor Perlas sa kanyang plataporma, iaadvocate daw niya ang pag-alis ng pork barrel. Ganun din ang sinabi ni Gilbert Teodoro sa isang speech. Si Jamby Madrigal po, bagamat sinasabi po niya na hindi niya kinukuha ang kanyang pork barrel funds, na nagkakahalaga daw ng 200 milyong piso bawat isang senador, wala naman po aking narinig na pronouncement kung aalisin niya ito kapag nanalo siya bilang pangulo. Si Senador Villar po naman ay ireredesign nya raw ang pork barrel para naka-align sa proyekto ng pangulo. Wala naman pong binanggit tungkol dito ang partido ni Senador Aquino, at pati maging ang kampanya ni Senador Gordon.

Samakatwid, kung titingnan pa lamang po natin ang pork barrel at kung ano ang hinaharap nito, alam na po nating walang magbabago sa ating gobyerno. Sabi nga po nung isang vice presidential candidate ng Ang Kapatiran na nainterview natin, si Atty. Jun Chipeco, sabi niya: paano raw tayo magbabago kung gusto nga raw natin ng pagbabago pero ang ginagawa naman natin ay yung dati pa rin?

Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Listen to Sentro ng Katotohanan, 8.30-9.30PM, T-Th, DWBL 1242KHz.

Remembering EDSA II

Yesterday, we discussed the topic of EDSA II at Sentro ng Katotohanan. Perhaps we are the only program on radio that remembered the important event that happened 9 years ago. Listen to the archived broadcast from www.leadphil.blogspot.com for our unique viewpoint on this topic.

EDSA DOS, Nilimot ng Tadhana

The following is a commentary to be read tonight at Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Nilimot ng Tadhana

Siyam na taon na ang nakakalilipas, mayroong isang napakalaki at napakahalagang pangyayari ang naganap sa Pilipinas. Importante po ito at hindi dapat ipagpawalang bahala.. Alam po ba ninyo kung ano ang itinutukoy ko? Siguro po ay nakalimutan ninyo na.. Ang itinutukoy ko po ay ang EDSA DOS.

Siyam na taon na ang nakakaraan, ang Pangulong Joseph Estrada ay bumaba sa Malacanang dahil sa matinding People Power na nagaganap sa EDSA. Kung maaalala ninyo, nag-umpisa sa ilang daan hanggang lumago sa ilang daang libo kung hindi man milyon na bilang ng Pilipino ang nagpunta sa EDSA simula sa gabi ng January 17, 2001 hanggang sa pagbaba sa pwesto ng Pangulong Estrada noong January 20, 2001.

Alam po natin lahat kung saan nag-ugat ang EDSA DOS. Ito po ay nagmula sa impeachment ng dating Pangulo dahil sa kanyang graft and corruption na may kinalaman sa BW Resources Stock manipulation, sa Tobacco Excise Tax, sa Jueteng Bribery scandal at iba pa. Sa sumunod na usapin sa korte, napagtanto po na guilty ang dating Pangulo at nahatulan siya ng habambuhay na pagkakabilanggo. Sa huli, siya po ay binigyan ni Pangulong Arroyo ng pardon at kahapon nga po, sa mismong anniversary ng EDSA DOS, ay pinahintulutan naman ng COMELEC na tumakbo muli bilang Pangulo ng bayan sa darating na halalan.

Kung wala po kayong nakikitang mga pagkakamali sa senaryong ito na nagaganap sa ating bayan, alam na po natin: walang tayong mararating. Kung hindi po natin nakikita kung gaano kababa ang pagtrato natin sa ating sarili at hindi natin pinagpapahalagahan ang mga nakaraan at katotohanan sa ating bayan, talagang hindi tayo makakaalis dito sa kangkungan.

Sabi nga po ng pangalan ng tropang kinabibilangan ng aking co-anchor na si Iya, sabi nila Get Real Philippines. Magpakatotoo ka Pilipinas.

Anong klaseng bayan po tayo kung ang mga pangyayari kagaya ng EDSA DOS ay kalilimutan natin at hindi papansinin, ni hindi natin pag-uusapan kung anong aral ang makukuha natin doon?

Anong klaseng bayan mayroon tayo kung hindi man lang natin makita na mas grabe ang corruption sa panahon ni Marcos at ni Estrada kaysa kay Arroyo? Anong klaseng bayan mayroon tayo kung makakalimutan natin na noong panahon ni Marcos at Estrada, sadyang bagsak at bumabagsak pa ang ekonomiya dahil talagang ayaw na ng mga tao, maging Pilipino man o banyaga na mag-invest at magtayo ng business sa bayan?

Anong klaseng bayan mayroon tayo kung ang isang convicted plunderer na hindi natin alam kung ilan ang anak at asawa at mayroon pa ngang constitutional ban sa reeleksyon ay pinapayagan pang muling tumakbo pagkapangulo? At ang mas malaking tanong: anong klaseng bayan mayroon tayo, kung mayroon pang taong boboto sa kanya, kagaya ng sinasaad sa mga resulta ng mga surveys?

Anong klaseng bayan tayo kung hinahayaan nating sirain ng bawat isa ang integrity at character ng iba, sa pamamagitan lamang ng mga paratang at parinig, nang walang pruweba man lang na ipinakikita? At hinahayaan naman natin ang mga proven na na mangalandakan pa?

Sa inyong nakikinig sa akin, hindi po ito ang bayan natin. Hindi po. Hindi po ito ang bayan ng mga Del Pilar at Luna, ng mga Silang at Malvar. Hindi po. Hindi po ito ang bayan ni Rizal at Bonifacio. Hindi po.

Bawiin po sana natin ang ating bayan. Labanan po natin ang katangahan. Itayo po natin ang ating dignidad. Huwag po sana nating hayaang lokohin tayo ng mga taong nagkukunwaring makabayan at ginagamit ang ating kahirapan para sa kanilang panloloko. Hindi po ito ang laban ng good versus evil. Ito po ang laban ng pagkukunwari at katotohanan. Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro on Surveys

Yesterday, Iya-J and myself talked about surveys and their role in the coming Presidential Elections. Even if there is only the two of us talking, we almost run out of time because we just had so many to say!

Listen to the said broadcast now uploaded at www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

The Survey Says...

The following is a commentary to be read in tonight's Sentro ng Katotohanan broadcast, DWBL 1242KHz, 8.30-9.30PM.

Ayon sa Survey..

Isa po sa mainit na pinag-uusapan sa twing may eleksyon na darating ay ang mga Presidential surveys. Sa ngayon po, dalawang survey firms and pinapakinggan ng mga tao, ang SWS (o Social Weather Station) at ang Pulse Asia surveys.

Ang pinakahuling survey na nabasa ko ay yung nilabas ng SWS noong January 11, 2009 kung saan lumalabas na lumiliit na ang lamang ni Senator Noynoy kay Senator Villar. Ang tanong ng marami siguro ay kung makakahabol kaya si Senator Villar kay Noynoy?

Palagay ko, hindi po ito ang tamang katanungan. Dapat po siguro, alamin muna natin kung ano ang papel ng surveys sa darating na eleksyon.

Para sa akin po, para sa mga botante, walang naman dapat saysay ang mga surveys. Ang mga surveys po ay ginagawa para sa mga kandidato, hindi para sa botante. Para po sa mga kandidato, malalaman nila kung ano ang dapat nilang gawin upang manalo sa eleksyon base sa surveys. Sa botante po kaya, para saan ang surveys?

Halimbawa sa survey, lumalabas na nangunguna ang isang kandidato, dapat po ba iyon na ang iboto ng lahat? Mali po iyon hindi po ba? Halimbawa, mababa naman sa survey ang isang tao, dapat po ba huwag na siyang iboto dahil masasayang lang ang boto mo? Parang ang babaw naman po yata ano?

Noong dati po, sa survey, bago sila maglaban, mas malaki pong lumalabas ang tsansa na manalo si Oscar Dela Hoya kay Manny Pacquiao ayon sa betting odds sa Las Vegas na pumapabor kay dela Hoya. Dapat po ba noon, kumampi na tayo lahat kay Dela Hoya at iwanan na natin ang ating pambato? Sigurado ko ang sagot ng lahat ay hindi. Pero kung pupusta kayo ng pera kung sino ang mananalo, siguro magdadalawang isip kayo hindi po ba? Siguro, pupusta na lang kayo kay Dela Hoya.

Siguro, kung ako ang pupusta sa sino ang mananalo kung ang eleksyon ay gagawin ngayon, malamang pumusta ako na si Senator Noynoy Aquino ang mananalo. Pero ang eleksyon po ay hindi pustahan. Ang tanong po sa atin sa eleksyon ay kung sino ang kandidato ang pinaka malamang na magpapa-unlad sa bayan natin, sino ang kandidato na makapagsasa-ayos ng ating lipunan? Sino sa mga kandidato ang mag-aahon sa mga mahihirap at makakapagbibigay trabaho sa lahat?

Sa kasamaang palad, ang mga surveys po ay ikinakalat ng mga kandidato para sa kanya-kanyang maproprobecho. Ginagamit po nila itong pambuyo at pang akit para sila ang iboto. Gumagawa po sila ng trending, gusto po nilang sabihing may clamor para sa kanila o kaya’y lumalakas ang kanilang posisyon sa survey para makadagdag ng botante. In short, binobola po tayong lahat sa pamamagitan ng surveys.

Panigurado, alam naman ng SWS at Pulse Asia ang ginagawang ito ng mga kandidato. Alam nila na ginagamit ng kandidato ang kanilang surveys, at nagpapagamit naman sila. Ewan ko at masyado po yata akong nangangarap, pero kung nagpagamit sila sa mga kandidato, ang palagay ko ay tungkulin naman nila na ipaliwanag sa tao kung ano ang papel ng surveys sa ating eleksyon. Sa palagay ko po ito ay kanilang tungkulin hindi lamang bilang Pilipino kundi bilang tao.

Kung hindi po nila gagawin iyan, wala po akong respeto sa kanila, dahil kabilang sila sa mga grupo ng mga maimpluwensyang tao na sadyang sumisira sa bayan. Ito ang Sentro ng Katotothanan.

www.leadphil.blogspot.com

Sentro Last Thursday

Last Thursday, January 14, 2010, Sentro discussed issues relating to Presidential forums and debates. Mr. Lester Ople, also of Get Real Philippines joined Iya-J and myself to discuss said topic.

Said broadcast may now be heard online from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Sentro on Debates and Forums

Sentro ng Katotoahanan will be on again tonight, at DWBL 1242KHz, 8.30-9.30PM. The following is a commentary to be read in the broadcast:

Mga Forums at Debate

Kanina, napanood ko sa ANC ang isang Presidential Forum na ginanap sa AIM (Asian Institute of Management). Doon po, tatlong kandidato ang umattend, sina Gilbert Teodoro, Dick Gordon at Manny Villar. Sa palagay ko po, sa lahat ng forum na napanood ko, maging kumpara sa forums na ginawa rin ng ANC, eto pong forum kaninang umaga ang pinakamahirap at pinakaimportante para sa mga kandidato. Ito po sa palagay ko ang pinaka-prestigious dahil sa prestigious roster ng mga natatanong. Ilan po sa mga nagtanong ay ang Presidente ng European Chamber of Commerce, si Mr. Flor Cruz ng CNN, si Ms. Pamintuan ng Phil. Star, si Jose Cuisia, dating governor ng Central Bank, at maging ang dating Presidente Fidel Ramos. Ang mga katanungan po ang nakasentro sa economiya, sa competitiveness ng Pilipinas sa foreign investors, sa Maguindanao massacre, sa foreign relations. Maganda dahil puro issues po ang usapan at kumukuha ng direct answers sa mga kandidato.

Sa palagay ko, malaking pagkakamali po ni Noynoy Aquino ang hindi niya pagdalo sa forum na ito. Parang lalabas na natatakot siya sa mga mahihirap na tanong at hindi niya talaga kayang tumindig sa sariling paa Ano kaya ang dahilan ng Senador? Malaki po ang tama sa kanya ng nangungutyang tanong ng dating Pangulong Ramos: Where are the Others?

Noong dati po, si Senador Villar ay hindi umattend ng forum ng ABS-CBN sa UST na hosted ni Ted Failon. Kwinestyon ko rin po ang Senador noon sa aking komentaryo kung bakit hindi siya umattend. Pero ngayon po ay naiintindihan ko. Lumalabas pong hindi umattend si Villar doon dahil na rin kay Ted Failon mismo. Mukhang may personal na alitan po sila at hindi umaasa ng fairness si Villar kung si Failon ang magtatanong.

Pero kanina po, si Ricky Carandang ng ANC and host ng forum. Mukhang safe naman po iyong host na yon. Mukhang matagal na rin pong nasabihan si Noynoy Aquino tungkol sa forum na ito (dahil isang linggo na ring pinag-uusapan sa mga internet forums ang hindi niya pag-attend dito). Ano po kaya ang kasagutan ng Senador? Nasaan po kaya siya?

Pero kung ako po ang tatanungin palagay ko po sa mga ganitong forums kung saan iniimbitahan ang lahat ng kandidato, dapat po siguro ay gawin itong debate at hindi forum lamang. Kapag debate po, malalalaman natin kung saan magkakaiba ang kanilang mga plataporma at stand sa issue. Kung forum lamang, pwede po silang sumagot ng pare-pareho at walang pagkakaiba. Makakalito po iyon sa mga botante. Madali lamang po namang gawin ito, at nasa host po iyon. Pwede lang pong i-challenge ng host ang mga sagot, at itanong sa bawat isa kung ano ang reaksyon nila sa mga sagot ng iba. So importante po talaga ang debate.

Bukod po dito, sa palagay ko, dapat ay huwag piliting i-cover lahat ng issues sa iisang forum. Dapat po ay may debate na hiwa-hiwalay sa bawat issue. Dapat po, may debate isang araw tungkol sa economiya at business, may debate sa ibang araw tungkol sa peace and order, may debate ibang araw tungkol sa healthcare at women’s issues, may debate sa ibang araw tungkol sa charter change, at kung ano-ano pa..

Ang isa pa pong gusto ko sanang makita ay ma-improve ang treatment ng mass media sa mga debate at forums, at maging mga sa interviews. Kung mapapansin ninyo, ang forum po ng GMA, hindi kino-cover ng ABS-CBN, ang forum naman ng ABS-CBN, hindi pinapansin ng GMA. Ang interview ng isang station hindi pinipick-up ng kabilang istasyon. Ang interview sa isang radio hindi nalalaman sa kabila at nang buong bayan. Ang nangyayari po tuloy, ang bawat tanungan at interviews ay nagakakapare-pareho lamang ng tanong. Paulit-ulit at hindi na tayo nakakasulong.

Masasabi ko po sa mass media, natutuwa ako sa improvement na nangyayari, noong dati po walang mga forums na ganito, ngayon mayroon na. Kung ginawa po natin ito dati, siguro hindi nanalo si dating Pangulong Erap Estrada, at maging ang Pangulong Gloria Macapagal Arroyo na parehong expert sa pag-iwas dito. Pero huwag po sana tayong tumigil, pwede pa nating itama at iimprove ang ating ginagawa. Marami pa pong improvement na pwede tayong gawin. Debate po ang kailangan natin, iba-ibang debate iba-ibang araw at malawakang pagpapakalat ng impormasyon na napupulot dito sa lahat ng station ng radio at TV at pati sa dyaryo. Dapat po nating gawin ito, para sa ating kinabukasan. Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

www.leadphil.blogspot.com

Sentro with Transform Politics Advocacy

Yesterday, Sentro ng Katotohanan talked with two people, although belonging to separate groups with different advocacies, are together pushing for what they call a Transform Politics movement.

Mr. Roy Cabonegro is part of Partido Kalikasan which main concern is the preservation of the environment. Meanwhile, Mr. Don Flordeliza Jr. is part of Save our Nation and is a peace advocate in Mindanao. What brought them together is their desire to help look for leadership in the country by establishing a people-initiated candidate selection process.

Listen to yesterday's broadcast from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Are we ready to be Green?

The following is the commentary I read during the Sentro ng Katotohanan broadcast yesterday.

Handa ba tayong maging Berde?

Noong nakaraang taon, noong Setyembre at Oktubre, talagang nasa gitna po ng balita ang tungkol sa bahang idinulot ng Ondoy at Pepeng. Lahat po ng tao, ito ang pinag-uusapan. Napakarami po ang nasalanta, mahigit 600 ang namatay sa dalawang bagyo. Daang libo po ang nagpunta sa evacuation and relief center at mahigit isang Milyong Pilipino ang diretsong naapektuhan. Mahigit 30 Bilyong Piso raw po ang nasira sa infrastructure at agriculture. Sa isang bansang mahirap gaya natin, e talagang malaking dagok ito.

Sa kabilang banda, marami ang nag-donate, sa Red Cross, at maging sa TV networks na tila mo kumukumpitensya pa sa Red Cross. Kabi-kabila po ang donation drive, may mga concerts ng mga banda at iba pang musicians, may mga artista sumasagot sa telepono sa TV para makuha ang donations at kung ano-ano pa. Napakalaking balita po, siguro ito ang pinakamalaking balita sa atin noong 2009.

Ngayon, makatapos ang tatlong buwan, ano na po ang nangyari. Nakalimutan na po ba natin? Kailan po kaya natin maaalala ito..., pag dumating ang susunod na grabeng pagbaha?

Ano na po kaya ang nangyari sa Reconstruction Commission na itinatag ng gobyerno. Bakit po kaya wala na tayong naririnig na balita? Ang alam ko po si businessman Manny Pangilinan ang Chairman ng Commission na ito. Sa isang businessman po kagaya ni Mr. Pangilinan, imposible pong walang nangyayari. Bakit po kaya hindi natin naririnig?

Ang isa pong component ng sakuna na nangyari ay ang mga environmental concerns. Kung narinig na po natin ang global warming, yun po ang tinutukoy ko. Marami po ang nagsasabi na kaya ganito kagrabe ang pagbaha sa atin ay dahil sa global warming na dulot daw ng mga greenhouse gasses na karamihan ay nanggagaling sa mga advanced countries. Kung meron pong makakaalala, nagkaroon po ng environmental summit noong disyembre sa copenhagen, Denmark. Dumalo po ang Pangulo natin doon. Meron po bang nakakaalam kung ano ang ginawa ng pangulo doon? Bakit po kaya, sa kabila ng Ondoy at Pepeng ay parang hindi tayo gaano interesado?

Sa mga nagaganap po sa ating bayan, meron po bang mga bagay na ginagawa ang mga tao upang maiwasan ang pagbaha? Napag-uusapan pa po ba ang waste management at tamang pagtatapon ng basura? Napag-uusapan pa po ba ang pag-convert ng mga gamit na na plastik pabalik sa langis? Napag-uusapan pa po ba ang alternative fuel sources?

Bakit po kaya hindi?

Sa palagay ko po, ang pinag-uusapan ng mga tao ay kung ano ang nakikita nila sa mass media. Kung ang mass media po ay hindi interesado, hindi rin po interesado ang mga tao. Kung ang mass media po ay interesado lamang kumuha ng mga donasyon para pambigay sa mga biktima ng baha, at hindi interesado sa mga bagay na dapat gawin para maiwasan ang baha.. alam na po natin kung nasaan ang katumbas na interes ng tao. Kung ang mass media po ay hindi handang maging berde, hindi po tayo magiging handang maging berde o Green.

Makikita po natin, na ang mass media po ay may kapangyarihang mag-set ng agenda sa ating bayan. Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

www.leadphil.blogspot.com

Sentro and Candidate Criteria, Last Part

Last night, OrionD and another Get Realist Filo-E (Filo Efiaelo) joined Iya-J and myself to discuss more of the necessary criteria in selecting Presidential candidates in May 2010.

We agreed that there are three basic criteria namely integrity, competence (including preparation and intelligence) and past performance (record), each of which cannot stand without the others. Although 3 are the basic criteria, there is a fourth dimension: Vision, which defines the candidate's leadership.

Listen to the archived broadcast from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

The Importance of Mass Media

The following is to be read as talking points commentary at Sentro ng Katotohanan, tonight.

Ang Halaga ng Mass Media sa Pilipinas

Noon pong isang buwan, napanood ko po sa internet ang isang interview ng blogwatch kay Senator Manny Villar. Ang interview po ng blogwatch na iyon ay pinangunahan ni Ms. Noemi Dado, si mom-blogger na nainterview na natin dito sa Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Doon po sa interview na iyon, may nabanggit po si Senator Villar na ang may pinaka-malaking impluensya daw po sa mga Pinoy ay ang broadcast media, kasama na ang radio at TV. Ibig sabihin, kung may mga nakikita tayong mga mali sa gawain ng Pinoy na hindi mabago-bago, iisa lamang ang pwede nating masisi.

Noon pong bagong taon, bagamat parating nagpapaalala ang mga taga DOH na huwag nang magpaputok, marami pa rin po ang nasugatan sa paputok at maging sa ligaw na bala. Ibig sabihin po nito, mababa po ang impluensya ng DOH o ng gobyerno sa taong bayan. Kung ang mass media siguro ang nanguna sa pag-wawarning sa mga tao na huwag nang magpaputok, na hindi naman ginawa ng mass media, mas epektibo po siguro sana.

Kung pagmamasdan po natin ang mga kabataan, sino po ang karaniwang ina-idolize nila at ginagaya? Hindi po ba ang mga artista at singers na nakikita nila sa TV? Meron na po ba tayong narinig na mga kabataan na naging idol nila ang kanilang principal o teacher, o ang kanilang pari? Kung meron man po, siguro ay kakaunti lamang.

Kaya ko po sinasabi ito, sa palagay ko po kasi, sunod sa pamilya, pinakamalaki ang impluensya ng mass media sa mga kabataan. Mas malaki po ang impluensya ng mass media sa kanila kaysa sa iskwelahan, simbahan o gobyerno man. So, kung mayroon pong dapat ituro sa taong bayan, sa mass media po lamang ang pinaka-effective na daan.

Kaya po siguro ang mga grupong El-shaddai, Jesus is Lord at ang simbahang Iglesia ni Kristo ay maraming mga broadcasts sa Radio at TV.

Kitang-kita rin po ang pagpapahalaga ng mga politicians dito. Sina Sen. Aquino, Sen. Villar, Dick Gordon at Gibo Teodoro ay tuloy-tuloy ang paglalagay ng mga advertisements sa Radio at TV. Hindi naman po siguro sila gagastos ng milyon-milyong piso kung hindi importante ang radio at TV.

Kung ganito po kahalaga ang broadcast media, bakit po parang pinagbabale-walang bahala ito ng marami? Makinig po kayo ng radio kahit anong oras, kung ano-ano po ang pinag-uusapan. Ang isa sa mga pinakasikat na DJ sa FM, si Mo Twister, ang madalas pong pinag-uusapan sa kanilang programa ay kung sino ang pinakahottest na babe sa TV. Kung mayroon mang importanteng bagay na pinag-uusapan sa kanyang program, yung po ay bihirang-bihira lamang.

Makinig o manood po kayo ng balita, mabababaw lamang po ang mga ito. Puro po drama ng buhay ang paulit-ulit na pinapakita. Wala rin pong kino-cover sa gobyerno kundi tungkol sa corruption lamang – karamihan pa nga po ay mga press release lamang ng mga magkakalabang faction. Nagugulat pa nga tayo, maimplement na pala ang AFTA o ang ASEAN Free Trade Zone, nagugulantang na lamang ang mga maliliit na nating businessmen. At kalahati po siguro ng news sa TV ay puro tsimis tungkol sa mga artista – tila niyo ba ito ang pinaka-importante sa bayan.

Ni ang sports po at culture ay hindi nabibigyan ng espasyo sa mass media. Wala po tayong alam sa culture kundi StarStruck at PinoyBigBrother. Wala po tayong kilala kundi si Manny Pacquiao. Nagdaan po ang Sea Games late last year, napansin po ba ninyo?

Kulang na kulang po ang leader sa ating bayan, mi hindi nga makabuo ang mga partido ng kanilang senatoriables.

Ito po ang dahilan kung bakit itinatag ko ang Lead Philippines – para tumulong maghanap ng mga leader ng bayan. Kaso po, kung aasahan lamang natin ang radio at TV na ipakita sa atin ang mga leaders sa hinaharap, e mukhang wala po tayong maaasahan. At gayundin, kung hihintayin natin sila na ipaalam sa atin kung ano ang importante sa hindi, e mukhang mabibigo tayo. Kaya naman po ang Lead Philippines ay nag-proproduce ng programang katulad nitong ginagawa natin. Sana po ay tulungan at tangkilikin ninyo kami.

Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Sentro ng Katotohanan, TTh, 830-930PM, DWBL 1242KHz

More on May 2010 Criteria

Last Tuesday, Sentro ng Katotohanan continued to discuss with OrionD different criteria for selection of candidates for May 2010. Said broadcast may now be listened to from www.leadphil.blogspot.com.

Something new in New Year

The following is a commentary to be read during tonight's Sentro ng Katotohanan broadcast.

Meron bang bago sa bagong taon?

Noong New year, nanonood ako sa CNN ng mga balita tungkol sa mga celebrations ng New Year sa buong mundo..

Napanood ko ang ganda raw ng mga fireworks display sa New York kung saan may isang milyong kataong nanood daw doon sa Times Square nang tinatawag nilang ball drop na naghuhudyat ng pagbabago ng taon.

Sa New Zealand, nagparty daw ng husto sa Auckland sa gitna ng mga paputukan sa Sky Towers doon. Sa Australia daw sa Sydney harbor bridge, nagsayawan daw ang mga tao habang nagaganap ang 12-minute na firework display.. Sa Seoul Korea, meron daw malaking bell na pinatugtog sa gitna ng mga tao.. May multi color light show naman daw sa Eifel tower sa France, Sa Taiwan, pinakita yung pinakamataas na building doon yung Taipei 101 na punong-puno ng paputok. Sa London, hinintay daw ng mga tao ang pagstrike ng Big Ben doon at tuwang-tuwa sila sa fireworks display sa London Eye, yung malaki nilang ferris wheel doon.. Ang galing, ang gaganda ng fireworks..

Pagkatapos doon, inilipat ko naman ang TV ko sa local Channel. Sa atin daw, marami ang sugatan, daan daan ang nasugatan ng picolo at kwitis. Mahigit 25 daw ang natamaan ng ligaw na bala. At may mga batang naputulan ng daliri..

Sa palagay niyo mga tagapakinig, sa ganitong sitwasyon, may nabago po ba o may mababago sa ating bayan?

Sa ngayon, ang bilang po ng nasusugatan sa atin sa paputok ay mahigit nang 800. Marami po ay natamaan ng bala. Marami po ay mga lasing at mga bata. Marami rin po ang namatay. Para pong may nangyaring sakuna. Para pong may lumubog na barko o may Ondoy na nagdaan.

May problema po tayo sa warlords.. May problema po tayo sa baha.. may problema tayo sa corruption at may problema po tayo sa kahirapan.. Pero kung ang simpleng celebrasyon ng new year ay hindi po natin maiayos, may-ma-sosolve po kaya tayong problema?

Kanina po nagkakagulo ang mass media tungkol sa mga balita sa arraignment ni Andal Ampatuan Jr. Nagagalit po ang mga tao tungkol sa VIP treatment daw kay Ampatuan. Kinukutsa po ng mga tao ang 6-man commission na binuo ng gobyerno para idismantle ang private armies.

Pero mga tagapakinig ko, concerned po ba tayo talaga? Bakit hindi tayo nagagalit sa ating gobyerno, sa kawalan nila ng aksyon sa paputok, at sa ating mga kababayan sa kanilang katigasan ng ulo?

Sige po, happy new year na rin po. Sana po, may makita tayong something new, sa new year na ito.

Ito ang Sentro ng Katotohanan.

Listen to Sentro ng Katotohanan, 8.30-9.30PM, TTh, DWBL 1242KHz