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Zero enforcement
= deadwood laws

by Che de Los Reyes and Karol Anne Ilagan

THE COMMISSION on Elections has spelled out campaign finance rules that are clear about spending limits, reporting requirements and deadlines, and penalties. The clarity ends on paper, however.

The poll body has hardly enforced its rules, giving candidates and political parties free pass to circumvent and mock these, get away with patent violations, and even run again in the next elections. To date, no candidate for national office has been penalized for any violations, despite evidence that the rules have been played around with, and not so innocently.

Read more... | Posted Thursday, August 12th, 2010
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Risky start-ups?

by Roel R. Landingin

A CLOSE look at election spending reports of seven presidential candidates and three political parties in the May 10 polls reveals that election campaigns are funded in the manner and mold of financing for risky business start-ups.

Money comes mostly from personal funds, family members, and friends rather than a wide network of supporters of the political party, organization, or movement. In business, these private-equity sources of funding are ideal for ventures with low success rates but high pay-offs that are usually shunned by banks and the capital markets.

Read more... | Posted Tuesday, July 20th, 2010
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A different Legacy

by Annie Ruth Sabangan

NOBODY knows for sure how much money Speaker Prospero Nograles lost when he invested in at least one of the 12 banks under the collapsed Legacy Group of Companies.

One thing is certain: Nograles had admitted he lost money in Legacy.

Read more... | Posted Monday, June 7th, 2010
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The world awaits RP
Freedom of Info Act

by Malou Mangahas

TODAY starts a series of mass actions by journalists, workers, students, professionals, business and church leaders, and civil-society groups in their vigorous final push for Congress to ratify the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act.

But the world waits and watches, too. More than just a Philippine story, the 14-year advocacy of Filipinos for Congress to enact the law has become a serious concern of freedom of information advocates, scholars and members of parliament across the globe.

Read more... | Posted Sunday, May 23rd, 2010
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‘Failure of elections,
failure of coverage?’

by Tita C. Valderama

AT 20, Joana will be casting her vote for the first time this Monday. But her excitement has been heightened by the fact that she will also be covering the elections.

Joana has been a journalist for barely a year. Yet while she is looking forward to the polls as a young reporter and a first-time voter, her eagerness has somehow been dampened by widespread skepticism over the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) ability to handle the country’s first nationwide automated elections.

Read more... | Posted Saturday, May 8th, 2010
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Polls big business for
showbiz endorsers

by Jaemark Tordecilla and Annie Ruth Sabangan

THIS HAS become one star-studded election season, but few are under the delusion that artistas have suddenly been seized by profound political or social consciousness.

Longtime observers of the showbiz industry say it’s really mostly about money. “There’s not much principle involved,” says entertainment columnist Isah Red. “Usually, the talent manager handles the deal so the celebrity endorses (a politician) and there’s quid pro quo. But of course, no one will categorically admit that it’s like that.”

Read more... | Posted Friday, May 7th, 2010
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P6B of gov’t, utility ads in ’09

by Karol Anne M. Ilagan

THE GOVERNMENT seems to want your ear really, really bad that in 2009 alone, its agencies, along with various public utilities, placed tri-media ads totalling P6.34 billion in ad value.

This amount, as recorded by Nielsen Media, was composed of 771.03 hours of TV ads worth P3.84 billion in ad value, over 2,604 hours of radio ads worth P2.08 million, and 7,674 print ads worth P426.19 million.

Read more... | Posted Thursday, May 6th, 2010
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Web of threats

by Ed Lingao and Jaemark Tordecilla

MANY PEOPLE had dismissed the then still toddler blogosphere as only the domain of socially challenged geeks and nerds locked up in a dark basement behind a battery of computers. But in 2005, administration allies, battered on all sides by the ‘Hello Garci’ scandal, thought it prudent to drag the geeks out of the basement and hale them to court.

Read more... | Posted Thursday, April 8th, 2010
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Detained but still running big-time

by Carolyn O. Arguillas, MindaNews

DAVAO CITY – Their leaders may be detained outside Maguindanao but they remain a clan to reckon with in Maguindanao, if we are to base it on the number of candidates running for election or reelection on May 10. The Ampatuans, Sinsuats, Sangkis, Mangudadatus, Pendatuns, Masturas, Midtimbangs, etc.. are fielding candidates for the May 10 polls but the Ampatuans have the highest number at 68, 50 of them carrying the same surname while the remaining 18 use Ampatuan as their middle name.

Read more... | Posted Monday, February 8th, 2010
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Kamag-anak Foundations Inc.?

by Rowena C. Paraan

THE president’s husband has a foundation named after his official title – First Gentleman – and is listed as incorporator in the KGMA Foundation, as are sons Jose Miguel and Diosdado. KGMA also includes presidential brother-in-law and Negros Rep. Ignacio Arroyo, as incorporator.

Read more... | Posted Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

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