Marcos' second SONA: Experts weigh in on what he said and didn't say

LAST UPDATE: JULY 29, 2023

WHAT HE SAID:

Marcos as an anti-corruption crusader? Watchdog groups weigh in
‘Parang nananaginip siya:’ Marcos urged again to appoint full time agri chief
The ‘son of dictator’ tours the world to repair Philippine image, family legacy
It’ll be contentious moving to 2025: BARMM progress not as smooth as Marcos claims
Marcos puts pressure on NGCP over project delays
Environmentalists are lukewarm about Marcos’ call to tax single-use plastics
Second SONA: Priority Bills

WHAT HE DID NOT SAY:

The silence of Bongbong Marcos on attacks vs press freedom in 2nd SONA speaks volumes
Marcos silent on ICC probe but says ‘drug war has taken on a new face
Protesters spotlight human rights issues Marcos snubbed in 2nd SONA speech — in photos

2022 SPEECHES

Marcos lists 12 priority bills

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. asked Congress to support 12 priority legislations:

1) The essential tax measures under our Medium-Term Fiscal Framework, such as–

Excise tax on single-use plastics
VAT on digital services
Rationalization of mining fiscal regime
Motor vehicle user’s charge/road user’s tax
Military and Uniformed Personnel Pension

2) Amendment of the Fisheries Code;

3) Amendment of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act;

4) Amendment of the Cooperative Code;

5) New Government Procurement Law;

6) New Government Auditing Code;

7) Anti-financial accounts scamming;

8) Tatak-Pinoy law;

9) The Blue Economy law;

10) Ease of paying taxes;

11) LGU income classification; and

12) The Philippine Immigration Act.

Marcos as an anti-corruption crusader? Watchdog groups weigh in

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has vowed to fight corruption in his second year in office.

“We cannot tolerate corruption or incompetence in government,’’ he warned public officials during his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 24.

He vowed to “shut down the illegal activities” and “dismantle the network of operations” of drug rings in the country.

The President, who sits as agriculture secretary, also warned smugglers and hoarders of agricultural products that their “days are numbered.’’ They have been blamed for the unreasonable increases in the prices of products, particularly onion and sugar.

Marcos has been previously criticized for his weak anti-corruption messaging. After Monday’s SONA, he took action.

Malacañang accepted the courtesy resignations of three generals and 15 colonels from the Philippine National Police over their alleged involvement in illegal drug activities.

The Department of Agriculture also announced the filing of charges against the owners of four warehouses in Luzon that stored smuggled sugar, onions and meat.

Watchdog groups interviewed by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) welcomed Marcos’ SONA. But the proof of the anti-corruption pudding is in the eating, they said.

The Institute for Leadership, Empowerment, and Democracy (iLEAD) and Action for Economics Reform (AER) had reservations about Marcos’ proposals to amend a string of laws.

Often the laws are good, said iLEAD executive director Zy-za Suzara. It’s the implementation that is lacking.

Marcos’ failure to mention Freedom of Information (FOI) was also disappointing, said AER researcher AJ Montesa.

Transparency is an effective deterrent to corruption, he said. “For what will the modernization of budget, procurement and government processes be if you don’t allow citizens to also engage on that side, if they’re not able to access information?”

Challenges of digitalization

Marcos rallied the bureaucracy to “embrace digitalization’’ not only to provide better services to the people, but to curb corruption.

He cited how digitalization has boosted efficiency in many areas such as government payments, company and business registrations, issuance of permits and licenses, loan applications and revenue collection.

“Digitalization is the call of today; not the call of the future – but of the present. It is here. It is needed, and it is needed today,’’ he said.

He also touted the launch of eGov PH app, a single and centralized mobile app where all key government services are to be integrated. The core of the digitally transformed network of government services is the national ID system, he added.

“At 87 % total registration, we are now closer to establishing a complete, accurate and reliable digital database of our own for the entire population,’’ he said.

AER’s Montesa said a lot of government agencies have yet to “appreciate” digitization and digitalization.

“If you have information that is more readily available, machine-readable and analyzable, it’s easier to detect fraud and corruption. It’s easier to audit as well,” Montesa said.

Digitalization is tedious. It entails the migration of government transactions to digital technologies, converting analog data into computer-readable information.

Even if government agencies have the capacity to digitalize, there’s a lack of data integration among them. “There are those who do not share databases with one another,” he said.

A thorough navigation of the eGov PH app reveals features that merely redirect users to already existing government websites, with some still undergoing “single-sign-on integration.”

Most local government units also have no destinations at all.

New procurement law?

The President also enumerated a wishlist of priority measures that he wanted Congress to pass, including a new government procurement law and a new government auditing code.

The goal was “to make government procurement and auditing more attuned to these changing times,” Marco said, without going into specifics.

The procurement law was enacted in 2003 to ensure transparency in obtaining materials for government projects and to eliminate conflicts of interest among eligible contractors.

The process is also notorious among government officials for having a “highly technical” nature and for imposing “stringent” rules, which are often blamed for the delays.

But iLEAD’s Zusara said an overhaul of the law might not be needed. What government officials need is capacity building for a better understanding of the procurement process, she said.

Circular releases may be enough to clarify concerns with the law, and this has been done in several instances, she said.

AER’s Montesa also warned against a total revamp of the law, although he acknowledged the need for possible amendments.

“If you try to overhaul the entire system, certain things might be crossed out; it might even yield a negative impact. If I, for example, offer provisions to make procurement faster, these should not get in the way of transparency and accountability.” Montesa said.

Suzara said the government should also revive procurement observation that allows civil society members to monitor proceedings. This provision is already enshrined in the current law.

“Civil society has died down because they don’t have the capacity to go to every bidding,” she said.

Meanwhile, Montesa said Marcos’ pronouncement to prioritize an amendment to the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act was a good start to curb corruption “outside” government transactions.

But he said the Marcos administration should follow through on its enforcement once amended, and improve strategies in tracking down groups dealing in illegal trade.

Maharlika still dubious

The President defended the newly established Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), saying this could finance key projects “without the added debt burden.’’

Besides, he added, operations of the fund will be overseen by internationally recognized economic managers to guarantee that any investment decision is based on financial considerations “absent any political influence.’’

The MIF law setting up the sovereign wealth fund had been dogged by controversy since it was speedily passed by the House of Representatives in December last year, approved by the Senate in May and signed into law on July 18.

At the heart of the opposition to the fund is the use of state pension funds for its capitalization.

For Montesa, it’s the ambiguity of the fund’s purpose that fuels doubts. Leading economists have also stated that it violates certain economic principles.

“Is it to maximize financial return? Gain? Profit? Or is it to maximize spending on development projects. Since that’s unclear, the possibility is they will try to go somewhere in the middle… It might just waste public funds,” the AER researcher said.

Suzara also said that even if it has found its P500-billion capital through untapped government resources, it will “eat up fiscal space.”

“That’s why they are prioritizing taxes that could replenish the funds that will be sucked by Maharlika,” she said.

Tax reforms

In his speech, Marcos asserted the need for “more structural tax reforms” for his administration to attain socioeconomic targets.

He identified the following priority legislation to ramp up government revenue:

Excise tax on single-use plastics
Value added tax (VAT) on digital services
Rationalization of mining fiscal regime
Motor vehicle user’s charge/road user’s tax
Military and uniformed personnel pension

AER believes that in an economy where deficit-to-GDP (gross domestic product) and debt-to-GDP ratios are high, tax reforms are welcome. It only needs to be designed in a way that would tax the rich more than it does the poor, Montesa said.

For Suzara, though, discussion about taxes is not enough to ensure they will work. “[Additional revenues] will only have a positive impact on citizens if they are properly allocated,” she said.

Despite having the highest VAT rate among Southeast Asian countries, the Philippines performs lowest in channeling this type of revenue to higher national income, according to a 2021 Asian Development Bank report.

‘Parang nananaginip siya:’ Marcos urged again to appoint full time agri chief

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is being urged anew to appoint a full-time agriculture chief who can better address the sector’s pressing concerns, such as food self-sufficiency, rising prices of goods, and smuggling.

Marcos heads the Department of Agriculture in a concurrent capacity. In his second State of the Nation Address last Monday, he spoke about boosting agricultural production “augmented’’ by importation, but gave no hint he would yield the post soon.

Supporters said the President should be freed from the nitty-gritty of department-level affairs to focus on running the country, while analysts pointed to his poor performance in the department.

The DA had been rocked by the sugar importation fiasco and the onion mess on his watch.

Herminio Agsaluna, president of the farmers’ group Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka (Pakisama), said farmers and fisherfolk needed a secretary who understands the industry.

“Nakikita naman natin na lagpas na ng isang taon, nakikita naman natin na hindi niya kaya na sabay-sabay ‘yung trabaho (It’s been more than a year since he assumed the post. We can see that he cannot sufficiently juggle his tasks),” Agsaluna told the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ).

It’s a critical sector. Agricultural growth is more effective in removing poverty than any other industrial growth. But fisherfolk and farmers have remained among the country’s poorest.

Economist Solita Monsod said data would show that Marcos fared poorly as agriculture secretary in the context of his administration’s targets in the Philippine Development Plan.

“The agriculture department has actually the worst performance. I’m only looking at data. I’m just telling you what the Philippines Statistics Authority says. [There are] 90 targets or indicators of performance, 28 of which were met, and 59 were not met,” Monsod told PCIJ.

If at all, only the poultry subsector hit the growth target of 3-4% and even overperformed as it grew 6.7%, she pointed out.

“It’s not that I’m against the president. Did he do well? If he did well, keep him. If he did not do well, don’t keep him. What is the criteria? What are the indicators that he intended to accomplish? He did not accomplish it, get him out,” she said.

Inflation, Kadiwa, and rising prices of agri inputs

Marcos said inflation, compounded by the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, was the “biggest problem” faced by his administration.

But he stressed that the government was “stabilizing the prices of all critical commodities,’’ and that inflation was “moving in the right direction.’’

The President credited the “Kadiwa stores’’ for helping to bring down the prices of rice, meat, fish, vegetable and sugar.

But in public markets, prices of basic commodities continued to soar. “Parang nananaginip siya na mangyaring napababa niya (I think he is dreaming that he actually sent prices of commodities down),” said Agsaluna.

The Kadiwa program was introduced by his father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Marcos claimed that the more than 700 stores benefitted 1.8 million families, about one-third of the country’s 5.6 million poor families.

Of this, Monsod said: “First, you don’t know what those benefits are. And second you don’t know if there’s double counting in this. Because a family may have bought in a Kadiwa twice or three times.”

And while inflation slowed down to 5.4% in June, the food inflation numbers present a mixed picture.

“Inflation for June went down, but there are things that went up. And the things that went up are cereal, rice, vegetables, and fish. That’s what the poor eat,” the economist said.

Agsaluna said that it would benefit more Filipinos if Marcos rolled out more Kadiwa stores in the countryside.

Monsod said this is a “good idea” but whether it’s practical one is another matter. “Unless you have the cost and you can compare costs versus benefits, you will never be able to say whether the good idea is actually a practical one,” she said.

To bring prices down, Marcos should first lower the soaring prices of agricultural inputs, Agsaluna said.

“Dapat unahin niya ang mga inputs para bumaba yung presyo ng palay at bigas,” he said. He said a sack of urea now costs P2,400 compared to P1,800 before Marcos became president. Many farmers could no longer afford to till land.

Farmers now spend P48,000 to P50,000 on fertilizers for a hectare of land per cropping, up from P29,000 to P32,000 a few years ago, he said.

Marcos said the government distributed fertilizers and high-quality rice, maize, vegetable, and coconut seedlings. Over 28,000 pieces of cutting-edge apparatus and equipment were donated.

But like the Kadiwa stores, these programs had a limited reach, Agsaluna observed.

Laws to fight hoarders, strengthen cooperatives

Marcos Jr. vowed to fight corruption in his second year in office. He warned smugglers and hoarders of agricultural products that their “days are numbered.’’ They have been blamed for the unreasonable increases in the prices of products, particularly onion and sugar.

He urged Congress to support the amendment of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act.

Researcher AJ Montesa of the Action for Economic Reform said it was a good start to curb corruption “outside” government transactions.

But he said the Marcos administration should follow through on its enforcement once amended, and improve strategies in tracking down groups dealing in illegal trade. (Read: Marcos as an anti-corruption crusader? Watchdog groups weigh in)

Monsod, however, was not impressed. “It was obvious that there was rampant corruption in the sugar decision and rampant corruption in the onion decision…. Did anybody suffer for that? I don’t think so. They just forgot,” she said.

A day after his SONA, the DA announced the filing of charges against the owners of four warehouses in Luzon that stored smuggled sugar, onions and meat.

The government should run after the trader, said Monsod. “The trader is the one who sells, right? The average world price of sugar when I was computing was P74 and we were paying P90. The trading margin was so large,” she said.

The sugar importation fiasco stemmed from an order to import 300,000 metric tons of sugar without Marcos’ approval in August last year. When it came to light, the order was revoked by Marcos.

Then DA undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian admitted signing the order on behalf of Marcos, saying he got the impression that he could do so based on a memorandum from then Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez.

Sebastian as well as officials from the Sugar Regulatory Administration were later cleared of any accountability by the Office of the President. Rodriguez eventually left the Cabinet.

The DA had also found itself grappling with the skyrocketing prices of onions, which prompted the emergency importation of 21,060 metric tons of yellow and red onions early this year.

Agsaluna said all this underscored the need to appoint people at DA who would protect the interests of farmers and consumers over the interests of the traders. “Kung ang mag-lead pa rin diyan may damdamin sa traders, wala ‘yan mangyari sa DA.”

He said the DA has good policies in place. It’s the implementation that is lacking. “Sa amin na magsasaka, ipatupad lang ang programa ng DA. Hindi napapatupad ng maayos.”

Agsaluna also expressed apprehensions about Marcos’ proposals to amend the cooperative and fisheries codes supposedly “to incorporate and strengthen science-based analysis and determination of fishing areas.”

“May batas na tayo, kailangan lang ma-implement lang ng mabuti (We have a law, we only need to enforce it),” Agsaluna said. Marcos did not say how he wanted the codes amended, but Agsaluna said there are fears that it would be disadvantageous to them.

Under the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998, amended in 2013 by Republic Act 10654, only artisanal fishermen are allowed to fish inside the country’s municipal waters or 15 kilometers from the coastline.

Illegal fishing has been rampant. Artisanal fishermen have protested the incursion of commercial fishing vessels into their fishing areas.

Marcos said his approach “will protect both the interests of our fisherfolk and our fisheries and aquatic resources.”

Agsaluna also urged Marcos to protect fishermen against Chinese harassment and uphold their right to fish in the West Philippine Sea.

Yet another law that needs better implementation is the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program, said Agsaluna.

“Kung titignan mo ang malalawak na lupain, ang nagmamay-ari ay pulitiko. Hindi nila ma-implement ‘yan (If you take a look at the vast tracts of land, they’re owned by politicians. That’s why they’re finding it difficult to implement the law),” Agsaluna said.

The challenges will only grow for the sector with threats such as surging temperatures, disruptive weather events and El Niño, a climate pattern characterized by below-normal rainfall that could lead to a dry spell.

Marcos stressed the significance of improving irrigation and water management to bolster agricultural infrastructure. He said the government allocated P14.6 billion for water supply initiatives such as rainfall collection during drought.

The government would conduct cloud-seeding operations if necessary, he added.

Farmers are already feeling the impact of El Niño. Instead of palay, Agsaluna said many are now planting vegetables and other crops that require less water.

The ‘son of dictator’ tours the world to repair Philippine image, family legacy

In his first year in office, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has logged 13 overseas trips or an average of one trip a month.

He pressed the flesh from US to China, Asia, Europe, and Australia; addressed the United Nations General Assembly; attended a reception for newly installed King Charles III; and flew to Singapore to watch the Formula One Grand Prix days after a super typhoon devastated parts of the country.

In his second State of the Nation Address on July 24, Marcos said these foreign trips were “economic missions” that yielded an investment value of more than P3 trillion and a potential to generate 175,000 jobs.

“We have embarked on foreign trips to promote the interests of the country, for peace-building and for mutually beneficial purposes,” he said.

Analysts said these trips were attempts at repairing the country’s image on the global stage following Duterte’s tumultuous term and also his family’s legacy decades after his father and namesake was ousted in the 1986 People Power revolution.

The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism mapped the president’s trips and the investments he brought home during his first year in office. It shows how Marcos welcomed top-level American officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris, to his official residence early on, and has gone on to restore strong ties with the country’s traditional ally; that China committed the biggest investment pledge; but it’s Japan and the US that offered more concrete deals.

Read the full PCIJ report here.

The silence of Bongbong Marcos on attacks vs press freedom in 2nd SONA speaks volumes

When Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. was elected president, various groups raised the alarm about a possible decline of press freedom in the country.

The fears come from a number of factors, foremost of which is the fact that the President’s father and namesake, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, quelled dissent by jailing critics, including opposition leaders, journalists, and activists.

When Marcos took office, the country was also reeling from a climate of fear, created by his predecessor and political ally, Rodrigo Duterte, who openly threatened the press, forced major media network ABS-CBN off the air, and revoked Rappler’s operating license.

It did not help that Marcos himself granted more access to vloggers and influencers than professional journalists during the campaign.

In his first year in office, the President repeatedly said he would ensure freedom of expression and of the press. But his “laissez-faire policy” about it showed his support for the status quo, according to lawyer Marichu Lambino, University of the Philippines professor.

“The fact that he’s not doing anything about (and he’s not correcting) all of the cases of prior restraint, censorship, and repression that were perpetrated during the Duterte regime… shows that he is continuing a policy of harassing independent news media organizations and shutting down independent news media organizations,” Lambino told the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ).

“That shows the real state of the nation,” she added.

His two State of the Nation Address (SONA) speeches so far have also been silent on attacks against press freedom.

‘Crony press’

The state of the Philippine media is troubling. Majority of media channels are now owned by religious sects, politicians, and tycoons closely affiliated with key government officials like the President, Lambino observed.

This development reminded her of the “crony press” that promoted government propaganda during the 14-year martial rule of Marcos Sr. dictatorship.

“When martial law was declared, the first thing that was done was to shut down all news organizations and the relatives and friends of the Marcos family took over those news organizations… in a similar form, it is now developing today,” she said.

While the pandemic fast-tracked the pivot to digital media consumption, surveys show that television remains the top news source for Filipinos.

Lambino observed that two-thirds of free television and live-streaming channels were owned by religious sects that were supportive of the previous Duterte presidency and the current Marcos administration.

These include Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, founded by the televangelist Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, who is on the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s “most wanted” list on trafficking charges; INC TV and Net 25 of the Christian Era Broadcasting Service International and Eagle Broadcasting Corporation, owned and operated by Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), a religious group known for bloc voting; ZOE TV of the Jesus is Lord (JIL) Church Worldwide, founded by former presidential candidate Bro. Eddie Villanueva; and UNTV of the Members Church of God International, most known for Bro. Eli Soriano’s Ang Dating Daan.

Quiboloy and INC endorsed the tandem of Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio in the 2022 presidential elections.

Villanueva ran for president in 2004 and 2010, and then for senator in 2013. He lost in all three bids, but won a seat in the House of Representatives in 2019 as a nominee of a partylist group. His son is Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva.

Political and business families — primarily, the Villars and Romualdezes — have also joined the broadcasting industry.

The Villars own Advanced Media Broadcasting System (AMBS) channel AllTV, which took over the frequency previously used by the Lopez-owned ABS-CBN.

Patriarch Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr., former Senate president and presidential candidate, is the Philippines’ richest man, according to Forbes’ 2023 World’s Billionaires list, with a net worth of $8.6 billion (P467 billion).

His wife Cynthia and son Mark are both in the Senate, while his daughter Camille is Las Piñas City’s lone representative in the House. Cynthia’s sister-in-law Imelda Aguilar and the latter’s daughter April Aguilar-Nery are the city mayor and vice mayor, respectively.

House Speaker Martin Romualdez, a cousin of the President, owns Prime Media Holdings, which has a joint venture with ABS-CBN. The struggling media company was forced to shut down its dzMM Teleradyo operations.

Tingog Sinarangan Partylist Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez is married to the Speaker.

The Romualdez’s family also owns the national broadsheet Manila Standard and the Journal Group of Publications (which publishes tabloids People’s Journal and People’s Tonight, among others). The Speaker’s sister-in-law Alexandra “Sandy” Prieto is the chief executive officer of the Inquirer Group of Companies.

This “crony media ownership” results in a diminishing space for free and independent news organizations, Lambino said.

Attempts by independent media groups to enter into partnerships “are met with threats,” she said, citing the case of ABS-CBN, which lost its broadcast franchise in 2020.

In 2022, ABS-CBN was supposed to get a 34.99-percent minority stake in TV5, which would have allowed it to return to free TV. But the P2-billion investment deal fell through when TV5 owner Manny V. Pangilinan was threatened with an investigation for allegedly violating the prohibition against monopolies.

ABS-CBN also switched off dzMM Teleradyo operations due to financial losses, then entered into a joint venture with Romualdez’s Prime Media.

For Lambino, this is proof that only those close to the government are “left free to broadcast without threats of harassment, while those remaining independent news organizations constantly face threats of being shut down and investigated.”

Jonathan de Santos, chair of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), also raised fears about the “concentration of power” among media owners who are vocal about their political aspirations and business interests.

“Grabe ‘yung concentration of power nito. And for them to have control of a potentially powerful medium, medyo nakakakaba rin ‘yun (The concentration of power here is immense. And for them to have control of a potentially powerful medium, that is a bit nerve-wracking),” he said.

Besides, media ownership also affects the quality of news content the public consumes.

Lambino observed that most news reports now lack context and are “single-sourced” with many journalists relying on government press releases for their reports.

“While journalists and reporters within these media organizations remain independent and continue to struggle for a free and independent press, there will always be a constant clash with the interests of the owners because the owners have their own interests to protect, and that is to continue supporting the present administration,” she said.

“It has implications on the kind of democratic space that we have right now because when people do not have information, they are not able to make informed decisions,” she added.

Journalists killed, ambushed

The Philippines rose 15 notches in the latest World Press Freedom Index, but it continued to be among the world’s “most dangerous” countries for journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Despite the improvement, NUJP’s De Santos said press freedom remains under threat because the “structures and tactics” used to silence journalists continued to exist.

In the first 12 months in office of Marcos, or from July 2022 to June 2023, NUJP has recorded 83 incidents of media attacks, including the killing of three journalists, the physical attack of two others, and 21 reported incidents of harassment.

Within the same period under the Duterte administration, three journalists were killed, four were assaulted, three received death threats, and there were at least 11 incidents of harassment. Of the three murders, the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) considered only one as work-related.

Newspaper columnist Virgilio Maganes, who survived a slay attempt in November 2016, was killed outside his home four years later.

In July 2016, the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) website was hacked following the publication of its reports on the drug war. It was one of the first cases of harassment and online attacks against journalists and media outlets under the Duterte presidency.

Twenty-two journalists and media workers in total were killed between 2016 and 2022. (Related story: Cases vs killers of media workers in the Philippines flounder in courts)

Negros Oriental-based radio commentator Rey Blanco was stabbed in the neck in September 2022. He was declared dead on arrival at a hospital. Blanco was the first media worker killed on Marcos’ watch.

Two other radio broadcast journalists were gunned down in Marcos’s first year: Percival “Percy” Mabasa in October, and Cresenciano “Cris” Bundoquin in May.

In all three cases, the suspects were arrested and facing murder charges.

In Mabasa’s case, three pleaded guilty to being accessories in the murder and were sentenced up to eight years in prison.

Meanwhile, radio journalist Florencio “Flo” Hervias was mauled in October, while photojournalist Joshua Abiad and his family were shot in June.

One of the alleged gunmen in Abiad’s murder attempt was arrested this month.

NUJP’s De Santos said these significant updates on the cases are “good signs” of the government’s commitment to protect journalists.

“Mukhang promising dahil may usad naman ‘yung mga kasong ‘to (It looks promising because there’s progress in these cases),” he said.

But he also pointed out that none of the masterminds have been arrested, which would show how the government addresses impunity by “holding people behind these attacks to account.”

While hopeful, De Santos also admitted that the recent cases were “concerning” because these happened in Metro Manila and in provincial capitals, which are considered relatively safer than other parts of the country.

Mabasa and Abiad were based in Las Piñas and Quezon City, respectively. Bundoquin and Hervias were based in Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro and Iloilo City, respectively.

Vera Files, an independent non-profit media organization, also received death threats following its fact-check of Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa’s claim that Duterte’s statement to kill police officers involved in the illegal drug trade was made out of frustration. Vera Files reported that Dela Rosa contradicted Duterte’s “long-established stance” on the issue.

Red-tagging

According to NUJP data, there were 17 cases of Red-tagging of media workers since Marcos became president. This list included De Santos himself, as well as organizations he is affiliated with — NUJP, which he chairs, and Philstar.com, an online news website where he sits as an editor.

“What I learned from that experience is… a lot of newsrooms are not actually equipped to deal with that or address it,” he told PCIJ.

While being a communist is not against the law, communism has been equated with terrorism in the public consciousness. The mere labeling or affiliation of an individual to communist groups can be dangerous or lethal.

Since 2020, Tacloban-based community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio has been detained on trumped-up charges of terrorism financing and illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

If at all, this is one example of the use of legal and regulatory frameworks to intimidate the press.

Lawfare, censorship

Rappler founder and Nobel laureate Maria Ressa’s acquittal from tax evasion charges filed by Duterte’s government was seen as a “ray of hope” in the media community. But it was one victory compared to the many cases of lawfare, or the use of legal systems and structures, against journalists.

“There has been a shift. Mas marami nang dinadaan sa legal cases or regulatory processes (More are resorting to legal cases or regulatory processes),” De Santos said. These include at least 11 cases of libel and cyberlibel filed against journalists in the first year of the Marcos presidency.

Darcie de Galicia of Radio City 97.5 FM and Noel Alamar of ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo, for instance, are facing 941 counts of cyberlibel filed by Quezon Gov. Helen Tan and her husband, Public Works regional director Ronnel Tan.

“Hindi mo alam kasi ano’ng gagawin mo ‘pag nahaharap ka sa kaso, or even if alam mo, wala ka namang resources. Matatakot to talaga (When you’re charged in court, you don’t know what to do, or even if you know, you don’t have the resources to defend yourself. You’ll be overcome with fear),” De Santos said.

“In some cases, hindi naman sila ba-back up-an ng newsroom nila, or pwede na ‘yung kaso could take decades [to be resolved] (In some cases, they don’t get legal backing from their newsroom, or that the case could take decades to be resolved),” he said.

Libel and cyberlibel are considered crimes in the Philippines and have been used to intimidate and harass media workers. These can lead to self-censorship or non-publication of stories deemed critical of people in power for fear of reprisal.

Meanwhile, alternative news websites have also been fighting another form of censorship. Bulatlat has gone to court to nullify an order issued by the National Telecommunication Commission (NTC) blocking public access to its website during the Duterte administration.

Then National Security Adviser (NSA) Hermogenes Esperon requested the issuance of the order, arguing that Bulatlat’s website and several others had been “found to be affiliated with and supporting terrorists and terrorist organizations.”

De Santos said the Marcos administration may choose to rescind the order anytime.

Policy direction

De Santos expressed hopes that Marcos would make good on his promises to uphold transparency and promote the role of the press in nation-building.

Both De Santos and Lambino urged the President to certify as urgent measures decriminalizing libel and repealing the Anti-Terrorism Act.

“Napakalakas ng political capital niya (He has a strong political capital). Nagsabi na siya actually na government should be more open. So bakit hindi mo pa itawid doon na i-certify most urgent? (Why don’t you go to the extent of certifying these as urgent?)” he said.

Apart from the decriminalization of libel, Lambino said that the cyberlibel provision in the Cybercrime Prevention Act should be removed so that the “real intent (of the law), which is to go after human trafficking syndicates, child prostitution, child abuse, can be realized.”

If Congress could not repeal the anti-terror law, then Malacañang should direct the anti-terrorism council, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac), and other government agencies to stop using the law against independent news organizations, campus journalists, and human rights workers, she said.

“At the very least this administration can do that. If it’s not doing that, you can very well conclude that it is a policy,” Lambino said. END

Marcos silent on ICC probe but says ‘drug war’ has taken on a new face

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was silent on the latest ruling of the International Criminal Court (ICC) allowing the continuation of the probe against Rodrigo Duterte’s and the killings in Davao City.

The ICC appeals chamber on July 18 blocked the government’s appeal to end the investigation.

The families welcomed the international court’s ruling, but the challenges remain. PCIJ’s latest report reveals how families of “drug war” victims are being approached to drop cases they have filed against cops suspected to be involved in the killings.

READ: ‘We can’t be bribed:’ Families of drug war victims reveal offers to drop cases amid ICC probe

In his second SONA, Marcos said the “drug war” has taken on a new face during his administration.

“The campaign against illegal drugs continues—but it has taken on a new face. It is now geared towards community-based treatment, rehabilitation, education, and reintegration, to curb drug dependence amongst our affected citizenry,” he said, citing the launch of the Buhay Ingatan, Droga’y Ayawan or BIDA Program and establishment of additional 102 Balay Silangan Reformation Centers nationwide.

“We will relentlessly continue our fight against drug syndicates, shutting down their illegal activities [applause] – we will shut down their activities and dismantle their network of operations,” he said.

Marcos also announced that he accepted the courtesy resignations of three generals and 15 colonels from the Philippine National Police over their alleged involvement in illegal drug activities.