READER REACTS TO “ANTI-FOREIGNER SENTIMENTS” OF THIS COLUMN: I continually thank God, in the name of Jesus, that our columns here are being read by many people, and it is good to know that these columns even merit reactions from our readers.
Here is one such reaction, dwelling on our recent ideas about foreigners lording it over Filipinos. I changed the name of the writer and the places he mentioned (I put them in italics for purposes of this column today) for security reasons, and due to the writer’s own request:
“Dear Mr. Mauricio, My name is John, I am a foreigner, from abroad. I have lived here for 3 years, in Mindanao, and I have paid approximately $365.00 per year to be here, on a tourist Visa. I am married to a Philipina here, a Muslim, and a professional woman with a Masters degree that works in the service of her country.
“She has a family in Mindanao. She has an uncle that is a congressman, and an uncle that is a Supreme Court Justice.
“In the last 2 weeks you have cursed the days a foreigner set foot on the soil of the Philippines on numerous occasions. I can't help but wonder what it is that you have against the policy of the Philippine Government?
“The reason foreigners come here is because the government allows it. If you pay a fee, you can visit, if you pay a Big Fee you can stay forever. Foreigners are Commerce, just as OFW's are commerce.
“I am a poor, retired US Marine living on a meager retirement, I am not rich, I am not wanted by the police in any country.
“I have paid my taxes on a regular basis to the Philippine government (Visa Fees), Airport Passenger fees and so on. I am here because I want to be with my wife and her family, as I have no one else for family.
“Are you aware that I as a foreigner cannot even own the land I am building a house on?
Even with this lack of consideration, I still choose to stay in the Philippines. I employ a housemaid and a yard boy, I pay them cash every week.
“My payroll here in the Philippines is 52000 peso per year, and my wife's household allowance for all the bills and her pocket money is 35000 peso per month.
“My Point, what is it you have against my kind, be I American, Chinese, Korean, African, Russian, Japanese? Are you a closet Racist? or are you against Commerce? You better take a long look in the mirror of life, your past, your present.
“You quote the scripture on a regular basis. May I bring your attention to the 10 Commandments? This one comes to mind, Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you. Keep up the good work and stimulating wisdom you send to All of us. Even us foreigners.
“Respectfully, John.” I already responded to this, and, God willing, I am going to print it tomorrow. Abangan (or, for our reader and other foreigners out there, watch out for it)!!!
-ooo-
BIBLE TRIVIA, PART IV: MAN WAS INTENDED TO BE VEGETARIAN? I don’t know if you noticed but, in Genesis 1:29 of the Holy Bible, there is an indication that God wanted man to be a vegetarian, not carnivorous, and not an eater of fish either.
Here is what Genesis 1:29 says as God’s instruction to man, after he had created the first male and female: “Then God said, `I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food...”
Interestingly, it would also appear that God intended even “the beasts of the earth”---all animals, if you may---to be vegetarian likewise, eathing nothing but plants. This is what we see in Genesis 1:30, which says “And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground---everything that has the breath of life in it---I give every green plant for food. And it was so.”
Does this mean that the meat-eaters among us (and even the fish-eaters likewise) have been violating God’s laws because of our predilection for meat? Agree? Disagree? Email me at batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
-ooo-
BATAS INTERNET TV, BATAS INTERNET RADIO: Please watch BATAS INTERNET TV and please listen to BATAS INTERNET RADIO through the website www.batasradio.com (click Batas ITV for tv, and BatasRadio.com for radio). We are on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Notice to lawmakers: God does not want population control
FINALLY, GOOD DEEDS ARE BEING RECOGNIZED: There is a positive message in President Benigno Aquino III’s announcement that he is likely to appoint outgoing Naga City Mayor Jesse Robredo as the secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government---that good deeds and dedication to duty, coupled with a heart overflowing with concern for others, will sooner or later be rewarded.
Now, other local executives and officials and employees will have a reason to perform well, do good and strive for excellence---someone is watching and ready to give recognition. I hope President Aquino can develop a system of regularly rewarding those who are going out of their way to serve, to encourage better service to the public.
As for the rest of the Philippine bureaucracy who may not be noticed at all even if they are doing good, what they can do is to do everything for God, as the Bible said, in 1 Corinthians 10:31: “So...whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”.
-ooo-
GAYS AND LESBIANS, THE BIBLE HAS A MESSAGE FOR YOU: Indeed, gays and lesbians should not be discriminated against as Chairman Francisco Duque III of the Civil Service Commission clarified, but there is something in the Bible which seems to indicate that there is a very strict rule when it comes to members of the “third” sex.
It would seem to me that, based on its Romans 1:18-32, the Bible is saying that being a gay or a lesbian is some sort of an indication of God’s wrath, against people, men and women, who do not give thanks and who do not glorify God.
Here is a part of that Biblical passage: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men... For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him...”
“...Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another....”
-ooo-
TO KILLERS OF MEDIAMEN: STOP YOUR SINFUL WAYS: It seems journalists and broadcasters and mediamen have become fair game once again, with the gangland-style killings of DZJC Laoag City anchorman Joselito Agustin and Sunrise FM Mati, Davao Oriental disc jockey Jessie Camanan happening one after the other.
There is no doubt Agustin and Camanan were killed because of their work as media personalities drumbeating negative commentaries against certain local personalities. But then, the real question here is, can the killings serve any good purpose for the killers and the masterminds aside from temporarily silencing their critics?
For one mediaman that is killed because of the exercise of his profession, there will be a host of others who will take his place, and continue the crusade against the bad guys. The real remedy here is for those who are being criticized to mend their ways and stop committing acts that invite criticism.
-ooo-
BIBLE TRIVIA, PART III: GOD DID NOT ENVISION FAMILY PLANNING OR POPULATION CONTROL: Here is one trivia from the Bible that Filipino lawmakers who are intent on passing the abortion-laced Reproductive Health Bill should always remember: God did not envision man to be undertaking family planning or population control.
Genesis 1:28 says, after man was created: “God blessed them and said to them, `Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground...”
We should note that there is no doubt at all that God wanted man to propagate himself in all of the earth. He used four phrases to underscore this point: “be fruitful”, “increase in number”, “fill the earth” and “subdue it”.
If God intended to say that man should increase in number only to a certain point or up to a certain limit only, He should have said so in the same clear manner. Therefore, anyone saying that man should limit his number by family planning or population control is going against God’s laws.
Agree? Disagree? Email me at batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
-30-
Now, other local executives and officials and employees will have a reason to perform well, do good and strive for excellence---someone is watching and ready to give recognition. I hope President Aquino can develop a system of regularly rewarding those who are going out of their way to serve, to encourage better service to the public.
As for the rest of the Philippine bureaucracy who may not be noticed at all even if they are doing good, what they can do is to do everything for God, as the Bible said, in 1 Corinthians 10:31: “So...whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”.
-ooo-
GAYS AND LESBIANS, THE BIBLE HAS A MESSAGE FOR YOU: Indeed, gays and lesbians should not be discriminated against as Chairman Francisco Duque III of the Civil Service Commission clarified, but there is something in the Bible which seems to indicate that there is a very strict rule when it comes to members of the “third” sex.
It would seem to me that, based on its Romans 1:18-32, the Bible is saying that being a gay or a lesbian is some sort of an indication of God’s wrath, against people, men and women, who do not give thanks and who do not glorify God.
Here is a part of that Biblical passage: “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men... For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him...”
“...Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another....”
-ooo-
TO KILLERS OF MEDIAMEN: STOP YOUR SINFUL WAYS: It seems journalists and broadcasters and mediamen have become fair game once again, with the gangland-style killings of DZJC Laoag City anchorman Joselito Agustin and Sunrise FM Mati, Davao Oriental disc jockey Jessie Camanan happening one after the other.
There is no doubt Agustin and Camanan were killed because of their work as media personalities drumbeating negative commentaries against certain local personalities. But then, the real question here is, can the killings serve any good purpose for the killers and the masterminds aside from temporarily silencing their critics?
For one mediaman that is killed because of the exercise of his profession, there will be a host of others who will take his place, and continue the crusade against the bad guys. The real remedy here is for those who are being criticized to mend their ways and stop committing acts that invite criticism.
-ooo-
BIBLE TRIVIA, PART III: GOD DID NOT ENVISION FAMILY PLANNING OR POPULATION CONTROL: Here is one trivia from the Bible that Filipino lawmakers who are intent on passing the abortion-laced Reproductive Health Bill should always remember: God did not envision man to be undertaking family planning or population control.
Genesis 1:28 says, after man was created: “God blessed them and said to them, `Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground...”
We should note that there is no doubt at all that God wanted man to propagate himself in all of the earth. He used four phrases to underscore this point: “be fruitful”, “increase in number”, “fill the earth” and “subdue it”.
If God intended to say that man should increase in number only to a certain point or up to a certain limit only, He should have said so in the same clear manner. Therefore, anyone saying that man should limit his number by family planning or population control is going against God’s laws.
Agree? Disagree? Email me at batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
-30-
Monday, June 14, 2010
Cebu tragedy bares ills in RP foreign residency training
TWO MOONS IN THE SKIES IN AUGUST 2010: Rolando Marasigan, a fellow Rotarian from the Rotary Club of Intramuros, Manila, under District 3810 of Rotary International, shared this exciting email with me on the appearance of two moons gracing the evening skies of the whole world on August 27, 2010.
The email reads: “27th August the whole world is waiting for...Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August. It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will culminate on August 27 when Mars comes within 34.65 million miles off earth.
“Be sure to watch the sky on August 27, 12:30 am. It will look like the earth has two moons. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Share this with your friends as NO ONE ALIVE TODAY will ever see it again...”
-ooo-
CEBU ACCIDENT EXPOSES DISCRIMINATION IN RP MEDICAL RESIDENCY TRAINING FOR FOREIGNERS: The accident in Balamban, Cebu that claimed the lives of about 22 Iranian doctors and medical practitioners should be a cause for alarm among Filipinos not only on the sorry state of roads and highways in the country but more on the manner by which the government, particularly the Department of Health, has been flip-flopping on the entry of foreign doctors to undergo residency training in the Philippines.
Why a cause for alarm? Well, the sheer number of Iranian doctors who died in that Cebu tragedy shows that while some foreigners are liberally and generously allowed to come into the Philippines and then undergo residency training among our doctors here, some other foreign nationals are inexplicably not allowed to do so.
I shudder and refuse to think that some divine intervention caused the accident to happen, perhaps to focus our attention on this shameful malady in foreign residency training in this country at this point. Why is there a discrimination in the training program such that some foreigners are accepted while others are not? What gives? Or, perhaps, what takes?
-ooo-
BI CHIEF LIBANAN: WHY ARE THERE MANY FOREIGNERS IN RP? I have asked literally the same question already before, in this same column: why is it that there appears to be too many South Koreans, Indian nationals, and other foreigners now in this country of ours?
What, really, is the official policy now of the government, through the Bureau of Immigration, when it comes to allowing foreigners to come here and, from all indications, live in this country permanently?
Whether Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan is aware of it or not, the entry of so many foreigners to the Philippines under his watch confirms a Biblical prophesy for people who no longer listen to God and no longer obey His commands and decrees---a nation whose language we do not know will descend upon us, live an economically superior life, lend to us, and then lead us, even in politics (Deuteronomy 28:43-44 and 47, Holy Bible).
-ooo-
BIBLE TRIVIA, PART II: WATER ABOVE THE SKY? If you are a Bible reader, you will not fail to notice that under its Genesis 1:6-8, there is a part of creation which indicates that there is a place higher than the sky, which is actually water.
Here is what that part of the Bible says: “And God said, `Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.’ So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse `sky’. And there was evening, and there was morning---the second day.”
Clearly, there is water below (evidently the water here on earth), and there is water beyond the sky. We must note that the sky seems to be a “middle section” separating the water below and the water above. Given this information from the Bible, is it right to say that God’s dwelling place up there beyond the sky is water?
Do you agree, or disagree? Please email me at batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
The email reads: “27th August the whole world is waiting for...Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August. It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will culminate on August 27 when Mars comes within 34.65 million miles off earth.
“Be sure to watch the sky on August 27, 12:30 am. It will look like the earth has two moons. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Share this with your friends as NO ONE ALIVE TODAY will ever see it again...”
-ooo-
CEBU ACCIDENT EXPOSES DISCRIMINATION IN RP MEDICAL RESIDENCY TRAINING FOR FOREIGNERS: The accident in Balamban, Cebu that claimed the lives of about 22 Iranian doctors and medical practitioners should be a cause for alarm among Filipinos not only on the sorry state of roads and highways in the country but more on the manner by which the government, particularly the Department of Health, has been flip-flopping on the entry of foreign doctors to undergo residency training in the Philippines.
Why a cause for alarm? Well, the sheer number of Iranian doctors who died in that Cebu tragedy shows that while some foreigners are liberally and generously allowed to come into the Philippines and then undergo residency training among our doctors here, some other foreign nationals are inexplicably not allowed to do so.
I shudder and refuse to think that some divine intervention caused the accident to happen, perhaps to focus our attention on this shameful malady in foreign residency training in this country at this point. Why is there a discrimination in the training program such that some foreigners are accepted while others are not? What gives? Or, perhaps, what takes?
-ooo-
BI CHIEF LIBANAN: WHY ARE THERE MANY FOREIGNERS IN RP? I have asked literally the same question already before, in this same column: why is it that there appears to be too many South Koreans, Indian nationals, and other foreigners now in this country of ours?
What, really, is the official policy now of the government, through the Bureau of Immigration, when it comes to allowing foreigners to come here and, from all indications, live in this country permanently?
Whether Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan is aware of it or not, the entry of so many foreigners to the Philippines under his watch confirms a Biblical prophesy for people who no longer listen to God and no longer obey His commands and decrees---a nation whose language we do not know will descend upon us, live an economically superior life, lend to us, and then lead us, even in politics (Deuteronomy 28:43-44 and 47, Holy Bible).
-ooo-
BIBLE TRIVIA, PART II: WATER ABOVE THE SKY? If you are a Bible reader, you will not fail to notice that under its Genesis 1:6-8, there is a part of creation which indicates that there is a place higher than the sky, which is actually water.
Here is what that part of the Bible says: “And God said, `Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.’ So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse `sky’. And there was evening, and there was morning---the second day.”
Clearly, there is water below (evidently the water here on earth), and there is water beyond the sky. We must note that the sky seems to be a “middle section” separating the water below and the water above. Given this information from the Bible, is it right to say that God’s dwelling place up there beyond the sky is water?
Do you agree, or disagree? Please email me at batasmauricio@yahoo.com.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Pinoys must give Noynoy a “honeymoon” of 2,190 days
PRESIDENT AQUINO MUST RELY ON THE BIBLE ALL THE TIME: While, indeed, President Benigno Aquino III cannot impose his religious beliefs on Filipinos, he can nevertheless be a living example, not only of a prayerful person, but of someone whose trust and confidence in God is strengthened by his constant and consistent referral to, and reliance on, His Word, the Bible, in his presidency.
This kind of reliance on the Bible on the part of the President cuts accross all religions, nourishes and instills righteousness not only on his person, but even on the persons of his officials, supporters and followers, and even of the whole citizenry as well.
In fact, that is the reason why, when President Aquino takes his oath as the 15th president of the Philippines on June 30, 2010 (just like what the other presidents before him had done), one of his hands will be resting on the Bible---as this Book is---or, should be---the one and only source of wisdom for him as he leads a nation wracked by poverty, confusion, dissension and failures.
If only Mr.Aquino will actively seek support and enlightenment from the Scriptures while he is President, he will not only make a difference as the President who followed the Bible earnestly---he will be the only President that will truly make this nation great again, for it is only God and His Word who can make a nation great and exalted (Deuteronomy 28:1 and Proverbs 14:34 Holy Bible).
-ooo-
AQUINO OFFICIALS MUST “FEAR GOD AND HATE DISHONEST GAIN”: For starters, he must carefully choose the people who will help him carry the burden of running this country for the next six years, and choose them according to what the Bible says---not according to how they helped him in his campaign, even if the pressure for him to do so is great.
What does the Bible say about choosing officials? In Exodus 18:17-26, here is how officials should be chosen: “...The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people... When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, `...Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?’
“Moses answered him, `Because the people come to me to seek God's will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and laws.’
“Moses' father-in-law replied, `What you are doing is not good... Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens....”
-ooo-
PRESIDENT AQUINO, THE LEADER GIVEN BY GOD, MUST HAVE A “HONEYMOON” OF 2,190 DAYS : On the other hand, Filipinos must likewise start following in earnest what the Holy Bible is saying about obedience to their leaders---even if the leaders are perceived to be no longer effective and responsive to the people’s needs.
In this light, we must not only give President Aquino a 100-day-honeymoon period---or the period during which we, in media, in particular, and we, the people, in general, should not be criticizing and contesting his actions as chief executive.
We must, as a matter of obedience to what the Bible says, give him a honeymoon period of 2,190 days, or the entirety of his six year term---for as Romans 13:1-2 says, we must always obey the authorities at all times, because there is no authority that God Himself did not establish.
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God...” is how Romans actually puts it.
This kind of reliance on the Bible on the part of the President cuts accross all religions, nourishes and instills righteousness not only on his person, but even on the persons of his officials, supporters and followers, and even of the whole citizenry as well.
In fact, that is the reason why, when President Aquino takes his oath as the 15th president of the Philippines on June 30, 2010 (just like what the other presidents before him had done), one of his hands will be resting on the Bible---as this Book is---or, should be---the one and only source of wisdom for him as he leads a nation wracked by poverty, confusion, dissension and failures.
If only Mr.Aquino will actively seek support and enlightenment from the Scriptures while he is President, he will not only make a difference as the President who followed the Bible earnestly---he will be the only President that will truly make this nation great again, for it is only God and His Word who can make a nation great and exalted (Deuteronomy 28:1 and Proverbs 14:34 Holy Bible).
-ooo-
AQUINO OFFICIALS MUST “FEAR GOD AND HATE DISHONEST GAIN”: For starters, he must carefully choose the people who will help him carry the burden of running this country for the next six years, and choose them according to what the Bible says---not according to how they helped him in his campaign, even if the pressure for him to do so is great.
What does the Bible say about choosing officials? In Exodus 18:17-26, here is how officials should be chosen: “...The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people... When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, `...Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?’
“Moses answered him, `Because the people come to me to seek God's will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and laws.’
“Moses' father-in-law replied, `What you are doing is not good... Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens....”
-ooo-
PRESIDENT AQUINO, THE LEADER GIVEN BY GOD, MUST HAVE A “HONEYMOON” OF 2,190 DAYS : On the other hand, Filipinos must likewise start following in earnest what the Holy Bible is saying about obedience to their leaders---even if the leaders are perceived to be no longer effective and responsive to the people’s needs.
In this light, we must not only give President Aquino a 100-day-honeymoon period---or the period during which we, in media, in particular, and we, the people, in general, should not be criticizing and contesting his actions as chief executive.
We must, as a matter of obedience to what the Bible says, give him a honeymoon period of 2,190 days, or the entirety of his six year term---for as Romans 13:1-2 says, we must always obey the authorities at all times, because there is no authority that God Himself did not establish.
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God...” is how Romans actually puts it.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
NGO wants review of the automated election system
NON-GOVERMENTAL ORGANIZATION ASKS FOR REVIEW OF THE AUTOMATED ELECTION SYSTEM: The Center for People Empowerment in Governance (or CenPEG) seems not about ready yet to simply throw in the towel over allegations that, at the very least, computer errors may have affected the results of the May 2010 elections.
Here is a press release from CenPEG that I thought would interest many of us: “The policy research institution, Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG), is seeking the release of at least 22 documents related to the Automated Election System (AES) prepared and implemented for the May 10, 2010 national synchronized polls.
“CenPEG said `various stakeholders (need) to help find answers to many questions that affect the credibility of the elections, especially with regard to some unusual incidences occurring with the PCOS (precinct count optical scan) machines of the Smartmatic-propelled automated system.’
“ `An objective study can only be done if pertinent data and information, relevant to the study at hand, shall be accessible and available to researchers and scholars, so that a no-nonsense body of knowledge can be developed in the interest of public service and good governance,’ CenPEG added, as it also pledged confidentiality and a copy of the final draft of the study and recommendations.
-ooo-
CENPEG WROTE CONGRESS TO ASK FOR 22 DOCUMENTS ON THE COMPUTERIZED POLLS: “On May 21, CenPEG wrote the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) to help it gain access to needed information on the AES and to form an independent, non-partisan, and impartial citizens' body to review and assess the conduct of the May 10, 2010 automated elections, including the processes and procedures undertaken for the May 10 election.
“CenPEG and AES Watch, a multisectoral coalition of poll watchdogs, are active citizen resource groups in the JCOC.
“The documents CenPEG is asking for are: SysTest full report; source code walkthrough plan; source code of the PCOS program; source code of the CCS programs; file formats of all data files used or produced by the PCOS program; file formats of all data files used or produced by the CCS program; public keys used by all the PCOS computers.
“It is also seeking the public keys used by all the CCS computers; user manual of the PCOS program; user manual of the CCS program; Smartmatic-Comelec contract with the complete annexes; finance and budget plan of the AES-Smartmatic; copy of the Smartmatic Voters’ Education contract; contract between Smartmatic and the Dominion Voting Systems and contract on transmission and deployment plan of the transmission facilities.
-ooo-
WHAT IS COMELEC’S REACTION? “CenPEG wants also a copy of the report on the PCOS transmission on May 10 and thereafter; report on the customization; old ballot faces (national and local) matching the faulty CF cards; new ballot faces (national and local) actually used for the May 10 elections; report on the training of BEIs and technicians; inventory of compact flash cards used in the final testing and sealing; and the re-configured CF cards for May 10.
“CenPEG’s request letter was signed by Evi-Ta L. Jimenez, executive director and noted by Dr. Bienvenido Lumbera, chair of its Board of Directors.” Has the Commission on Elections, Smartmatic-TIM and all other affected parties have anything to say on this? What did Congress do to CenPEG’s request to be given copies of the foregoing documents?
About truth and its beneficial effects, let us listen to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, in John 8:31-32 of the Holy Bible. This part of the Holy Book says: Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
Will the Filipino people want to be free from misgivings about the credibility and accuracy and honesty of the May 2010 elections?
Here is a press release from CenPEG that I thought would interest many of us: “The policy research institution, Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG), is seeking the release of at least 22 documents related to the Automated Election System (AES) prepared and implemented for the May 10, 2010 national synchronized polls.
“CenPEG said `various stakeholders (need) to help find answers to many questions that affect the credibility of the elections, especially with regard to some unusual incidences occurring with the PCOS (precinct count optical scan) machines of the Smartmatic-propelled automated system.’
“ `An objective study can only be done if pertinent data and information, relevant to the study at hand, shall be accessible and available to researchers and scholars, so that a no-nonsense body of knowledge can be developed in the interest of public service and good governance,’ CenPEG added, as it also pledged confidentiality and a copy of the final draft of the study and recommendations.
-ooo-
CENPEG WROTE CONGRESS TO ASK FOR 22 DOCUMENTS ON THE COMPUTERIZED POLLS: “On May 21, CenPEG wrote the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) to help it gain access to needed information on the AES and to form an independent, non-partisan, and impartial citizens' body to review and assess the conduct of the May 10, 2010 automated elections, including the processes and procedures undertaken for the May 10 election.
“CenPEG and AES Watch, a multisectoral coalition of poll watchdogs, are active citizen resource groups in the JCOC.
“The documents CenPEG is asking for are: SysTest full report; source code walkthrough plan; source code of the PCOS program; source code of the CCS programs; file formats of all data files used or produced by the PCOS program; file formats of all data files used or produced by the CCS program; public keys used by all the PCOS computers.
“It is also seeking the public keys used by all the CCS computers; user manual of the PCOS program; user manual of the CCS program; Smartmatic-Comelec contract with the complete annexes; finance and budget plan of the AES-Smartmatic; copy of the Smartmatic Voters’ Education contract; contract between Smartmatic and the Dominion Voting Systems and contract on transmission and deployment plan of the transmission facilities.
-ooo-
WHAT IS COMELEC’S REACTION? “CenPEG wants also a copy of the report on the PCOS transmission on May 10 and thereafter; report on the customization; old ballot faces (national and local) matching the faulty CF cards; new ballot faces (national and local) actually used for the May 10 elections; report on the training of BEIs and technicians; inventory of compact flash cards used in the final testing and sealing; and the re-configured CF cards for May 10.
“CenPEG’s request letter was signed by Evi-Ta L. Jimenez, executive director and noted by Dr. Bienvenido Lumbera, chair of its Board of Directors.” Has the Commission on Elections, Smartmatic-TIM and all other affected parties have anything to say on this? What did Congress do to CenPEG’s request to be given copies of the foregoing documents?
About truth and its beneficial effects, let us listen to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, in John 8:31-32 of the Holy Bible. This part of the Holy Book says: Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
Will the Filipino people want to be free from misgivings about the credibility and accuracy and honesty of the May 2010 elections?
Monday, June 7, 2010
So, how did Sen. Roxas lose?
So, how did Sen. Roxas lose?
“BINAY, WITH HIS GODLY NAME, COULD NOT HAVE LOST”: Congratulations are now in order for Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay, who may have already been proclaimed as the country’s new vice president as you are reading this, on Wednesday, June 8, 2010.
There is no more doubt that he won, considering his lead of over 600,000 votes over his closest rival, and considering that only about 370,000 votes have not been officially canvassed as of Tuesday night.
Many actually prayed for his victory, and for many reasons. But for a Born Again Christian named Jun Kintanar, a member of the One Vote Movement, he prayed for Binay for a very peculiar reason, which he sent me by text message.
Here is that text message: “The main reason Binay won is God Himself made sure he wins. Binay’s first name is JEsus, JOseph, MARy (Jejomar). If he lost, Christianity will no longer be respected and Jesus will not allow it. Faith to understand this...”
-ooo-
SEN. MAR ROXAS: TIME FOR SELF-EXAMINATION: So how did Sen. Manuel Roxas II lose, when, all along he was the man to beat, and he enjoyed a wide lead over his vice presidential rivals at the start of the campaign for the 2010 elections?
Many also prayed for his victory, and for many reasons, too, but then the Biblical injunction is that, only the prayer of the righteous man is powerful and effective. Let us hear it from James 5:16 of the Holy Bible: “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
Perhaps, Roxas should now re-examine what he and his coterie of advisers and planners have done in his quest for the presidency and the vice presidency, and see if, in his desire to become president or vice president, he, or the people around him, did things that were not acceptable to God, and then, in all humility, make amends and atonement.
No matter what his advisers will tell him now, it is undeniable that God’s hand was in this election, and that there is no denying that there is a message from God in his defeat, the first-ever in his career as a politician, a stunning defeat indeed for a Philippine political Goliath in the hands of a political David.
-ooo-
RP’S NEW LEADERS MUST UPHOLD GOD FIRST AND FOREMOST ALL THE TIME: And now that the Philippines will be entering a new period in its history where its new leaders are facing grave and insurmountable problems, it would be wise for President Benigno Aquino III and Vice President Jojo Binay to be always conscious about God in discharging their awesome duties and responsibilities.
They must try to make God a partner, as it were, in their governance, using His Word, commands, laws and decrees in every act, statement or decision they will have to make.
Paying mere lip service to God and His commands and decrees would not be enough. Indeed, God in His great power and omniscience can see through anyone’s heart or soul, and can immediately know whether there is complete trust and confidence in Him.
Aquino and Binay must always remember Proverbs 3:5-6 of the Holy Bible which says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.”
There will be times when even their best decisions and the best of their intentions would not be enough to solve the country’s ills and problems, for, as human beings even presidents and vice presidents will have limitations, but if they upheld God right from the start in arriving at their decisions and in their intentions, He will be there to make sure everything is alright.
-ooo-
BATAS INTERNET TV, BATAS INTERNET RADIO: Please watch BATAS INTERNET TV and please listen to BATAS INTERNET RADIO through the website www.batasradio.com (click Batas ITV for tv, and BatasRadio.com for radio). We are on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“BINAY, WITH HIS GODLY NAME, COULD NOT HAVE LOST”: Congratulations are now in order for Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay, who may have already been proclaimed as the country’s new vice president as you are reading this, on Wednesday, June 8, 2010.
There is no more doubt that he won, considering his lead of over 600,000 votes over his closest rival, and considering that only about 370,000 votes have not been officially canvassed as of Tuesday night.
Many actually prayed for his victory, and for many reasons. But for a Born Again Christian named Jun Kintanar, a member of the One Vote Movement, he prayed for Binay for a very peculiar reason, which he sent me by text message.
Here is that text message: “The main reason Binay won is God Himself made sure he wins. Binay’s first name is JEsus, JOseph, MARy (Jejomar). If he lost, Christianity will no longer be respected and Jesus will not allow it. Faith to understand this...”
-ooo-
SEN. MAR ROXAS: TIME FOR SELF-EXAMINATION: So how did Sen. Manuel Roxas II lose, when, all along he was the man to beat, and he enjoyed a wide lead over his vice presidential rivals at the start of the campaign for the 2010 elections?
Many also prayed for his victory, and for many reasons, too, but then the Biblical injunction is that, only the prayer of the righteous man is powerful and effective. Let us hear it from James 5:16 of the Holy Bible: “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
Perhaps, Roxas should now re-examine what he and his coterie of advisers and planners have done in his quest for the presidency and the vice presidency, and see if, in his desire to become president or vice president, he, or the people around him, did things that were not acceptable to God, and then, in all humility, make amends and atonement.
No matter what his advisers will tell him now, it is undeniable that God’s hand was in this election, and that there is no denying that there is a message from God in his defeat, the first-ever in his career as a politician, a stunning defeat indeed for a Philippine political Goliath in the hands of a political David.
-ooo-
RP’S NEW LEADERS MUST UPHOLD GOD FIRST AND FOREMOST ALL THE TIME: And now that the Philippines will be entering a new period in its history where its new leaders are facing grave and insurmountable problems, it would be wise for President Benigno Aquino III and Vice President Jojo Binay to be always conscious about God in discharging their awesome duties and responsibilities.
They must try to make God a partner, as it were, in their governance, using His Word, commands, laws and decrees in every act, statement or decision they will have to make.
Paying mere lip service to God and His commands and decrees would not be enough. Indeed, God in His great power and omniscience can see through anyone’s heart or soul, and can immediately know whether there is complete trust and confidence in Him.
Aquino and Binay must always remember Proverbs 3:5-6 of the Holy Bible which says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.”
There will be times when even their best decisions and the best of their intentions would not be enough to solve the country’s ills and problems, for, as human beings even presidents and vice presidents will have limitations, but if they upheld God right from the start in arriving at their decisions and in their intentions, He will be there to make sure everything is alright.
-ooo-
BATAS INTERNET TV, BATAS INTERNET RADIO: Please watch BATAS INTERNET TV and please listen to BATAS INTERNET RADIO through the website www.batasradio.com (click Batas ITV for tv, and BatasRadio.com for radio). We are on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
DOH under President Noynoy: bring in the foreign doctors
| DOH under President Noynoy: bring in the foreign doctors |  |
BY ATTY. MELANIO "BATAS" MAURICIO JR.
THANKS FOR APPOINTMENTS AS PR TEAM MEMBER: I am greatly appreciative of incoming Rotary International District 3810 Gov. Tranquil Salvador, who is also the incumbent president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Quezon City chapter, for his having appointed me as “deputy governor” for District 3810, for Rotary Year 2010-2011.
DG Tranquil told me he designated me as “deputy governor” to help him in the District’s public imaging campaign during his reign, in charge of doing TV specials for District 3810 and for the other nine Philippine Rotary districts as well, depending on the agreement of his fellow governors.
Certainly, this is a terrific job, especially because I have also been designated in a concurrent capacity as a member of the public relations team of Rotary International’s South Pacific Zone composed of the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand, courtesy of the South Pacific Zone coordinator, Ms. Lyne Abanilla of the Manila Bulletin and three-time Zone 7 (Philippines and Indonesia ) chairman of RI for public relations.
My readers here will please pardon my having set modesty aside, but then, I am just very excited by the prospect of doing public relations job for both District 3810 and the other Philippine RI districts and for the entire South Pacific Region as well, especially because Lyne and I have already collaborated for the last three years on doing PR work for RI for Zone 7.
-ooo-
BRING IN FOREIGN DOCTORS, DR. GALVEZ TAN: If incoming Health Secretary Jaime Galvez Tan would want an unsolicited advice on how to fight the “brain drain” among doctors and other medical practitioners who are leaving the Philippines for greener pastures abroad, he must allow doctors from other countries to come in and undertake their residency training here.
This is the only way to assure the supply, as it were, of doctors and medical practitioners in far-flung barrios and unreachable places in the country, especially because foreign doctors who are usually left out of residency trainings in their own countries would be just too willing to be assigned anywhere in the Philippines.
If he wants to, I can arrange a meeting between him and groups that even now are already engaged in bringing in foreign doctors here in the Philippines, but which are being subjected to absurd conditions by some people at the Department of Health and even from the Professional Regulations Commission.
I am sure an honest-to-goodness discussion can bring about a ready and effective solution to the on-going lack of doctors in our rural areas, a problem already causing prejudice to a lot of our countrymen, as noted by Galvez Tan himself in previous statements, and as noted by Dr. Jose S. Pujalte, Jr. last June 5, 2010.
-ooo-
SIX OF 10 PINOYS DIE WITHOUT SEEING A DOCTOR: Here is a part of Dr. Pujalte’s article, circulated in the Internet the other day: “Our beloved Philippines is in a health quagmire. Some facts: Six out of 10 Filipinos die without seeing a doctor; four out of 10 Filipino babies are delivered by untrained hands; 29 million Filipinos have no access to safe sanitation.
“Add to these the mass migration of our health professionals: Doctors, doctors as nurses, nurses, physical therapists and other allied health workers. Also our next President, Noynoy Aquino, did not mince words in his campaign ad that corruption affects the delivery of health services too. What can be done?
“ Now to make sense of where Department of Health/Philhealth efforts should be directed, we must be reminded of this country’s commitment of attaining millenium development goals (MDGs) by 2015 as reiterated by the United Nations.
“We have barely five years to achieve most of these and there are five goals that touch on health: MDG #1: End extreme poverty and hunger; MDG#4: Reduce child mortality and MDG# 5: Improve materal health; MDG#6: Combat TB, malaria, HIV/AIDS; and MDG#7: Ensure environmental sustainability....”
BATAS INTERNET TV, BATAS INTERNET RADIO: Please watch BATAS INTERNET TV and please listen to BATAS INTERNET RADIO through the website www.batasradio.com (click Batas ITV for tv, and BatasRadio.com for radio). We are on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
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