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I must say that I have heard countless versions of Swing Out Sister’s lasting hit, Breakout. This latest version is on the more sentimental, nostalgic side.  It’s their tribute to the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, combining their song with Jackson’s I’ll Be There.

The mourning aside, it’s a short, sweet treat.  Andy says: “Our own little tribute - rough around the edges to be sure, but heartfelt nonetheless..”

July 2nd, 2009 | Category: Random Thoughts | | Leave a comment

In line with the hot political topic, GMA 7’s Reporter’s Notebook also looks into the foreign travels of President Arroyo.

I was interviewed by the show last Sunday for the story as a resource person (to think I used to do the interviews for them — haha!), since I covered the President as a reporter.  The interview was also a day after I posted my commentary on the matter — a more complete POV compared to my sound bite. In addition to what I had said in my previous post, I did point out to other relevant points and questions (some of which were also mentioned by the other resource persons in the story) that were not anymore included in the story, considering of course, the airtime, late airing, number of resource persons, and angle of the story itself. All understandable. My additional questions and thoughts during the interview last Sunday:

First, how much of the pledged investments are translated into actual investments?

Second, while the Palace boasts of investments following these trips, what exact work does each congressman accomplish while being part of the Presidential delegation?

Third, do notice as well that the frequent inclusion of many solons in the presidential delegation affects the ability of the House of Representatives to get a quorum for session — which means that deliberation of laws get affected.

Fourth, where’s the proof that it is not tax payers’ money that is paying for those who should not be part of the delegation?

Here is part 1 of the story:

Here is part 2:

For more perspective, you may want to see a past story of mine in 2007 on the Palace’s expenses as well:

July 1st, 2009 | Category: Commentary, News | | Comments (1)

Well, we are practically back to square one. Back to manual voting, that is.

I am of course venting with regard to Total Information Management Corp’s. (TIM) surprising(?) decision to pull out of the consortium that would finally modernizing elections for 2010. The consequence of this decision to pullout has been laid out by Comelec Chair Jose Melo himself: we are probably looking at the same, old, cheat-prone, manual system of voting next year.

When asked about the pullout, Melo pointed to “irreconcilable differences” between TIM and Barbados-based Smartmatic (which also should explain). Come on! Can a firm that has been accredited and allowed to transact with the government just walk away like that? Can a firm that the country is relying on for clean elections just walk away because of simple “irreconcilable differences”?

This is not an annulment process between an estranged husband and wife!

TIM will need to do better than come up with a flimsy excuse. And rightfully so, they SHOULD be sued for such reckless action. When a firm conducts business with government — whether it is with the Comelec or any other agency — commitments, agreements must be followed through.

But of course, we are not just holding TIM responsible. The Comelec has more explaining to do. Media sources say that TIM is short on funds. So why again were they accredited, to begin with? Then, there are groups that don’t want the automation to push through, with the consortium at the very least. Was the pullout the result of a demolition?

Not surprisingly, speculation is also rife about another conspiracy theory. Whether real or imagined, the timing of the pullout is suspect, when it is considered with the explosives at the Office of the Ombudsman and the Department of Agriculture.

Also do consider: prior to TIM’s pullout, the Comelec had already announced the formation of a crisis/contingency team should anything happen that would derail efforts to prepare for and implement the elections. And prior to this, the Comelec did raise its own worries about NO-EL for next year. In the field of crisis communication, this is a strategy to soften the blow of negative news. So I respectfully ask, was the Comelec aware of the pullout even before it happened?

The Comelec has a lot of explaining to do. But more importantly, it needs to lay down its definite action plan at the soonest to prevent further speculation of NO-EL for next year.

The most important question, of course is, how can we ensure that 2010 will not be a repeat of 2004? Everyone has been worried about automation, that it would be prone to cheating. This is valid. But personally, we should be more worried about sticking to the same old way this country does its voting and counting where it’s cheating as usual.

June 30th, 2009 | Category: Commentary | | Comments (2)

I don’t try out things because they are simply the “in” thing to do, or “uso” as we say in Filipino. Still, I do make it a point to be up-to-date with the latest, especially when it comes to technology.

Having said this, I am trying out Twitter to keep track of friends and to keep in touch with everyone. I’m doing this on a trial basis. Truth be told, my first few minutes on the service left so much to be desired — I received a number of spam followers.   So we’ll see.

Of course, I am making the most out of it. Do keep in touch by visiting my Twitter page by clicking here.

In any case, it’s interesting being able to know the random thoughts of people like Oprah, Martha Stewart, and Katie Couric.  Hmmm… I wonder if Larry King is on Twitter.  And President Barack Obama or Gloria Macapagal Arroyo?

I wonder what PGMA would be keying in if she had Twitter. Hmmm…

June 29th, 2009 | Category: Random Thoughts | | Leave a comment

I have been a bit under the weather this whole weekend, so I decided to just rest — true to my status on Facebook that I’d be sleeping Friday night, only to wake up Monday.  When one decides to stay home, there’s only so much one can do: read, watch tv, and watch dvd’s.  I’ve done all three.  Oh, let me add one more thing — granting a short interview to a TV network’s public affairs show.  Talk about turning the tables!

Well, I’m not about to complain, but on cable television, it’s been non-stop Michael Jackson the entire weekend.  I’ve never been really a fan of Jacko.  I did not watch his concert here in Manila in the 90’s (A classmate watched both nights of his concert!)  But I do like one the Jackson 5’s songs, I Want You Back.  I’ve used the song’s intro as a ringtone from time to time.  I also remember getting good feedback for using the very same intro for my final production for radio production class in college.  I also like I’ll Be There.  But truth be told, I like Mariah Carey’s remake better.

News programs around the world mention a common story angle — the world mourns the King of Pop’s demise.  The Philippines has been mentioned thrice already by US news and current affairs programs.  NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams interviewed a Filipino DJ.  Inside Edition and CNN made a story about Cebu inmates’ tribute to Michael Jackson.  The CNN story was a well-produced story, and I thought of sharing the video with everyone.

Back here, GMA7’s noontime show, SOP made a mistake in its special tribute to Michael Jackson. He was born 1958, and not 1959, as shown in its bumper.

June 28th, 2009 | Category: Blast from the Past, Random Thoughts, Uncategorized | | Comments (1)