After Sendong, stop loggers

Allow me and my wife Naomi to greet everyone a happy and peaceful new year.  It is also my wish that  we welcome 2012  with no untoward accidents, especially  firecracker injuries.

I am also wishing that gunholders don’t use their weapons for  New Year revelery and risk hitting innocent people. And finally I pray that our beloved nation, the Philippines, and  Cebu in particular, will no longer be hit with  calamities so that our people would  be spared from more destruction. May the country  achieve economic development and prosperity.

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Former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was charged by the Office of the Ombudsman for graft, a bailable offense.  I am amazed at how swiftly the Ombudsman found her and  former first gentleman Miguel Arroyo of liable for misconduct in the NBN-ZTE deal, which she allegedly fastracked.

The  former president no longer enjoys the  privilege of immunity from suit. Although she is a member of the House of Representatives,  Congressional immunity from arrest doesn’t apply to  her because she faces a complaint with a penalty of more than six years imprisonment.

The present Office of the Ombudsman is quite different from the office under Merceditas Gutierrez that was very slow in investigating cases  against Arroyo.  Again, this is part of enforcing the principle of accountability of public officials and should not be cause for undue worry or  political instability, though it is natural for Arroyo loyalists to be alarmed.

I welcome the investigation and the charge filed against Arroyo  because it shows that the government is observing  due process of law that gives her the opportunity to defend herself and be heard. Eventually the truth shall be uncovered. The same thing goes for former Major General Jovito Palparan. With  due respect to the organization of former generals, I think they should not worry because Palparan is just being held accountable  for his deeds when he was in active duty. He, too, shall be given the opportunity to defend himself in a  court of law. But it would be prudent for Palparan to submit to the custody of the Regional Trial Court after a warrant of arrest was issued in connection with the  disappearance of two UP students. The organization of former generals should not  be agitated about this. If you  did nothing wrong as a police official, there is no need to worry.

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The flooding in Cagayan de Oro City has been partly attributed to  illegal logging in the area. Many thought that  a total log ban was already implemented during the term of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Thousands of logs were seen in the damage wrought by typhoon Sendong, destroying property and lives.  I think it is but proper for the government to hold all illegal loggers accountable for contributing to the calamity.

I am happy that the government decided that the logs  recovered from the area may be used by the people to rebuild their houses. But remember that thousands of illegally cut logs had caused the country heavy  losses in lives and property.

It’s time  the national government together with the local government  stop all logging, whether legal or illegal.

In Cebu City, the local government together with the civil society should work together to stop flooding by clearing riversides of illegal occupants and providing an adequate drainage system for city streets.

We expect and demand united action from our city officials in this aspect. They should set aside politics for the meantime to address the needs of the people.