Faces of the news
Dominador Say
Labor Undersecretary Dominador Say found himself in the limelight when presidential spokesperson Harry Roque announced that had he not resigned, he would have been fired by President Duterte over corruption allegations. Say earlier said he quit his post to spare Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III the trouble of fending off accusations that he was promanagement in the debate over contractualization. Say, the labor undersecretary for policy, employment and regional operations, said the perception that they were promanagement was untrue. But being a lawyer, he stuck to legalities when he designed policies. The law allowed contractualization, he maintained, a position that did not sit well with labor and, apparently, Mr. Duterte who had made ending contractualization a campaign promise. To give Bello enough elbow room to choose someone who could do the job better, Say said he tendered his resignation letter a month ago, although it was received by Malacañang only on Tuesday this week
Jose Ramiscal Jr.
It’s been two decades since the Senate looked into the anomalous land purchases of the now-defunct Armed Forces of the Philippines Retirement and Separation Benefits System, but its former president continues to get grief for it. The Sandiganbayan Seventh Division’s April 13 decision, however, dealt out the harshest penalty yet: a total of 123 to 216 years’ imprisonment for 12 counts each of graft and falsification. The recent decision involved the underdeclaration of the value of 12 properties as only P2.997 million instead of P10.49 million. The discrepancy deprived the government of P3.506 million in taxes. Although Nilo Flaviano, the lawyer who represented the land sellers, was pinpointed as the “obvious perpetrator” of the fraud and was handed the same sentence, Ramiscal was faulted for “condoning” the anomaly by failing to correct it. Ramiscal had previously been meted out 34 to 56 years’ imprisonment in three decisions in June 2011, July 2016, and May 2017 concerning other anomalous land purchases.
Patricia Fox
An Australian nun who has worked with the Philippines’ poor and downtrodden for 27 years, Sister Patricia Fox, found herself detained for a day after the Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested her on the charge that she was an “undesirable alien.” The BI accused the 71-year-old nun of attending antigovernment rallies, a violation of immigration laws that prohibit foreigners from taking part in partisan political activities. Her arrest was denounced by human rights advocates, activists and prelates of the Catholic Church who described it as part of the government’s policy of quashing criticism and dissent. Fox later told reporters that she never joined political rallies “in terms of party politics, but I have been active in human rights issues.” She added: “If you call it political, I call it part of our duty as the religious to support and stand for the poor.” Fox also denied being arrested for the same offense by the previous administration. She said she volunteered to join the farmers when they were brought to the police precinct for staging a protest rally.
Manny Mogato
Manuel “Manny” Mogato— along with two other Reuters journalists Clare Baldwin and Andrew R.C. Marshall—won this year’s Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for their coverage of the anti-illegal drugs campaign in the Philippines. The Pulitzer Prizes’ website said they were chosen for their “relentless reporting that exposed the brutal killing campaign behind President Duterte’s war on drugs.” The Pulitzer, Mogato said, is the “holy grail” for journalists. For more than 30 years since the final days of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Mogato has covered a broad range of issues —from police matters to national security, disasters, communist and Muslim insurgencies, politics and diplomacy. He worked for several Philippine newspapers and Japan’s Asahi Shimbun before joining Reuters as its Manila correspondent 15 years ago. Mogato, 55, graduated in 1983 from the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila where he also taught journalism. He served three terms as president of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines.
Barbara Bush
Former US first lady Barbara Bush, wife to a Republican president and mother to another, died in Texas on April 17 at the age of 92 triggering an outpour of affection for her decency and unpretentious grace. Her 73-year marriage to George H.W. Bush—the longest presidential marriage in US history—reminded Americans of the values they espouse. “A lot of people like to talk about family values and all that, and don’t practice it. They practice it,” said democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy, who frequently opposed Bush’s policies. Barbara, who has been in the political limelight since her husband became a congressman in 1966, is praised for her dignity and civility in public life. Ranking Republican Sen. John Cornyn said that she “really set a very high standard, and one that I think we should aspire to.” Even during the presidency of her son, George W., political veterans from both aisles recalled a sense of dignity and respect that had steadily evaporated in the US capital. Party politics, she said, “should be very broad-based and inclusive.”
James Comey
After saying US President Donald Trump was morally unfit to hold office, former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey embarked on a nationwide tour to promote his book “A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership.” Comey’s publisher, Macmillan, said the book was shaping up to be the second biggest publishing sensation of the year, after Michael Wolff’s “Fire and Fury.” Macmillan said “Fire and Fury” has sold more than 2 million copies across all platforms. At $15 to $30 each, that amounts to $30 million to $60 million with more print runs in the works. For “Higher Loyalty,” Macmillan said it would initially print 850,000 copies with similar additional runs. But Comey’s increasing media presence last week is also provoking more questions on the motives of his exposé. He has been criticized for leaking information about Hillary Clinton and keeping information about the probe of supposed Russian meddling in US elections. Either way, with book royalties of 10 to 15 percent, both Wolff and Comey have already earned millions.
