erap estrada takes dominant lead in 2010 Presidentiables Poll – the presidentiable who should not win

choose 2 presidentiables who you think MUST NOT WIN the 2010 election

december 2, 2009 – we are opening a fresh poll of presidentiables you think MUST NOT WIN  the 2010 presidential election. only official candidates are included here. you can select 2 presidentiables. you can only vote once.

to vote for the presidentiable you want to win, to vote click here –>  New 2010 Presidentiables Poll Opens, includes only the official candidates

to vote for the vice-presidentiable you want to win, to vote click here –> New 2010 Vice-Presidentibles Poll Opens – official candidates only

197 charged in maquindanao massacre – finally!

this is a long time coming and we thought it was forgotten.  we have known for long that  justice moves slow in the philippines. but this one is ridiculous given the how gruesome the murders were and the kind of attention it got from the public. you would think with what happened and the intense interest of the people on the case, this will move much faster than what is happening now.

—–
197 charged with murder over Maguindanao massacre 
Agence France-Presse, INQUIRER.net
First Posted 18:20:00 02/09/2010

MANILA, Philippines—A former close ally of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and 196 other people were on Tuesday charged with murder over an election-linked massacre that horrified the nation, prosecutors said.

Andal Ampatuan Sr., the head of a Muslim clan and the former governor of Maguindanao province where the slaughter of 57 people occurred last year, was among those charged, according to papers filed in a Manila court.

In total, 197 people were charged, including other senior clan members, local government officials and policemen who allegedly helped organize the killings, as well as thugs accused of abducting and shooting the victims.

“The confluence of events before and immediately after the commission of the offense leads us to no other inference than that respondents Andal U. Ampatuan, Sr., Datu Zaldy “Puti” U. Ampatuan, Datu Akmad “Tato” Ampatuan, Sr., Datu Norodin Ampatuan, and Datu Jimmy Ampatuan connived with the actual perpetrators,” prosecutors said in a lengthy report outlining their case against the group.

“There is direct evidence that these respondents agreed to commit the crime,” said the prosecutors led by Senior State Prosecutors Leo Dacera. “All the conspirators are answerable as co-principals regardless of the extent or degree of their participation.”

However, only 11 of those charged are in custody, with most of the others still on the run nearly three months after the November 23 killings, according to police.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100209-252224/197-charged-with-murder-over-Maguindanao-massacre

philippine call center agents — prone to HIV-AIDS infection due to FUBUs and casual sex?

we would like to get a copy of the study to look at the data more closely. but what we have in the press on the sexual habits of call center agents and the rate of infection is very disturbing.

it is anecdotal but we understand the situation of the call center agent. it is high paying but it is a very unforgiving job. your world is the opposite of the world of most people where they stay awake during the night to work and sleep during the day to rest. it is common to see young professionals, call center agents drinking beer in large groups at 7 am in the morning., the first time we saw this, we got shocked, then understood why that was so, just like other young professionals, the call center agents were having a drink with their office mates after work. it’s just that the work they do is at night.

with a work place very different from the rest the openness to experimentation and sex, these are young adults are understandable. we hope this will be a wake up call for the BPO industry.

The study, with 675 respondents from 22 call centers in Metro Manila and Metro Cebu, showed a significant number of call center workers has contracted diseases through non-romantic but regular sexual engagements known in the industry as FUBU, short for ‘F**ked Buddies.’ F’K Buddies (FUBU), the study showed, is a recent phenomenon that involves consensual sexual intercourse among call center workers done at fire exit areas or in dark lounges. “I validated the results of this survey with several call center agents,” Ople said, “and they told me that FUBU is gaining ground especially among nightshift workers.”

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/286683

 

Dr. Crisol Tabajero, Health Information and Research Coordinator of the DOH Region 7 said in forum yesterday that because of their environment and peer pressure, call center agents tend to involve in risky sexual behaviors.

She said that basing on a study conducted by the University of the Philippines Population Institute and the Department of Health, the result of the study is alarming but it is not surprising.

It was found that more call center workers have early penetrative premarital sex and have had sex with the same sex.

Twenty percent of male call center agents are commercial sex workers while 14 percent of them give payment in exchange for sex.

More call center workers have had casual sex experience and half of the male call center workers and one out of nine female call center agents have had casual sex experience.

It also revealed that there are more call center agents who have a regular non-romantic sexual partner with more males than females engaging with it.

The study revealed that in the past 12 months, regardless of gender, nearly one-third of male of call center agents had casual sex.

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=545166&publicationSubCategoryId=107

the apple tablet, the iPad – the good news and the bad news

apple finally launches it’s tablet, the iPad. ues. that is the name, should there be any other? the whole industry, including consumers have been on edge about this product launch with speculations and excitement running through and through since last year. if we have heard and read about it before it was even launched, we should expect a lot more in the coming weeks.

wall street has reacted well, not crazy but AAPL’s price ended slightly up from previous day’s close $207.88, +$1.94.

now, the good news on the apple iPad:

• entry level price of $499 is a winner! this was almost shocking as most were expecting a price range of $600 to $1,000, most on the upper end of the price range. this price point is premium pricing versus netbooks but not crazy premium pricing and just about there versus entry level laptops. while is good news now, it will be excellent news next year when apple, based on previously established strategies will reduce its price on year 2.
• it does what most of what the iphone and ipod touch does.
• most of the 150 T apps in the app store will run on the iPad.
• this is just about there as good news – the name is, well -expected. we were expecting a magical name, but do they really have a choice on the name? you have the ipod, the natural and yes the no-choice name for the tablet should be ipad.

 

now, the bad news on the apple iPad:

• it’s just a bigger iphone/ipod touch. we were hoping it would be  a smaller macbook. the iPad would be redefining the market or creating it’s own if was a scaled down macbook as that would effectively cover what netbooks offer on top of doing what a macbook can.
• the product as is now is good but we do not think it will change our world in a major way. to us, what it is is it’s a much better e-book reader, something consumers will consider buying rather than amazon’s kindle. the price is at a steep premium versus the kindle but it is an apple product and has internet connectivity.
• what this is is a promise of greatness in the future. give the app developers sometime, enhance the features, add new ones and in a year or two, this can change our world.
• there are technical problems, or at least questions for now – it is heavy, battery life and the problem of having no keyboard. these are laptop-associated consumer concerns but can you blame consumers when this product is very close to a laptop. the comparison to laptops, including measuring the product against laptop expectations which is a very natural thing to do for consumers.

bottom line for us – no, it is not yet a buy for us. well, most apple products are much better when it reaches 2nd generation stage. on this one that is much more pronounced and real.

while this is not yet a buy for us, we think it has enough to get the whole market rethinking things and thinking about going after the iPad. it is not there yet, but we are talking of apple here and since they already have this in the market, the market may well be changed by the iPad.

the apple tablet – success to be driven by product strategy

the apple tablet is upon us, literally in a few minutes’ time. the frenzy has not died down and we should expect it to go into super hyper drive within the next few days. 

the apple tablet’s success will be hinged on one thing – what is the product strategy they are adapting for the tablet? product strategy is design and technology design but it goes beyond to the physical and technology heart of the product, at its core is what market does it intend to conquer and what consumer need it intends to tap into, actually, for apple the question is what consumer need it intends to create.

we think apple has two options which may at face value look similar but at it’s core and implication a most fundamental question.

• is the apple tablet a bigger version of the iphone/ipod touch?
• or is the apple tablet a smaller version of the macbook?

for sure, there will be common features and design for both strategic options,  but the direction it takes is very much different in taking one over the other. the build-up of further functions and use will be very different depending on where it starts. 

for consumers, the attitude and preferences are clearly and often separate in definition. we do not think any one product can satisfy both needs to the fullest. besides from a marketing standpoint, it is not wise to have such a product. it will be too confusing and too complicated for the consumer to appreciate.

there is a third option. it is something apple has done a few times during our lifetime – define a completely different and completely new product to create a completely new and different market.

we will come back to this point of view after we get to know what is the apple tablet.

cebu dancing inmates dance to michael jackson’s “they don’t care about us”

Michael Jackson’s long time choreographer Travis Payne and MJ dancers Performed with the Dancing inmates on January 19, 2010. Sony Studios made this event possible!

senator nene pimentel turns the senate into a hall of shame and dishonor

we think senator nene pimentel’s behavior on the senate floor is one of the most disgusting words uttered in that august place.  (read more about it here: senator nene pimentel dives into a pool of shame and dishonor with “insertion” remark towards mar roxas, takes the senate with him)

The debate took a turn for the worse when Pimentel used the same word to comment on Sen. Mar Roxas’ defense that he, too, had no insertion in the national budget.

“After your marriage, you will have your insertions,” quipped Pimentel, a rather unsavory remark that drew Roxas’ ire.

“I demand that that be removed from the record!” shouted Roxas. “This is an affront to my wife.”

Roxas was recently married to broadcast journalist Korina Sanchez.

“Then remove it immediately,” retorted Pimentel.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100126-249466/Trash-talk-mars-august-chamber-debate

did cerge remonde say good-bye with his last facebook status message?

we would like to say a prayer for the eternal repose of the soul of cerge remonde. may his soul sit in peace with the Lord.

jason ivler – finally caught! watch video of raid and arrest here.

finally, jason ivler has been caught. we applaud the NBI and other police operatives for this one. there were two agents who were wounded in the operation, we hope for their full recovery.

these are chilling videos of the NBI’s raid on the house and capture of Ivler in his home. it starts with dozens of NBI agents hoisting two ladders on the wall of the home and some shoot out inside the home just before the capture of  ivler.

i have not seen raids like these go on in real life but i guess this is it. it all looks clumsy, disorganized and often ridiculous. for sure this is not like what we see on tv and movies, not by a stretch.

looking at the video, the first thing that comes to you mind is that these NBI agents are exposing themselves to grave danger. ivler has been characterized as armed and dangerous and yet they just hoisted the ladders up the wall. when they get to the top of the of the ladder, it exposes them to gunfire, just like sitting ducks in a shooting gallery in fairs.

only four agents were allowed to enter the home by the mom of ivler and the raiding team relented. i don’t get that. having only 4 agents searching for ivler in the home in my view was too few. why would the raiding team allow the mom of the suspect dictate the terms? the raiding team has a warrant of arrest and to search the home, they should dictate the terms which includes how to conduct the search and how many men who will do it. reports says there were at least 50 agents, they should have used most of them for the search.

they did plan for this raid but looking at the video, it did not look like any planning was done and the command structure seemed very loose.  

if this was a planned raid, i feel bad for the NBI agents who do these raids. their lives do not seem to be well protected in the raids they do. the safety of the raiding team does not seem to be the priority here.

Minutes before the shoot-out, which occurred at around 6:30 a.m. at Hillside Drive in Blue Ridge, the raiders found the crumpled black towel in Ivler’s supposedly unused room on the second floor of the house, according to the agents’ accounts.

Suspicious, they checked the bathroom across the room and saw signs it had just been used.

It was at that point that Aguilar, the mother, became hysterical and ordered the raiders out, the agents said.

Tattooed arm

NBI-SAU chief Magno told the Inquirer that while Aguilar was shepherding them off to the ground floor from Ivler’s room, he noticed a small storage room at the landing of the stairs.

“I asked her if I could see what was inside the stockroom, and she told me, ‘There’s nothing there to see.’ She seemed to be in a hurry to get us out of her son’s room,” Magno said.

Insistent, Magno said he peeked into the dark stockroom and, using a flashlight, saw mannequins and boxes stored inside. He said he also saw “a tattooed arm.”

“I knew he was there,” Magno said.

‘He acted like Rambo’

Backing away from the door, Magno said he drew his gun and, in Filipino, shouted at the man to come out. He said Ivler answered with volleys of gunfire through the closed door.

“He acted like Rambo when he saw our operatives,” NBI Deputy Director for Intelligence Ruel Lasala said, referring to the Hollywood character portrayed by Sylvester Stallone.

Magno was grazed by a bullet in the right thigh as he and the other agents ducked for cover.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100119-248123/Road-rage-gunman-falls

MANILA, Philippines — (UPDATE 5) Aside from the killing of a Malacañang official’s son, Filipino-American Jason Ivler faces more charges for his attack on an arresting team of the National Bureau of Investigation, which resulted in injuries to two operatives.

At a press conference on Monday, NBI Director Nestor Mantaring said that Ivler would face charges of assault on agents or persons in authority, resisting arrest and illegal possession of firearms.

–

Ivler was arrested by joint operatives of the NBI and the Philippine National Police (PNP) after several months of hiding

Chief Superintendent Elmo San Diego, Quezon City police district chief, earlier said Ivler resisted arrest and was wounded in a gunfight with authorities.

the lesson from the screw-up on the Zucker Experiment at NBC – do not screw-up with the audience

the screw-up at NBC on “The Tonight Show that involved jay leno and conan o’brien is getting unscrewed. or at least that is what NBC is hoping it is trying to do.

we think it is such an  amazing story that it could have very well been written for a drama series aired on tv and could have won them awards and a top rating. not even reality shows could top the way this story started, evolved, twisted and got screwed-up. 

there is a nasty question that is left after reading the whole story – how can one of the country’s top tv networks, ran by highly paid executives with all those smarts, salaries and bonuses screw up so badly?

when you get some answers to that question, one more question pops up that takes you back to where you started – NBC’s bread and butter rest in a very large part to satisfying the audience, why did they suck at reading the minds and preferences of their audience?  sure, they have writers, producers and stars that pull in the ratings and ad revenues but all that is worth nothing if they are not masters of the mind of  the audience.

this all started when the venerable tv station launched the Zucker Experiment launched by NBC chief Jeff Zucker who decided months ago to move jay leno into an earlier time slot, the 10 pm slot which is prime time. the thinking was the tv station will save a lot of production money by removing all the drama shows occupying that prime time slot. apparently the production cost of a talk show like jay leno’s is  much cheaper  than  that of drama shows.

together with this move, conan o’brien was moved to take over the tonight show that jay leno was going to vacate. at the time of the move, the tonight show with jay leno was a top rater during the time slot.

after a few month’s of the Zucker Experiment, network affiliates complained on the side-effects of the experiment – they were losing revenue due to a loss of audience. NBC has said jay leno from a show quality standpoint was doing well but the dynamics of the change and the available choices from competitive tv sations for the audience, jay leno at an earlier time slot was not getting it done.

NBC Chief Jeff Zucker

the result of the Zucker Experiment is one lesson every brand manager knows – DO NOT BE A SUCKER TO CONSUMERS.  every brand manager learns this lesson very early in his/her career – screw up the product (formula or packaging) and you lose your consumers. more importantly, when you screw the product, change its formula or packaging based on a desire to reduce product cost (to improve profits), you can be asking for a loss of market share.

every product manager knows the product or the formula is most important to the success of a brand. a reduction in cost is a most dangerous thing to do as that usually involves a change in quality and product performance which can result to a loss in market share.

and yet this is exactly what the Zucker Experiment did. it is an experiment that made the audience  as suckers. NBC seemed to have ignored the consumers and focused too much on costs and profits.

what they committed is an epic fail in marketing 101 – screw with a number 1 brand, the tonight show was number 1 with jay leno in it by changing it’s  formula by putting in conan o’brien in the formula all based on an intent to cut on costs and increase profits, all done with the audience not being considered in the mix.

NBC simply  failed at applying what they are supposed to know best – being the master of the audience (consumer). clearly,  the Zucker Experiment sucked and henceforth, we think a new phrase will be added to the launguage used in the  tv industry  – “Don’t be such a zucker!”

the ampatuans with free use of cellphones while in jail – allows them to plan an escape/rescue from their jail, intimidate witnesses, destroy evidence and access their bank accounts

Ampatuans ‘VIPs’ in jail
They have cell phones, catered meals in PNP camp
Inquirer Mindanao
First Posted 23:35:00 01/03/2010

GENERAL SANTOS CITY—Even in their detention cell, the Ampatuans appear to live like kings.

The suspects in the Nov. 23 massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao apparently have mobile phones, catered meals, even someone who comes daily to clean their cell in the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) compound at the Philippine National Police headquarters at Camp Fermin G. Lira Jr.

Four members of the powerful clan that once enjoyed a close friendship with President Macapagal-Arroyo are being held at the CIDG lockup. Three are brothers—Zaldy Ampatuan, suspended governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao; Sajid Ampatuan, former acting governor of Maguindanao; and Anwar Ampatuan, mayor of Shariff Aguak. The other is their uncle—Akmad Ampatuan, vice governor of Maguindanao.

read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100103-245345/Ampatuans-VIPs-in-jail

that was the headline story in today’s PDI. the headline story for tomorrow’s PDI will probably be this one – CIDG probes Ampatuans’ ‘VIP treatment’ in police camp. (click here to read in full: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100104-245437/CIDG-probes-Ampatuans-VIP-treatment-in-police-camp).

 

to us, it did not make sense that detained suspects are allowed so much luxury such as catered food. the use of cellphones to us in particular is the most stupid of the VIP privileges given to the ampatuans.

with the cellphone, the ampatuans while inside the jail can call anyone, including people who they can direct on what to do to hide evidence, tamper with evidence, talk and even intimidate witnesses.

one of the reasons why suspects are detained is to give the investigators a free hand to collect evidence and look for witnesses. having the suspects detained inhibits the freedom of the suspects to do any of those. giving them cellphones makes it all very easy for them to do just that.

the ampatuans can have the most sophisticated cellphones and it will allow them to use the internet, allowing access to almost anything not only limited to email or websites for general information  but more importantly their bank accounts. they can transfer funds, close accounts and do almost anything to their bank accounts.

almost all cellphones have cameras and that means they also have the ability to make not only audiol but visual contacts with the outside world. with built in cameras in cellphones and even  webcams on the other side, they can even have teleconferences, and do picture and video sharing.

the activities that have been allowed to the ampatuans with the use of the cellphone are not just limited to activities that will enable them to take an active role in winning the cases that will be filed against them through evidence hiding/tampering and witness intimidation, they can also plan and give intelligence information to their private armies outside of the jail to help them escape from detention.

videos and pictures of the jail the ampatuans are in, the layout of their cells and the jail itself , the kind of security equipment inside their cells may be transmitted to the outside world so that they can plan a flawless escape from their detention. the point of jailing them is to prevent escape. the ability to send our videos and pictures of the jail they are in keeps no secrets from any group who will want to free the ampatuans from their jail cell.

all of the above are very possible and yet the CIDG chief sees there is nothing wrong with it. (read in full here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100104-245492/Nothing-wrong-with-Ampatuans-VIP-treatmentCIDG-chief)

we think this CIDG chief, should be fired from his job and jailed himself as soon as possible.

 

“I don’t think we can consider those as violations or special treatment,” Director Raul Castañeda, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Monday.

 

“Oh my God! Oh my God!” – audience reaction to charice pempengco’s singapore idol guest performance – blows all of them away

Singaporeans show love for Charice 
By Pocholo Concepcion
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 06:31:00 12/31/2009

MANILA, Philippines—There were a lot screaming fans, some of them crying unabashedly. Others gave the performer a jumping—not standing—ovation.

This was how Grace Mendoza, the Philippine manager of Charice Pempengco, described the hot reception the 17-year-old international singing sensation got in Singapore recently.

Laguna-born Pempengco was a special guest in the finals of the 2009 “Singapore Idol” talent competition held on Dec. 26 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, that country’s biggest sports and entertainment venue.

The following day, clips of Pempengco’s performance were uploaded on YouTube, the video-sharing website in which she was discovered about two years ago. One video had already been viewed by more than 9,000 people. A fan who shared the videos online claimed a crowd of 8,000 watched Pempengco at the Singapore stadium.

http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/breakingnews/breakingnews/view/20091231-244796/Singaporeans-show-love-for-Charice

 

this is a pick up from the tv broadcast, watch charice blow them away.

watch the same performance from the point of view of someone in the audience and from here you can hear the adulation charice was getting from the audience.

“retardeddramaqueen”, the person who posted this at youtube and who we assume was the one among the  audience who taped the performance was obviously being blown away, just like the rest of the audience. you can hear her saying  “Oh my God.”  over and over again as charice sang.

zaldy ampatuan calls on a “friend”, gloria macapagal arroyo. arroyo is his alibi and malacanang confirms the alibi – maguindanao massacre update

zaldy ampatuan

the efforts at finding justice for the maguindanao massacre victims is to say the least taking a very bizarre twist and they are very disturbing – zaldy ampatuan, one of the main suspects in the massacre is making president arroyo his alibi, saying he was with arroyo in malacanang during the day of the massacre.  

Zaldy Ampatuan, former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), had claimed that he and Representatives Yusop Jikiri and Munir Abison and other political leaders of Sulu were in Malacañang on Nov. 23 to discuss with Ms Arroyo how to resolve the electoral conflicts in the province.

source: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20091231-244761/Up-to-court-to-call-Arroyo-on-alibi-of-Ampatuans

 

malacanang does not deny the meeting took place. in fact malacanang confirmed the meeting took place, it was just that arroyo attended the meeting briefly.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde confirmed this in a radio interview but said that Ms Arroyo attended the meeting only briefly. He also said that she had since severed her ties with the Ampatuans.

source: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20091231-244761/Up-to-court-to-call-Arroyo-on-alibi-of-Ampatuans

 remonde based on his statement has actually confirmed the alibi of ampatuan as true. remonde said the meeting did take place, it was just that arroyo was in the meeting briefly. that to me confirms ampatuan’s alibi and that can mean the case of the government against zaldy ampatuan may mean a dismissal of the charges.

we have not read the affidavit that ampatuan executed and thus we do not know exactly what he said there. we have also not read the charge sheet the government has lodged against this ampatuan.

just based on this news article, it seems malacanang is attacking the issue at a very wrong angle and at an angle that gives room for ampatuan to be freed.

ampatuan is raising two issues in his affidavit : (a) he was not at the place of the massacre when it occured, he was at malacanang and (b) arroyo can attest to his innocence.

As for Zaldy Ampatuan’s claim that Ms Arroyo could attest to his innocence, Bello said: “That’s his claim. It’s up to the President to either affirm or validate it, contradict or repudiate it.”

gloria macapagal arroyo and "friend" zaldy ampatuan at her left

based on their statement here, malacanang placed a lot of effort at  disassociating arroyo from ampatuan. they are making a big deal on their claim that ties have been severed with the ampatuans.

they have not done that satisfactorily, as even cabinet secretary bello said it will be up to arroyo to confirm or deny that ties have been severed with the ampatuans.

i do not understand malacanang’s  obsession on that point. ties or no ties, the most important part is to get a conviction of the ampatuan. what is more important is to establish the whereabouts of ampatuan if the government’s case on the ampatuans is centered on an allegation that he is at the scene of the crime or that meetings among the accused occurred on that day. it really does not matter from a conviction standpoint whether ties have been severed or not. that will not matter in court.

it looks like malacanang seem to think it matters a lot perhaps on the point of view public opinion or image building for the president. malacanang seem to be still smarting from the big time screw up of lorelei fajardo, ex-presidential spokesperson who said that arroyo continue to be “friends” with the ampatuans even after the massacre. (read here, click:  lorelei fajardo, presidential spokesman quits or fired? or this one: Memo To: Gloria Macapagal Arroyo – fire Lorelei Fajardo, the Maguindanao Massacre aftermath)

malacanang seem to have forgotten the most important point and this point is what may set ampatuan free – where was ampatuan during the day of the massacre?

the government indictment seem to say he was at the scene of the crime. ampatuan claims he was not there but he was with arroyo in malacanang meeting with her. remonde’s statement seemed to have confirmed the alibi made by ampatuan.

i don’t get it – why would the lawyers of the government include in their charge sheet an allegation that ampatuan was at the scene of the crime when it appears he was not there? an alibi that says the accused is with the president of the country in a meeting in malacanang seems pretty strong to me.

it does not seem likely that ampatuan will use an alibi, being with the president, if he it is not true and if it cannot be proven. it is an alibi that can easily be proven false if it really did not occur. this is the president of the country, the courts will of course believe the president.

the paper trail on the meeting occurring must be long and solid. there will be airline tickets, hotel bills, the malacanang guest list and of course photos of the meeting.

there is so much irony here.

• we have the potential of this ampatuan being saved by the president of the country, the one person who is supposed to want ampatuan in jail, if the alibi is proven true
• if the alibi is proven true,  ampatuan, the alleged mass murderer will be proven to be telling the truth while the president of the country or at least malacanang will be proven as telling a lie
• if the alibi is proven true, it will mean the statement of the president of the country will enable ampatuan to walk free
• the government prosecutors and investigators will be showing in a grand scale their incompetence in this case – for including a false allegation in their charge sheet
• if arroyo’s statement proves the alibi is true, then the friendship between arroyo and ampatuan will be proven in court as truth
• in that case, fajardo should have not been fired. why fire a person for telling the truth?

 

‘Up to court to call Arroyo on alibi of Ampatuans’ 
By Jocelyn Uy, Norman Bordadora, TJ Burgonio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:16:00 12/31/2009

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang on Wednesday shrugged off the Ampatuan family’s denial of involvement in the Nov. 23 massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao.

“These are matters subject to rules of evidence and testimony, so it’s difficult for us to comment. It’s up to the courts to determine the truthfulness of the claims of the Ampatuans,” Gary Olivar, one of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s spokespersons, told the Inquirer by phone.

Zaldy Ampatuan, former governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(ARMM), had claimed that he and Representatives Yusop Jikiri and Munir Abison and other political leaders of Sulu were in Malacañang on Nov. 23 to discuss with Ms Arroyo how to resolve the electoral conflicts in the province.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde confirmed this in a radio interview but said that Ms Arroyo attended the meeting only briefly. He also said that she had since severed her ties with the Ampatuans.

Alibi

Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III, also a member of the ruling party and a former justice secretary, said the ARMM governor was laying down an alibi by claiming that he was at the Palace at the time of the massacre.

As for Zaldy Ampatuan’s claim that Ms Arroyo could attest to his innocence, Bello said: “That’s his claim. It’s up to the President to either affirm or validate it, contradict or repudiate it.”

Bello also said that it was up to the courts to decide whether or not to summon Ms Arroyo in order to determine the veracity of Zaldy Ampatuan’s claim.

“Whether you’re an ally or not, it has no significance to the case. If you’re found guilty, you should suffer the consequences of your misbehavior,” Bello said in reaction to observations that the ARMM governor’s claim had revived reports of the Ampatuans’ close ties to the President.

The Ampatuans were long-time political allies of the President.

“Unfortunately, I wasn’t there at the meeting. There was no way of validating the claim of Ampatuan. My assumption is he’s laying the ground for his defense. That’s part of his defense, which is an alibi,” said Bello by phone, adding:

“If it’s true, he has a right to say it. If it’s not true, that will later be established.”

maguindanao massacre in dvd – wth???

DAVAO CITY — Bootleg digital video disc (DVD) copies of the “Maguindanao Massacre 11/23/09,” are now being sold underground in many parts of Mindanao, according to those who have seen the “film.”

The Philippine Daily Inquirer was able to get a copy of the DVD. Running over four hours, the DVD showed the actual retrieval of the bodies from the massacre site at Barangay Salman, Ampatuan town, Maguindanao.

It showed the blood-soaked, bullet-riddled and mutilated bodies of the Ampatuan massacre victims. Most of the footage had graphic images of body parts protruding from the earth.

The origin of the Maguindanao Massacre DVD is not known but a DVD vendor in Koronadal City said he got his stocks from a supplier in General Santos City.

The INQUIRER secured a copy of the film, sold at P120, from a vendor who requested that he be not named, saying he feared for his life.

“Please don’t tell anyone that you got it from me…I only gave you this because I trust that you will not tell that it came from me. It’s scary,” the vendor said, referring to the movie. “Nakakatakot…sobrang nakakatakot. At nakakadiri (It’s really scary and it’s gross),” he said.

The vendor indicated he was also scared of the Ampatuan family, whose key members have been charged in connection with the massacre and were the erstwhile allies of Malacañang.

The material contained the first two days of the retrieval operations conducted by the authorities after the November 23 abduction and grisly murder of at least 57 civilians, 31 of them journalists and the rest close relatives and supporters of Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, a Maguindanao gubernatorial candidate running against the Ampatuans in the 2010 elections.

It is not clear whether the content of the DVD was from the documentation done by the team that conducted the retrieval operations.

The DVD opened with the convoy of the retrieval operations team that traveled to the dumping site in Barangay (village) Salman. Immediately after, the amateur camera captured the yellow backhoe excavator that had the marking “Under the Administration of Datu Andal Ampatuan Sr.”

For more than four hours, the camera focused on the excavation of the victims. First to be exhumed was a woman, believed to be one of the lawyers of Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, who wore a brown-striped blouse.

A man was later overhead as saying: “Sino ito? Si attorney? Sige…kunin na ang lahat kasi lahat tayo ay kapamilya na dito eh.”

After the first body was recovered, a man was also overheard as saying: “May ara pa (Are there still more)?”

“May ara pa gid. Marami yan sila dyan…(There would surely be more. There are a lot of them buried there),” another man answered.

When the body of a woman, wearing a green blouse and yellow pair of pants, was exhumed, a voice was heard saying: “Ka-daming tama…”

And judging from the looks of the victim, the same man suspected that she may have been sexually abused.

There were at least eight men who were exhuming the bodies, using shovels and their bare hands alternately. The film showed the lousy and slipshod retrieval of bodies and evidence, done by non-experts. It was only in the latter part of the first day and the second day that police experts got to work in the retrieval operations.

When shovels and bare hands proved to be slowing down the retrieval, the authorities later decided to use the backhoe to dig the grave where the victims were dumped. It was then that more and more bodies were found, including that of Mangudadatu town Vice Mayor Eden Mangudadatu, sister of Esmael.

Eden was immediately identified by the men involved in the diggings. A mobile phone was also recovered and a man was overheard as saying that “gitago nya sa loob ng sapatos. (she hid it inside her shoe).”

The Day 2 of the DVD opened with the diggings now aided mainly by the backhoe. It was on the second day that the retrieval operations teams dug up the vehicles, which were also dumped into the grave in an apparent effort to hide evidence.

And when more bodies were recovered, a male voice said: “Buti pa yong manok na panabong kahit na kargado sa gamot, kapag di na tumutuka ang kalaban, din na papaluin…” (Fighting cocks are treated better.)

In Koronadal City, a Maranao vendor said he has run out of copies of the DVD.

He said they have been selling it for P120 per copy, and even bragged about the clarity of the DVD he sold as the material was taken by members of the Scene of the Crime Operatives of the Philippines National Police.

“I’m expecting my order to arrive anytime tomorrow. The one you’re holding is a clear copy because members of SOCO filmed it,” he said in Filipino.

Janice Cabasag, 29, a resident here, told the Inquirer that she managed to procure a clear copy from a vendor for only P70.

Cabasag said the DVD contained footage of the actual retrieval of the bodies in the village of Salman.

“Looking at those images of death, I can feel the pain of the families who lost their loved ones. Those who did it are demonic,” she said.

Mario Alasin, who maintains a small restaurant here, also told the Inquirer that his staff bought a copy, but he had refrained from seeing the footage.

In Parang town in Maguindanao, Norma Cantal, admitted she bought the same copy at the public market.

When asked about the sale of the DVD, Corazon Cabillio, wife of slain journalist Jimmy, said she has heard about the DVD but has not seen a copy. Cabillio said she was interested in getting a copy.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20091228-244373/Bootleg-DVDs-of-Maguindanao-massacre-on-sale

manny pacquiao’s movie “wapakman” is last in MMFF 1st day earnings, does not even reach P1M

manny pacquiao is the undisputed most popular man in this country. every filipino stopped whatever they were doing in his last fight to watch him win his fight. but filipinos appear not to have the same attitude when it comes to pacquaio the movie star – most did not bother to stop to watch pacquiao’s “wapakman” movie but watched the other movies instead.

the first day gross of pacquiao;s movie was 7th out of 7 entries to this years MMFF, earning only P750T, not even making P1M. that P1Million is most likely just a fraction of what they paid pacquiao to appear in the movie.

that makes us pause to think – we all love to watch pacquiao as a boxer, we do not care too much to watch him as movie star and not even as politician. pacquaio lost the first time he ran for congressman. he is again running now, we wonder if he can win this time?

the view we have taken is that he should not run for congress (read here, click: manny pacquiao should not run for public office – he can do more for the people if he remains a boxing champion than as a public official) and just remain as a champion boxer. with his movie being last at the box office, is this telling him he should have not run for congress in 2010?

Seven-time world champion Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao has failed to bring his billion-peso punch to the box office.

Pacquiao’s superhero flick “Wapakman” landed in last place, earning only P750,000 on the first day of the two-week Metro Manila Film Festival.

According to official box-office records released by the MMFF, through executive committee member Ric Camaligan, the top slots were a close three-cornered fight among special-effects movies: “Ang Panday,” “Ang Darling Kong Aswang” and “Shake, Rattle & Roll XI.”

“Ang Panday,” a fantasy-action epic top-billed by actor-politician Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., earned P16.9 million nationwide. Coming in second was the Vic Sotto horror-comedy “Ang Darling Kong Aswang,” with P16.8 million. In third place is the long-running, all-star cast horror trilogy franchise “Shake” from Regal Entertainment, with P16.2 million.

Although “Wapakman” is also a special-effects-laden action flick, it didn’t attract the viewers who usually troop to Pacquiao’s prizefights that were shown via satellite in moviehouses, noted filmmaker Jose Javier Reyes.

Reyes, the director behind two MMFF top-grossers back-to-back (“Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo” in 2006 and “Sakal, Sakali, Saklolo” in 2007), offered a theory on Pacman’s lackluster box-office performance: “Filipinos adore him as a prizefighter… as an athlete, but apparently not as an actor, singer… not even as a politician.”

Reyes recalled that Pacquiao lost in his first Congressional bid against Rep. Darlene Antonino-Custodio in South Cotabato in 2007. He is running again in next year’s election, for a Congressional post in Saranggani.

Reyes recounted that Pacman’s entry in the MMFF two years ago, “Anak ng Kumander,” was also a tail-ender at the tills, earning barely P2 million by the end of the festival.

“People will stop their lives to watch him fight in the ring, but it seems they will not go out of their way to watch him goof around in a movie,” Reyes pointed out. “He is a real-life hero; not a superhero.”

There is also speculation in the entertainment industry that the rumors of an extra-marital affair linking Pacquiao to “Wapakman” co-star Krista Ranillo didn’t help in promoting what was ostensibly a family movie—much in the same way that gossip of an illicit romance with “Kumander” co-star Ara Mina didn’t help that earlier film’s performance at the box office either.  “There is a disconnect, publicity-wise. That’s possible,” said Reyes. “But in Pinoy macho society, there’s nothing too scandalous, shocking or salacious about the gossip regarding Manny and Krista anyway.”

In an earlier interview Pacquiao said: “Sana panoorin ng mga intrigero ang pelikula namin. Sayang naman ’yong intriga pag hindi kumita ang pelikula? (I hope the intrigue-mongers watch our movie. What’s the use of the intrigues if our movie doesn’t make money?)”

From all indications, the controversy didn’t contribute positively to the film’s box-office standing.

“He is an icon. A legend. He has to know his limits, his parameters,” said Reyes. “As a media personality, his biggest achievement is that he gave the world his mother, Dionisia, who is such a colorful character.”

Rounding out the box-office results of the first day of the MMFF, now in its 35th year, are the romance drama “I Love You, Goodbye,” with P11.7 million; the comedy-drama “Nobody, Nobody But . . . Juan,” with P8 million; the Chinese family saga “Mano Po 6: A Mother’s Love,” with P6.9; and “Wapakman,” with P750,000.

http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/entertainment/entertainment/view/20091226-244059/Pacman-flick-knocked-out-on-first-day

merry chirstmas to all!

merry christmas to all!  

third most watched youtube video in 2009 – wedding march dance

this is the 3rd most watched video at youtube in 2009 – 33+ million views.

amapatuan jr. gets stabbed… with a camera lens! who the hell forgot to bring the knife?

when i saw the headline and the headline photos in today’s PDI, i thiought geez there are so many angry protesters in that hearing! i was shocked to find out that the ones who mobbed andal ampatuan jr. at yesterday’s hearing in the quezon city courts were not activists but media men!

that must have been quite a sight! ordinarily, it’s the protesters on one side, the subject and the police on the other and media men on the sides or at the back of both groups. in this one, the media people were right there in front of andal amparuan jr.!

we cannot blame media – so many of them died in the maguindanao massacre. i do not think there enough words to describe why what happened is so wrong in so many ways not only for the media people but for everyone else who were murdered on that day in maguindanao.

some of the protesters were shoving blown up pictures of the dead in the massacre on the face of ampatuan. that i think is just too mild for what was done. someone needs to cut those pictures in tiny pieces and,,,never mind.

do not get us wrong, we are not advocating violence on ampatuan jr. but we are advocating justice for all those who died. we think all 100+ killers and the mastermind/s should be arrested and punished.

there is another an even more interesting part of this story.

From PDI: “Diaz said a cameraman hit the mayor in the forehead with a camera. The concussion—it was a big bump—bled. It was definitely deliberate,” Diaz said. “We really tried to secure the mayor but we found it hard when some members of the media acted this way,” he said.”

we like to file this protest against what Mr. Diaz said about this incident where he mistakenly refers to the picture above as “deliberate”. upon extensive forensick analysis of the picture, we do not think it is deliberate but rather any one or several of the following occurred:

• the camera man was just taking a super macro shot of ampatuan’s right eye for the record. he was given this assignment by his editor in the name of good journalism.
• then someone pushed the camera man and since the camera was heavy, it accidentally dropped on ampatuan’s face
• no camera man in his right mind will do that to his camera and risk damage to his primarily tool in his job, even this one – an old lens that has not been working and cracked for years now
• question – are there no camera lens that are as sharp as knives? or a lens that is as sharp as nail? memo to camera man: next time, please use the proper lens for shots like these.
• finally, who the hell forgot to bring a knife????? aren’t knives standard issue to camera men too?  

lorelei fajardo, presidential spokesman quits or fired?

WAWAM! after hours' post on lorelei fajardo

we have written about lorelei fajardo, one of our favorite spokespersons of president arroyo in this blog  last december 1 (read here: Memo To: Gloria Macapagal Arroyo – fire Lorelei Fajardo, the Maguindanao Massacre aftermath).

we just read a news article saying she has quit being the presidential spokesman of president arroyo. (read article here: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/12/18/09/fajardo-quits-deputy-presidential-spokesman)

we do not know if arroyo or anyone in malacanang reads this blog, but we think getting fajardo fired, err to accept her resignation, according to this news article a “career choice” is the right thing to do.

it is this statement of hers which is the basis of our recommendation to president arroyo that t fajardo be fired from her job:

“I don’t think the President’s friendship with the Ampatuans will be severed,” Lorelei Fajardo, her deputy spokesperson, told reporters Thursday in Filipino. “Just because they’re in this situation doesn’t mean we will turn our backs on them.”

fajardo made that statement  november 26, we wrote the piece on december 1, fajardo got fired, err she made the career move  decenber 17. wow, that took a long time from the time she made the unfortunate declaration of how arroyo views loyalty to friends.

this statement of fajardo has stuck in the mids of media people. i have read quite a number of articles written on the maguindanao massacre where many foreign media uses that statement as lead in to the kind of treatment the ampatuans are getting within the philippine judicial system. it really is a very unfortunate statement.

this firing err resignation of fajardo as presidential spokesman of arroyo has been carried by the major newspapers as well and  it is quite interesting that each article included the fajardo’s statement on arroyo’s special friendship with the ampatuans. it looks like that statement of fajardo has made a lasting impression on the media outlets.

for myself i will be using that statement as a top example on “what not to do when you are presidential spokesman” when i do lectures or talks on PR or communication. now we are wondering what are the qualifications to get hired as spokespersons in malacanang?

just a note to end this peice – todate malacanang has not retracted the statement made by fajardo.

question need to be answered: how did the ampatuans amass so much arms and ammunition?

i think the question, “how did the ampatuans mass so much arms and ammunition?” deserves a separate and parallel investigation. this i think ranks very close in importance to the most important question on who were the killers of the 57 dead.

it’s shocking to read in the newspapers that military officers and men are shocked to see the kind and the number of arms and ammunition the ampatuans have. one of the officers even said the ampatuans have certain high powered arms that are very rarely used and very few elite members of the armed forces are able to use.

everyone are so amazed by the quality and quantity of the arms and ammo but we do not read enough news on exactly what the government are doing to find out how the ampatuans were able to get them. many of them are still in their shipping cartons with markings of the “Department Of National Defense” and the “AFP”. they obviously came from the AFP/DND itself.

the soldiers and police of the philippines themselves should push for a thorough investigation of this matter so that it can be plugged and stopped in the duture. they should be concerned it is these arms from the warlords who are killing the AFP soldiers and police in the fields. any military person know that one of the more effective ways to fight terrorists and rebels in mindanao is to deny them arms and ammo. without them, they obviously cannot wage war on the afp and the police.

but we have not heard anything from the government.

why senator miriam defensor loves cerge remonde so much

we take with keen interest senator miriam santiago’s point of view that cerge remonde should be “eliminated”. errr, we think senator santiago means remonde has to resign his day job of press secretary of the arroyo administration.

we have written about cerge remonde in this blog before, one was in reference to the OBOBS parade on the million peso dinner arroyo had in new york (read here: http://2010presidentiables.wordpress.com/category/cerge-remonde/) and the other on cerge remonde’s boob job booboo. not his boobs but president arroyo’s breast augmentation scandal. on the last one, one of the lesson learned is that cerge remonde makes it a point a point to look at the boobs of president arroyo. he has done it so often and might be on a regular basis because he was able to compare the size of president arroyo’s breasts to those of sexy showbiz stars. (read ans click here: the lessons arroyo’s breast implants taught us – cerge remonde looks at arroyo’s breasts)

we love to see where this love that santiago has on remonde will go. senator santiago is one of our favorites in the senate. we think she is one senator the country should never do without. but we can’t say the same thing on cerge remonde.

read in full here: Santiago calls Remonde ‘illiterate and ridiculous’