Santa Banana, it appears that whenever President Rodrigo Duterte says something outlandish bordering on illegal, we the people are accused of taking things too literally.
The President, talking about the Abu Sayyaf Group that landed in Bohol, said civilians can shoot these bandits on sight. Moreover, they would be rewarded for their kill. But civilians are not trained for that purpose!
As expected, now comes spokesman Ernesto Abella interpreting the President’s words. He said it was a mere expression of the need to stamp out terrorism.
When President Duterte threatened to break his alliance with the US, again the people around him said he did not mean it. It was only to emphasize that he wanted an independent foreign policy.
When he said he would slaughter millions of drug addicts, he was just expressing his frustration with the illegal drug problem.
When Mr. Duterte visited the Middle East, he told his Arab friends that he would deploy Philippine soldiers to help fight terrorists. He must have been overwhelmed by the courtesies. But this is not something that can be done. We can only send observers!
Former Communications secretary Martin Andanar told media they should use creative imagination in reporting what the President means. Andanar, however, should have known that media are not in the business of imagination. We report the facts, period.
I am tempted to suggest the creation of the Bureau of Creative Imagination!
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President Duterte’s economic managers unveiled last week a P3.6-trillion plan, the ambitious Build! Build! Build! Infrastructure program between 2016 and 2020. The Duterte years will be known as the “Golden Age of Infrastructure,” they said.
In a presentation of what they called Dutertenomics, these managers said they would enumerate these projects during the next meeting of the National Economic and Development Authority. For 2018, P1.13 trillion is allocated to what is called TRIP; P1.18 trillion for 2019 and P1.29 trillion for 2020.
These would cover infrastructure for transportation, water, sewerage and sanitation, flood management, solid waste management, maritime, social infrastructure, energy, information and communication technology and many others.
Notable among these are the NLEX Harbor Link project and the Mega Manila subway, a 25-kilometer public transport system connecting business districts and government centers.
If all these proceed as planned, then this could well be the change that everyone is waiting for. This could be the legacy of Rodrigo Duterte.
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The proposal of former Manila Mayor and now party-list Rep. Lito Atienza that the chairman of the Metro Manila Development Authority should be elected makes a lot of sense. If a council that determines and adopts policy for Metro Manila is headed by a non-elected official, how can mayors submit themselves to a mere appointee?
The problem for instance in managing the nightmarish traffic in Metro Manila is that there are conflicting ordinances among the 14 cities and municipalities in it. There are different rules regarding cargo trucks, street vendors, vehicle coding.
All these can be solved by having a duly-elected MMDA chairman similar to time when former first lady Imelda Marcos was elected governor of Metro Manila.
It’s common sense.
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Tourism officials are trying to mollify their counterparts in other countries, especially Japan, South Korea, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and China, telling them that it is still safe to travel to the Philippines.
This tack is being taken by Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo in the wake of reports from travel agencies that there have bee many cancellations in the wake of reports that the Abu Sayyaf may strike in numerous resorts in the Visayas.
The DoT cannot blame media for the bad news about the Philippines. Journalists are messengers who simply report what is happening.
The fact is that for travelers, safety and comfort rule.