They never learn. In many parts of Metro Manila, people injured from firecrackers crowded hospitals despite the ban.
The mayhem continued on New Year’s Eve even as authorities claimed injuries had gone down significantly.
I still cannot understand why people spend thousands of hard-earned money to risk being injured. How stupid!
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The new tax on diesel, liquefied petroleum gas and bunker fuel for electricity generation, among others, started yesterday. This will create a domino effect on transport fares, electricity costs and other prime commodities.
I have said in an earlier column that while there are upsides to the government’s tax reform program, there are also downsides.
TRAIN was precisely enacted and signed into law to rationalize the tax program of the government for the benefit of wage earners. It will also fund the Build Build Build infrastructure program and create jobs.
This is why President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic managers must conduct a massive information campaign for all sectors of the economy. I believe that ultimately, the advantages of the tax package will outweigh the disadvantages. But these should be made clear to the poor!
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The Duterte administration should make these two things a priority in its campaign against illegal drugs.
First of all, there must be a massive buildup of community-based rehabilitation centers nationwide. Mr. Duterte should seek the help of the private sector. The cost of such centers is staggering.
I know for a fact that unless the demand for illegal drugs is stopped, supply will continue to flow and the menace will not end. I hate to say this, but the strategy of the President in going after pushers and users will not stop the illegal trade.
The second thing is that there should be more jails. Congestion rate has gone up by 595 percent.
Photos of jails here in Metro Manila tell us that inmates sleep almost naked because of the lack of ventilation in their cells.
Just hear these statistics and weep: When Mr. Duterte assumed office in June 2016, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology recorded around 110,000 inmates in different detention facilities across the country.
By the end of 2017, the number has ballooned to 149,000. The Manila City Jail has the highest number of inmates at 5,789, followed by Cebu City with 4,995 and Davao City with 3,345.
Based on records, 106,434 inmates are held on drug charges.
The problem right now is that more people are coming in than going out.
Government has long neglected the relocation of the national penitentiary. I wonder why. Perhaps Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II can answer my question?
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Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno must take a serious look at her impeachment case now pending at the House Committee on Justice.
With no less than three incumbent and one retired associate justice testifying against her, she may have a difficult time establishing her innocence. Sereno and her lawyers must decide which way to go after all this.
I know that the lawyers of Sereno want her to fight her impeachment case. But the bottom line is clear – she has been found lacking in moral integrity.
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Another problem that the Duterte administration should deal with this year is the traffic gridlock. There are simply not enough roads for the hundreds of thousands of vehicles registered every year.
There are also daily glitches in the MRT because of poor maintenance.
The Duterte administration van no longer say it just inherited the problem. It has been in power for more than a year!