Why we cannot trust Noynoy and Manny

Newsflash: There is a crisis of authority in the Philippines. Our institutions don’t work and we don’t trust the people behind those institutions. Oh, wait…that’s old news.

The word trust means assured resting of the mind on the integrity, veracity, justice, friendship, or other sound principle, of another person. It is a word that means nothing to Filipino voters, specially now that it is a mere banality thrown around by presidential candidates. After all, each and every past presidential candidate had said “trust me” in one way or another. Where are the results?

Let’s face it. In an era where what were considered to be pillars of industry and society – such iconic organisations and communities as Toyota Motors Corp, Wall Street, and the Roman Catholic Church, for example – had imploded, there is a prevailing distrust in the air not just in the Philippines but all around the globe. Institutions that many had relied upon and looked up to for guidance let us down. Malfunctioning brake pads; financial crises and sexual abuses, etcetera, etcetera. Once trust is gone, it is hard to earn it back. Once an individual’s ability to trust is gone, that person becomes completely lost and walks around town without a sense of purpose or meaning. Life is not what it used to be for the person betrayed.

Filipinos have been betrayed time and time again. As a result, a lot of Filipinos walk around devoid of purpose or meaning. They have been continuously betrayed by their government and the very people who supposedly were duty-bound to serve the Filipino people. Institutions like the Senate, Congress and the Office of the President have all been accomplices in that betrayal. Even other elite members of our society who provide essential goods and services like telecommunications, water, and energy cannot be relied upon to put their customers first before the bottom line. They too are collapsing inwards; they just don’t know it yet.

Filipinos do not trust anyone who says “trust me”. Ask the average Filipino who is apathetic about the coming election and he or she will likely just shrug and say “Pareho-pareho lang ang mga kandidatong yan. Mag-nanakaw lahat” (roughly translated, “All the candidates are the same. They are all corrupt”). Regardless of who among the two most popular candidates, Noynoy Aquino or Manny Villar, get the 40% vote in the election needed to place them in the top job, there will still be the 60% of the constituents who didn’t vote for that candidate and likely won’t trust him. That’s a lot of Filipinos who will be walking around town without senses of purpose or meaning in life.

Who can you trust in this environment? Maybe we should all learn from what happened to U.S. President Barrack Obama. President Obama is a good man. President Obama promised change during his campaign. A lot of people trusted him, and that is why he is now in office. Fast forward to now: a lot of Americans are dissatisfied with his performance. As a result, his popularity rating has declined dramatically. President Obama indeed does want change but he has a lot of detractors who don’t subscribe to his ideas around how to implement change in the system. It turns out that it was not going to be easy to institute change. Lots of businesses have vested interests in not seeing the kinds of changes that Obama wanted to implement, specially in the health care system.

This is democracy at work. It’s not easy to implement change in a First World country that practices democracy like the U.S. — and more so in a Third World country like the Philippines where institutions are weak. There is a lot of wheeling and dealing that takes place behind closed doors.

Therefore, if you have a leader like the late president Cory Aquino who was technically a push-over, then the changes that will be made could potentially be more detrimental for the country and its people. This is exactly what happened when the 1987 constitution was drafted. To put it bluntly, the same thing is going to happen if Noynoy Aquino becomes the president of the Philippines because he does not want to touch his mother’s Constitution; one that is hindering our country’s march to progress. This is precisely the reason why we cannot put our trust in Noynoy Aquino as a leader of the Philippines. Since announcing that he is not amenable to public debates anymore, he had all but confirmed that not only is he going to be another push-over like his mother, he also made it clear that he is averse to even just discussing anything but the kinds of changes that he will implement in the system — if there are any to begin with.

Greed is the name of the game in the Philippines. A lot of the people running the show find ways to manipulate the system in ways that belie their claim of having any real stake in the welfare country they are working for and living in. A lot of people say that Noynoy Aquino is not greedy but the question is, does he have what it takes to go after the greedy corporations, which evidently are owned by some of his relations and friends? Furthermore, does he have the guts to implement changes that will most likely be unfavourable to them?

Presidential candidate Manny Villar, who appears to have amassed a fortune in such a short period of time, is just a product of the very system that needs to be changed. Whatever way he made his fortune, the system in place failed to check and ring alarm bells before he got around to covering his tracks. Since greed is the name of the game, it is no surprise that there are people who would actually support his candidacy. It is because they also have vested interests that will benefit from a Villar presidency. And since Filipinos do not ask for platforms from their candidates before going to the polls (due to ignorance), they really have no idea how a man like Villar is going to manage the country while he is in office. Meanwhile, Manny Villar uses a popular game show host to reel in the crowd. To his followers, endorsement coming from this noon-time show host makes up for Manny Villar’s shifty eyes and monosyllabic speeches.

Trust is a word that we need to bring back into our system. We need an acceptable degree of transparency applied to the way we conduct our politics. The only way we can bring some semblance of trust is to ask our candidates what they plan to do once they are in office. The things they say will give us an idea of their trustworthiness. If they can promise something, at least we can hold them on those promises once they are in office. Be afraid of those who don’t even want to say anything because they think that no one is listening anyway, or those who just let their campaign managers and paid entourage do all the talking. They cannot be trusted.

Bear in mind that there are other candidates aside from Noynoy Aquino and Manny Villar. If we have eliminated these two as untrustworthy, then we need to look at the other alternatives that are not afraid to say what they want and are not going to be push-overs once elected.

Source: http://antipinoy.com/why-we-cannot-trust-noynoy-and-manny/

Sinungaling si Manny Villar

How Manny Villar lied and used the death of his brother Danny
AS I WRECK THIS CHAIR By William M. Esposo (The Philippine Star) Updated March 28, 2010 12:00 AM

“Nakaranas na ba kayong … mamatayan ng kapatid dahil wala kang pera pangpagamot (Have you experienced losing a brother because you did not have the money to provide him proper medical care)? — Manny Villar asked in his “PANATA (Advocacy)” TV commercial. Villar was referring to his younger brother Danny who passed away on October 1962. In the same commercial, Villar’s 1962 photo with his younger brother was shown.

This portrayal of being poor once upon a time is a fantasy which comes in a series of similar attempts by Villar to create empathy with the nearly 90% of voters who belong to the socio-economic classes D and E. However, this particular attempt to use his late brother Danny to further his political ambition showed that Villar is as capable of lying just like Madame Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA).

Two public documents — the death certificate of Danny B. Villar and the Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT number: 135396/3194) of the 560 square meter property in the upper class San Rafael Village of Navotas where the Villars had lived when Danny died — shattered this ONCE POOR fantasy that Villar has been peddling.

What the San Rafael Village TCT presents:

1. Before 1962, the Villars bought 560 square meters (SQM) of high valued real estate on Bernardo Street in San Rafael Village where the more affluent folks in the Tondo-Navotas area resided.

2. The DEATH CERTIFICATE of the deceased Danny B. Villar established that they were already residing there in 1962.

3. Based on 2009 prices, the P16,000 GSIS (Government Service Insurance System) mortgage mentioned in the TCT — not necessarily the total cost of the two 280 SQM lots — is now the equivalent of P1,140,000.00. Poor people today cannot even borrow P200,000. Those who are familiar with the subdivision say that the cost per SQM in San Rafael Village today would be around P10,000 per SQM or an equivalent of around P5,600,000 for the entire property.

4. Jun Borres, the present owner who is using the 560 SQM property as offices of his firm, Jumbo Fishing, stated that when they bought it in 1987 – it had a one and a half floor house. The ground floor was made of concrete while the upstairs was made of wood. This was typical upper middle class and upper class dwelling in the 1960s.

Implications of the San Rafael Village ownership

1. Together with established Manny Villar bio information, they could not have been dirt poor to be able to move to San Rafael Village before 1962. His mother was a seafood (shrimp, crab and fish) dealer in Divisoria Market, not a fish vendor as what Villar tries to project. A seafood dealer supplies the vendors. For a family of 11, they ate canned corned beef — which Manny Villar admitted on his earlier TV ad. His father was a government official, said to be a Budget Officer of the then DANR (Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources) under which was the Fisheries Bureau. Manny Villar studied in private schools — the Holy Child Catholic School for elementary and Mapua Institute of Technology for High School. Poor folks send their kids to public schools.

2. Villar’s parents must have had a sizeable combined income to be able to buy the San Rafael Village property. The 560 SQM size demonstrates their financial capacity. If they could, poor people buy lots sized less than 100 SQMs. Villar’s father must also be making a sizeable income from the government to be able to borrow P16,000 from the GSIS. In 1962, senior executives in big corporations made monthly salaries of about P2,000.

What Danny B. Villar’s DEATH CERTIFICATE reveals:

1. It is NOT TRUE that Danny died because they were poor and could not afford proper health care. The stated residence in Danny’s death certificate was the San Rafael Village property.

2. The BIG LIE is further proved by the fact that Danny stayed 13 days at the FEU (Far Eastern University) Hospital where he expired at age 3 years and 8 months. If they were really poor, the PGH (Philippine General Hospital) would have been the affordable hospital to bring Danny. He was definitely given proper health care. FEU Hospital was one of the top hospitals in 1962, before the establishment of the Makati Medical Center and St. Luke’s Hospital.

3. Danny died from CARDIAC and RESPIRATORY FAILURE resulting from COMPLICATIONS OF LEUKEMIA. In 1962, there was no bone marrow transplantation and chemotherapy yet and everyone whether rich or poor died from contracting leukemia.

4. Upon Danny’s death, his remains were turned over to LA FUNERARIA PAZ — then, until now, considered one of the top two mortuaries (Funeraria Nacional, the other). This further disproved Manny Villar’s claim that Danny died because they did not have the money to take care of him.

When Iggy Arroyo was seen as having taken the Jose Pidal rap for his elder brother Mike, many folks felt that it was rather low of Mike Arroyo to place his younger brother at risk. Our culture expects the older brother to protect the younger brother.

In that regard, we can consider Manny Villar as having done worse than Mike Arroyo. At least, Iggy Arroyo was alive and kicking and he could have opted to stay out of the Jose Pidal controversy. But in the case of Manny and Danny Villar, Danny was used to promote a myth when Danny was in no position to agree to his elder brother Manny’s portrayal of his death.

With the propagation of this ONCE POOR fantasy, don’t you think that Manny Villar also desecrated the memory and honor of his parents who strove to be able to provide their children quality education and an upper class domicile?

If Manny Villar can lie and use his dead younger brother like this, what makes you think that he will really improve and not worsen your life? What makes you think that he is not as greedy as he is being charged in this presidential campaign? What makes you think that you can trust Manny Villar?

* * *

 Chair   Wrecker   e-mail and website: macesposo@yahoo.com and www.chairwrecker.com

Pati bibliya gustong baligtarin ni Money Villarroyo manalo lang sa eleksiyon, hesus maryosep!

—– Forwarded Message —-
From: Money Villarroyo
To: Elizabeth Alim
Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2010 9:19:58 AM
Subject: PATI BIBLIYA GUSTONG BALIGTARIN NI MANNY VILLARROYO MANALO LANG SA ELEKSIYON, HESUS MARYOSEP!

http://www.mabuhayradio.com/sections/humor-a-satire/5334-the-battle-for-the-philippine-presidency-is-now-of-biblical-proportion.htm

Comic Relief for the 2010 Philippine Presidential Election

By Tom Seyer

Senior Correspondent, Coconut News Network (CNN Kuno, as coined originally by Romeo P. Marquez)

It seems that all Filipino presidential candidates are running after the so-called “Catholic vote.” But please read Bobby Reyes’ article, Is There a “Catholic Vote” in the Philippines? and perhaps you may agree with the author that it is an exercise in futility because almost all of the presidential candidates are Catholic.

The “Biblical Battle” for the 2010 Philippine presidency started in the Vatican when President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo told the Pope that “God told her to run in the 2004 presidential election.”

Bro. Eddie Villanueva, who was one of Mrs. Arroyo’s opponents in the 2004 presidential campaign, said allegedly that God denied to him that the Almighty ever talked to Mrs. Arroyo. Brother Eddie was overheard saying that he talks to God almost daily and he was assured that Mrs. Arroyo was not one of the Almighty’s phone pals.

However, supporters of Ang Kapatiran Party’s presidential candidate, JC de los Reyes, say that their man is actually the candidate of many Catholic bishops and priests. They claim that the name “JC de los Reyes” means “Jesus Christ of the Kings.”

But former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada allegedly said that he is the only candidate who really follows the Bible. He was said to have reasoned out that after all he observes to the limit God’s command to “go forth and multiply,” as found in Genesis 1:28.

Then former President Erap said that he has made peace with the Catholic bishops as found in these articles:

Détente between Erap and the CBCP (Part I of “Erap and the Bishops”)

Part II of Erap and the Bishops

Erap and the Bishops (Part III)

The supporters of Sen. Noynoy Aquino say that many Catholic voters will vote for their candidate, as he is the son of the yet-to-be-canonized third Filipino saint, former President Cory Cojuangco-Aquino.

However, supporters of presidential front runner Manuel Villar claim that actually Senator Villar was originally baptized as Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” The Villar supporters also say that ancient Hebrew text regarded the name “Emmanuel” as a pledge of Divine assistance and, therefore, God will not abandon Mr. Villar on election day.

Then the pro-Villar campaigners say that as alphabetically listed, Senator Villar is last in the list. But as found in the Gospel (Matthew 20:16), Jesus declares that in the world to come, “The last shall be first and the first last.” Ergo, Manny Villar wins, if voters will follow the Bible.

Letters of Paul

In the meantime, Paul Villar is being urged by members of the Media Breakfast Club (MBC) to start writing campaign letters. Paul is the Southern California-based nephew of Senator Villar and who was assigned to be the liaison man of the Villar Campaign to the MBC members.

The MBC members suggest that the campaign letters carry these titles:

Letter of Paul to the Corynthians (the supporters of former President Cory Cojuangco-Aquino),

Letter of Paul to the Pilipians (these are the Corynthians who eat a lot of pili nuts),

Letter of Paul to the Gibotians (the followers of presidential candidate Gibo Cojuangco-Teodoro, Jr.), and

Letter of Paul to Galasians (Galas is a district in Quezon City).

Who owns a house like this?

Even if you don’t care about houses just take a look:

Who would have such taste or live in such opulence?

An American Billionaire?
A Saudi Prince?
Louis XIV of France ?

Savour the pictures then scroll to the bottom of the page to see who owns this Work of Art.

This Mansion is in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA and belongs to:
Senator Manny Villar of the PHILIPPINES

While Filipinos starve, and die because of abject poverty ….and while Sen. Villar brags that he had poor beginnings and he had helped his poor countrymen over and over again… but look now.. he and his family live like this…….his GREED kills his poverty stricken fellow Filipinos .  So please consider this seriously in the upcoming elections.
PLEASE send this to everyone you know.
They can send it to everyone they know.
Soon Filipinos around the world will know what this man is doing to the people he wishes to serve if elected President.

This is a Forwarded Email.

Source:
Investec Out of the Ordinary
Please consider the environment before printing this email.

What’s Villar Running For, or From?

FRANKLY SPEAKING
by Frank Wenceslao

Many overseas Filipinos are asking: Is Sen. Manuel Villar running for uplifting our poor countrymen, or from prosecution for the crimes he, Mrs. Villar and close associates are probably guilty of in their rush to build up a real estate development empire and mind-boggling personal net worth of close to $1 billion in only 16 years while the couple is members of Congress?

Up to now Villar maintains he’s from a poor Tondo family. Hence, using as baseline his 1992 statement of assets, liabilities and net worth when first elected to Congress it’s incredible he’d build up a billion-dollar net worth at the end of 2008 even under the most favorable conditions, hence beyond the realm of statistical probability.

Villar should’ve known once he announced his run for president the evidence of his wrongdoings will emerge. Or could this really be his plan to brave the run perhaps by buying the office for it’d be his “safe harbor” anyway? Note that Villar’s spending money for his campaign as though really running from the arms of law.

Another bomb was unleashed by former Senate president Franklin Drilon last week that Villar’s company, Crown Communities Iloilo, bought 12.7 hectares in Jibao-an, Pavia, Iloilo from farmer beneficiaries and converted this first-class irrigated rice land into a residential enclave, Savannah Subdivision.

Drilon claims that under the law, it is illegal to convert first-class irrigated agricultural land into a subdivision. That’s exactly what Villar did in developing the Savannah Subdivision. Drilon charged Villar of the crime as he presented tax declarations and other documents obtained from the provincial government.

Drilon said Villar had obtained approval of the Department of Agrarian Reform to convert the agriculture land into a residential area only in 2007, seven years after construction of the subdivision started in 2000. Hence, a criminal act has gone on for 5 years before the conversion was approved, which should’ve sufficed for the DAR to file criminal action unless, of course, Villar fixed it.

Drilon added that Villar used P4 million of his pork barrel funds to build a 585-meter national road that led right into the entrance of Savannah. “This is the only public works project of Villar in the province,” said Drilon at the Iloilo press conference.

Drilon said that Villar, not content with the 12-hectare Savannah property, bought the adjoining rice lands in the area and amassed a total of 250 hectares of land to expand his residential community. The farmers had no choice but to sell their property, said Drilon, because their irrigation supply had been cut off with Villar’s conversion of the Savannah property which was the primary source of water in the area.

Is this a sample of Villar’s social conscience he’d bring to the presidency?

Drilon, who naturally faces a libel suit if his claims weren’t true, said the source of water was cut off and led to the destruction of irrigation canals whose costs should be charged to Villar the same way the Senate is asking him to reimburse the government of close to P7 billion for the feasibility studies, engineering design and plans, and other preparatory work wasted when Villar’s pressured DPWH officials to change the C-5 road extension alignment to “snake” through and provide ingress and egress for 23 Villar-owned or controlled housing subdivisions arching over parts of Metro Manila, Cavite and Laguna.

Villar’s workers back-filled the canals so they can be classified as non-serviceable, said Drilon, who noted that the value of Villar’s Pavia property in Iloilo shot up to P3,500 per square meter from less than P150 per square meter.

Drilon further said, “This is what we call C-5 and a half. Regardless if it is only half a kilometer, it shows the lack of decency on the part of the developer, Senator Villar, who simply set aside all interest of the CARP beneficiaries to be able to pursue his business interests. The C-5 controversy is simply a tip [of] the iceberg. It is a pattern we now see. We are aware of other subdivisions all over the country where similar practice was followed.”

As usual, Villar dismissed the charges the same way he did the Senate Committee Report No. 780 on the C-5 road extension scandal which, according to Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, a Harvard-trained lawyer, presents a strong case against Villar and if the issue was brought to court and handled by a good prosecutor, the presidential aspirant “will end up in jail.”

Sen. Jamby Madrigal who first brought the charges on C-5 against Villar and his corporations for the insertions he made in the national budget to cover the road extension costs. The insertions are the same as “earmarks” that brought members of the US Congress to jail.

There’s another property bought by Northwinds Prime Properties Inc. (a Villar company) for the amount of Php120,196,780.00 from Sta. Lucia Realty and Development Corp. was mortgaged to Capitol Development Bank (a Villar-owned thrift bank) under the name of ADR Farms in the amount of Php150,000,000.00 on July 4, 1996 which was used as collateral for a Php1,500,000,000.00 emergency loan from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and eventually sold to RCBC Savings Bank by Capitol Bank and then finally bought back by Palmera Homes Inc. (another Villar company).

Here again is a criminal act involving the BSP in questionable private business transactions whose benefits solely accrued to Villar’s owned Capitol Development Bank, Palmera Homes Inc. and, of course, himself.

It’s a fact an important aspect of a crime an investigator looks into is modus operandi. It’s undeniable that Villar’s MO is to acquire undeveloped lands that a road project is planned or can be made to traverse which he’d hasten through insertions in the national budget or using his pork barrel for road construction to the property, inflate its loan value and borrow housing development funds from government lending institutions.

Very neat, isn’t it? Even Mafia mobsters wanting to go legitimate couldn’t have thought of such criminal enterprise. Pamusa’s volunteer Filipino counsels are unanimous that Villar is probably guilty of “corrupt practices of public officers” under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) Sections 3(a) and 3(e).

Overseas Filipinos are urging the Ombudsman and Integrated Bar of the Philippines members to act immediately and cleanse our electoral system so an elective office especially the presidency in Villar’s case or Congress in Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s case wouldn’t be a “safe harbor” for crimes they’ve committed with impunity.

Moreover, there’re surely evidence that GMA and Villar have “seriously violated laws on US soil” which the FBI can immediately investigate under the US-RP Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty and file the needed legal action in the US which should compel GMA and Villar to withdraw their candidacies, to wit:

1. Mail or Wire Fraud – transferring to the U.S. illegally earned funds or from the proceeds of corruption.

2. Money Laundering – transferring, investing and depositing in the U.S. banking or financial system illegally earned funds or from the proceeds of corruption.

3. Racketeering – violation of the RICO Act which provides that a person who is a member of an enterprise that has committed any two of 35 crimes—27 federal and 8 state crimes —within a 10-year period can be charged with racketeering. Those found guilty of racketeering can be fined up to $250,000 and/or sentenced to 20 years in prison per racketeering count. In addition, the racketeer must forfeit all ill-gotten gains and interest in any business gained through a pattern of “racketeering activity.” RICO also permits a private individual harmed by the actions of such an enterprise to file a civil suit; if successful, the individual can collect treble damages.

When the United States Attorney (prosecutor) decides to indict someone under RICO, he or she has the option of seeking a pre-trial restraining order or injunction to temporarily seize a defendant’s assets and prevent the transfer of potentially forfeitable property, as well as require the defendant to put up a performance bond. This provision was placed in the law because the owners of Mafia-related shell corporation often absconded with the assets. An injunction and/or performance bond ensures that there is something to seize in the event of a guilty verdict.

In many cases, the threat of a RICO indictment can force defendants to plead guilty to lesser charges, in part because the seizure of assets would make it difficult to pay a defense attorney. Despite its harsh provisions, a RICO-related charge is considered easy to prove in court, as it focuses on patterns of behavior as opposed to criminal acts.

Norwalk, CA – 021310

Source: http://globalbalita.com/2010/02/14/whats-villar-running-for-or-from/

teodoroyo… villarroyo…

—– Forwarded Message —-
From: dumagat bulacan
To: indira dosa gaces
Sent: Friday, February 19, 2010 9:37:33
Subject: si gibo, si pangulong ARROYO at si MANNY VILLARROYO

Kawawang Gibo, harapang pinapakitaan ng senyales ng kanyang among si PGMA na si Manny Villarroyo ang minamanok nito para sa pampanguluhang halalan.

Pagmasdan kung kahawig ni PGMA ang litratong nasa ibaba. Dito masusubukan ang linaw ng inyong mga mata para mabatid kung kailangan na ninyong magsuot ng salamin sa darating na botohan

Bolante’s partymates support Villar-Legarda tandem

by AMITA O. LEGASPI, GMANews.TV
02/17/2010 | 11:09 PM

BALETE, Aklan—A local party pushing for the gubernatorial candidacy of former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn ‘Jocjoc’ Bolante on Wednesday expressed support for the presidential and vice-presidential bids of Senators Manuel Villar Jr. and Loren Legarda, respectively.

Capiz mayors who are members of Ugyon Kita Capiz (Unite Capiz) also support the entire ticket of the Nacionalista Party (NP), Capiz councilor Monchit Acuna Alvar said during a press conference held at the house of Aklan Vice Governor Gabrielle Calizo-Quimpo in this town.

Bolante, who was implicated in the fertilizer fund scam that the Senate began to investigate in 2006, will be running for Capiz governor under the Ugyon banner against incumbent reelectionist Governor Victor Tanco Sr., who is running under the LP banner.

Alvar, althought a third cousin of Liberal Party (LP) vice-presidential bet Manuel Roxas II, explained why the Ugyon party aligned itself with the NP slate.

“We believe in the ideals of Senator Villar and Senator Loren, that is why we are here supporting the Villar-Legarda tandem,” Alvar said.

Among the members of Ugyon are Roxas City Mayor Vicente Bermejo and Sapian Mayor Turic Orozco. They were among the 17 former members of LP who decided to form their own political party.

“We are more convinced that Senator Villar and Senator Loren can lead the country,” Alvar added.

When asked if NP will reciprocate the Ugyon’s support, Villar said the talks are at the level of the mayors only.

“Kami ay nakatanggap ng suporta at tinatanggap namin yan sa mga mayors. Hindi pa kami nagkakausap sa governor o sa congressman (We received support from the mayors and we acknowledge that. We have not talked yet with the governor or congressman),” the NP standard bearer said.

Villar insisted that he has not talked with Bolante, and that he is not even sure the former agriculture official will support him in the May polls.

“Sa ngayon ay masaya kami na meron kaming suporta ng mga mayor. Hindi pa namin alam kung sino-sino ang kumpletong susuporta sa amin (For now, we are glad that we have the mayors’ support. We don’t know yet the complete set of those who will support us),” he said.

“Hindi naman kami sumusuporta pa formally. But nakikita ko na eventually mag-uusap, yun lamang, hanggang dun lang muna tayo at hindi pa kami handang sabihin kung sino ang pinal na magkakasama at hindi din naman nila sinasabi, to be fair with them,” Villar added.

(We’re not yet supporting them formally. But I see that there will be talks eventually, only that we can’t say more than that, and we’re not yet ready to say who will finally be with whom, and they are not revealing this anyway, to be fair with them.)

He also clarified that Bolante is not a member of NP. However, when asked if he welcomes the idea that the mayors supporting him are also supporting Bolante, Villar said: “Desisyon na nila yun as to who they will vote for governor, kung sino ang gusto nila for senators, for president, desisyon nila yun (it’s their decision who they will vote for as governor, who they want for senator, for president, that’s their decision).”

For her part, Legarda asked the public not to link with NP “other candidates na ni anino nila hindi pa namin nakikita (whose very shadows we haven’t even seen).”

Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo, one of the critics of Bolante and now NP guest senatorial candidate, said Villar was careful in acknowledging the support of the mayors who are also backing the candidacy of Bolante.

“The new party is essentially a united break-away action from the LP. Logically, it opted to back up the strongest rival of LP—the NP,” Ocampo said.

Bolante was implicated by the Senate in 2006 as deeply involved in the diversion of some P728 million in so-called fertilizer funds that were supposed to benefit poor farmers but went instead to local government officials and from there, many suspect, to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s campaign kitty in the 2004 presidential elections.

The former agriculture official fled to the US to avoid the Senate hearings on the fertilizer fund scam. Failing to get US asylum, however, he was deported back to the Philippines in October 2008 and placed by the Senate under hospital arrest.

He was never formally charged in court, however, and was even able to file his certificate of candidacy for the Capiz gubernatorial race. —JV, GMANews.TV

Villar Unfit for President or Public Trust

20 January 2010 14 Comments

FRANKLY SPEAKING
by Frank Wenceslao

My Pamusa colleagues and I were alarmed by Nene Pimentel’s and Alan Peter Cayetano’s reaction to the Senate committee of the whole finding Manny Villar to have engaged in improper and unethical conduct as though they give more weight to procedure than the evidence adduced from the investigation.

Being lawyers, such attitude keeps the Philippines locked on a slippery slope and pushed by cavalier regard for the rule of law to continue rapid deterioration until a disaster drives the country into chaos and ungovernable like Haiti.

The Senate found Villar the proponent of the C-5 extension and another major project, the eight-lane Daang Hari linking Cavite to Laguna through Las Piñas and Bacoor. Instead of a straight alignment as sound engineering requires, the road projects “snake” through Villar-owned or controlled corporations (VOCCs) to provide ingress and egress for their 23 subdivisions.

Villar evidently pressured Dept. of Public Works and Higways (DPWH) officials to discard previous feasibility study, engineering design and plans including their cost likely funded from official development assistance (ODA). It behooves every objective Filipino to ask therefore if the Senate broadened its inquiry to include the resources lost and new funds needed specially appropriated for the change of plans that are unlawful and immoral act Villar is criminally liable.

Moreover, the alignment of the C-5 segment of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway Project was changed by the Toll Regulatory Board to conform to the revised plans for two road projects, which meant additional costs that could’ve been better used for some other budgetary needs.

VOCCs’ properties that are traversed by the C-5 extension and Daang Hari road projects got zonal valuation higher than previously given to their location which again resulted from pressuring the concerned bureaucrats in order to jack up the ROW prices paid to VOCCs.

Will the justice system under GMA continue with Villar if he wins the presidency to govern worse than her administration? How could Villar address graft and corruption when like GMA he’d be among the first to be targeted for prosecution?

The Senate report only recommended the return and restitution by Villar to the Philippine Treasury of the money or pecuniary advantage “he has or his companies have illegally gained or obtained as a result of unlawful acts and improper and unethical conduct” instead of forwarding the evidence and recommending to the Ombudsman to file criminal action.

The losses are P4.28 billion for the C-5 extension project, P1.8 billion original project cost that was wasted and P141.1 million for overpriced ROW payments to VOCCs tantamount to technical malversation. The report was released before Congress took its holiday break last month to get the signature of senators. It needs the signature of the majority of senators or 12 for it to be reported out in the plenary as though not signing it will absolve Villar of criminal liability.

Clearly, Villar while Senate President and finance committee chairman during the time his unlawful actions were taken didn’t only violate the Constitution and the Code of Conduct of Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees (RA 6713) but, more so, Sec. 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019). The senators swept the latter under the rug which provides that in addition to acts or omissions of public officers already penalized by existing law, the following shall constitute corrupt practices and therefore criminally actionable, to wit:

“(e) Causing any undue injury to any party, including the Government, or giving any private party any unwarranted benefits, advantage or preference in the discharge of his official administrative or judicial functions through manifest partiality, evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence. x x x x x x x x.” (Underscoring mine).

Villar acted unlawfully using his government positions to pressure DPWH officials to do his bidding making them co-conspirators when they agreed that the C-5 extension be realigned contrary to sound engineering practice to “snake” through and provide ingress and egress to at least 23 subdivisions of VOCCs that yielded Villar “unwarranted benefits, advantage or preference,” to wit:

1. Income for ROWs at jacked-up prices and payment contrary to a policy of prorating annual appropriations according to the age of an account; hence, VOCCs shouldn’t have been paid ahead of others waiting for payment years before ROWs were expropriated from their properties.

2. Aside the higher prices at inflated zonal valuation paid for ROWs expropriated from their properties, VOCCs were given unwarranted benefits in the rise of market prices of the houses and lots, vacant properties still to be developed, their collateral values and VOCCs’ borrowing capacity with government-owned or controlled corporations (GOCCs) such as PAG-IBIG, National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC), SSS, GSIS and others. All of which is detrimental to home buyers since it’s the government that enabled VOCCs to earn additional profits earned without adding a centavo of equity.

3. VOCCs became the country’s biggest group of companies engaged in real estate development. In an interview by a reporter Mrs. Cynthia Villar unabashedly claimed the group starting virtually from scratch has built 200,000 housing units across all income classes.

The Villars have always prided in their rags-to-riches story. It’s thus logical to conclude their PhP43 billion ($940M) net worth as of 2008 is ill-gotten and beyond statistical probability that came from what the US Justice Department considers “a process or series of actions through which income of illegal origin is concealed, disguised, or made to appear legitimate (main objective); and to evade detection, prosecution, seizure, and taxation” practiced by the Mafia, international drug traffickers, terrorist financiers, and corrupt government officials.

The investigation of the Senate began in June 2009 based on the allegations of Senators Panfilo Lacson and Jamby Madrigal that Villar inserted “earmarks” of doubling the P200-million funding for the C-5 extension project in the 2008 national budget and pressuring DPWH officials to change its alignment to benefit VOCCs. The Senate concluded Villar violated Sections 12 and 14, Article VI of the Constitution by failing to notify the Senate of a “potential conflict of interest” when he proposed an amendment to the 2008 national budget by appropriating P400 million … for a project that would benefit his corporations and which amount may be used to pay the claims of his corporations for unpaid road right-of-way compensation” (Sec. 12) and for intervening in the project with the DPWH for his “pecuniary benefit.” (Sec. 14).

It’s as though the Senate wanted Villar’s culpability limited on ethical grounds and swept under the rug the crimes Villar probably committed inferred from the report. The truth of the matter is Joker Arroyo already leveled similar charges against Villar when they’re members of the House of Representatives from 1992-98 for violating the Constitution and RA 6713, which I’ve modified, paraphrased and updated in parts, as follows:

Charge I.  Villar’s low cost housing development business has been totally dependent on GOCCs and government financial institutions (GFIs). VOCCs were given accommodations by GOCCs and GFIs while Villar’s a House member and had stint as Speaker from 1992-1998 for financing their housing projects.

Charge II.  From 1992-98 Villar didn’t divest himself of his holdings or severed interest in VOCCs that eventually became a housing conglomerate, Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. whose subsidiaries have been renamed: Brittany Corporation, Camella Homes, Crown Asia and Camella Communities.

When Villar was a House member, then senator he didn’t sever his interests either in VOCCs and their successors when they continued to be granted loans and financial accommodations by GOCCs and GFIs. Villar violated the Constitution and RA No. 6713 because the latter specifically requires, as follows:

“Divestment – A public official or employee should avoid conflicts of interest at all times.  When a conflict of interest arises, he shall resign from his position in any private business enterprise within thirty (30) days from his assumption of office and/or divest himself of his shareholdings or interest within sixty (60) days from such assumption.” (Underscoring mine).

Charge III.  Villar during his tenure in the House and Senate to the present hasn’t divested interests in VOCCs.  While Speaker, Villar arrogantly declared he’s in no hurry to divest because he’s under no obligation to do so – a continuing violation. He should’ve fired his lawyer then.

Charge IV.  Villar controls Capitol Bank where Mrs. Villar is the CEO while a House member. Capitol received loans, financial accommodations and guarantees from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas from 1992-98. The husband and wife were members of Congress in 2004 when Capitol had a bank run and obtained BSP loan.  That’s constitutionally forbidden.

Paraphrasing Arroyo, the constitutional prohibition is simple.  If a member of the House, namely: Villar or wife has controlling interest in a private firm or business entity, it can’t be extended a loan, guaranty or any financial accommodation for any business purpose by GOCCs or GFIs unless both have first divested of personal interest in the firm.

Surprisingly, the Senate report alluded only to Villar’s violation of the conflict-of-interest rule (RA 6713) by not divesting himself of his interests in VOCCs with contracts with the DPWH for ROW acquisition. The report found Villar had significant stockholdings in VOCCs that benefited from ROW payments on top of diverting said road projects to “snake” through their subdivisions to provide ingress and egress.

IN CONCLUSION, probable cause exists that the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and the Anti-Plunder Law (RA 7080) have been violated by Villar et al.  Surely, Mr. and Mrs. Villar’s pecuniary benefits derived from abovementioned unlawful acts contributed to the growth of their PhP43 billion ($940M) net worth.

The Senate report somehow tried to mitigate Villar’s criminal acts by saying he hadn’t directly participated in overpricing his properties as though the Senate’s oversupply of lawyers wasn’t sufficient to conclude that ignorance isn’t an excuse in violating the law.
If there should be restitution, therefore, the Senate should vote to expel Villar forthwith; demand that the Ombudsman file the complaint for the violation of the anti-graft and anti-plunder laws and let the chips where they may; and seek a restraining order or preliminary injunction for the Court to temporarily sequester the Villars’ assets and prevent the transfer to other parties of potentially forfeitable property to the state.

Moreover, it should be unmistakably clear for Villar to withdraw his candidacy for the presidency because no way the Filipino people will consider him trustworthy to occupy the highest government position or any public office.

Norwalk, CA – 01/18/10

Source: http://globalbalita.com/2010/01/20/villar-unfit-for-president-or-public-trust/

Manny Villar’s Supporters Are Red In The Face

—– Forwarded Message —-
From: dumagat bulacan
To: bebe bebe
Subject: MANNY VILLAR’S SUPPORTERS ARE RED IN THE FACE

Get Real
Refuting Manny’s defenders
By Solita Collas-Monsod
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 22:33:00 02/05/2010

IN RESPONSE TO LAST WEEK’S COLUMN where I presented some incontrovertible facts regarding the ethics case against Sen. Manny Villar, I received an e-mail from one Danilo Suarez of Quezon City. He wrote: “Read your column re your take on C5 and Sen. Villar’s ‘involvement.’ In the interest of fairness, I exhort you, as a supporter of Sen. Villar, to also check his official website and his side on the matter. I trust you would put this out as you search for the truth …. Looking forward to reading about it in your column.”

My reply: “Dear Mr. Suarez, If there is anything erroneous in any of the statements of fact that were published in my column, please feel free to point them out, together with the documents you have that will allow me to verify that they are indeed erroneous. As you may have noticed, the A’s in my column can be verified by documents and uncontroverted statements from official sources, which I was very careful to cite, precisely so that readers like you can check them. I am certainly glad that Mr. Villar has aired his side on his website. That is his choice. It is mine to look at the government documents and the sworn testimony that are part of the Senate record. I look forward to Mr. Villar’s defending himself in a venue that allows for clarificatory questions and refutations. That is, after all, part and parcel of transparency and accountability that are so necessary for good governance. Regards.”

The Inquirer also forwarded me an e-mail from Ma. Nalen Rosero-Galang, who identifies herself as legal counsel for Senator Villar. I also received a paper titled “C-5 sound and fury: Is Monsod painting the full picture? Student rebukes professor” by Ricardo G. Barcelona of Spain, who identifies himself firstly as “a former student of Prof. Monsod,” before going on to reciting the rest of his impressive curriculum vitae. I am honored that he considers his being my former student (albeit a rebuking one) more important than the rest of his professional achievements.

For the most part, both Galang and Barcelona do not contest the facts presented in last week’s column. An exception is when Galang asserts that “There is no evidence whatsoever that the alignment of the C5 Road Extension was determined by Senator Villar, or that its alignment was changed in order that it should pass through the real estate properties of Senator Villar’s companies.” Excuse me, Ms Galang: May I remind you that per the Department of Public Works and Highways, Senator Villar conceptualized and initially funded both the CX-5 and the Las Piñas-Parañaque Link Road project. That is in black and white in the DPWH project feasibility studies.

Both do contest what I considered a reasonable conclusion: that since there was already an ongoing (MCTEP) linking C-5 to the Coastal Road, it was unnecessary (and therefore wasteful) to build a second one. Galang argues that both were necessary, given the “worsening traffic condition (sic) in Parañaque, Las Piñas and Cavite.” Barcelona argues that it was not a case of wastefulness, but rather of creating choices for motorists.

To Ms Galang: where in urban Philippines are traffic conditions not worsening? To Mr. Barcelona: MCTEP was conceived precisely to create choices for motorists. There already exists a current road network, toll-free, that will allow motorists to move from SLEX to the Coastal Road. MCTEP would give them the choice of going from point A to Point B more quickly—as long as they are willing to pay for the convenience. Giving motorists a third choice, in the context of competing demands on scarce resources, cannot be—never mind, should not be—defended. Giving motorists a third choice, while at the same time ensuring that the third-choice road passes through Villar-owned properties (I notice neither Galang nor Barcelona refuted the 50-52 hectare area involved), is even less defensible.

Then there is the matter of zonal valuation. Barcelona is correct to point out a seemingly inconsistent set of estimates: In my column, I stated (not suggested—it is a matter of arithmetic), that the Villar lots were acquired at an average price of P7,168/sq m while non-Villar properties went for P1,880/sq m. In my analysis for News on Q, which was earlier taped, the figures I gave were P11,520 and P2,922 respectively (not the P11,000 and P4,500 that Barcelona cites. Tsk.). Inconsistent? No. The P11,520 figure refers only to the properties that are directly Villar-owned. The P7,168 figure refers to direct properties and those in joint-venture with Villar companies. Please note that I used the lower figures in my column.

To Barcelona: Do not put words in my mouth. I was not suggesting that capital gains linked to proximity to public works should accrue to government. And there is a world of difference between the Hacienda Luisita issue and the Villar properties issue: (1) Noynoy Aquino probably owns less than 2 percent of Luisita, Villar owns 100 percent of his properties; and (2) Villar conceived and initially funded CX-5/LPPLP; Aquino had zilch to do with SCTEX. Tsk.

Moral of the story: Do not rebuke your teacher using insinuations and without full knowledge of the facts. My fault is that I didn’t teach him any better.

Finally, I cannot resist quoting Joker Arroyo, circa 1998: “So in the case of Speaker Villar, it is simple. If he wants to go/continue in business and deal with government financial institutions, he can do so but he cannot also be a congressman. If he wants to be a congressman, then he must not be in business which deals with the government. We have to pay a price.” Amen.

Thank You Mareng Winnie For Letting Us See The Light!

—– Forwarded Message —-
From: dumagat bulacan
To: Ma. Janerey Dumelod
Sent: Monday, February 8, 2010 9:09:46
Subject: THANK YOU MARENG WINNIE FOR LETTING US SEE THE LIGHT!

Manny Villar blameless?

By Solita Collas-Monsod
Philippine Daily Inquirer
01/30/2010

WHILE the Senate is declaring a moratorium on the discussion of the ethics case against Sen. Manny Villar, here are some incontrovertible facts, presented in Q & A form. The source of the information is also given.

• Question: What roadway projects are the subject matter of the Villar ethics controversy?
  
  Answer:
  1. The Manila Cavite Toll Expressway Project (MCTEP), the original C-5 south extension project, linking SLEX with the Coastal Road;
  2. the DPWH C-5 Extension project (CX-5), which together with
  3. the Las Piñas-Parañaque Link Project (LPPLP), also links SLEX with the Coastal Road. Source: Senate Report (SR) 780.
• Q: Is the CX-5/LPPLP project a realignment, as Sen. Jamby Madrigal describes it, or has there been no realignment, as Senator Villar’s allies insist?A: Technically there has been no realignment, because these are two separate roads linking C-5 from SLEX to the Coastal Road. But they are very close together and, in some areas, overlap, as can be ascertained from a site map.
  
  Source: interactive map available at www.gmanews.tv: http://www.gmanews.tv/story/182541/the-c5-extension-controversy-an-interactive-map
• Q: Are there any differences between the MCTEP and the CX-5/LPPLP?A: Yes.
  1. The MCTEP is a joint-venture project between the government and a private Malaysian partner, with the government’s financial exposure limited to P2.68 billion for the purchase of the road right-of-way; the private partner is responsible for the construction of the project, for which tolls will be charged. The CX-5/LPPLP is a toll-free, wholly-financed government project costing P6.96 billion;
  2. The CX-5/LPPLP is longer than the MCTEP, its extra length essentially covering the LPPLP portion;
  3. The CX-5/LPPLP passes through more Villar properties than the MCTEP.Source: DPWH project documents cited as Exhibits A, B and TTTT in SR 780; site map from www.gmanews.tv.
• Q: How large are the Villar company landholdings in the immediate vicinity of the questioned road projects?A: At least 50-52 hectares: 40 hectares in the vicinity of the LPPLP; 10-12 hectares in the area between Sucat Road and Multinational Avenue.

Source: testimony of Anastacio Adriano Jr., senior vice president and general manager, chief operating officer of Adelfa Properties Inc. and other Villar-owned companies up to 2008; self-styled consultant and political officer of Senator Villar since August 2008. Nota bene: Senate employment records do not include his name.

Nota bene: it is not clear whether the 50-52 hectares mentioned above include properties cited in SR 780—roughly 10 hectares in area—to be developed by Villar companies in joint venture with their owners.

• Q: What is the involvement of Villar in CX-5 and LPPLP? A:
  1. The Project Feasibility Study of the DPWH for CX-5 states: “The conceptualization of and the initial release of funds for the CX-5 Project was initiated by Sen. Manuel Villar whose same efforts also paved the way for the funding of the Las Piñas-Parañaque Link Road [LPPLP]”;
  2. Various insertions and amendments (Priority Development Assistance Fund, read pork barrel) in the national government budget over the years 2002-2008 for CX-5 and LPPLP;
  3. Adriano (cited above), in the office of and presence of Villar, dictating to the director general of the Senate’s Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office (LBRMO) Villar’s proposed amendments to the 2008 budget, including a P400-million appropriation for the CX-5.

Source: documents submitted by DPWH, lawyer Yolanda Doblon of the LBRMO, testimony of both Doblon and Adriano, cited in SR 780.

• Q: Were the Villar properties bought for road right-of-way overpriced?
  A: SR 780 argues for the affirmative; PSR 1472 (the resolution signed by Villar and his allies exonerating him from all charges) argues for the negative. This calls for a conclusion of the reader.

And to help that along, I have—based on the documented prices and acreage of the lands purchased in connection with the LPPLP—computed the weighted average prices that were paid for the Villar and related properties, and those paid for the non-Villar properties.

The results: The Villar/related properties, comprising 23,455 square meters, were bought for P168.1 million. The non-Villar properties, comprising 11,685 square meters, were bought for P22 million. That comes to a weighted average of P7,168 per square meter for Villar’s properties, and P1,880 per square meter for the non-Villar properties. That has to be a statistically significant difference.

Given the above facts—which no one can contest, since they are based on official documents, and not on a he-says-she-says set of assertions—it has to be reasonable to conclude:

1. Since there was already an ongoing project (the MCTEP) linking C-5 to the Coastal Road, it was totally unnecessary to build a second one.
2. Which means that there was a waste of scarce resources. Instead of using only P2.6 billion of government funds for the first project, the government had to spend an additional P6.9 billion for the second, which practically duplicated the first, except for the additional length which happily for Senator Villar, traversed his properties.
3. This unnecessary, wasteful project was certainly Villar’s idea. It is specious to argue that it is a DPWH project. As the DPWH feasibility study states (in black and white), both the CX-5 and the LPPLP were conceived and initially funded by Villar.
4. Villar benefited tremendously from the second project. Certainly, his companies were paid significantly more per square meter for the road right of way (which were mostly bought from him). But that pales into insignificance compared with the tremendous increase in the values of his real estate holdings in the area—at least 50-52 hectares.

Is he blameless? Is the Pope protestant? ###

**This article taken in its entirety and reformatted but not edited, from The Philippine Daily Inquirer: http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20100130-250236/Manny-Villar-blameless**