Noynoy Out Now! Ano o Sino ang ipapalit?
Launching of NOYNOY OUT NOW!
Quezon City Sports Club
March 5, 2015
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Aquino’s criminal liability — 5 cases
At the public launch of NOW! (Noynoy Out Now), presented March 5, 2015, Atty. Edre Olalia of the NUPL (National Union of People’s Lawyers) cited Pres. Aquino’s criminal liability in at least five cases: 1) DAP; 2) EDCA; 3) Yolanda; 4) Impunity; and 5) Mamasapano.
KMU: Game Over, Aquino Resign
Multisectoral groups led by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) resume protest in Mendiola to press for Aquino’s resignation in the aftermath of the bloody Mamasapano incident. This time the groups were joined by the students from different universities in Manila who marched from different points going to Mendiola. It was the first big protest march to Mendiola one month after the Mamasapano incident.
Mendiola, Manila
February 27, 2015
Groups resume protests in Mendiola to press for Aquino’s resignation
Mendiola, Manila
February 27, 2015
Various groups today marched to the historic mendiola bridge to again press for the resignation of President Benigno Aquino III in the aftermath of the bloody Mamasapano incident. This time the multisectoral groups were joined by students from different universities in Manila who marched from different points going to Mendiola. It was the first big protest march to Mendiola one month after the Mamasapano incident.
“From EDSA we return to Mendiola, which is near the seat of power. We come from various communities, school and workplaces demanding that the current leadership step down and that a People’s Council for National Unity, Reforms and Peace be established,”said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
“The people’s demand for genuine change is spreading across the country. The lying president must go along with the rotten social system. People Power should lead to something more beneficial than just a change of leadership and a return to the old ways,” he added.
Speakers at the protest action discussed Aquino’s role in the Mamasapano incident, corruption issues, human rights violations, failed social services and other economic issues.
The protests come at a time when the French president Francois Hollande is holding a 2-day state visit to the Philippines. “Aside from brushing up on his French, now would be good time for Aquino to read up on the French revolution to remember what motivates people to rise up in struggle,” Reyes added.
The groups decried the Palace cover-up of aquino’s role in Mamasapano. “The Palace story line changes every week. The congressional hearing are being influenced to clear the President of any liability and instead pin all blame on officials such as General Napenas and General Purisima to run the operation along with the involvement of the US government,” Reyes said.
“We will be awaiting the results of the probe of the Board of Inquiry next week. we however won’t be surprised if the report clears the President of any wrongdoing. That is already a given. Still, from what has been revealed so far, the president cannot escape accountability,”he added.
More mass protests are expected to take place in the coming weeks in anticipation of the release of the finding of the PNP Board of Inquiry and as hearings at the House of Representatives are set to resume.
Bayan Ko: People Power 1 @29
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBFa5FKqoxg
February 25, 2015
This year’s EDSA anniversary coincides with the first month of the Mamasapano incident and what could well be the worst political crisis to hit the Aquino administration. Protests across the nation were held to call for Aquino’s accountability in Mamasapano. In Manila, groups held an interfaith prayer and human chain despite being blocked by hundreds of police along EDSA Santolan.
Pahayag ng Bagong Alyansang Makabayan sa ika-29 anibersaryo ng People Power 1
February 25, 2015
This year’s EDSA anniversary coincides with the first month of the Mamasapano incident and what could well be the worst political crisis to hit the Aquino administration. Protests across the nation were held to call for Aquino’s accountability in Mamasapano. In Manila, groups held an interfaith prayer and human chain despite being blocked by hundreds of police along EDSA Santolan.
“The nation is at a crossroads. Whether to simply accept a lying, inept and puppet President or to continue the great tradition of People Power for genuine change. We choose the latter. We choose to fight for truth and accountability and meaningful change. Thus, Aquino must go,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
“The past month has seen the President repeat one lie after another in order to escape accountability in the Mamasapano debacle. Aquino merely shuffles the blame between SAF Director Napenas to suspended PNP Chief Purisima. Aquino takes none for himself. He has no regrets authorizing a suspended general to run the operation,” Reyes added.
Bayan said that Aquino’s biggest sin to date is authorizing a suspended PNP chief to run a sensitive operation via remote control while disregarding all necessary government coordination. “The problem is not that Purisima lied to Aquino. The problem was Aquino placing a suspended official in charge and relying on that official instead of the proper government officials and agencies. The problem was the President all along. Now he lies to us repeatedly to cover-up his role,” Reyes said.
Bayan said that Aquino cannot continue invoking the memory of his parents and the anti-dictatorship struggle just to shield himself from any accountability. “EDSA was also about holding those in power accountable. Aquino cannot make himself an exception in the quest for truth and accountability,” Reyes added.
“EDSA is not about one color (yellow) nor the plight of one family. It is about the people rising up for change,” he added.
Power of the People
The group said that in the face of the lies and cover up of the President, the people are called on to summon the great tradition of “people power”.
“The power of the people is truly realized in united action. It is a potent weapon for change. Yet in the past, its fruits have largely been enjoyed only by a few, as the rotten social system remains. It is therefore necessary that people power yield something more than business-as-usual outcomes,” Reyes said.
In calling for a People’s Council for Unity, Reforms and Peace to immediately replace Aquino before holding elections, Bayan is hoping that the next people power would be more beneficial to the people and would pave the way for more meaningful changes.
“Apart from calling on Aquino to step down, the people demand land reform, national industrialization, sovereignty and peace. There is of course no illusion that one ‘people power’ would be able to achieve all these. It would necessary that the people wield their power as often as possible to advance these goals,” he added.
Bayan will lead a march to Mendiola on February 27 to again call on Aquino to step down. It is expected to be the first major protest near the Palace after the Mamasapano incident. ###
PNP blockade betrays Aquino’s growing unpopularity
Participants in yesterday’s planned prayer and human chain activity to call for justice and accountability on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the first People Power uprising vented their ire on police officers who blocked their path and caused metro-wide gridlocks. Instead of sustaining the people’s solidarity in light of the Mamasapano debacle that butchered 44 of their colleagues, the police’s duplicity wasted the rare goodwill heaped on them by the people, the participants said.
Church leaders revealed in their speeches the excuses offered by police commanders who previously agreed to plans laid out by event organizers. These were greeted by jeers and hoots by the event participants.
A human chain was nevertheless held in the late afternoon when all efforts for the police to remove their blockade failed. It stretched from the foot of the EDSA-Santolan flyover all the way to EDSA-New York.
People’s Hearing focuses on US intervention in Mamasapano debacle
Witnesses at the “People’s Hearing on Mamasapano” organized by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan and held last February 20 at Plaza Miranda in Quiapo, Manila recall accounts by residents of Mamasapano, Maguindanao of the presence of United States personnel and war materiel in the botched operations.
In this video, an alternative journalist, a congresswoman, and a university professor establish foreign intervention at what is turning to be the biggest political crisis that hit the Benigno Aquino government. All three were members of the fact-finding mission that interviewed relatives of civilian victims in Mamasapano two weeks after the incident.
BAYAN MUNA HITS TRIPLE WHAMMY PRICE HIKES ON OIL, POWER, AND WATER
BAYAN MUNA HITS TRIPLE WHAMMY PRICE HIKES ON OIL, POWER, AND WATER
Group says government policy of deregulation and privatization to blame, calls on Pres. Aquino to step in
Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares today hit the triple whammy of price hikes on oil, power and water saying that it is the government policy of deregulation, privatization and liberalization is the root cause of this price hikes.
“Take the case of oil firms, they are so fast to jack up oil prices but are so slow to roll back. Why should there be another big time oil price hike when oil companies have a buffer stock that was purchased when the price was lower? Worse oil prices are decreasing in the international market but it is increasing here,” said Senior Deputy Minority Leader Colmenares.
The progressive solon issued the statement as oil companies is again set to implement a big time oil price hike even as oil prices fell in Asian trading hours last week after the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted that global oil prices will recover only partially over the next five years, analysts said.
News reports say that US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for March delivery fell 68 cents to $52.18, while Brent crude for March eased 80 cents to $57.54 in morning trade.
“Besides the rollbacks they implemented then was not even right because some industry insiders are saying that it should be P1-2 more. Given this situation and government is also slow in lowering the prices of basic commodities services and transportation so it is the consumers are always at the losing end. This is the reason why the oil industry should be regulated to prevent this type of price manipulation and added burden to consumers,” said Rep. Colmenares.
WHERE IS THE COLLUSION REPORT ON OVERPRICING OF ELECTRICITY?
“Add to this the impending power rate hike and water rate hikes then consumers are again given another burden. As for the impending power rate hike, we have yet to get the full report of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on the collusion investigation of generation companies (gencos) which is long overdue but Meralco is again using the same reasoning of simultaneous plant outages as the reason for the increase. Again this would not have happened if government effectively regulates the power industry and if it owns a significant number of power plants to have a say in the market and so that consumers would be held hostage by power players,” he said.
WATER REFUND
“Meanwhile the looming water rate hike of Maynilad and the potential adjustment of Manila Water’s tariffs as a result of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) decision will come on top of another rate hike approved by the MWSS last December.
“Maynilad and Manila Water last month started implementing higher water rates to cover foreign currency differential adjustment (FCDA), which will be reflected on the customers’ bills this month. This would not have happened if the water industry was not privatized by government,” said Rep. Colmenares.
“Also in other businesses, they are the ones who absorb bad business decisions and business risks like the foreign currency differential adjustment (FCDA) and pay their own taxes but these water concessionaires are raking in billions by fooling us. They even pass to consumers losses due to changes in foreign exchange rates. But in this case, the concessionaires borrow from foreign creditors without any qualms knowing that they are insulated from the risk ordinary borrowers take because they’re allowed to pass on their forex losses to their consumers. It is like having their cake and eating it, too. Sa kuryente nga e nagrereklamo tayo sa paniningil sa atin ng systems loss pero dito mismong buwis na nga ng kinita nila ang sinisingil pa sa atin,” “This shows that privatization is wrong and the practice of automatic pass through of forex losses should not be allowed by government”, explained Rep. Colmenares.
“Manila Water and Maynilad must first refund billions of pesos it collected from the public for still unimplemented water projects before it could talk about increase water charges. Among these projects is the P5.4 billion Angat Water Reliability, and the P45.3 billion Laiban dam projects,” added the progressive solon.
“As it is, deregulation, privatization and liberalization have been proven to a bane to consumers and should be reversed. We should act now and Congress should fast track the measures to stop these destructive and lopsided economic measures before it wreaks more havoc on the lives of the Filipino people,” said Rep. Colmenares.
AQUINO CALLED TO STEP IN
“These impending rate increases could be stopped if Pres. Aquino will abandon his privatization and deregulation policies while at the same time intervene and warn these companies of their liabilities should they be involved in price manipulation or unjust rate increases. The fact that the Aquino administration has allowed prices of basic commodities to remain high despite the decreasing oil price only shows its lack of concern for consumers. In the end, the government is the one to blame for persisting in the discredited privatization and deregulation policies which allows these rate increases to the detriment of the public,” ended the Senior Deputy Minority Leader.###
OBR takes on Aquino
One Billion Rising (OBR) Global Coordinator Monique Wilson takes on President Benigno Aquino III: “kung hindi mo na kayang mamuno, umalis ka na” (if you can no longer lead, scram”. The statement echoes the growing call for Aquino’s resignation.
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ONE BILLION RISING FOR TRUTH AND ACCOUNTABILITY :
GABRIELA QUESTIONS SENATE PLAN TO CLOSE MAMASAPANO HEARING
“Who’s pulling the strings?” Quoting from Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago during the Mamasapano hearing, GABRIELA is questioning the Senate why it is set to close the Senate hearing even if the role of Pres. Noynoy Aquino and the US remain unclear.
The women’s group earlier warned of a cover-up in the investigations after the main witnesses, Gen. Allan Purisima, ex-PNP-SAF Chief Getulio Napenas and Aquino allies avoided directly confronting the issue of the President’s involvement, and more importantly the US hand, in the Mamasapano bloodbath.
GABRIELA led more than a thousand women from all walks of life in the One Billion Rising Revolution today at the Bonifacio Shrine in calling for truth and accountability in relation to the Mamasapano bloodbath. “The people want clear and direct answers. There are so many inquiries yet so few answers and only fall guys and sacrificial lambs like Napenas. We want the truth behind Aquino and the US’s full involvement in the Mamasapano operation and we want the Commander in Chief accountable,” said Joms Salvador, Secretary General of GABRIELA.
Salvador also said that even the PNP and AFP rank and file personnel are seeking the truth but some quarters may be sounding a “coup-scare” to muddle mounting calls for the President’s resignation. “This may just be another ploy to subvert the people’s will at making Aquino accountable,” she added.
GABRIELA reiterated their call for Aquino’s resignation in the light of the Mamasapano disaster. The women’s group is calling for the formation of a transition council, composed of respected leaders, not associated with the current administration and are not corrupt. “Succession should not be an issue. Rather than an individual, a transition council can pave the way for the elections which is actually only 14 months for now,” said Salvador.
The One Billion Rising event kicks off the women’s campaign towards International Women’s Day on March 8 when GABRIELA will also highlight Aquino’s accountability in the escalating poverty and violence that Filipino women experience. “More than the Mamasapano bloodbath, Aquino is responsible for the misery that Filipino women and their families experience daily because of his implementation of the neoliberal policies dictated by the US,” Salvador said. “On March 8, which is also the 40th day of the Mamasapano victims, women and the Filipino people will echo a resounding call for Aquino’s resignation.” ###