If Mayor Carlito Feras of Roxas, Z.N. could not present legal documents which would support ownership of several sacks of Chromite Ore piled in his own lot at Barangay Lower Irasan, he could surely be facing a case of theft of minerals.

Remelo Damuag of the Zamboanga del Norte Environment and Natural Resources Office ( ZANEMO) disclosed that it hd already issued a seizure receipt which meant that the seized minerals belonged to the province already as no legal papers could be presented to them. Earlier, ZANEMO disclosed, no one claimed ownership of the mineral ores and so they placed the seized minerals under the custody of the barangay officials. But later, Mayor Feras appeared before the office claiming that the minerals came from Zamboanga Sibugay and possessed complete papers.

It was learned that there were 1,507 sacks piled in the barangay but could not be valued yet considering that its volume could not be calculated yet.  Damuag disclosed that Chromite ore is placed at $80/metric ton, in the market today. On the other hand, the town mayor denied ownership of the goods, instead pointed to an Australian national claiming that his lot has only been rented by the said foreigner. Although he claimed that the ores were extracted from Sibugay, Damuag made sure they were not taken from Gutalac, Sindangan or Siayan which were recently known to yield similar minerals as well.

“But even if they come from Sibugay, the owner should have the Mineral Transport Permit or a document showing they were from Sibugay,” Damuag reasoned. ZANEMO has waited for the environment officer of Sibugay to support the mayor’s calim but the two-week period it has given the mayor had lapsed already but no documents were presented to the environment office yet.

“If the mayor could not really present the documents which could prove that extraction of such was legal and transport permitted, ZANEMO will really file theft charges against him,” Damuag explained. At present ZANEMO has directed the barangay officials and tanod of Lower Irasan to keep watch over the seized minerals. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

Credits: Press Freedom is published every Saturday and entered as 3^rd class mail matter in Dipolog City. Printed by Young Printing Press with Editorial Office located at Upper Turno, Dipolog City. Tel. No. (065) 212-4343 or 212-6665. Email: pressfreedom_1983@yahoo.com.ph

Thirty-two Chambers of Commerce will be coming to Zamboanga del Norte by August this year. After the signing of memorandum of agreement by Gov. Rolando Yebes, Edgar Bagarinao, president of the Dipolog City Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Secretary General Crisanto Frianeza of the Philippine Camber of Commerce and Industry the 17th Mindanao Business Conference has been set to be held here.

Gov. Yebes disclosed that this would be the first time that business pillars from all over Mindanao and capitalists from BIMP-EAGA shall come together to discuss with government officials the problems that block the thrust of the economy in the Mindanao region. “It has always been held in Davao; now we can show them we are ready to become prime investment center as well,” the governor pointed out.

Moreover, he believed the province was chosen to be the seat of conference this year considering that Dipolog City and Dapitan City have been leading in the development of the tourism industry in the Zamboanga peninsula at present. On the other hand, Secretary General Frianeza stressed that the gathering of businessmen shall strengthen the partnership between the private sector and the government for economic growth in the Mindanao region.

However, some chambers in Luzon and the Visayas will also be attending the conference, Frianeza disclosed, stressing that it was expected that the business group could come up with recommendations to guide government planners in improving the economy of the region. Meanwhile, DCCCI president Bagarinao recalled that the 14th Congress could have been held here in 2004.

“Now, it’s finally here, nothing can stop the province from hosting it,” he said. Edwin Capili, president of the Regional Chamber of Commerce believed it would be a vindication of the province when it was once cited as the poorest province in the country in 2003. “At least, they could see what was done to improve the people’s lives in this side of the region under the leadership of Governor Yebes,” Capili said.

It was learned the business conference shall be held at the ZaNorte Convention and Exhibition Center.” (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

Disgusted by his sad experience with the Cebu Port Authority, Board Member Cedric Adriatico lashed the poor service of the port in a privilege speech recently before the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

He narrated how hundreds of passengers bound for Dapitan on  March 28 were left stranded at the terminal waiting for the terminal bus to transport them to M/V Georich of the George and Peter Lines. “The boat was scheduled to leave at nine P.M., but it was already 8 and no bus arrived”, BM Adriatico sadly recalled.

Afraid that they would be left behind, BM Adriatico narrated further, they forced the security guard to open the terminal gate so that they would just walk towards the boat. “What angered the passengers most was when we were caught by the heavy rains and we’re soaked when we board Georich,” the Board Member disclosed.

The passengers believed that if the port authority allowed the passenger vans of the shipping company to transport the passengers, such problem could not have happened. Other members of the SP also expressed the same sad experience of BM Adriatico with the Cebu Port.

Copies of the resolution filed by the board member shall be furnished to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Cebu and Sangguniang Panlungsod of Cebu City, and Philippine Ports Authority. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

As holdups in Dipolog City were staged one after the other, local businessmen recently raised their alarm through Mr. Edgar Bagarinao, president of the Dipolog City Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The 17th Mindanao Business Conference shall be held here on August 27-28 this year and they feared  the possibility these lawless elements would strike again once the visitors from the entire Mindanao region would converge here. Mr. Bagarinao disclosed that after the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement with the Provincial Government and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, they sought the help of Police Provincial Director Mario Yanga and the 101st Brigade, Philippine Army based in Del Pilar, Piñan.

Earlier, the local businessmen pleaded with the local PNP and Mayor Evelyn Uy to strictly impose security measures especially along the roads where visiting  businessmen during the conference will possibly be passing by. “I strongly recommend that the city government shall be active not only during the conference; I mean strict measures shall be undertaken by the authorities even at this early time,” DCCCI president stressed. As one of the host groups, Mr. Bagarinao wanted to remind the local police and the city government that any other act of holdups or lawlessness done during the gathering could shame not only the host groups but it could give the city government a bad image.

However, Atty. Allan Ranillo, Chairman of the Prov’l Tourism Council was confident that the holding of the Mindanao-wide business gathering here will be successful despite the series of holdups and budol-budol cases the city had experienced. “Unlike Metro Manila which saw these happening everyday, we experience these in Dipolog once in a while, so I still consider here to be a peaceful place as compared to other cities in the country,” he said.

To allay the fears of some delegates who shall be attending the conference, Gov. Rolando Yebes pledged his support to the city PNP to secure them. Recently, he announced the establishment of a task force which would help the intelligence network of the city PNP.

It can be recalled that Dipolog City was experiencing series of holdup and robbery cases and even budol-budol cases but no culprits have ever been captured, and put to prison. Recently, a budol-budol victim close to Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita sought his help when suspects ran away with P1M.

It was learned but this was not yet confirmed that PNP Chief Gen. Avelino Razon is set to visit Dipolog within this month. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

While tourists enjoy the elephant ride in Thailand so much, here they could experience the joy of the carabao ride, they could live the way barrio folks live, they could see something which they have not seen somewhere else.

Provincial Tourism Officer Atty. Ivan Patrick Ang recently disclosed that the Community-Based Rural (CBR)  tourism which has long been popular in Europe could very well work out in Zamboanga del Norte. Tourism Officer Ang explained that tourists have been bored by city life so they turn to go to farms or barangays for a change.

“No, they do not need plush hotels and elegant beach resorts anymore. This is the traditional concept of tourism,” he pointed out, “. . . and this is not the kind we are to adopt,” he added. Under the new program, the tourism office shall evaluate some barangays in the province what they could offer to the tourists. Since the province is agricultural, it proposed for an agri-based tourism. This means, PTO explained, the barangays themselves shall identify what good tourist potentials they have and develop them to attract tourists.

These, PTO added, must be something that they have not seen or experienced in other places in the country. As an example, the office pointed to the elephant ride in Thailand which tourists have always longed for in the country. “We could have our own carabao ride; this could be a pleasure to them,” Ang said. He also informed that the Provincial Tourism Office and the Community Assistance Development Unit (CDAU) will be helping the barangays to identify their unique selling point so that each could stand out in the tourism industry. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

At last harelipped individuals find beauty in their own smiles as German doctors have offered their free services to them since April 7 up tio 26.

Gov. Rolando Yebes disclosed that doctors of Interplast Germany arrived with him here to conduct the 6th year of its medical mission at the Zamboanga del Norte Provincial Hospital. It was learned that the first batch of doctors included Dr. Meller, Dr. Fleske-Eguia, Dr. Sylvia Heintz, Dr. Norma Brzoska-Eguia and Maria Schuergers-Eguia. The next batch of Interplast doctors will be arriving today, April 13, and they will be headed by Dr. Peter Post.

Aside from harelipped patients, the German doctors will also serve hernia patients and those afflicted with goiter. At present, more than 100 patients have already been listed to undergo the free operation. It can be remembered that earlier another group of foreign doctors conducted free operation and donated hospital equipment.  The doctors were from Springfield, Vermont in the U.S. of the Renewed Life in Jesus Christ Church headed by Mr. And Mrs. Raymund William and Guadalupe Martalla-Farrace.

Phili’s Angels of Orkney, Scotland had come even earlier for a free medical mission.

“They’ve been a blessing to the province as more ZaNorteans have availed the free services given by our foreign brothers,” Gov. Yebes happily announced. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

Be extremely careful when providing credit card information. Keep in mind that written authorization is NOT required for someone else to charge your account. Therefore, only give credit card information to legitimate businesses. If your disagree with any charge on your credit card statement, notify the issuer of your card immediately.

Never sign a contract under pressure. Don’t just sign it because someone put it in front of you. Take some time. Relax. Sit back. Read it. If you do not understand it )and there are LOTS of contracts that are hard to understand), do not feel dumb and sign it because it must be alright? Get someone you trust to explain it to you. Tell the salesperson you want a copy of the contract to take home and read overnight. If they refuse, that tells you something! Do not respond to pressure. If a salesperson is pushing you, stepback. Leave if you have to. Take a walk around the block. Take a friend with you and discuss it with him or her, away from the salesperson.

Take your time. Do not buy on impulse. Consider carefully any major purchase. Go to different places. Compare prices. Never rely only on what the salesperson is saving. Read consumer reports. Maker sure the contracts says exactly what you think you have agreed to, and exactly what the sales person has agreed to. Be very sure that all promises are written right on the contract. Do not be afraid to write them in on the contract yourself. Hand written additions are fine as long as they are initiated by all parties to the contract. Moreover, do not sign a contract which contains any blank spaces. Put a line through any blank space before you sign.

Do not rely on oral promises. Oral promises are generally not worth a thing. And are often very difficult to enforce. If the seller refuses to let you put his or her promises in writing, assumes they will not live up to them. Go elsewhere. Be careful of door to door salesperson. There are special protections and laws that apply to such contracts, because they are often coercive. Be wary of rent to own stores. If you seek to won an item, research other alternatives (check the classified ads for used items, buy goods on layaway or apply for a credit card) rent to own stores often charge annual interest rates from 100 to 275 percent without specifically telling the consumer and may not indicate clearly whether an item is new or used.

Check the refund and exchange policy of each store when you make purchase. There are laws that regulate offers of returns or exchange. Be careful anything that sounds too good to be true. It usually is. (Courtesy of DTI, Dipolog City- Zamboanga del Norte)

In her latest statement on the rice supply situation, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assured that there is enough supply of the staple to meet the needs of the people.

The country’s rice supply is “secure for the foreseeable future,” she said. The President made the assurance at the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA)-Cabinet Group meeting held this week at the Department of Justice (DOJ) in Ermita, Manila. She also pointed out that the country’s inventory of rice continues to be beefed up by acquisitions of the commodity by the National Food Authority (NFA).

“Total contracted quantity of NFA rice from the Dec. 2007-March 2008 bidding is 1.2 million metric tons,” of which 50 percent of the total, or 600,000 metric tons, have already arrived in the country, she said. In addition, another 66,000 metric tons are in transit to the Philippines while a separate shipment of 30,600 metric tons was being loaded at road ports. “NFA is set to bid for additional rice stocks on May 2, subject to the approval of the Government Police Procurement Board,” the President said.

In a phone patch interview with the President during the NEDA-Cabinet Group meeting, local government officials reported that the rice supply in their respective areas was adequate — thanks to the bountiful summer harvests. Abulog, Cagayan Mayor Aline Alfonso said farmers in her municipality were looking at a 85 percent increase in their harvests. This will translate to an additional production of .4 MT over last year’s harvest of 5 MTs. Governors Rodolfo del Rosario of Davao del Norte; Ma. Valentina Plaza, Agusan del Sur; Josephine Sato, Occidental Mindoro, all reported increases in the rice harvest in their provinces.

They also thanked the President for providing their provinces with certified palay seeds, post harvest facilities and vital irrigation projects. To help farmers cope with the current high prices of commodities, notably fuel and rice, the President said the NFA will continue buying palay at P17 per kilo until May. The competitive NFA palay buying price of P17 would guarantee farmers of a ready outlets and proceeds for their produce.

“Dapat din siguruhin na sapat ang kikitain ng magsasaka. Kaya hanggang Mayo P17 ang bili ng NFA sa palay,” the President said. It is but fitting that the farmers receive what is due them in terms of high prices for their produce, she said. She pointed out that farmers have been helping secure the country’s rice supply. Ensuring the security of the rice supply is one of the three Action Plans of her administration to help cushion the impact of increased prices of basic commodities worldwide.Now enjoying its strongest economy in over 30 years, the Philippines has become more resilient in responding to the current global problem of high prices of fuel and rice, the President said.

She stressed that her administration’s three Action Plans — securing the supply of rice, ensuring its distribution, and protecting consumers against price gouging and corruption – are currently being implemented to ensure that the country’s rice supply situation remains stable. (PIA-ZN)

Underscoring the importance of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) to the Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo called on the Senate anew to ratify the accord when Congress convenes next week.In her opening statement during a visit to the Yazaki-Torres Manufacturing Incorporated (YTMI) here, the President stressed that the advantages of the proposed agreement to the country far outweighed its disadvantages.

“Studies estimate the JPEPA benefits from P6.5 to P110-billion for the government due to an improved investment climate with projected direct investments from Japan amounting to P365-billion, plus more than 200,000 jobs compared to costs of around P4-billion that will come from tariff reductions,” the President said. She pointed out that studies also show the overall positive impact of the agreement on poverty reduction in the country.

“Tariff on our farm goods will also fall to zero, boosting exports of Philippine agricultural produce. Add to that the high-wage hiring of our nurses and caregivers,” she added. The President also pointed out that among the benefits the JPEPA would be increased revenue for the government, the agricultural sector, and the employment of Filipino nurses and care-givers in Japan. Without the agreement, restrictions against the entry of Filipino professionals, including health workers, would remain.

The President dismissed as unfounded fears that the JPEPA would transform the Philippines into a dumping ground for toxic wastes coming from Japan. “About the environmental issue – the fear that we will be the dumping ground for Japanese toxic wastes: their importation is banned by international as well as national fiat. In any case, during my last visit to Japan, Japan signed a side letter making that clear,” she said. The JPEPA has sufficient provisions that will protect the environment and prevent any illegal trade in toxic wastes. It does not contain any provision explicitly allowing trade or liberalized entry of regulated or banned products in both countries, she pointed out.

The President also warned that the Philippines would be left out of the benefits of the trade agreement with Japan since the country’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) partners like Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Brunei already have working agreements with Japan and are “moving in front of us.” The irony of it, the President said, is that the “Philippines was the first country after Singapore with which Japan pursued the idea of an economic partnership agreement. But Japan has entered into the same kind of agreement since then with Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Brunei and here we are at the starting point with everybody moving in front of us.”

“The JPEPA is worth it. We cannot afford not to ratify it because with everyone but us on board, eh di dadalhin ng Hapon ang negosyo sa kanila,” the President stressed. “So we hope the Senate will ratify the JPEPA when Congress convenes next week,” she added. The JPEPA is a framework for cooperation between Japan and the Philippines that includes assistance in human resources development, research and development, and technology development and transfer. (PIA-ZN)

It could be the lure of bigger money that prompted budol-budol victims to put up their own money and found out later that they were just conned or swindled.

This was how the police saw the different swindling cases experienced by some Dipolognons nowadays.

Although some victims claimed that they knew about the tricks, they seemed hypnotized by the swindlers that they could not help but gave in to their demands.

Police outlined how these elements operate. They seemed to be a long-time acquaintance who knew the victims very well and would even mention some personalities close to the victims to make them believe they are ‘friendly’. They could pose as businessmen bringing a big amount of cash and wanted to leave it to the willing victim who shall take custody of it while they are out.  They would then be showing wads of bills.

But for security reason (so that the victim will not run away their money), the swindlers shall ask money,  jewelry or other valuables to take with them while they are out. And they will not return, police stressed, leading the victims to open the bag only to discover that the wads of bills were just cut bond paper.

No matter how they did it, police authorities announced that they always operate on the same style: leave their money, get  your money and leave and never come back. Despite the information drive about these cases, authorities will wondered why there are still more and more swindling cases occurring even among the elite and the educated. Police urged the public not to entertain strangers who posed as businessmen and leave money to them.  The believed this would only end up in swindling. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is set to convene a meeting of Regional Wage Boards “all over the country” to discuss salary adjustments for workers to mitigate the adverse effects of the rising world prices of oil and rice.

The President announced this move in her statement before meeting with officials and guests of Yazaki-Torres Manufacturing, Inc. at the wiring harness producer’s manufacturing plant here. “Because of the increasing prices of fuel and rice, we are calling for a meeting of the Regional Wage Boards (RWBs) all over the country to discuss how the RBWs can help the workers cope with the rising world prices of oil and rice,” she said.

The President, who was joined by Trade Secretary Peter Favila and Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, visited factories “to personally attend to the needs of workers.” “We encourage giving of wage and non-wage benefits. In fact, we are encouraging establishment of day-care centers for working mothers,” she said.

The President lauded the Filipino worker who she called “the best in the world” and vowed to work harder to project a positive image of the Philippines to the world and to bring in more jobs and investments. “We will leave no stone unturned as we seek even more foreign and domestic investments to bring more jobs to our nation,” she said. (PIA-ZN)

My hometown in Dohinob recently celebrated its 108th founding day. I did a little research and it falls on April 11 because it was the birthday of its village chief, the late Leoncio Carreon Adaza.  Leoncio’s daughter was the late Guadalupe Adaza who served as provincial governor in 1959-1963.

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Before its founding, it was a mere sitio of the town of Lubungan (now renamed Katipunan) and Dohinob was known then as Badiangasan because of the abundance of these prickly shrubs or trees and people had to walk along the shore or follow the river bed as there was no vicinal road then.

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Its inhabitants are 95% Subanos, that’s why they renamed it to Dohinob meaning two rivers because this was founded by tributaries of two rivers, the Dohinob Diut river and Dohinob Daku river.

I was born in Dohinob Diut where my grandparents resided but my parents resides at Dohinob Daku, a kilometer away.

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During its weeklong celebration, Gov. Lando turned over his multi-million asphalting project of the Dohinob circumferential road while Cong. Dodoy Likewise promised to allocate P1.5Million for the barangay covered court.

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Board Member Edgar Baguio also graced the ocassion with his personal presence, a tale tell sign that election is forthcoming.

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A public school teacher of the province recently aired her complaint that she has not received this P400.00 allowance for chalk. The teachers  have to shell out their personal funds in order to buy chalk, she claimed.

Did somebody from above pocket it? Basin ug nahilis lang to ma’am kay basta chalk mahilis man gyud na.

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A thief was recently caught by the police and a corresponding compalint was filed against him. During the trial, the judge asked him why did he steal the money?  He quickly answered senselyo ra ning ako, initan pa gyud.  Tuay sa Malacañang, kato untay gukdon. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)

MIPALANOG karon sa ilang hangyo ang mga negosyante dinhi sa dakbayan sa Dipolog pinaagi sa Dipolog Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) pinaagi sa ilang presidente nga si Mr. Edgar Bagarinao nga pahugtan ang seguridad sa siyudad tungod sa sunod-sunod nga nahitabong tulis. Kini maoy usa sa ilang hangyo nga gipaabot karon ngadto sa atong kapolisan ug sa mga hepe ehekutibo sa matag local government unit subay na sa gikatakdang pagpahigayon sa Mindanao Business Conference karong Agosto 27-28 niining tuiga dinhi sa Dipolog, Zamboanga del Norte.

Many are happy to note of the Asian Development Bank’s statement that “the Philippines is no longer a sick man of Asia”. This statement is the positive form of Singapore’s former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yu’s comment that “the Philippines is a sick man of Asia”. This, he made at the time Mr. Fidel V. Ramos was sitting as our president. But, what really pushed the ADB to make such a positive remark? ADB based their observation on the so-called 7.3% growth rate in the Philippine’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) last year. That is why it wants the Filipino to believe that their country is no longer the sick man of Asia.

However, as many as there are those who believe that our country’s economy is improving (as what President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is always bragging), there are also a lot of skeptics who doubted that their standard of living gets better now. They argue that if our country’s economy is getting better, then why do majority of our people (59.3% country-wide; and 68% in Mindanao) still feel that they are facing harder economic life (as shown in the 2007 Pulse Asia survey).

But, wait a minute! Let’s take a look to the whole scenario by talking first about Gross Domestic Product (GDP, for brevity) as an economic concept! What’s this GDP all about? Gross Domestic Product (GDP) refers to the total value of goods and services produced in a country over a period of time. It is a measure used by many countries to determine whether or not a country’s economy is improving. GDP may be calculated in three ways: (1) by adding up the value of all goods and services produced, (2) by adding up the expenditure on goods and services at the time of sale, or (3) by adding up producers’ incomes from the sale of goods or services. It measures a country’s economic activity regardless of who owns the productive assets in that country. For example, the output of Australia-owned companies based in the Philippines is considered part of Philippines’ GDP rather than part of the Australia’s. (This is in contrast to Gross National Product or GNP recently used by some industrialized countries like the United States, Germany, and Japan to measure their economic activity. GNP is the total of incomes earned by residents of a country regardless of where the assets are located. In other words, the income earned by a US-owned business based in the Japan would be considered part of the US-GNP, not Japan’s).

It necessarily follows, therefore, that if a lot of foreign investments are poured into the Philippines, they will create more economic activities that may spell out increasing growth rate in its GDP as what is happening now in the country’s economy. Withdrawal of, or less, their investments this time, our GDP’s growth rate drops! Admittedly, GDP is difficult to measure precisely, partly because every country has an unofficial economy, often called a black economy, which comprises transactions not reported to government. Nonetheless, many economists still use the GDP to measure the standard of living in a country. They divide a country’s GDP by its population to arrive at GDP per head. The figure is then often converted into U.S. dollars to allow for comparisons between countries. If GDP grows at a higher rate than the population, standards of living are said to be rising. If the population is growing at a higher rate than GDP, living standards are said to be falling. j

Unfortunately, GDP per head, even if it quantifies the standard of living in a country, does not take into account the cost of living of its people. (By the way, Cost of Living refers to the amount of money needed to purchase the goods and services required to maintain a certain Standard of Living. The latter term refers to the threshold of material security measured by the availability of resources to an individual, family, or society). This is one draw back of using GDP. This is precisely the reason why majority of us Filipinos doesn’t bite the idea that our country’s economy is improving (on the basis of the 7.3% growth rate in its GDP) because in reality the country’s cost of living is still high and the Filipino stomachs are still hungry.

In summary, GDP per head cannot be relied on. It doesn’t deal squarely with the cost of living. Some people believe it more accurate to judge living standards in other ways. And one good estimate of living standards is the Human Development Index (HDI) because it takes into account GDP per head, adult literacy, and life expectancy. Meanwhile, it is good for us take seriously this stern warning from our World’s renowned economists who said that a nation’s economy must not grow too quickly because this almost always results in inflation, when the level of prices or the cost of living is increasing. This is happening now in our country where our P5 before can buy a kilo of tamban, now costing P40. This, despite the claim of Pres. Arroyo that our economy is improving!

How does one country prevent inflation? They suggested that it needs to constrain total demand by increasing interest rates. Borrowing money finances much of total demand, e.g. consumers borrowing to buy new homes and cars, and business firms borrowing to purchase new facilities and equipment. Interest rates represent the cost of borrowing. So, when a country raises interest rates, the cost of borrowing increases. Business firms and consumers are then less likely to borrow, reducing their demands for goods and services.

Mao ba? Unsaon na lang ang pobring Juan nga dili makapalit kay maglisud ug hulam? Kutoy ang tiyan!!!  Whatever the choice, in the end, gubot lang gihapon nga posibling moresulta unya ug gubat!  God forbid!!! (The New Nandau, Vol. XVII No.40)

Some of my reading fans asked me why I don’t have my picture posted in my column. Well, just wait til I can find one taken some 20 years ago. Al least that’s the best pics I have. Hehehe

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Alan calls that big hole at the ZN Medical Hospital as the big “Urinola of Lando”. Frankly Lan, it’s better to have that “Urinola” with matching “Ultra Modern” Hospital than a bed pan in an obscure Health Center in Dipolog City.

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I am longing and waiting for that day when I can see some of the kind of detractors of this hospital, landing in one of its beds. Then I can say without butting an eyelash, hey you! I thought you don’t like this hospital? Ok ka lang? basin og gimino ka? Naks…

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In this country, it takes a lot of money and lots halobalo’s by our senators just to find the truth. I know that truth is very elusive in our country. But to spend so much for so little for just in Aid to Grandstanding is indeed incredulous.

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In the past weeks, the S.C. has given the Senate a chance to compromise so no one get hurt in the process. The Senate took it as some kind of insult which would redound to losing its face. Now after that landmark decision over Sec. Neri’s petition, the Senate wants the S.C. to reverse its decision and even went further to inhibit three of its jurors. Now tell me, who among these two co-equal bodies is off tangent, or out of its course?

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The whistle blower, Jun Lozada was admonished by his group to refrain from waving his hands to the crowd for fear that he will be mistaken as a “trapo” politician out to woo their votes. Kawawang Jun, Hindi siguro alam na maramaing inggit dahil sikat na siya. As always, Filipinos have that “Crab Mentality” kaya ingat ka Jun sa mga taong may crab sa ulo. Hehehe.

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Nobody trust anybody these days. That’s why NFA use indelible ink to mark fingers of people buying rice from them. My god! What’s happening to us now? I hate that day when even fingers with or without ink marks can not be trusted anymore. Ngiii….

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The Senate warns that unless the S.C. reversed its March 28 ruling on Executive Privilege, this nation is on the road to “Authocracy.” That’s blackmail. Can’t you ever grow-up gentlemen? You are becoming a pain in the ass, like Gloria de pa cute-cute. (Press Freedom, Vol. XX No. 26)