By Estanislao Albano, Jr.
Duterte reveals China won’t allow his ouster – Inquirer
What’s the deal? An island per year in power?
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Hanoi to Beijing: Pull out missiles – Inquirer
May be the Vietnamese suspect that the missiles are trained at them. (When asked why the government’s inaction on the report that China has installed missiles in one of the disputed islands in the West Philippine Sea, Malacanang Spokesman Harry Roque had said he is certain the missiles are not pointed at us)
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Some netizens are comparing the intrepid Indonesian President Joko Widodo to President Rodrigo Duterte in the way the two deal with the expansionism of China. Widodo allegedly sailed in a rusty 34-year old missile-less Soviet-era corvette to Natuna Islands whose Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is being disrespected by the Chinese Coast guard and fishing ships and had asserted that the island and its EEZ are Indonesia’s. His navy allegedly arrested Chinese fishermen illegally fishing in Natuna’s EEZ and had blown their ships to pieces.
I do not see any reaction of Duterte diehards in the Facebook post but I could almost hear them mumbling “E di punta kayo sa Indonesia kung gusto nyo.” (You may go to Indonesia if you like.)
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The visit of President Duterte to the Benham Rise and the jet ski caper to Benham Rise starring Bong Go and Paolo Duterte there reminds me of this incident which happened in the elementary school class of my wife Florence some years back:
After working in the garden during the Work Education subject, the class went into the class room for their English subject. One student who found the lesson tough told the teacher: “Ma’am, agsubli tayo lattan idiay garden. Nagrigat met ti English. (Ma’am, let’s go back to the garden. English is hard.)
I did not know there are presidents who think like pupils.
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Next ombudsman won’t be a woman, Duterte says – Philippine Star
At least we are now assured it will not be ousted Chief Justice Maria Luisa Sereno’s worst nightmare, Supreme Court Associate Justice Teresita De Castro.
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Robredo off to US for daughter’s Harvard graduation – Inquirer
I am hoping there are no speaking engagements this time. She might goof again.
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In a letter to the editor in the Inquirer, Antonio Calipjo Go, the relentless crusader against errors in public school text books, has exposed three more textbooks to be shot through with errors including the following in the Grade 7 MAPEH textbook: Banana Rice Tereces. Go wrote that the 363-page Grade 3 “English Learner’s Material” written by 15 “authors” and reviewed by three “reviewers” has 430 errors.
This confirms for the umpteenth time the unfathomable stupidity and utter lack of concern for students of DepEd officials. First, how could educators worth their salt allow errors in textbooks when these are basic leaning materials of students? Second, why is it that after Go has been exposing DepEd book after book of being riddled with errors DepEd has not yet thought of making him go through their books PRIOR TO PUBLICATION?
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Ex-DOJ chief Vitaliano Aguirre outraged by murder of supporter in Quezon – Inquirer
He should have manifested the same degree of outrage for all the people killed under questionable circumstances during his watch as Secretary of Justice.
But there was one time when he said that the killing of drug suspects by the police was not a crime against humanity because criminal do not belong to humanity.
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Justice Marvin Leonen warned that with the Supreme Court ousting Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno through a quo warranto petition, the Solicitor General could now target other appointees of past administrations.
If rumors circulating in social media are to be believed, there are others in the cross hairs of Solicitor General Jose Calida: young executive assistants.
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On a lighter note, while the existence of my country including mine is being threatened by missiles, my NBA team Warriors is being threatened by Rockets.**
