Interview of ANC Anchor with Incoming DOF Secretary Ben Diokno

It is more fun criticizing

This post finds comfort in the interview of incoming DOF secretary Ben Diokno regarding the new administration plan on how to handle the debt problem, the no PHP problem that incoming administration (where was the data gathered?)

The good former BSP governor said that the fundamentals of the country is good right now.  In his long years with govt service and witnessing one crisis after another, the incoming secretary said that the country's finances are OK (maybe in reference to Sri Lankan problem)  Our international reserves which stand at about $100 billion (P7 trillion)  is sound.  We are not under IMF control, we contribute to IMF rather than receiving aid from it.   This is a good statement to calm our people and investors, and standing with the world financial market.  It is a pity that news anchors and  detractors of the govt make negative

view of our present govt.  

(The hypothesis being that the Jr. Marcos will place RP again in difficult financial problems.  And that PDDU has siphoned off funds of the govt.

Some difficulties too with anchors pretending to know it all even the economic and fiscal issues for which they are not.   (This is not the first time that the good expert has lectured the newshen on finer points of goverrnance.  

The more difficult task is to place PHL in growth trajectory which will generate jobs and taxes.  

KD interview with Ben Diokno

Setting up Strategic Oil Reserves

It is more fun criticizing

Rather than talking about subsidy to drivers and other oil users, the DOE should have focussed on

    1.  Setting up renewable source  of energy.

    2.  Strategic stockpiles for fossil fuel

    3.  More oil exploration

We should not be in this situation where oil becomes expensive because we depend on foreign sellers had we hang on to Sabah which is the source of oil might of Malaysia.  This post is happy that a foreign court is forcing Malaysia to pay rent to Sultan of Sulu and/or share oil revenues.

Maybe we do not have money to set  storage facility/tank farm,  or buy oil which was very cheap two years ago.   China is always on the look out for sources of commodities like oil.  It keeps on buying oil companies or maybe crude.  It lends to LDC countries rich in oil production.  We can do that now?  Anyway we are on debt splurge?

Or the BSP can simply lend to the treasury and the country buys foreign exchange to buy oil at cheap

prices then?

                                                                            Japan Stockpiles

How come no one mobilized the Reserves as provided by RA 7077?

Social and political criticisms

ARESCOM Legal Mandate

 

At the height of the Pinatubo tragedy, the implementation of the CAD under RA 7077 or Citizen Army Law (patterned after Israel) was in full swing. Even during the eruption itself we were manning the VABROC (Villamor Air Base  Relief Operations Center).  And when weekly missions were held at Subic and Zambales, we, members of the PAFRESCOM were regularly utilized to conduct medical and relief goods distribution operations.  We saw the harsh reality of conducting relief operations:  some barangay looting the hi jacking the relief goods, theft of relief goods at the operations center, corruption regarding  duty and patrol pay, etc. But they were beside the point.

The law was supposed to immediately mobilize the assets of the companies being led/in custody of the reserve officers in case of emergency like the Eastern Visayas, or even invasion.  There is no need to wait for volunteerism.  The Citizen Army is supposed to have been thoroughly trained and supplied with resources to carry out the mission in the law which says:


Section 7. Mission. - The mission of the Citizen Armed Force, alternately referred to as the Reserve Force, is it provide the base for the expansion of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the event of war, invasion or rebellion, to assist in relief and rescue during disasters or calamities, to assist in socioeconomic development and to assist in the operation and maintenance of essential government or private utilities in the furtherance of overall mission.

Thus, power, electricity, transportation, telco can be restored by the Citizen Army.  May be the law was forgotten (I went out because my feeling was that the organic units were cannibalizing the budget of the Reserve Command - we had no uniform, no combat boots but my friends in t
 he legislature told me that there was a budget)

Who is in charge of implementing this law?  Are they implementing this and are they faithful to the mission?  Who is the head of ARESCOM?

There could have been less finger pointing, less mea culpa and finger pointing etc.  Or we say there is NDRCC naman.  Or there were barangay training naman.  But where were they when they needed the most.  Even in the US, the weekend, the reserve soldiers do a wonderful job of relief and rescue.  Cant we do it here.?

The Israelites were able to defeat the Syrians in the 1990 ME war because they were able to mobilize their well trained Citizens Army in 17 hours;  the Syrians thought it would take them 24 hours.  Only a well trained citizens army can respond that fast because they can be trained and disciplined to do so.  Our civilian forces were into this melee for one week and there a lot of complaints.

There were police and army components naman eh.  Look at the mission again of Citizens Army law vs the current problem of resources and mobilization

Let us act on this.

The typhoon is just a test:  what if the neighboring ASEAN country or an Asian superpower invades us?  Are we prepared?  We can be prepared because we have law that says so.

 No offense meant mga kababayang kong Noy Pi