iBOONDOCK

Senator Loren Legarda tries to do an Igorot dance during a visit to a conference organized by Cordillera women leaders last year. Inviting Loren is a good move by said women leaders because the Senator may well become the next President of the country. She continues to perform well in presidential polls conducted by survey outfits. However, a lot of things can happen between now and 2010 so she should not count the eggs before they’re laid.

Will she make a good President? Who knows? She doesn’t strike me as someone who could change this country. Her presidency might feature people different from the current ones but it will be the politics of “same old, same old”. This is true for other politicians who have presidential ambitions, i.e., Senator Manuel Roxas II, Senate President Manny Villar, and Vice President Noli de Castro.

By the way, the group which invited Senator Legarda reportedly adopted her and named her “Tokwifi” which means “bright star” in Finontok. What do you think of that? Personally, I hope we stop using our native names/culture/etc as currency to pander to politicians. But that’s just me :-)

INFO/PHOTO SOURCE: senate.gov.ph

Remember the first time electricity came to your town or barangay? I was in elementary school when it came to my village. If I remember correctly, they “turned the light on” during the birthday of President Marcos, September 11. Tapos sabi nila, gift daw iyon ni Macoy sa mga iSagada. Talk about patronage politics and building a personality cult.

Anyways, I have to admit that I once thought that you will die if you touch the electric wires inside the house. What do I know, hehe. I’m not from the boondocks for nothing.

So why all this talk about electricity? Because I’m excited for our kailiyans in five Mayaoyao barangays who will soon be having electricity. I’m sure it will make life easier for them. We hope that our officials and the power cooperatives will continue to bring light to the villages. Go Ifelco!
Read the rest of this entry »

Videofied photos of birds in the highlands. The photos were taken from Mt. Data to Banaue according to the person who made the video. Do you think this video can teach us to view birds differently, i.e., that they’re not just a source of meat?

I must admit that I used to scoff at people who were campaigning against bird catching but I have since changed my mind and accepted their views. What precipitated that change? Well, I used to have a boss who was so passionate about birds. He was really into this bird-watching thing and kept talking about birds and birds and birds. Miraculously, I wasn’t turned off by all the bird talk hehe.

VIDEO CREDIT: neon2rossell

What’s this “caretaker” nonsense that people in Mt. Province are talking about? According to this report, following the demise of Mt. Province Rep. Victor Dominguez, some Mt. Province leaders have passed a resolution tasking Baguio Rep. Mauricio Domogan to be the province’s “caretaker”.

The report also states that the Dominguez clan “prefers someone who comes from the same party where the late lawmaker is affiliated” to be appointed.

Now is Mt. Province so poor in human resources that it has to look outside for a “caretaker”? How pathetic are we? I can’t imagine leaders of Kalinga, Ifugao, and the other Cordi provinces asking an outsider to be their “caretaker”. Seriously!

At the same time, huwag naman silang mag-appoint ng relative ng dating Congressman to be the “caretaker”.

But all these talks of appointing a “caretaker” is silly because if I understand this law correctly, there is no such thing as a “caretaker”.

Instead, what the law provides in case of a permanent vacancy in Congress is for the holding of a special election “not earlier than sixty (60) days nor longer than ninety (90) days after the occurrence of the vacancy”. Iyan dapat ang tutukan ng mga nasabing Mt. Province leaders. (Note: I stand corrected if you can find a provision of law that provides for the appointment of a “caretaker”.)

Instead of asking Rep. Domogan to be their “caretaker”, what said Mt. Province “leaders” should do is to ask the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to immediately schedule a special election to fill the seat vacated by Rep. Dominguez.

There is no money for a special election? Then they should lobby Gloria and Congress to provide the money. Diyan masusubukan kung talagang malakas sila kay Gloria.
Read the rest of this entry »