‘Jailed, ridiculed and kicked’

A foreign diplomat expressed disappointment with the sixth and last State of the Nation Address of President Aquino, saying he was hoping the speech would delve more on what the government has done to improve the image of the country in the international front. In the words of the diplomat, “the President sounded petty” – blaming again his predecessor for the problems he inherited and spending a good half hour thanking every single member of his staff including his “yaya.”

This was the same sentiment of a group of businessmen who commented that the GMA bashing was totally uncalled for. For five consecutive SONAs, P-Noy would always hit Gloria Arroyo and use her to draw attention to his straight path advocacy and would recycle the scandals and controversies that happened during her term. Hearing about it during his first, second, even third State of the Nation Address was tolerable but this last bashing was simply out of context, a top businessman said. “For Pete’s sake, we wanted to hear what he has done to solve the problems he inherited particularly the MRT,” another businessman commented.

“He already succeeded in putting her in jail, she’s obviously very sick, losing so much weight, yet he has not stopped ridiculing and kicking her,” an aghast businessman observed, adding the blame shifting negated the positive accomplishments the President tried to highlight during his two-hour SONA.

Worse, there was no mention of the fallen Special Action Force troopers who perished during the botched Mamasapano operation. Of course, nobody expects the President to admit the mistakes that happened during his term, but he could have included a simple thank you to the Fallen 44 for their service and sacrifice for the country during his long litany of thanks.

The President could have used the SONA for his own benefit, but instead his inability to resist the temptation of attacking GMA only served to gain more sympathy for the ailing former president, one businessmen noted.

China’s increasing Indian Ocean assertiveness

Analysts are noting China’s attempts to establish a stronger foothold in the Indian Ocean as seen in its deployment of a nuclear powered submarine to patrol the Indian Ocean last year, and the recent port calls made by a Yuan-class submarine to Pakistan. Unlike conventional submarines that have to surface and recharge batteries, the Yuan class has the capability to stay underwater for several weeks, sources said.

Considering China’s escalating aggression in the South China Sea, developments in the Indian Ocean – specifically the growing presence of the People’s Liberation Army-Navy in the region – are making other nations wary about the intention of the Chinese.  India, which has always been a natural rival, is doubling its efforts to expand its navy fleet and revealed plans to build at least 100 new warships, several aircraft carriers and nuclear-powered submarines armed with nuclear ballistic missiles. The Indian navy is also conducting “finishing touches” to an anti-submarine warfare corvette – the INS Kadmatt – known as a “sub killer” that’s outfitted with the latest technology that allows it to detect underwater enemies.

Reports say the Indian government has set aside a budget of $61 billion to beef up its navy and is working with the US, Russia and Europe for technology upgrades. Sources also disclosed a business magnate and philanthropist is investing $780 million for a shipyard that would produce naval vessel components (propulsion systems, sensors) domestically by 2030. Admittedly, India has a lot of catching up to do with China having 68 submarines compared to the 14 that India has, one of which is on lease from Russia. A lot of the submarines are also over two decades old, with many about to be decommissioned.

An article at the European Council on Foreign Relations noted India is indeed worried about the increasing Indian Ocean presence of China which has also started funding and building several ports in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan – the latter being a traditional rival of India. “There is uneasiness in India regarding these ports, railways, and economic corridors, and uncertainty about the geopolitical implications of China’s new infrastructure links,” the ECFR noted.

Not surprisingly, India is looking at closer alliances not only with the US, but also with countries like Japan and Australia – described by The Diplomat as a new trilateral that has the potential to change the geopolitical landscape in the Indian Ocean region. Not surprisingly, a lot of nations, including the Philippines, are closely watching developments especially with the first-ever naval exercises between India and Australia this September, and later on with Japan and the US.

Casino gambles on jeweler

A casino in Brisbane, Australia has tied up with a leading jewelry company in a bid to attract the world’s biggest high rollers. Offering loyalty programs that include yacht cruises to those with an annual jewelry purchase of HK$1 million ($129,000), Echo Casino is confident it will be able to tap into the huge Asian customer base of the jewelry company. Under the partnership, the jewelry company will be paid a certain fee for every VIP customer that it will successfully refer to the new casino – something that Willy Ocier, Andrew Tan and Ricky Razon might want to consider for their respective gaming properties.

The planned 1,100-room hotel resort and casino will cost about $2 billion with construction expected to finish by 2022. According to casino officials, they are looking at very serious high rollers who bet over $2,000 an hour on high stakes baccarat, calculating that wagers in the VIP rooms would reach $22 billion a year by 2023.  A particular target are the wealthy Chinese who have been among the big spenders in Australia. According to Australian tourism officials, a major attraction is their country’s natural environment and clean air – understandable considering the deathly pollution hovering over many cities in China.

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