Former NPC presidents back Fajardo vs Gonzalez

The council of former presidents of the Negros Press Club (NPC) threw its support yesterday behind Panay News editor-in-chief Danny Fajardo after Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez asked Regional Trial Court Judge Delano Villaruz to issue an order committing him to jail together with Felipe Celino.

Both were convicted for libel but were subsequently pardoned by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The President issued the pardon on Jan. 27, 2004. But Gonzalez reportedly wrote the judge that he has "every reason to invite the attention of the court on its duty to implement its decision."

Again on March 27, Gonzalez reportedly wrote another letter to Judge Villaruz where he stressed that "now that the same is quiet (sic) clear to you, it is appropriate that the sentence handed down in Criminal Case No. C-33437 be implemented and warrant of arrest be issued against Danny Fajardo."

In his March 22 letter, Gonzalez again told Villaruz: "Since this is a warrant of arrest on a judgment that has become final and executory, it is submitted that no hearing is necessary."

But Judge Villaruz wrote back to Gonzalez, explaining that the latter’s assertions "are far from the truth." This referred to the contention by Judge Nap Dilag regarding the letter of Deputy Executive Secretary Manuel B. Gaite.

But Judge Villaruz ended his letter with the reminder – "By the way, we belong to separate branches of government."

Council members hailed Villaruz’s reply as courteous but at the same time asserting the independence of the judiciary from the DOJ.

What is bothersome about the controversy is that the President had already signed and issued the pardon for Fajardo and Celino on the basis of a waiver in favor of the two journalists.

Primo Esleyer, chairman of the council, said yesterday that the members were unanimous in their denunciation of Gonzalez’s palpable bias against Fajardo to the point that he is ready to risk further his reputation just to satisfy his ire against the Panay News editor.

Gonzalez, incidentally, recently got into hot water for his uncalled for comment about Julia Campbell having walked out alone in the isolated mountain trail in Banaue which led to her being bludgeoned to death.

That was roundly denounced, particularly by Rep. Etta Rosales. Later, Gonzalez also stirred a hornet’s nest when he promised to give monetary incentives to any barangay captain of Iloilo who could give a 12-0 victory to the Team Unity.

SkyCable blasted

SkyCable was blasted yesterday by the council of former presidents of Negros Press Club over the arbitrary cancellation of a program of Zosette Villaruz, who is a non-political commentator and simply involved in music.

But she was reportedly having Vice Mayor Renecito Novero singing on air when her program was cut off on the air purportedly because it was partisan.

Novero is the rival for the lone district of Bacolod of re-electionist Rep. Monico Puentevella.

Puentevella earlier had written a letter to Raul Montinola of SkyCable inquiring into the guidelines governing blocktimers and paid commentaries.

Montinola replied that complaints should be written to SkyCable which would then undertake due process to determine whether the complaint has any basis or not and to determine the remedial measures to take.

Former president Modesto Saonoy stressed that a perusal of Puentevella’s letter showed nothing else other than just an inquiry into SkyCable’s rules and regulations.

But the SkyCable’s action had nothing to do with the Puentevella query, Saonoy pointed out. The same was the opinion of lawyer Rex Remitio, also a former NPC president.

Anyway, that was condemned by the council as a possible threat to the freedom of the press which must be protected because the information provided by the media forms the basis for the judicious selection by the voters of who they should vote for and on what basis.

As earlier observed, tempers are rising. And even among mediamen, there was already a call for the press club to re-classify the membership of media practitioners who have become propagandists or mouthpieces of political candidates.

Coseteng: CARP failure pre-destined

Genuine Opposition senatorial bet Anna Dominique Coseteng said Tuesday that the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988 was pre-destined to fail.

"It was not intended to work in the first place," she asserted.

Nikki, as she is popularly known, said Republic Act 6657, or CARL, like a number of government programs, are "destined not to work."

Coseteng mirrored what several other senatoriables, from both the GO and Team Unity, have gone out of their way to oppose the proposed extension of CARP without first an intensive review of its implementation because of the evident failure of the program.

During the press conference at the Business Inn, Coseteng claimed that the landmark comprehensive agrarian reform program which 17 minority legislators were supposed to enact in 1987 was "everything but its title in the Senate version."

Coseteng surprised even veteran mediamen when she discussed the Tractor Saturation Program, which she reportedly hatched with some local officials, including then Negros Occidental Gov. Rafael Coscolluela, and several provinces.

About 100 air-conditioned 175 to 225 horsepower tractors complete with attachments could have increased agricultural productivity by as much as 17 times the prevailing output then, Coseteng said.

Tension up in Estancia

Political tension rose perceptibly in the town of Estancia in Iloilo last week when re-electionist Mayor Rene Cordero filed a disqualification suit against former police general Restituto Mosqueda.

Mosqueda filed on Aug. 23, 2006 his application as a new voter of Estancia.

But, pointed out Cordero, the Omnibus Election Code mandates that an elective local official must be a registered voter in the barangay, municipality, city or province and a resident therein for at least one year immediately preceding the day of the election.

ADDENDA. There were other petitions for disqualification filed with the Commission on Elections. The most hilarious was that filed by Sangguniang Panlalawigan member Cecilia Capadocia against second district Congresswoman Judy Syjuco, who reportedly sought the use of the nickname "Bobby Syjuco" in her certificate of candidacy. This is reportedly a material misrepresentation and a mockery since that applies to her husband, TESDA secretary and former Rep. Augusto Syjuco... Rep. Herminio Teves (third district, Oriental Negros) puts all congressmen on the chopping block when he commented yesterday that they should be transparent in the reporting of how they disbursed their Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or pork barrel. He supplied local mediamen a booklet outlining how he disbursed his PDAF. Teves also urged congressmen to reveal how much they are actually receiving from the House. Aside from his P27,000 monthly pay, he said he also gets a minimum P50,000 monthly allowance and P200,000 incentive bonus during Christmas and P20,000 more by the end of the session. "My total allowance for 2006 was P1.1 million which I declared my additional income from Congress," Teves told Romy Amrado of the Visayan Daily STAR’s Dumaguete Bureau.