I read in the news that the so-called victims of the Legacy scam will all be paid in the first quarter of this year by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC). Why it has taken a full-year to pay off this insurable deposit escapes me. Of course this news is good tidings to those depositors in the various rural banks that Celso delos Angeles or his company Legacy Corp. used to control who fall within the allowable insured amount. Those depositors who put in more money will just have to join the procession for the Sto. Niño this Saturday and pray for some kind of divine intervention.
Indeed, it’s been a year since the Legacy Banks collapsed and caused untold suffering to those depositors who were lured to the “get-rich-quick” schemes or scams that the Legacy Corp. sold to these people. Hopefully those depositors learned their lessons well; whenever some bank official exhorts you to deposit your money in their high yielding interests, you can bet that something is afoot that would boomerang on your deposit.
Oh, we almost forgot! It is also a year since the Rural Bank of Subangdaku (RBS) collapsed and the resignation of bank president, Mrs. Paz Radaza was accepted by the bank directors. Back then, Mrs. Paz Radaza issued the only statement about the collapse of RBS which she headed for years, that she would come up with a statement in the future. Well, Mrs. Radaza, the future is here. We would like to hear from you, the really story, why RBS collapsed. That was a promise Mrs. Radaza made to her depositors. It’s time to collect on that promise.
With the local election campaign soon to start (actually, the candidates are already campaigning) I’m sure that this issue would erupt. Whether she likes it or not, she should answer our queries why RBS collapsed. I would also like to know from the PDIC whether the depositors of RBS also got back their insured money. Abangan!
* * *
The big news coming from the Supreme Court is a major upset in the North of Cebu when the SC upheld in an en banc decision declared that Celestino “Tining” Martinez III won as Congressman of the 4th District of Cebu during the 2007 local elections, unseating Rep. Benhur Salimbangon. The SC also rebuked the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for its “inefficiency and lethargy.” I can only agree. That it has taken this long for the votes in the 4th District to be recounted is sheer inefficiency!
The SC decision is apparently executory immediately; therefore, Tining is now Congressman in the 4th District. Of course, Benhur Salimbangon will make the usual appeals to the Supreme Court, but I doubt if the SC will hold another en ban decision to overturn what they have just decided. Benhur supposedly lost by less than 5,000 votes. That means, he can still count on those that voted for him in the last elections. I heard that the people in the 4th District are very satisfied with Benhur’s work as their Congressman. This means the coming elections in the 4th District will most certainly be a very interesting one.
* * *
The gun ban has been in effect since last Sunday. The law-abiding citizen who had his firearm registered and paid for are now running scared that criminal elements can now roam our streets with impunity, knowing that the citizenry has been “disarmed”, more so that even off-duty policemen cannot carry their firearms anymore. With this gun ban, even politicians cannot be assured of good security protection.
A case in point is that of Governor Gwen. F. Garcia who a couple of years ago declared all-out war against the Communists. No governor in this country had the guts to make such a declaration. Gov. Gwen will certainly be a target of opportunity for Sparrow units. If by Comelec rules, she is assigned a single policeman to protect her, what kind of protection can a single policeman really give our governor?
Mayor Tomas Osmeña has a better advantage in the sense that he hasn’t made any such declaration against the Communists and therefore not considered a target of opportunity. While he too gets the protection of a single policeman, I’m sure that he is a better shot than the policeman assigned to him. If and when something goes amiss, it would be better for the Mayor to grab the policeman’s gun. These are things that the Comelec should look into when they make their assessments whether a candidate needs more protection than the other candidates. They have to look into each candidate on the gravity of the threats that they are involved in.