SEA Games opening sa Luneta?!

Napanood ko ang opening ceremonies ng SEA Games kahapon and if it were not for the Bayanihan Dance Troupe and the San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra, isa na sana ito sa mga pinakamalaking trahedya na naganap sa bansa.

The country’s hosting of the SEA Games is even a more unfortunate tragedy for all of us.

Ito raw ang unang beses sa 46 taong kasaysayan ng SEA Games na ginanap ang opening ceremonies sa isang public park. Yes it is a first, but this is something that we Filipinos can’t be proud of.

Ginanap sa Luneta ang opening ceremonies ng SEA Games sa simpleng kadahilanan na wala kasing malaki, moderno at kumpletong sports facility ang bansa para sa mga ganitong aktibidad. Ito rin ang dahilan kung bakit nakakalat ang mga laro sa iba’t ibang isla at probinsya ng Pilipinas.

Isa itong malaking proyekto na dapat noon pa ay pinagtuunan na ng pansin ng Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympics Committee at ng gobyerno, ngunit mukhang kahit sa mga ahensyang ito, dumadaloy ang lason ng maruming pulitikang bumabalot din sa kabuuan ng pamahalaan.

Gaya ng kalusugan at edukasyon, maliit din ang pondo na inilalaan ng pamahalaan sa mga atletang Pinoy (at masakit pa, baka ito ay nakukulimbat din). Hanggang ngayon kasi, wala pa rin naming kongkreto at long-term na plano ang gobyerno para sa mga atleta. Kapag may SEA Games o iba pang torneo lamang napapansin sila.

Kung pagtutuunan sana ng ibayong atensyon at pagpopondo ang pagsasanay sa ating mga atleta, mas malaki sana ang ating tyansa na makabuslo ng maraming ginto sa SEA Games, Asian Games at maging sa Olympics. Hindi na natin kailangan na maghintay pa ng pagho-host ng torneo para makuha ang top spot sa medal tally.

Hindi rin sana magiging ‘elitista’ ang mga isport na ito kung mas marami ang nabibigyan ng pagkakataon na maging atleta. Mahal kasi ang mga gamit at pribadong pagsasanay sa mga isports na ito kaya kadalasan, mga may-kaya rin ang nagiging atleta. Marami siguro pang mga may kakayahan o talento sa mga malalayong parte ng bansa ngunit hindi nabibigyan ng pagkakataon dahil sa kahirapan.

Higit na nakakalungkot pa siguro ay ang pagiging makasarili at gahaman at pamumulitika ng mga ilang opisyales at negosyante sa mga torneong katulad nito. Hindi rin naman talaga kasi interes ng mga atleta at karangalan ng bansa ang habol ng mga ito kundi ang kung paano pagkakakitaan ang isang malaking sports event na tulad ng SEA Games. Pribadong mga isponsor pa rin naman kasi ang may malaking papel sa pagdaraos ng paligsahang ito.

Miriam for Chief Justice

It could have been another first for the Philippines or a new Guinness world record, but the members of the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) perceived it otherwise.

Voting 6-2, the JBC rejected the petition to extend the deadline for the submission of nominees for the Chief Justice post, preventing Senator Miram Defensor-Santiago from being included in the list.

Miriam could have been the first woman Chief Justice. She could have made a whole lot of difference.

Such news could have made it to the front pages of international papers and the banner stories in CNN and BBC. The Philippines could have been famous again.

The story could have become the best novelty feature of the millennium. Imagine, where on Earth can we find a country whose Justice system is being run by a mad man and woman? Of course I am referring to Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez , one of Arroyo’s blabbermouths, next to Presidential Spokesman Toting Bunye.

They could have been neighbors and it could have prompted the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) to expand its rehabilitation medicine facilities, transforming the whole of Padre Faura into the new site of the

National Center for Mental Health or PGH Ward 7.

With that, people suffering from psychiatric problems and their families would be encouraged to turnover their family members to mental institutions. It would be an ‘in’ thing and had the potential to start a trend.

Too bad, it also could have been a great opportunity to expose the flaws of the Justice system and the president’s political maneuverings.

Winning the cyberspace battle

Malacanang's spin-doctors tried to diffuse the Google bomb but they failed. There was also an attempt to redirect the keyword 'sinungaling' from Toting Bunye's website to our young radicals blog, but they also messed up.

Apparently, the government’s set of computer experts and its rich resources were no match to the overwhelming anti-Arroyo sentiment now engulfing the country and the internet.

Too bad for Mrs. Arroyo, she is not winning the battle even in cyberspace.

Public opinion is something Arroyo can never mock up. She may have the control of most of our democratic institutions and processes but she can never manipulate public opinion in her favor.

We are becoming more creative in expressing dissent and advocating change. The advancement of technology has made it possible for Filipinos to immediately unite on various issues.

But technology should be seen as a means and not an end in our crusade for truth, justice and meaningful change. Our collective action as a people is still the decisive force that will remove Arroyo from power.

Bombard the (GMA online) headquarters!

Together, we can turn Arroyo's website into the "pekeng pangulo” homepage.

We are calling on all bloggers and web administrators to post a link with the keyword "pekeng pangulo" to Arroyo's website, http://www.kgma.org/.

This has been done by anti-Bush activists during the peak of the anti-Iraq war protests in 2001 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_bombing). When you search Google with the key words: " miserable failure http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/gwbbio.html", then click on "Im Feeling Lucky", it will bring you striaght to the > biography page of US President George W. Bush.

Other keywords you can link: sira ulo (http://www.doj.gov.ph/), gobyernong bulok (http://www.gov.ph/), bugaw (http://www.i-site.ph/Databases/Executive/Cabinet/2004-2010/personal/gonzales-personal.html), sinungaling (http://www.op.gov.ph/profiles_bunye.asp), etc.

Everyone is encouraged to repost this entry on their weblog/website.

http://youngradicals.blogspot.com/ and Youth Demanding Arroyo’s Removal (YOUTH DARE)