Try
Let us eat BBM rice, live in a BBM housing unit, buy medicine at a Botika at Bakuna para sa Mamamayan outlet, and get a BBM haircut. While it is unlikely that Bongbong has explicitly ordered his underlings (and their underlings) to come up with (P)BBM programs, he certainly is not discouraging them from naming things after him
Llamas used the term,Tsinador, to describe certain political leaders and influencers whom he accused of prioritizing Chinese interests over Philippine sovereignty, specifically regarding the West Philippine Sea.
Calling the charges “baseless” does not make them disappear. Declaring them “political” does not answer them… Until the vice president confronts the allegations directly and fully, the issue will not fade into politics. It will remain a matter of responsibility left unresolved.
The year ahead promises to be defining for the future trajectory of ASEAN. Expectations are high, and many want to see the bloc be more decisive on key issues of regional stability and prosperity. Marcos Jr., like his Malaysian predecessor, will face a decision whether to remain a passive observer on potentially thorny issues within member countries, or strike out and give ASEAN a more pronounced role in both regional and global affairs.
Eighty one years ago, on February 3, 1945, the Battle for the Liberation of Manila began. It was the only urban battle of the Pacific War and it raged for one month, ending on March 3, 1945… The battle remains controversial due to the excessive loss of civilian life as well as the destruction it caused. It made Manila the second most devastated Allied capital city after Warsaw in Poland during the Second World War.Some of the specific controversial issues surrounding the battle are: Was it a necessary battle? Could the city have been bypassed to save the residents from the horrors of urban fighting and massacres? Was the use of artillery by the Americans done in an indiscriminate manner?
The National Maritime Council bears particular responsibility...A multi-agency approach is necessary, but convergence without leadership is fragmentation. Public messaging by maritime and security agencies must reinforce a coherent diplomatic line, not generate parallel narratives that complicate it.
Marcos Jr., no doubt, will be held accountable. But it is a false dichotomy to assume that there was no corruption under the Duterte regime and that Sara must not be investigated.
Defunding foreign-assisted projects did not save money. It wasted it. It froze infrastructure, raised costs, slowed growth, weakened investor confidence, and shifted the burden onto those with the least protection.
Accountability remains essential. Allegations of abuse of power or misuse of public funds must be investigated, regardless of who is involved. But when political conflict overshadows governance, the public interest suffers.
Social media platforms backed by multi-million dollar companies must also be held accountable in the proliferation of disinformation, and not just profit from the crisis, political scientist Cleve Arguelles urged.
