Tuesday, December 05, 2006 Editorial: Funding lack
WITH the combined devastation of Typhoons Milenyo -- whose destructive path had yet to be fully cleared out by the national government -- and Reming, the funds were ordered released to fast track the relief and rehabilitation efforts for provinces worst hit by these twin weather calamities.
For curiosity's sake, one cannot help but speculate on whether there are enough funds left for the upcoming Asean summit in Cebu City or for the Charter change campaign being rushed by the major Congress proponents.
How they would resolve this one can only guess but in these dire times, funding seems most appropriate for those who need it the most and not for those seeking to aggrandize themselves or furthering their own agenda.
Jailguard murder
Authorities should get to the bottom of the murder case that claimed the life of one jail guard in Tagoloan town, Misamis Oriental if only to bring a measure of resolution to it and determine whether or not the communist New People's Army (NPA) rebels have a hand in this dastardly crime.
According to reports the jail guard was attending a vigil when he got murdered by an armed man whom some eyewitnesses said appeared to be a communist NPA rebel. In a radio interview with the victim's wife, she said the jail guard shot the suspect -- then a political detainee--even though the latter surrendered himself to the authorities.
While the shooting was clearly wrong, it didn't merit any judgment of death on the part of the communist rebels who are in no way and in no position to claim lives according to their so-called "People's Laws" and "People's Court" which are never recognized by either the national level and the international community of nations and is in reality is nothing more than a kangaroo court intended to sow fear and intimidation on Filipinos living in the countryside.
Then again, according to Misamis Oriental Provincial Jail Warden Dominador Tagarda, there were reports that the jail guard wasn't all that innocent and was allegedly spotted with a girlfriend in tow during a visit to the Provincial Jail compound. Even if the situation may prove embarrassing to the victim's family, nevertheless all angles must be looked into to identify and prosecute the perpetrators of this murder.
Or else the communist rebels will again be blamed for this dastardly act, which is unfair even for them. These rebels, to their credit, admit to killing people only upon careful evaluation to see if the killing could profit them in terms of propaganda mileage and the advancement of their highly erroneous and questionable ideological and political agenda.
At least the authorities ought to show them that there is a better way under this political system to uncover the reason behind the killing and bring the perpetrators to justice -- that is unless of course the communist rebels did the deed themselves, in which case they add more blood in their hands.
