Saturday, February 03, 2007 Editorial: Ebdane appointment
THE appointment of Hermogenes Ebdane as the new defense secretary is being viewed with a lot of suspicion by several sectors owing to his "Hello Garci" ties that still rankle him even to this day.
In fact it was a question posed by a foreign correspondent, which alluded to this "Hello Garci" situation that drew his outburst.
Actually the question is all about the viability of keeping the military and police from politicking in the elections but Ebdane can't help himself from reacting.
Which begs the question whether Ebdane can keep the military and police from the nasty claws of politics. That's a question that remains to be answered come May 14.
Prison breakout
The attack by suspected guerillas on a jail in Kidapawn City, North Cotabato is proof that the national government really has to do something to improve the security of jails which can be damaged at will by people with enough firepower and moxie to wage war on a city.
While generally unexpected it only goes to show as to what lengths the rebels will go to so their comrades would be released and continue to wage their campaign of terror on hapless citizens. And this will continue unless the national government gets its act together and tap their resources to the fullest.
It was rather pathetic seeing jail guards and other security personnel being unable to secure their jail compounds from a supposedly rag-tag group of poorly armed rebels who are supposed to be hard put getting arms in the first place.
But then for every head you cut from the terrorist Hydra, two more take its place each of them much more savage than the first.
What made this particularly lamentable is that other inmates seized the opportunity to make a break for it and escape. So the jail management is not only saddled with explaining how they managed to lose the inmates the assailants were after but also the other inmates they were supposed to guard.
But more than that, the dismal conditions of our jail compounds, which are overcrowded, foul-smelling, cramped and poorly built--the likely ingredients that would facilitate a breakout. The assault was simply the exclamation point to the message that something needs to be done about this.
