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Saturday, June 29, 2002
ESPINOZA: Hidden dangers in our food
By Elias L. Espinoza
WARNED. I was in another bank on Ramos St. on Wednesday, a few hours after Metrobank at the corner of F. Ramos and Ma-xilom Sts. was robbed. The bank manager, who is a friend, broke the news to me that robbers killed a security guard.
The news did not totally disturb me since bank robberies had become so common these past few months. What shocked me most was the unsolicited information that the police had a tip that robbers would strike one of the banks in Ramos that day.
My source said the police went to all the banks in the street the day before to warn security guards.
Was Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña right in his speculation that the Metro-bank robbery was an inside job? This is the first robbery after the mayor returned to his post after a long rest in United States. The robbery was sort of a dunking for Mayor Osmeña.
The robbery was a product of a long and tedious planning by the perpetrators, who appear to be professionals.
Of course, from the account of security guard Joel Empiedad, the whole thing was straight out of an American heist film.
If indeed, the police received a tip and relayed the information to managers and security guards of banks in F. Ramos St. about a possible strike, why then did they not secure the establishments?
Under the circumstance, police are liable for failing to contain or prevent the Metrobank robbery. And since it took place just days after Osmeña’s return to City Hall, I don’t suppose the mayor will blame the incident on his detractors.
This is the first major crime that occurred after the relief of Supt. Lani-O Nerez as chief of the Cebu City Police Office.
I am now inclined to believe that criminals have a better spy network than our police. What a shame!
BANNED FOOD. For several years now most of us have been eating canned meat or bottled sauce without being aware if these were fit for consumption.
Our government, while it shows concern for our health, has failed on this aspect.
The other day I received an e-mail from a concerned friend, Chris Dimayuga, who now resides in Melbourne, Australia. He furnished me a story about banned Philippine food products.
“Tell your families to beware of the groceries they are buying!!! Saudi Arabia bans GMO-tainted Philippine products. Saudi Arabia’s minister of commerce banned certain Philippine products after laboratory tests revealed that they contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Food products imported from RP, including popular children’s snacks and meat products have been tested and found to contain GMOs, the environmentalist group Green-peace revealed Friday.
“The 17 were among the 36 products that Greenpeace shipped to Hong Kong DNA Chips Ltd., an independent testing laboratory in Hong Kong, for testing for GMOs, said Beau Baconguis, Greenpeace Southeast Asia engineering campaigner. (I am withholding the brands of the canned goods and sauces until I get the side of the producers.)
“Baconguis said the latest findings brought to 46 the number of identified GMO-contaminated products produced locally or sold in the Philippines. The manufacturers of the earlier found products, including Gerber’s baby food and Novartis, have pledged to stop sending GMO-tainted products to the Philippines.
“On Feb. 3, Greenpeace activists blocked a ship carrying 17,000 tons of genetically engineered (GE) soybeans from the United States bound for General Milling Corp.
“‘The Filipino public will continue to consume risky genetically engineered food with neither their knowledge nor consent if government does not act swiftly and decisively to label them.’ Baconguis said in a news conference.
“Baconguis said govern-ment’s inaction on mandatory labeling requirements has allowed corporations to ‘take on the role of mad scientists playing with Filipino consumers as their experimental rats.’ In contrast, Baconguis said, markets for GMO products are closing down worldwide. The latest to enforce laws against GMOs was China, whose regulations went into effect on March 20, he said.
“Baconguis said a recent US foreign agricultural service report noted that Saudi Arabia’s ministry of commerce has banned all food products that have been tested to contain GMOs from entering that country and this affected a lot of local exporters whose products are widely sold in the Middle East. The report reveals that the oil-rich country tops the list of nations that prohibit public sales of food containing GMOs, harmful preservatives and chemicals.”
NO LAW. So, what has our Bureau of Food and Drugs (Bfad) of the Department of Health done on these canned products manufactured right in our land that are said to contain GMO? Unlike the United States, we do not have a law on disclosure, which requires the manufacturer to disclose by printing in the label the ingredients, including preservatives, as well as nutritional value. The penalty for violation is so steep that American manufacturers comply.
Aside from the Bfad, Congress should also pass a law protecting consumers. It should also not cover up illegal activities of some manufacturers.
However, with elections held every three years, where will our politicians go? Don’t ask me.
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