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Thursday, July 17, 2003
Mongaya: Mouse dung
By ANOL MONGAYA
I am glad Vicente Igot of Lapu-Lapu City decided to report to GMA 7 the unsavory activities of a Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) examiner. After Igot was told that his capital gains tax was P89,000, BIR examiner Rey Dosono allegedly said he (Igot) may pay only P24,000 if he will give him (Dosono) P30,000 from the supposed savings.
Unfortunately for Dosono, Igot did not like the attempt to squeeze him of his money. He sought the help of GMA 7, which took him to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7. Police operatives then planned an entrapment operation that bagged Dosono.
If only victims of the shenanigans of BIR officials follow what Igot did. Entrapping corrupt officials will go along way in ridding our government bureaucracy of filth. One corrupt official is like a speck of mouse dung that is enough to spoil one’s soup. (However, try checking Google for mouse dung and you will find that some people consider it a delicacy, others as medicine, lyrics for a song, or a subject for fiction.)
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Customs watchers thought that assessment division chief Collector Frank Logarta would stay in his post until his retirement months from now because of his excellent performance. He is District Collector Billy Bibit’s secret in the former rebel soldier’s unsurpassed revenue collection record. Thus, several eyebrows raised when reports circulated that Bibit has already signed an order removing Logarta from the post. “Madala diay si Tatay og intriga,” customs observers told themselves.
Incidentally, Commissioner Tony Bernardo reportedly signed Bibit’s promotion to the Manila International Container Port (MICP). But Collector Ping Bartolome reportedly does not want to budge from the MICP. The seat must be very comfortable.
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Mayor Tomas Osmeña stole the limelight from the tragic shootout the other day that saw a policeman and a robber dead. Immediately after learning of the policeman’s death, he called for the relief of Cebu City Police Chief Cecil Ezra Sandalo for allegedly failing to follow his instructions.
The mayor wanted the police patrols using city-funded multicabs to carry long arms. Osmeña blamed Sandalo for the death of PO3 Michael Sarcol because the police officer was not carrying a long firearm.
I’m not into guns so I don’t claim to be knowledgeable of its use. But as a layman, I can’t understand how an M-16 rifle could have prevented Sarcol from being hit. According to witness accounts, Sarcol and fellow police officers fired warning shots as they chased Omar Patiño. They did not expect the robbery suspect to suddenly pull out a gun and shoot the police officer. Apparently, Sarcol was surprised and was beaten to the draw.
Is Mayor Osmeña saying Sarcol could have shot Patiño first had the police officer possessed a long firearm? Or did the mayor want Sarcol to just take cover and shoot the fleeing robber from afar using the long firearm?
Fortunately, Mayor Osmeña changed his mind. Though I find Sandalo’s first 100 days as Cebu City police chief unsatisfactory, I think he should be given more chances to prove he can reverse the rise in crime in the city.
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I had a close look at Sandalo recently when he spoke during the induction of toastmaster’s club president Radi Abarintos, who is the chief of the customs cash division. I was surprised to hear a police officer eloquently calling attention to the iniquities between the rich and poor. Apparently, the perspective Sandalo expressed in his speech indicates an open mind and a social concern.
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As for the matter of rich and poor, the RP-US bilateral aviation talks at the Hyatt Regency Manila that will end tomorrow demonstrates how a rich country wants to take advantage of a poor country like the Philippines.
The US panel, among others, refuses to grant Philippines airlines rights equal to US carriers. In particular, the local airlines need to equalize market access enjoyed by US carriers today. Unfortunately, the Americans don’t want equal rights. They want the Philippines to grant US airlines insurmountable advantages in competition.
(Send your reactions to Superbalita@sunstar.com.ph or anol_cebu@hotmail.com or text to 09179761193) |
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