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Thursday, January 27, 2005
Mongaya: Enjoying due process
By Anol Mongaya
With the vigilante killings inspired by Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, businessmen Andy Ng and Richard Ong should consider themselves lucky because they are still able to enjoy their right to due process. Ng and Ong have no reason to fear the vigilantes. The death squad in Cebu only targets small-time criminals.
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Years ago, the court convicted Mayor Osmeña’s nephew Paco Larrañaga and company for the abduction, rape and killing of the Chiong sisters. We applauded the conviction. A louder applause followed when the Supreme Court upped their punishment from life imprisonment to death.
I am also looking forward to the conviction of Guillermo Batac for robbing and stabbing a college coed who refused to give her bag. But let a judge convict him, not the mayor-inspired vigilante.
In advocating for the rule of law, we who disagree with the Tomas-inspired killings do not love the criminals. We are only pushing for the lawful way of ridding society of its dregs.
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The controversy over the construction of coal-fired plants has spilled to the streets. While technocrats and scientists talked about cleaner technologies for utilizing fossil fuels during a conference of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, fear of pollution fanned protests.
But it seems protests are loud only in the case of the planned coal plants in Naga town. Protesters are silent on the coal-fired plant endorsed by President Arroyo in Lutopan, Toledo City.
Are Toledo residents meeker compared to Naga folk? Considering that much of the opposition comes from Cebu City, is there a conscious effort to focus on Naga?
Nevertheless, I think Cebuanos should decide now on the power plant issue and not later when the brownouts return because the existing plants have already conked out.
So, can we afford the environmental costs of acquiring the power supply we need two to three years from now? If we could not do so, do we have the resources to use more expensive yet cleaner technologies that would tap solar or wind power?
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Some quarters in the local customs office welcome Bert Lina, the brother of Joey Lina, as the next customs commissioner. “He understands the customs process,” an old timer said. Lina, who is in the forwarding business, is believed to be close to BIR Commissioner Guillermo Parayno. Let’s see if he can improve the performance of the bureau in terms of collection and not in terms of more smuggling.
(superbalita@sunstar.com.ph or anol_cebu@hotmail.com/ 0917-9761193)
(January 27, 2005 issue)
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