One of the Best Experiences in My Life

 By Mortz C. Ortigoza

I have to burn my Bob Woodward's non- fiction thick covered book collections mostly about the stints of U.S Presidents and government top honchos. I just found last night termites infesting, impregnating, and gnawing the covers and pages of these hardbound.

Without doing that ultimate solution, these pests will be consuming the hundreds of my mostly political books in my library and eventually gnawing the valuable wood parts of my abode.

If I was not wrong, I have 20 collection of Woodward's hardcovers. He was the Washington Post’s correspondent in the early 1970s who exposed President Richard Nixon's corruption in the Watergate Scandal.

A friend in the United States sent me this year a copy of Woodward’s blockbuster's Peril. It was a collaboration with Robert Costa.

One of the contents of PERIL – and the authors’ prologue that perked up the excitement if not curiosity of readers -  was about a U.S General who during the last days of President Donald Trump called his Chinese counterpart to warn China incase "Nutcase Donald Duck" ordered the Generals to nuke out to smithereens, Jezz, the Chinks.

Acclaimed filmmaker Peter Jackson has released an exclusive sneak peek of his upcoming documentary “The Beatles: Get Back” for fans everywhere to enjoy. The film showcases the warmth, camaraderie and creative genius that defined the legacy of the iconic foursome. “The Beatles: Get Back” is the story of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr as they plan their first live show in over two years and charts the writing and rehearsing of 14 new songs, originally intended for release on an accompanying live album. (Photo Credit: Beatles Magazine)

Glued on my laptop last night watching the first two hours of the eight hours’ documentary of the Beatles how they rehearsed, jammed, and composed new songs with urgency for a concert to be held on the roof top of a building dubbed as Get Back. It was relishing - as if seeing up close and personal- their demeanours. I saw John Lennon belted "Jealous Guy" with different lyrics and Paul McCartney sang as warm up “Another Day”. Those two songs did not become part of their second to last album's Let It Be. They became their single after the Fabulous Four parted ways in 1969.

Here’s the introduction of the docu: But when director Peter Jackson was asked a few years ago by the surviving Beatles to revisit the footage shot for Let It Be, and cut it into an all-new documentary, he combed through more than 60 hours of video and 150 hours of audio, and found an altogether different story. This was not the Beatles in misery, he told reporters—this was the Fab Four laughing, reconnecting, rehearsing not just the songs for Let It Be but half of Abbey Road and many numbers that would go on to dot John, Paul, and George’s solo records".

***

This how the Beatles especially Lennon and McCarthy composed a song. In their session they saw a newspaper banner story about a member of the Parliament who wanted to stop the migration in Great Britain of Pakistanis, Indians, and people from the Commonwealth.

The salient features of that phenomenon:

- Recorded January 9, 1969 during the Get Back/Let It Be sessions;

- Enoch Powell was a conservative member of Parliament and gave a fear baiting speech about if they allow immigration from the British Empire Commonwealth countries, the whites would soon be in the minority. This was obviously on the Beatles minds at the time when they did this mocking song about him and the people who believe these things;

Political writer Mortz C. Ortigoza - the writer of this article - who hailed from the Philippines belts in this video "A Day in the Life". It is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as the final track of their 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, the verses were mainly written by John Lennon, with Paul McCartney primarily contributing the song's middle section. (Wikipidea)

- Many long-time Beatles fans are already familiar with this, but for anyone having a negative misunderstanding of this song, watch this video to understand what was going on with late 60's;

***

My answer will be "Disagreed" too!

When the two hosts and a male guest of CNN's New Year Special were asked: If you watched the eight hours new TV documentary about the 60 hours’ video footage of the Beatles composing, rehearsing, and preparing their rock songs mostly seen in the albums Let It Be and Abbey Road, was John Lennon's then GF Yoko Ono the main factor that saw the Fabulous Four broke out?

The three showed their "Disagree Cards".

With my link on that flicks where I saw the spirited demeanors of the four while doing antics and play their stuffs, I saw there too in that 16 session days that the presence of Yoko, Linda McCartney and five-year-old daughter Heather goofing around and Ringo Star's wife were welcome sight. John and Yoko sometimes dances while the Beatles and other players like keyboard genius Billy Preston play.

Damn, going to watch again the three series films since I felt I'm a kibitzer while they play their old rock classics that made them the undisputed No. 1 Rock Band in the world.

The discontent of George Harrison who said his songs and guitar styles have been disputed by Paul McCarthy - who had a commanding presence in that docu - caused -as one of the major factors - the dismemberment of the group. He even left the session for three days prejudicing the rooftop video and audio recording of the various songs dubbed as Get Back.

 Japanese Yoko Ono (left) in a huddle with American magazine photographer Linda Eastman - the wife of the "second boss" of the Beatles British Paul McCartney  - while the band in the background rehearsed in a studio for their impending recording of new rock songs).

This newly found 60 hours’ video footages of the unguarded Beatles in sessions have been the best experiences of my five decades of life on this earth. My first encounter with the Fab Four was in the early 1980s when I bought their bootleg cassette tape’s Hard Days Night sold at the Barter Trade in Zamboanga City in the Southern Philippines during the furlough of my military father.

I later discovered that they have more scintillating albums like the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band, White Album, Let it Be, and Abbey Road- their last album before they broke out in 1969.

The last song their The End in Abbey Road was heart wrenching as the melody and the lyrics primordially done by McCartney epitomized the classics composed by these four British teenagers in their almost one-decade collaboration that had to be ended at the disappointment of their fanatics.

"The End" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album Abbey Road. It was composed by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was the last song recorded collectively by all four Beatles, and is the final song of the medley that constitutes the majority of side two of the album. The song features one of the few drum solos recorded by Ringo Starr. (Wikipidea)

READ MY OTHER BLOG/COLUMN

Whysnipers are glorified, glamorized?

(You can read my selected columns at http://mortzortigoza.blogspot.com and articles at Pangasinan News Aro. You can send comments too at totomortz@yahoo.com)

Follow me on Twitter Send me a secure tip.

MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

Follow

I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.

 

SINAG Blames Cut of Tariffs with India to Misery of Farmers

HE WOULD NOT BLAME THE RTL

By Mortz C. Ortigoza  

A leader of the agricultural stakeholders’ group would not blame the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) for the flood of cheap prices of imported staple in the market that saw Filipino farmers reel in misery because of the decline of the prices of their products.

 Samahan ng Industriyang Agrikultura (SINAG) Chairman Rosendo So said he condemned the reduction of tariffs by the government to rice exporting countries outside the Association of South East Asian Nation (ASEAN) and the delay of the yearly financial allocation of P10 billion from the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) as the culprits.

 “Ang problem lang ngayon is itong mga months ago nag sign si Secretary (William Dar) maibaba iyong tariff na outside ASEAN. Kasi ang ASEAN may agreement na 35%. Pero outside ASEAN India and others dapat sa fifty percent iyon,” he explained about the reduction of duty from 50% to 35% of imported rice from countries outside the ASEAN signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in May 15, 2021.

The tariff adjustment signed by the President was due to the rising prices of the staple in Vietnam and Thailand – two members of the ASEAN that have been given the most favored nation (MFN) privileged with 35% duty by the Philippines as part of the treaty.

With countries like India given MFN of 35% from the old 50% tariff, the government expect a cheaper price of the rice being imported.

Some of the objectives of the RTL (known too as the Rice Liberalization Act) or Republic Act No. 11203 are the following:

1.       Fulfill the Philippines international commitment where it joined the World Trade Organization in 1995. Replace the minimum access volume (MAV) on rice with another form of protection that is more transparent and generate revenues to support – or a tariff;

2.       Ensure the availability of rice in the domestic market for the accessibility of greater majority of the population by allowing more private traders – big or small- to participate in the importation of rice;

3.       Provide farmers equal protection with 35% and higher tariff rates on rice imports and preferential assistance to rice farmers adversely affected by tariffication;

4.       Provide opportunity to farmers to earn more with the world market. The law also lifted the restriction on rice exportation to encourage farmers to produce much better quality heirloom or traditional rice geared to exports.

Although the Philippines commitment to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to open her rice industry from tariffication was in year 2020, the surging inflation of the staple’s price in 2018 prompted Congress to pass the RTL.

The advantages of the statute according to its proponents are the lowering of the retail prices of the staple for the consumers, address the rice shortage, reduce the prices of rice in the market, and curtail corruption and cartel’s domination in the rice industry.

Based on empirical evidence from official government polls' Philippines Statistics Authority, it shows the decline of the prices of rice – the No.1 contributor of inflation in 2018 – because of the following:

-          The average retail price of regular milled rice dropped from its peak of P45 per kilo in 2018 to P38 per kilo in 2019 (when RTL was signed), a saving of P7 per kilo for the poor consumers.

CHEAPER RICE in Dagupan City in June 2021. These varying prices of the staple were due to the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) signed  in 2018 by President Rodrigo Duterte. The skyrocketing of the prices of rice was the linchpin of inflation in that year that caused Congress to pass the Rice Liberalization Act. (Photo by the Writer)

-          The biggest gainers are the consumers who are buying cheaper and better quality rice. They did not have to wait for hours in rice pila (queue) during the height of the pandemic just to get a few kilos of rice. Rice pila became ubiquitous in our urban centers in the country.

The SINAG Chair said even without the RTL the prices of palay would plunge because importation of the staple was already open in the Philippines’ market.

He did not blame the reduction of the tariff when asked by this writer if the RTL was economically wrong because it spawned misery to the farmers and other who benefited on the paddy rice’s industry – who composed 2.4 million of the 110 million population. 

“Ang nakikita nating ano na problem doon sa rice tariff is iyong mga pundo na binigay kasi more than P20 billion ang collection pero iyong P10 billion na-allocate sa Philippine Rice, Philippines Mechanization, iyong remaining P10 billion up to now hindi pa binibigay ng government. Iyon ang dapat tingnan natin paano ang dapat maibigay sa ating magsasaka,” he told this newspaper in September 21 this year.

The law created RCEF with a fund mechanism that will be created from tariff revenues of rice imports and will be used to directly support rice farmers and fund innovative undertakings of the government to further strengthen the rice industry. It aims to provide key interventions to support farmers and enhance their competitiveness and profitability, including farm machinery and equipment to improve farm operation, rice seed development propagation and promotion, expanded rice credit and extension services.

The RCEF will pipe in P10 billion yearly to the rice sectors for the next six years.

READ MY OTHER BLOG/COLUMN:

KASALANAN NG MGA NAGDAANG GOV'T BAKIT NILUNOD NG IMPORTED RICE ANG MGA FARMERS

Most Expensive Gov'ship Election Looms

 

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

I asked a former member of Congress who is connected with the Opposition in a province how much was given to each of the mayors and those candidates for the same post in a meeting for their pledged of support to Bongbong Marcos and Sara Duterte for President and Vice President.

“Tag fifty thousand pesos,” he said.

I asked him because I was curious how much the moneyed supporter of the candidate for the governor has been using his affluence to maintain the loyalty of these hizzoners and those wannabes and how much his “hatred” to unseat come May 9, 2022 the family who perennially governed the local government unit of the province.

My source told me that as an initial contribution to the provincial venture of the governorship bet, this man shelled out three hundred million pesos as hustings expenses.

“Paggumastos iyan ng one billion pesos at ang kandidato niya ay gumasto ng kahating bilyon, may tama ang kalaban diyan,” I opined.

 Unless the incumbent has the same amount or can eclipse the sums I mentioned above, he will find himself and his family in defeat.

This was worsened when the Opposition fielded “marquee” opponents to challenge family members and allies in the next year’s electoral derby.

This will be the most expensive election the people in this province could witness if my hypothesis on the P1.5 billion wherewithal, campaign chest, or whatever is correct.

***

This backer of the Opposition is indeed a multi-millionaire. His generosity is a legend. A former mayor – who has a checkered past - told us media men that he was asked by a swaggering reporter to visit this Man.

“Noong una nahihiya pa ako kasi dati kaming Mayor pero mapiliit ito dahil kaibigan niya daw,” he referred to the reporter.

When they went home after exchanging pleasantries with the Moneyed Man they opened the envelopes containing the dough given by the host.

“Sa kanya five thousand pesos sa akin one hundred thousand (pesos),” he amusedly told us.

***

The Moneyed Man is opulent. He is one of the richest men in the huge province. His businesses and ventures are in and out of the country. His latest endeavor is a billion U.S dollar power plant.

Many pundits believed his interferences in this May 2022 election gives a lot of headaches to the political status of the Incumbent.

***

Oh by the way, I asked the former Congressman if his sports utility vehicle (SUV) is a U.S made and if it is bullet proof.

He answered my two posers in the affirmative.

“Kayo lang ata ang may ganito na brand na nakikita ko sa international movies sa probinsiya?” I asked.

He said there are only two: Him and the Moneyed Man.

READ MY OTHER BLOG/COLUMN:

Filipino Senators Cannot be Trusted

 

Cayetano Tops Senatorial Polls

 

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

The acumen on exposing himself to poor Filipinos through his vaunted financial assistance programs and to the media had given dividend to the political stocks of former Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano.

Since being ensconced in the Numbers 7 and 2 of the February 22- March 3, 2021 and September 6-11, 2021 polls, respectively for the Magic 12 of the surveys for the May 9, 2021 senatorial race of the May 9, election, Cayetano landed to No. 1 in the December 1 to 6, 2021 polls of Pulse Asia Research, Inc. It showed the former seasoned Senator leading the pack of 50 senatorial candidates where President Rodrigo Duterte was installed at Numbers 10 to 14. Duterte withdrew however his senatorial candidacy last December 14, 2021 at the Commission on Election.

Former Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano. (Photo credit
to owner)

 The top 24 list of the senatorial preferences were the following:

Taguig City-Pateros Representative Alan Cayetano was the leading senatorial pick of Filipino voters, with 64.1% including him in their list of preferred senatorial candidates. This overall voter preference translated to a statistical rating of solo 1st place. Close behind the latter were Mr. Raffy Tulfo (60.0%) and Antique Representative Loren Legarda (58.7%), who shared 2nd to 3rd places. Sorsogon Governor Francis Escudero had the support of 53.9% of voters, which equated to a statistical ranking of 4th to 5th places. Completing the top half of probable winners were Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar (51.3%, 4th to 6th places) and Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri (49.5%, 5th to 6th places). 

Finding themselves in the bottom half of those with a statistical chance of winning in next year’s senatorial election were: (1) former Vice-President Jejomar Binay (44.7%, 7th to 8th places); (2) Senator Joel Villanueva (41.6%, 7th to 9th places); (3) Senator Sherwin Gatchalian (40.1%, 8th to 9th places); (4) President Rodrigo Duterte (35.8%, 10th to 14th places); (5) Mr. Robin Padilla (35.6%, 10th to 14th places); (6) Senator Risa Hontiveros (35.5%, 10th to 14th places); (7) former Senator Jinggoy Estrada (34.4%, 10th to 14th places); and (8) former Senator JV Estrada Ejercito (32.1%, 10th to 15th places). Meanwhile, the rest of Filipino registered voters were still undecided as regards their senatorial picks for the May 2022 elections (3.2%), were not voting for any senatorial candidate (1.2%), or refused to name their preferred senatorial bets (0.3%).

Reaping the Benefits of Being a Political Tactician 

Cayetano, a rabble rousing orator, had distributed mostly in Luzon P3, 500 to P10,000 cash gifts to each of the more than 5,000 destitute Filipinos under his Sampung Libong Pag-Asa Program, Sari-Saring Pag-asa, and small business enterprises.

“Sari-Sari Store owners na fifty na recipients then fifty na small business enterprises. Pampuhunan three thousand five hundred pesos each tapos po ang total na napamigay namin sa Sari-Saring Pag-asa was 5,211 recipients,” Ehlimae Casabar, his media relation officer, told this writer on November 4 during their hustings in Dagupan City.

For decades Cayetano had been roving the country giving financial assistance worth up to hundreds of thousands of pesos to each of the various organizations of fishermen, workers, drivers and operators of public utility vehicles.

 Marcos leads Robredo by 33% for Prexy Race

In the December 1 to 6 polls, Pulse Asia bared that in the 1st place was presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. got a voter preference of 53%. In 2nd place was Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo, who had a voter preference of 20%. Around or exactly the same voting figures were obtained by Manila Mayor Francisco Domagoso (8%), Senator Emmanuel Pacquiao (8%), and Senator Panfilo Lacson (6%).

For the vice presidency, 45% of registered voters would elect Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte to replace Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo. The vice-presidential bid of Senate President Vicente Sotto III was backed by 31% of voters while Senator Francis Pangilinan had the support of 12%. In contrast, single-digit voter preferences were obtained by Dr. Willie Ong (6%) and Buhay Party List Representative Jose Atienza (1%). Former Akbayan Party List Representative Walden Bello recorded a voter preference of less than 1%. The rest of the country’s registered voters still do not know whom they would vote for as vice-president next year (3%), are not supporting any candidate for the post (2%), or refuse to name their favored vice-presidential bet (1%).

The survey fieldwork used face-to-face interviews.

This nationwide survey, according to Pulse Asia, was based on a sample of 2,400 representative adults 18 years old and above. It has a ± 2% error margin at the 95% confidence level. Subnational estimates for each of the geographic areas covered in the survey (i.e., Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) have a ± 4% error margin, also at 95% confidence level.

Follow me on Twitter Send me a secure tip.

MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

Follow

I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.

Resuello’s Liberality Makes Him Popular Among the Kapitans

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

BASISTA, Pangasinan – The reason most of the thirteen village chiefs support the young mayor’s reelection here because they can ask any infrastructure project from his office that amount to one million pesos.

“Lahat ng labing tatlong barangay nag allocate kami ng P1 million worth of projects. So every year tumataas ang IRA (internal revenue allotment from the national government- Editor). P1 million worth of project depende na sa Kapitan kung ano ang gusto nila. Next year ano ang mga gusto nila: Concreting, construction of the barangay halls, gusto nila ng (inaudible)? Ang gusto nila automatic iyan. Improvement of the day care center basta kung ano ang pangangailangan nila kami mag a-allocate kami ng funds sa kanila. Laking tulong ngayon bukod sa pondo,” Mayor JR Resuello stressed in the vernacular to this writer.

The Mandanas Ruling, according to Resuello, will play a lot next year to the development of the 13 villages.

BASISTA MAYOR JR Resuello (right, photo) poses in a friendly posterity with his May 2022 re-election mayoralty rival’s Edgardo Tagum.

The Ruling affirmed by the Supreme Court in 2018 and confirmed with finality in 2019 dictated that the IRA of the local government units (LGU) in towns and provinces are programmed to increase by 55 percent in the 2022 national budget, reaching Php1.08 trillion or 4.8 percent of the country’s gross domestic product compared to 3.5 percent of GDP in 2021.

The chief executive said that even the health services of this fourth class town in central Pangasinan benefited by his sound financial management and now buttressed by the Mandanas Ruling where the coffer of the local government unit will swell by almost half yearly.

“Nagkaroon kami na encourage lahat ng mga half ng suweldo dito ni full namin kasi kawawa naman”.

Resuello told Northern Watch Newspaper that his municipality’s internal revenue allotments in years 2021 and 2022 are P109,558,591.00 and P156,673,690.00, respectively.

The LGU serves 37, 679 residents (PSA 2020).

The total annual appropriations in 2021 and 2022 are P120, 158, 591.00 and P167, 673, 690.00, respectively. It is an increase of more than P47 million.

 Resuello is being challenged by Edgardo Tagum for the mayorship here in the May 9, 2022 election.

READ MY OTHER BLOG/NEWS:

Guvs, Mayors Elated for their Next Year’s Big Budget

Piñol, AMO Owner See Spike of Organic Fertilizer’s Use

AMID THE SPIRALING PRICES OF COML. FERTILIZER

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

DAGUPAN CITY – Because of the skyrocketing prices of commercial fertilizer, two agricultural experts in the country see the increase use by Filipino farmers of organic fertilizer to mitigate their deplorable plight.

Former Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol saw the unprecedented increase of fertilizer from P800 to P25,000 for the eight to ten sacks that paddy rice farmers customarily use that gravitate them to use organic fertilizer.

“But there are several foliar fertilizer brands which have been proven effective actually and I used at least three of these in my farm with good results - AMO Organic Fertilizer, BioGold, and Amway,” he wrote recently on his popular Facebook Page.

Piñol, advocating to reverse the sorry fate of farmers in case he wins a Senate seat, met with former Pangasinan Congressman Eric Acuña whose company produces the AMO Plant Growth Enhancer (APGE) and asked him how his product benefits on the price hike of the petroleum and other fossil fuels based fertilizer.

Photo is internet grabbed.

AMO 5-in-1 formulata is an organic kelp based fertilizer and soil conditioner, growth enhancer, foliar, fungicide and insect repellent.

“Tumaas daw by 300% ang kanilang sales and the company could hardly cope with the market demand now,” Piñol quipped when he interviewed the solon when he visited recently this city.

Acuña said the inflationary price of this world wide problem obliged farmers to reduce their consumption of the traditional fertilizer in favor of his product.

“Yes! Marami nang gumagamit kasi maraming bumibili ngayon kasi tinangal nila ang chemical feature”.

With four sacks out of the eight to ten sacks of the synthetic fertilizer being replaced by four sachets of APGE, the farmers can save fifty to seventy percent of their previous P2,7000 expenses.

“Ang niri-require namin sa kanila kalahati. So kung ten to eight iyang apat na lang muna ang gagamitin nila tapos AMO na apat pakete. P700 ang isa - P2,800. Halos isang presyo lang ang tinangal mo sa commercial na fertilizer. Apat ang tatangalin mo hindi ka na gagastus sa chemical, insecticide, at fungicide".

Sweet pomelo planter Jerry Reyes of M’lang, Cotabato said he mixed a sachet of AMO in three drums of water and sprayed them in his crop where he got a robust harvest.

Acuña sees that with the spiraling prices of commercial fertilizer and the increase consumption by the farmhands of organic fertilizer, the lands damaged by the chemicals can be eventually revived.

“Bakit acidic ho ang soil natin? Dahil gumagamit din tayo ng chemical, insecticide, fungicide, saka fertilizer. So pag binawasan natin at nagpractice tayo ng composting puwede na nating tanggalin iyan”.

ORGANIC FERTILIZERS’ ADVOCATE. Former Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol (2^nd from left, photo) met recently in Dagupan City with Pangasinan’s leading political figure and organic fertilizer owner former Congressman Eric Acuña (extreme left), City Agriculture and Fisheries Council Chairman Darwin Zabala Aquino (4^th from left), and supporters in their bid to promote the use of natural fertilizer amid the spiraling prices of synthetic fertilizer that further slumped the plight of Filipino farmers. 

A high official of the Department of Agriculture attested in 2018 how the seaweed based fertilizer significantly increased the harvest of rice farmers Sual, Pangasinan while they reduced their expenses.

“Tumaas po ang ani nila and saka iyong cost bumaba siya,” declared to GMA-7 regional television by Dr. Jovita Datuin, the chief Science Research Specialist of the Department of Agriculture Region-1, after a farm trial in this western Pangasinan town of AMO.

Dr. Datuin said that despite the farmers not using insecticide, the department found out that the root development and yield of the palay hike.

“Tumaas po iyong yield nila at maganda pa rin iyong leaf color at mga parameters na tinitingnan ng mga researchers na tumutok okay po siya,” she stressed.

READ SIMILAR BLOG/ARTICLE:

Pinoy Trader Answers to Vietnam Cheap Rice

Politician Crows to Win Polls at P10K Per Voter

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

The gall of this mayoralty candidate telling the crowd in a hustings in the villages that despite being hated by many of her constituents she would still win the election at ten thousand pesos per head vote buy among the voters in the days before the election.

Gone are the days when our politicians were looked up by the masa as Statesmen. Politicians nowadays - whose wealth obviously came from corruption in public office - even crowed shamelessly their loot to the public.

Philippines politics goes to the dogs indeed. The more the Filipinos are mired in poverty the more they are vulnerable to the moneyed and not necessarily intelligent electoral candidates.

Just watch how the members of the House of Thieves, er, Representatives in Quezon City debate. Only a few members of the more or less 300 Congressmen can argue intelligently about the bill one sponsors or the kind of questions being posed during a congressional investigation. Many of the members there are clowns. Many are sons and wives of those former “Clowngressmen” who finished their nine years’ term but their appetite to embezzle the public are insatiable.

Image is internet grabbed.

I had coffee with pals in a mall where we talked about the political maneuverings of the two parties this early in a certain province.

I told them the candidate that can exceed the campaign funds especially the hundreds of millions if not billions of pesos intended for the pakurong (vote buying in the vernacular) wins the piece - prize of running a gargantuan governmental juggernaut whose perks and privileges are superior to other provinces.

“Walang malaking issue ngayon that the Opposition can exploit and belly up the incumbent kaya kuwarta ang pinaka factor in the victory of a certain bet that he can use to catapult himself to the perch of power,” I told them.

***

 A friend – who lives outside the province - asked me my take of a national official.

I told him the family is one of the richest in the region although he was involved in a corruption case before.

The friend told me that a supplier told him that this scion was the recipient himself of a ten percent S.O.P or cut of tens of millions of pesos of the hundreds of millions of pesos in this department.

“From the horse’s mouth, eh?” I told my friend about the knave in a money sleaze covered by the Anti- Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

“Yes, from the horse’s mouth,” my pal retorted.

Read my other blog/column:

Paano Magnakaw at Ma-Bunkrupt ang mga Pulitiko

Follow me on Twitter Send me a secure tip.

MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

Follow

I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.