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Monday, March 10, 2003
Mongaya: March 15 one last chance to sway Bush
By Anol Mongaya
US President George Bush has set March 17 as his deadline for Iraq to disarm, as if this Middle East country has not begun destroying its Al-Samoud missiles—weapons that could reach as far as Israel, another violator of UN resolutions but a friend of the Bush administration. Obviously, the Bush war machine in the Gulf is now ready for war. It needs a pretext to attack whether the United Nations goes along or not.
But pushing on with its war sans UN okay would greatly strain American relations with anti-war France, Germany, Russia, China and Syria. Because the anti-war positions of these countries are tied with complex geo-political and economic issues, Bush’s war could spark a conflagration.
With a war just days away, the planned international simultaneous anti-war rallies on March 15 gains added significance, as it may be the last chance for the world anti-war movement to sway the present White House occupant of his folly. The simultaneous rallies will coincide with the planned convergence of anti-war advocates in the US in front of the White House. Movement leaders still believe that millions more in the streets would convince President Bush to pursue peaceful alternatives for an Iraqi disarmament.
Lest one gets wrong ideas, the world anti-war movement is not a leftist creation. All one has to do to check this out is to get to the nearest Internet connection and log on to www. internationalanswer.org. I would even encourage local anti-war groups to learn from their counterparts abroad to be able to gather millions and not just a handful.
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Unless Filinvest complies with conditions set in its development permit and environmental compliance certificate, I expect Talisay residents affected by floods (as a result of its flawed Corona del Mar project) to again resort to holding a picket once the ongoing talks end this week.
What I could not understand is Filinvest’s hesitancy to carry out what it committed itself to do in the permits it signed. Has it already used money in convincing local officials to close their eyes? Is lobbying cheaper for Filinvest than ensuring that its project is environmentally sustainable?
Moreover, I am now realizing that the Filinvest drainage problem is just the tip of an environmental crisis in Talisay City. Past administrations allowed subdivision developers to cement entire hills, e.g. Camella Homes and Pacific Heights. However, local officials did not anticipate the need for bigger drainage canals and pipes where water from these upland areas could pass through in case of heavy rains.
Unless Talisay City officials compel Filinvest to comply with its drainage requirements this summer, floods this coming rainy season could affect a wider area. Let us learn from the lessons of Ormoc City.
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A certain DL reportedly succeeded bringing in a brand new Chrysler and BMW, among others, in two different shipments right under the noses of Customs authorities recently. A clerk at the district collector’s office named N reportedly assisted the importer to escape paying the correct taxes. Paging Customs Collector Billy Bibit and Customs intelligence.
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I was provided recently with a copy of a memo submitted by the Policy Research Information Strategy and Media Services Inc. (Prism) to the controversial US-funded lobby group Accelerating Growth Investment and Liberalization with Equity (Agile). The document outlined what Prism did to accomplish a PR-lobby contract amounting to P4.027 million that aimed to open up Philippine skies and seas to competition with American giants.
Local shipping and cargo handling leaders are already feeling the pinch because of the “advocacy work and public relations” conducted by PRISM for the Freedom to Fly Coalition (FFC) and the Coalition for Shipping and Ports Modernization (CSPM) using Agile funds.
But while American-funded lobby groups aim to open up our economy, American firms that seek to compete with our fledgling companies enjoy US government subsidies. How’s that for a level playing field?
(Send your reactions to superbalita@sunstar. com.ph or anol_cebu@hotmail.com or text to 09179761193)
(March 10, 2003 issue)
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