News
Ka Bel assails Arroyo's unliquidated cash advances
REP. Crispin Beltran of the Anakpawis party-list group assailed the scandalously large and hitherto unliquidated cash advances made by Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. A report by the Commission on Audit (COA) shows that the Office of the President had P626 million worth of unliquidated cash advances from 2001 to 2003. This exceeds the record of any president from Ferdinand Marcos to Joseph Estrada, and is far greater than the combined unliquidated cash advances of all former presidents since 1965.
According to the COA report, the total unliquidated cash advances of former presidents come to only P159 million: Marcos, P41 million; Corazon Aquino, P11 million; Fidel Ramos, P55 million; and Joseph Estrada, P50 million.
Davao City officials oppose new Balikatan exercise
ONE-HUNDRED and thirty-three (133) out of 180 barangay captains in Davao City's three districts collectively expressed their opposition on September 22 to a new round of military exercises under the Balikatan series. They filed their manifesto of opposition with the Davao City Council.
US Troops Out Now and Junk VFA convenor Ret. Capt. (PN) Danilo Vizmanos, witnessed the first ever expression of opposition to the Balikatan by local officials.
The barangay officials said that the presence of American troops will only sow disorder and provoke protests and terrorist attacks. They moreover said that the joint US-Philippine military exercise is of no use to the people.
The Balikatan is slated to be launched in the mountainous Marilog district of Davao City. Four thousand American and Philippine troops will be participating in the exercise that will last three to four weeks.
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