PRESIDENTIAL chief of staff Michael Defensor yesterday said he no longer respects Novaliches Bishop Antonio Tobias after the bishop apologized Wednesday to President Joseph Estrada for the role of the Church in his ouster in 2001.
"I respect him as a bishop, pero hindi ko nirerespeto yung ganoong klaseng pagkatao dahil para sa akin kung may ginawa kang decision, hindi mo dapat pagsisihan dahil at the time na ginawa niya iyon tama iyong decision na iyon. Bakit ka gagawa ng maling decision?" Defensor said.
"Para bang sasabihin mo you’re sorry because you joined Edsa 2. Edsa 2 is not wrong; it was correct. Edsa 2 had its basis during that time, so you do not say that you now regret having joined Edsa 2," he added.
"When I hear of these things, I cannot help but feel sorry for those people who say sorry now because they feel that Edsa 2 was wrong or what they did was wrong…Kasi hindi naman mali iyon. Kami ni Erap nag-uusap naman kami but I never said I am sorry for Edsa 2, or for the actions that I did," Defensor said.
Misunderstanding lang yan, Kuya Mike.
More from Ducky Paredes: Tobias' boo boo
Here's the alternate spin from Rina Jimenez David.
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PCIJ: Supreme Court partially voids EO 464
Dean Jorge Bocobo: Executve Privilege Covers Information--Not Executives
Malaya Editorial:
The legal beagles of Malacañang probably knew all along that extending to subordinates and military and police officials the required presidential permission for appearances of Cabinet members before Congress was skating on thin ice.
But the gag order had worked as originally intended – prevent Congress from digging deeper into the "Hello Garci" scandal and the fertilizer fund scam at the height of the clamor for Gloria Arroyo’s ouster – and Arroyo’s strategists must be feeling smug despite the Supreme Court ruling.
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PDI Editorial on the Subic Rape case:
OUTRAGE over Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez's downgrading of the charges against three of the four American servicemen accused of raping a Filipina seems to be concentrated more against his words than against his actions. This only goes to show how effective Gonzalez is as the pit bull of the administration, in charge of snarling and frothing at the mouth and lunging at the crowd, both to frighten and distract the public. After all, he is not just any loose cannon but an integral part of the legal and political arsenal of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
There exists, in fact, a clear division between official attitudes toward the case. State prosecutors, such as Olongapo City Chief Prosecutor Prudencio Jalandoni, believe they have adequate evidence to successfully prosecute all the accused American servicemen. Gonzalez has decided to the contrary, and while he hasn't totally let the other three American soldiers off the hook, only one will actually go on trial for rape. The charges against the others have been reduced to their being accessories.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye has gone on record to say the Arroyo administration fully supports Gonzalez. That means that the justice secretary's rather loathsome rhetoric aside, what he has done has the full blessings of the person for whom he serves as an alter ego: the President.
One of the lawyers of the rape victim brought up a point which indicates why Gonzalez's actions have been met with disgust. Even if Gonzalez says there isn't enough evidence to prove the other accused American servicemen actually raped the victim, Evalyn Ursua points out that the three kept chanting "Go, Smith!" as their fellow soldier assaulted and raped the Filipina. The lawyer asserts that egging on a rapist in this manner is tantamount to participating in a gang rape. It is an argument important enough, to our mind, to deserve being pursued in court. But because of Gonzalez, it won't be brought up when the case is tried.
And this:
Again, we return to our original point: For every comment Raul Gonzalez has made that offends, it is well to remember that the man, his thinking and the fruits of his thinking have the full and unequivocal support of the President and the rest of the Cabinet. And that's the most offensive thing of all -- as well as the greatest injustice, not only to the executive branch of government but to the country.
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- Ellen Tordesillas writes about her blogging experience and IBLOG2 + "Free Expression in Asian Cyberspace". Also read her additional comments on the Mayuga report.
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Malaya Edit on the dishonesty of the Cha cha advocates:
Advocates of charter change are not being honest in flaying opponents who used to support calls for amending the 1987 Constitution.
Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel and Sen. Mar Roxas were calling for specific changes, not a wholesale upending of the current governmental setup. So were House minority leader Francis Escudero and the so-called House bright boys.
More, they sought to introduce the amendments in an open and transparent manner, which cannot be said of the deceitful tactics Gloria Arroyo and her allies are using to ram through their proposed shift to a parliamentary system.
What specifically were the advocacies of Pimentel and Roxas? Pimentel championed a federal setup where the center of power would be shifted from imperial Manila to the local governments. Roxas, who was trade secretary during the Estrada administration, favored an easing of the nationality restrictions in doing business.
They have not changed their minds. What they object to is the revision of the Constitution at this time of a continuing leadership crisis and how the proposed changes are being rammed through.
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Update on Mike Arroyo's libel case vs Malaya's Publisher Jake Macasaet and Malaya opinion columnist Lito Banayo.
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- Iraqi Prime Minister Abrahim Al-Jaafari clears the way for his party to withdraw his nomination for a second term. Iraqi Kurdish, Shiite and Sunni leaders attended the news conference today.
- Michelle Malkin's critics have crossed the line:
It’s one thing to be politically unhinged; yet another to become criminally so. Michelle Malkin’s critics have crossed the line, publishing satellite photos of her family’s home along with the address. The intent is to intimidate her, and while that won’t work, it could lead to an abyss.
Publishing the contents of a press release, as Michelle did, should never lead to the end of one’s physical security. But now that every person on earth can easily find where she lives, she and her husband and children have no security in their own home. Enough is enough.
This aint good.
- Top 100 Unsexiest men in the world. Number one si Gilbert Gottfried of the Tonight Show w/ Jay Leno.
- Ignore bloggers at your own peril, researchers say.
- The NYT has a long article on Google in China
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