Barangay Bansot’s Silent Majority

396 thoughts on “Barangay Bansot’s Silent Majority”

1. silent waters,

   Industrial and commercial printing.

2. madonna, i agree. but i don’t think he can really be “handled” at all. that’s his strength and also, weakness.

3. CVJ

   kowtow is a sign of respect that has been corrupted in meaning by people like you.

   As for the balimbing part. It’s ok to be name called. Doesn’t hurt me as much as it hurts you for not being able to argue your point.

4. Hmmm….I kjnow the Scanwell folks actually through a girl who used to be his girlfriend. But just an acquaintance. I am more involved in manufacturing and wholesale trading. electrical items. That’s why I can talk about the local situation here unlike some people who like to pontificate from yonder….

5. silent:

   nothing is gonna persuade cvj from his “penalize the rich” mentality.

   madonna:

   well, lozada has been a ham since day one.

6. Silent Waters, as applied over here, ‘kow-tow’ is respect to whoever holds power.

7. ano kaya kong irepresenta ko ang sarili kong specialista sa Neurology dito at sabihin iba may deperensya sa utak, may maniwala kaya? di wala rin, di ba? yon lang muna, may tawag sa Hospital…–mang_kiko

   hahahaha. perfect! 😉

8. Tonio,

   Lozada may have been a ham, meaning 20% of what he said or saying must have been or are exaggerations but that leaves the remaining 80% as truthful.

   The proportion of credibility is just the opposite with the Arroyo government. 80% lies, 20% truth.

   So there. San ka lulugar?

9. silent waters,

   Small world. Yes. Thats the sister company, there’s another plant (big one) just beside it in Bicutan but the main office and 1st plant site is in Mandaluyong. Its a landmark in local printing history, first to invest in printing technology (during a time of letterpress), first in 7 color printing, 8 color, and the first to invest in Computer-to-Plate technology.
   You won’t hear about them in the news or tv, but they are known and well respected even in Europe (by suppliers of course).

10. the problem with philippine economic and political landscape is that the same families controls both planes since i can remember and if you your check history books you will notice same personalities are mentioned over and over again. although, there are few exceptions to this rule. the current situation is that we are being run by someone’s son, daughter or relative.

    same is true with the local economics and politics. usual the mayor, barangay captain or anybody in politics owns the biggest construction co., grocery store and the rest of the family is either a councilor or congressman.

    for anybody without a political background(or pedigree) to speak, chances are you are not going to win or your business will not prosper (of course unless you have ninong which is ultimately same situatio). unless we are able to change this landscape there is a little hope for our nation to breakthrough.

    although, there are few exceptions, one noted being known after last local election is ed panlilo. he was one person who the people of pampanga rallied around to beat the giants, the lapids and pinedas. but even after being elected the attempt to unseat him is non relenting from both sides and still ongoing!

    another exeption is either you are a media or showbiz personality. we tried showbiz and we got erap, revilla, jaworski and etc. good thing people learned and only a handful of them got elected. although a few of them are decent (can’t name one though), most of them got elected through unfair advantage of exposure and being famous in roles they played in showbiz.

    and one famous example for media personality is the current vp, ka noli. the jury is still out for him. he is being dealt with a lot of skepticism from the business and middle class sector. so far he hasn’t done anything to prove himself otherwise.

    unless someone will breakthrough and is not from the elites to rise up and challenge the old guards and the filipino people mature in their thinking process in choosing our leaders from top to bottom we will remain in the abyss.

    also, it is important to keep the opportunistic individuals from our current fight to reform our society.
    we need the youth’s energy and idealism and be guided by the adults with no ties to specific political interest. there still few old guard that are known for their principle that we can depend to give us sound advice, jovita salonga.

    fight on.

11. Istambay

    Tama ka diyan….so how do we democratize the process? Do we make it a requirement that people should be given funds from the budget so that they can run for elections such as what they have in the US? Then my next question would be, can we really separate the chaff from the grain with respect to who are th quacks wanting to make a fast buck and who is serious? Maraming mukhang seryoso pero tignan mo nung nasa kongreso o senado na sila…di ba as you guys always say, nagnakaw din? What checks and balances do we put in place? madali kasi magsabi ng motherhood statements. I use to follow these motherhood statements before until I got into the real world and saw how it can get screwed by unscrupulous people. (eg yung party list system) So how do we ensure that this democratization process won’t be subverted?

12. istambay,

    I really hope we see closure to all these soon, obviously Gloria cannot perform with all this scandals and this political noise adding up to our weakened or coopted insitutions are like lead weights and I hear US support is again showing signs of flip-flopping (as usual).
    I was talking to a client over lunch and he said Gloria will be compelled to dig in if she’s pushed to her limits and continued threat will make the option of resignation or even stepping down a dangerous one for her. Are the opposition leaders looking at a “compromise” or giving her a graceful way out?

    Although I do not like her, I’m still one of those who are responsible for putting her there (I voted for her) and she is still our president. Sometimes, inorder to defeat an enemy its better to offer terms of surrender rather than assailing his defenses and risk collateral damage…Is this an option worth thinking about?

13. one thing that comes into my mind is to round up all the oligarhs and trapos and send them all to mars! lol .
    just wishful thinking. first we need to educate the masses, how we can do this? start from school and teach the young minds.

    second more faster effect is to have the guilty politicians punished for the crime committed! no presidential pardon. who will do this? i suggest that the supreme can create a special court to hear the case and render the verdicts and be carried out immediately! no special cell or vacation houses.

    the election should have spending linits and rules be imposed. have decent and trusted persons run the comelec. in short all present comelec personnel have to replaced.

    i believe we have a very good constitution and basic laws, the problem is that it doesn’t get enforced porperly. make sure laws and punishment are enforced.

    if we can bring back death penalty exclusively for guilty politicians would be great.

    and transparency. it will never be a perfect world at least it will be a working one where somebody, even the big fish, gets punished.

14. it will still be a game of cat and mouse but this time the cat will eat the mouse(mice)! and the cat being the collective filipino nation.

    we can do this! i have faith in us filipino.

    see how filipinos behave differently when the leave the country and work overseas. they abide by the host country’s laws because they know that if they break their laws they will surely be punished! some will try for sure but i already say transparency and eforcing the law and punishment is the ticket.

15. compromising with a guilty individual only emboldens her/him to commit more serious crimes. we should not bargain with our future. we are his/her master and not the other way around. she owes her allegiance to us filipino people and not the ex-generals. they paid through our taxes, in short we are her employer.

    diplomacy will not work with gma. she has shown time and time again tnat she will not hesitate to do anything to hang to power, even disprespect the constitution.

16. one thing that comes into my mind is to round up all the oligarchs and trapos and send them all to mars! lol . – istambay sa kalye

    My sentiments exactly, but i understand from Manolo’s admonition above (at 12:21 pm and 1:09 pm) is that the oligarchs also have their own constituency and that he doesn’t want them to behave like a cornered rat. One consolation to come out of this NBN/ZTE mess is that the oligarchs have been put literally on the map (by Neri). What to do with them is a discussion that needs to continue even after Arroyo.

    The sad historical reality is i know of no instance where power and wealth has been taken from the oligarchs democratically, except in cases where the oligarchs themselves have done so voluntarily. (I’m still watching what will happen in Bolivia and Venezuela.)

17. Madonna:

    better the ham than the rat i suppose.

18. cvj:

    The sad historical reality is i know of no instance where power and wealth has been taken from the oligarchs democratically, except in cases where the oligarchs themselves have done so voluntarily.

    well, there you go. so short of force, there’s no way that you’re gonna be able to get the rich to part with their resources. and just think of what values you’re promoting.

    oh, the only way i can really hit it big is if i leave the Philippines. because if i get too rich, cvj and his wealth cops will just take my hard-earned money.

    i think manolo’s solution of making it impossible for the current to bequeath their riches to their children without heavy levies imposed on them is good. but would you seriously want to give this government all that money?

19. Lozada says people should forget about resignation calls and instead says that GMA must be ousted. The ZTE scandal witness is calling on the AFP and PNP to do it.

    the truth is coming out.

    1. The “hero” is just a mouthpiece of someone whose objective is not really to stop corruption.

    2. The “hero” is getting afraid that nothing is going to happen with his “heroism”.

    3. He wanted to be like Ninoy who had stirred the nation from deep slumber. Many people put this idea to his mind. Even the widow of the dead hero.

    He’s doing campus tour already which could have been arranged by his handlers.

    And justlike Cory, he mistook the applause to stardom.

    wawa naman.

20. there is nothing wrong with honest money and getting rich. it is only objectionable when one gets rich at the expense of others and eliminating competition through unfair practices and using political influence. it will happen as it does even in USA, but the difference is that they get punished and get sent to real jail in USA. if we can do that then philippines will be a better country.

21. Jun Lozada did risk a lot by coming out as he did. I admire him.

    I remember that what Cat said was one of Neri’s reason not to come out and divulge what he knows. He was afraid that nothing will come out of it. Now if Jun Lozada was like Neri, we would never have known the details of the corruption relating to the NBN/ZTE deal. Even Ninoy’s death took a few years before it was able to move a critical mass of people to really act…

22. cvj,

    That is what i’ve been telling Anthony above (at 9:51 pm) that business-acumen alone cannot build-up an industry. For that, you need the support of government so that they can implement the right industrial policies (as was done in our more successful neighbors).

    ehem. business-acumen alone cannot build up an industry? wait, how do you define industry?

    if we use local standard industry classifications, we will find Chinoys leading in several industries. some of these industries may even be started by Chinoys. i doubt if these Chinoys had been given investment incentives when they were just starting

    since you have been harping on government support, why don’t we start a discussion on the (in)sufficiency of existing government support to industry. you are the one alleging lack of government support, maybe you should start – where is the lack? what policies are toothless? etc.

    maybe you can be specific on how the South Korean and Taiwanese governments ‘policied’ their way towards manufacturing, export and economic success

    look, i am not here to rebut any ‘lack’ of effective policies. for all we now, many effective policies are already in place, there are just no takers. a discussion on such topic is a much much more worthwhile endeavor than ‘patalsikin na now na’, organizing rallies, etc.

    lets limit the discussion on policies on manufacturing and export, since for you those are the areas the rich Chinoys and Tisoys should have been in

    you into it, my friend? you can start na.

23. well, there you go. so short of force, there’s no way that you’re gonna be able to get the rich to part with their resources. and just think of what values you’re promoting. – tonio

    So you’ve given up on the Philippine oligarchs voluntarily sharing their wealth? Given that mentality (by the oligarchs), what do you think are the chances that Manolo’s ‘heavy levies’ will be passed into law by the current Congress? And even if they’re passed, what are the chances that the oligarchs’ army of lawyers will somehow not look for creative ways for tax avoidance?

    As to the values i’m promoting, i agree with istambay (at 4:14 pm) and i did comment previously that i agree with hvrds when he said that we should ‘coddle’ our oligarchs (imo, under the right circumstances).

24. if we use local standard industry classifications, we will find Chinoys leading in several industries. some of these industries may even be started by Chinoys. i doubt if these Chinoys had been given investment incentives when they were just starting – Anthony Scalia

    As industrialists, the Chinoys have been lackluster when compared to their counterparts in Taiwan and the Mainland. They certainly don’t hold a candle to the South Koreans and the Japanese who have built world-class brands. I don’t think it’s because they are inferior people per se, but the environment is not as friendly to industrialization so they just do what they can under the circumstances.

    since you have been harping on government support, why don’t we start a discussion on the (in)sufficiency of existing government support to industry. you are the one alleging lack of government support, maybe you should start – where is the lack? what policies are toothless? etc. – Anthony Scalia

    I’ve discussed this in my blog. You can start here:

    http://www.cvjugo.blogspot.com/2007/04/amsdens-reciprocal-control-mechanism.html

    On the role of promoting equality in jumpstarting economic takeoffs (in the case of China), i wrote this:

    http://www.cvjugo.blogspot.com/2007/12/equality-as-factor-in-economic-takeoffs.html

    There are other such entries in my blog. Feel free to visit.

25. Maddona, I read the link on Lozada. Maybe in Lozada’s mind there is no way people can make GMA resign, not people power. By what he knows,the evil that is GMA will defend her presidency no matter what it takes:cash,guns and blood. To get rid of this evil we cannot expect Lozada to encourage the people to wait for 2010. What remains as a choice is ouster by the help of the military.

26. cvj,

    thanks for the links, will visit them

    as for the local Chinoys not able to hold a candle to their counterparts in Taiwan and the Mainland – this leads to the following questions:

    1. is having global brands that made you conclude that the Chinese in Taiwan and the Mainland are better than the Chinoys that the latter cannot ‘hold a candle’ to them?

    2. is manufacturing-for-export the only measurement of success? yes you said a ‘disclaimer’ that it doesnt mean the Chinoys are inferior, but why use ‘dont hold a candle’ if you don’t mean a value judgment on the Chinoys

    3. do the Chinoys care if their counterparts in Taiwan and the mainland were able to have global brands? do they care that the Taiwanese and the mainland Chinese have more zeroes in their net worths?

    4. didn’t it occur to you that the Chinoys were able to build a bulk of their wealth within Philippine boundaries?

    bottom line is – don’t fault them if they didn’t go into export manufacturing. they may have their reasons. one of them may be, the domestic market could be more than enough for their goods and services

27. Just because you went ot the rally and stayed there for 15 minutes, you are already committed.?

    Wala ka na nga dun kahit isang minuto hindi ka pa marunong magbilang. akala ko ba accountant ka.

28. I should point out the first paragraph was from the Ca t.

29. Answers to your questions:

    1. Yes
    2. Yes, that’s a big part.
    3. You have to ask the Chinoys.
    4. Duh, yes.

    bottom line is – don’t fault them if they didn’t go into export manufacturing. they may have their reasons. one of them may be, the domestic market could be more than enough for their goods and services – Anthony Scalia

    I’m not saying it’s all their fault. After all, our government has not pursued policies that would increase their chances of success, as what our more successful neighbors have done. However, it’s not enough for the Chinese businessmen to make money off the backs of the poor majority. They have to seek out other markets just like what their counterparts in other countries did.

30. “They have to seek out other markets just like what their counterparts in other countries did.” – cvj

    Not all businessmen are that aggressive, especially traditional chinese family owned and run, most are conservative really, preferring to grow slowly. Unlike their counterparts, most are hesitant to borrow money for expansion, hence the disparity.
    But there is an emerging group though, professionally managed, with global visions. Give these companies more incentives, improve infrastructure, improve access to raw material, and lower costs impacting operations like power and we’ll see some changes for sure.

31. cvj,

    Of course, we may need to consider establishing an environment conducive to growth. So the sooner we resolve all these issues, find closure, and choose leaders who we all can rally behind with and we all will feel responsible for, the better. We may also consider a moratorium on People Power for at least 10 years. For 10 solid years we try to focus on set goals…

32. cvj,

    In fairness to the Chinoys and Pinoys who tried to make it big in manufacturing, a major roadblock to their success was the ordinary Filipino’s beholdeness to everything “steytsayd” back in the day. Everything from the US was heavensent, with its enchanting airline cargo-hold smell: everything else was crap. “Imported” ruled.

    I don’t think any local manufacturer would or could jump the chasm between local fare to world class in that harsh market condition, where your product is crap by virtue of nationality and origin.

33. Jon, it’s just right to be fair to the Chinoy (and Pinoy) businessmen who are unable to prosper in manufacturing. As i mentioned, it is not entirely their fault. If anything, it would be more the fault of the government’s (not just the present one) inability to address the problem of inequality and implement industrial policy.

    For example, in Korea, to combat the preference for imported items, Park Chung Hee made smuggling cigarettes punishable by the death penalty. It was the patriotic duty of every Korean to save foreign exchange. Over here, our government officials (and their allies among the oligarchs) have been the ones taking the lead in salting dollars and/or smuggling.

    The point i’ve been trying to make to Anthony is that business acumen alone is not sufficient for us to industrialize (something we cannot do with malls and BPO alone). As evidenced by the Tsinoy businessmen’s retreat from manufacturing, sometimes the government has to step in to stack the decks in their favor.

34. Wala ka na nga dun kahit isang minuto hindi ka pa marunong magbilang. akala ko ba accountant ka.

    What has my degree to do with it? At least I do not get the pulse of the nation by talking to drivers.

    If that is the kind of survey you know, someone has to teach you statistics. mwehehe

35. “This time after the current leeches in power are kicked out and tried, we as a people should tighten our grip in these men and women in power. They must be held accountable and transparent all the way. The citizens will be responsible for monitoring the government officials of the future. The statement “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance” must be made a practical fact.—Kabayan

    Please Kabayan, can you tell us the details on how we can do that? You see monitoring and ‘vigilance’ is easy, we do that all the time. However, those men and women in power are pretty resourceful and self-serving, and greedy, the present ones most immoderately so. So, is there an effective way really how to ‘tighten our grip’ on ’em outside of People Power?

36. @cat

    “did anyone mention about crime? there is the word rebuke and
    there is my word leksiyonan. Nothing was mentioned about bringing it to court like the what pharisees did in 33 AD.”

    I apologise. I was using a metaphor. In any case ‘blasphemy’ and its ilk (such as apostasy) are pointless arguments as they are limited to the realm of religion.

37. “I don’t think any local manufacturer would or could jump the chasm between local fare to world class in that harsh market condition, where your product is crap by virtue of nationality and origin.–Jon Limjap

    Jon, world class product is world class because of quality, not because of nationality and origin. Some Phil.-manufactured products are world class priced but not world class quality. One reason why consumers would rather buy made in China.

38. PEOPLE WHO SACRIFICE LIBERTY FOR SECURITY DESERVE NEITHER AND LOSE BOTH. – BEN FRANKLIN

    THE TREE OF LIBERTY HAS TO BE WATERED REGULARLY WITH THE BLOOD OF TYRANTS AND PATRIOTS.

    TO MAKE OMELETS YOU HAVE TO BREAK EGGS.

    EVERY GREAT NATION HAS HAD A BLOODY REVOLUTION.

    PARANG MGA PRO-GMA, FUCK THEM AND FUCK THEIR BULLSHIT STRONG ECONOMY, ANONG SILBI NG “MALAKAS” (DAW-RAW) NA EKONOMIYA KUNG NINANAKAWAN NAMAN ANG KABAN NG BAYAN AT BINABAON TAYO SA KAUTANGAN HANGGANG SA KATAPUSAN NG MUNDO?!

    ANG MAGANDA NAMAN SA MALAKAS NA PESO AY NAKAKABAYAD TAYO NG UTANG “NATIN” PERO SINO BA ANG UMUUTANG IN THE FIRST PLACE ABER ? EH DI ANG MGA PIDAL AT ANG MGA KAMPON NILA!

    MGA GAGO TALAGA KAYONG LAHAT, WALA KAYONG BRAINS O BALLS O PAREHO KAYA LAHAT TAYO AY LUMULUBOG NA SA KUMONOY NG KASAYSAYAN AT PATI ANG MGA NATITIRANG DESENTENG TAO AY MALULUNOD NA DAHIL SA KATANGAHAN AT KADUWAGAN NINYONG LAHAT!

    PARANG TALAGA KAYONG MGA LOYALISTA NI MARCOS , NINANAKAWAN O KAYA NINAKAWAN NA NGA, NAKATAWA O TUMATAWA PA ! – POLGAS

39. Ang problema sa ating bayan ay hindi pa tayo dumanas ng tunay ng rebolusyon. Si Andres Bonifacio at mga Katipunero lang ang nagsimula nguni’t pinapatay pa sila ng sariling mga kababayan. Yung kay Aguinaldo naman na pagwagi ay kunwaring laban lang at hindi tunay na labanan. Yung sa mga Amerikano naman ay mock battle din at nangyari upang tayo ay sakupin.

    In other words, hindi pa tayo nagkaroon ng tunay na rebolusyon. Kaya siguro ang mga bugok ng lipunan ay andito pa rin sa atin! We need to cleanse our system!

    Kaya naman panahon pa ng kastila at ng ating mga bayani hanggang ngayon ay ganoon pa rin ang sitwasyon. Ang mga naghaharing uri ang nagsasamantala sa mga indio o masa sa ngayon. Sino ba ang naghahari, diba ang mga Ayala, Zobel, Elizalde, Tuazon, Ortigas, at Aboitiz ang iba pang mga mestizong kastila na biniyayaan noong nasasakupan pa tayo ng Espanya?

    Ang unang dapat kalusin ang mga Arroyo lalo na si Fat Guy na Tuazon, dahil sila ang simbolo ng pagmamalabis ng naghaharing uri!

40. The point i’ve been trying to make to Anthony is that business acumen alone is not sufficient for us to industrialize (something we cannot do with malls and BPO alone). As evidenced by the Tsinoy businessmen’s retreat from manufacturing, sometimes the government has to step in to stack the decks in their favor.

    Agreed.

    Of course one has to adapt to the more current rules brought about by globalization and the internet, China-as-the-factory-of-the-world economics, and environmental concerns vis-a-vis industrialization (e.g., how to solve the dilemma of a country needing to pollute itself a lot so that it can industrialize).

41. Jon, i agree we should factor in those things. We do not want to be an environmental wasteland like China. Same consideration would apply to mining of course. The issue of pollution is closely tied to the issue of democratization. If we have community input, then the chances of a polluting factory being set-up is minimized as opposed to having the decision made by corrupt politicians, their businessmen friends and their technocrat enablers.

    As for the rules of globalization, a lot of those are the rich countries’ attempts to kick away the ladder. We should do as they have done (to develop) and not as they preach today. Like you, i’m in the IT industry so i appreciate the potential of the internet and its role in economic development, but i also know its limitations.

42. What has my degree to do with it? At least I do not get the pulse of the nation by talking to drivers. Ca t

    You’re drowned in your inflated ego. i realized that talking to the drivers makes more sense than talking to you. i do not claim that the information i’ve got from the drivers were formal or scientific. it was to satisfy my curiousity about how this people think about current issues. it just so happened that my own informal information gathering jive with the formal result.I never encouraged anybody to believe me although i felt that urge to share my own experience. that’s why in my post i emphasize this big “if” you consider these people to be part of the masses “perhaps”…

    Do not gloat about what you know about statistics because the level of significance is nill bringing out here our credentials. pataasan ng ihi is never my cup of tea.

43. coldking,your name is disparaging to your temper. lahat naman tayo umaangal sa kasalukuyang nangyayari. I am angry too kaya lang in deference to the rest of the bloggers here, i try to excercise prudence when it comes to tendency for emotional outburst.

    I cannot speak for the rest of the blogers here kaya lang parang nakakabingi na rin ang sigaw mo. PEACE!

44. alas ka dora :
    some people are anti-anti-gma for exactly the same reason. they are riled by emotional outburst, especially with the kind of unreasonably tendentious arguments of coldking.

45. “Do not gloat about what you know about statistics because the level of significance is nill bringing out here our credentials. pataasan ng ihi is never my cup of tea.” – alaskadora

    Don’t take these things seriously, to each his/her own way of making a point. Credentials? I’m proud of my degree in SANITATION ENGINEERING from the Malabanan Institute! Hey, we all need someone to clean up all our mess, don’t we?

46. ramrod, lagi, dong. hahaha!

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