By Jun Enriquez (A documentary
report)
Cabinet Secretary Jun Evasco standing before the crowd. (photo by Ely Dumaboc) |
Iligan
City –It was the first time since President Rodrigo Roa Duterte elected into
office visited Iligan City by one of his Cabinets. On Octber 15, 2016 the KilusangPagbabago (KP) was launch at
the Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT)
gymnasium, Tibanga this city. the event started at 9:30 A.M. and was ended at
past noon. Cabinet Secretary (CabSec)
Leoncio “Jun” B. Evasco, Jr. was the guest of honor during the event. There
were about 5,000 people attended the event, composed mostly of the “poorest
of the poor” sectors from the fisherfolks, farmers, women, youth and
those from impoverished barangays from the provinces of Camiguin, Misamis Oriental,
Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, and the cities of Cagayan de Oro and
Iligan. Basilan and Sulu Delegates were also present during the event headed by
Lugus, Sulu Municipal Mayor Hadar Hajiri, a strong supporter on federalism
under the hugpong federal Movement chaired by Celso Tizon. Just recently on
October 12, 2016, Mayor Hadar hosted a very successful Summit on Federalism in
Lugus town attended by 4,000 participants coming from the 17 Barangays of the
said municipality under his watch.
In his welcome message, Vice Mayor Jemar Vera Cruz requested
for a help to CabSec Jun Evasco about the status of the case of Mayor Celso Regencia
that he is still in jail for a review of his case. Vera Cruz said that Mayor
Regencia was just a victim of the alleged corruption and illegal drug
syndicates by his political adversaries.
The crowd inside the MSU-IIT gym. (photo by Bam Gimena) |
In his message of MSU-IIT Chancellor Sukarno Tanggol
said that the stand of MSU-IIT administration is also adopting change for
development with President Duterte. He said the MSU-IIT will have changes on
research, extension and instruction. He hopes to achieve genuine change for the
good of the people and nation. He cited the Institute of Peace and Development
in Mindanao (IPDM) is an Extension office in charge on peace advocacy. He
thanked that there is a President who is seriously committed in serving the
Filipino people and likewise he urged the people to help the President.
L-r:Chancellor Tanggol, CabSec Evasco, Vice Mayor Vera Cruz & Mr. Libres |
Mr. Joselito Penpen Libres, chief of staff of CabSec Jun
Evasco introduced the latter. CabSec Jun
Evasco is a native of Maribuhok, Bohol living in a very simple and ordinary
family. He is a former priest and detached from his priesthood to join the revolutionary
activism for change and reform the system of the political society in the
country. He was arrested during the time of the Marcos regime was jailed and
tortured while in prison. Despite the challenges in life he still stands on his
principle for change. He was freed through amnesty in 1986 and became the chief
political adviser of the then Davao City Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte now the
President of the Republic. He was the political strategist for 23 years under
the then Mayor Duterte. After the time has passed by he goes back home to his hometown
in Maribuhok to run as Mayor and won for 3 consecutive terms serving the people
satisfactorily for good governance.
Mayor Hadar Hajiri with CabSec Jun Evasco |
Supposedly he had a big chance for the governorship in
Bohol province but he preferred not to do so because he gave his all-out
support to the candidacy of now President Duterte. CabSec Jun Evasco was the
number one political strategist during the election campaign of the then
Presidential candidate Duterte, not a conventional but unorthodox strategy. A strategy
that is unusual form in the conduct of political campaign to counter the
traditional type of campaigning with structured political machinery using huge
amount of money for vote buying. President Duterte have won his Presidency in
landslide through the campaign leadership of CabSec Jun Evasco, gained massive
support from the people and Duterte garnered at least 16 million votes to
achieve power. CabSec Jun Evasco is the founder of the Kilusang Pagbabago (KP) and
committed to continue the campaign for the real change for the good future of
the Filipino people.
CabSec Jun Evasco in his message said being a native
of Bohol , the reasons why there are many Boholanos presence in Mindanao
because of economic constraints and life is miserable living in Bohol. He said
the just concluded elections, the elected President Duterte was started in a
small round of talks on Federalism as early as October 2014. In December 2014,
there was a conference in Davao with the discussions on Federalism. One of the
invited speakers was Dr. Sukarno Tanggol but was not able to come due to hectic
schedules. There was no mentioning on politics but the only issue discussed was
federalism with the presence of former Senator Nene Pimentel, Atty. Reuben
Canoy and other federalistas. During the event the participants requested the
then Mayor Duterte to continue the campaign on federalism because some of the
pioneer advocates have already died and others are already old enough and no
more energy to carry out the campaign. The continued campaign of federalism by
Mayor Duterte will inform the people as a solution to the big problem of the
country such as corruption, governance and criminality by shifting from
Presidential system to Federal system of the government. The then Mayor Duterte
was the Guest Speaker of the Graduation rites in MSU-IIT last year.
There were people in Manila telling them to stop
talking about drugs, corruption and criminality because it’s non-sense issues,
but the people will not stop talking the sensibility on those issues until the
solution will not come which a dream of all the Filipino people nationwide. The
call of the people during the political campaign is change that’s why President
Duterte won the Election in a big margin.
CabSec Jun Evasco said change is not automatic,
President Duterte is now in Malacanang working for change especially on
corruption. He said corruption was embedded in the system of government and
deep-rooted vertically and widespread horizontally. He said corruption became a
culture in the system and some people say it’s already normal. He said It’s in
the negative notion that if you are in the government you are corrupt from
Malacanang, congress down to local governments that corruption is normal. Evasco said that one third of the national budget goes to corruption. He
said the Duterte administration submitted a budget for 2017 amounted to three
trillion pesos. If the notion is true then one trillion pesos will not serve
the people but it will goes to the system of corruption. CabSec Jun Evasco said
the government has no capacity to change by itself. He said if the system of
corruption benefited the individuals in the government then they will not stop,
that’s why change is not automatic. Change will only be realized if the people
participate in governance under the “Kilusang Pagbabago”. He said without the
participation of the people corruption business as usual in the government.
CabSec Jun Evasco said corruption is connected to
illegal drugs and criminalities. If the one trillion pesos will not benefited
to the people it always remain for the people living in poverty and poorer. He
said that there must some kind of mechanism that would force the government for
change and that is people’s participation in governance.
CabSec Jun Evasco said during the Aquino
administration they always saying that the country experienced the favorable
macroeconomics high rate on gross domestic product (GDP). However, the high GDP
rate during the Aquino administration did not benefited the people in the countryside
because the people especially the Urban poor said during their campaign there
was no change of their living because they remain poor. The only people
benefited the high GDP rate during the administration of President PNOY are the
group of oligarchs in the country such as those owner of big malls like SM
malls and many others, but the poor became poorer because the poor people in
masse was used by the rich for their personal interest.
Evasco said that President Duterte
mentioned about the mobile hot line number 8888 is still on process to install
the system. This will become workable soon and will let the people send text
messages for free direct to the office of the President. He urged the people to
continue their watch to the government. Evasco said that President Duterte adviced
all the different Secretaries to live simply and not to use the privilege car
plate number 6 because the people are not happy to look at it, and even
President Duterte doesn’t want to be called the title of His Excellency but he
preferred to be called Mayor in the entire country. He said the President also
adviced them not to use luxurious and expensive cars because the people will
not believe that (Secretaries) can buy high cost of expensive cars.
CabSec Jun Evasco said during their first Cabinet
meeting of Secretaries, the President told them that he (President) will not
believe that they (Secretaries) will do corruption in the government. What
worries the President is the corruption under them in the departments. If this
will happen and reported to his office he (President) will call the culprit and
will reprimand in front of the tri-media.
Evasco said that the President will reinvent the
campaign on illegal drugs into anti-corruption and two things will happen. That
it is the same as the culprit on illegal drugs will be killed because they
resist forcefully against the police or they will be killed because of shame to
the Filipino people. Evasco said no one can prevent President Duterte what he
wants to do for the good of the Filipino People. Evasco said that the President
repeatedly saying that if he will be killed in this campaign that is his
destiny but if he will survive for the rest of his six-year term definitely
there is change. Evasco said there are some sectors unhappy on the campaign of
anti-drugs, anti-corruption and anti-criminality such as those sector lost in
the last elections. They cannot accept that a “Pobinsiyano” won the elections
especially from Mindanao that a person always bombarding harsh words. Evasco
said that adversaries of the President are trying their best to press the issue
on extra judicial killings (EJKs). Evasco said that there was no ordered from
the President on EJKs. He said the order of the President is to arrest
criminals and drug pushers. The killings transpired only when the culprits
resist forcefully and the police acted on self-defense. Evasco said that if the
police will be killed it is very expensive because the widows or widowers and
their children will be paid of their pensions and educations, respectively. The
government spent so much on the police force including the military for the
protection of the people. Evasco said if no one will claim on the dead bodies
of criminals after the shootout it is still helpful to donate it to the medical
school for laboratory experiments and produce good medical doctors.
During their consultation in
the entire country the people are very satisfied on the government’s campaign
against illegal drugs and encouraged the President to continue. Right now this
is the reason used by the US, EU and UN in unison reacted the issue on human
rights and the President told them not to interfere the internal affairs of the
Philippine government’s campaign against illegal drugs because Philippines is
facing on narco-social problem that will damage the country if not acted upon.
Evasco cited the Philippines as a Sovereign and
Independent State will have to change its foreign policy to have an independent
foreign policy or to support power foreign policy. He said same as the US is an
independent state but the difference is they are rich country and the
Philippines is poor? Evasco said the raw materials of the many industries in
the world including the US came from and extracted in the Philippines. He said
Philippines is not poor because the US and the rest of the companies of the
world benefited the minerals in our country. Being rich does not give American
government the prerogative to dictate the Philippine government on what to do.
Likewise, the Philippine government do not interfere the internal affairs of
America. Evasco alleged that the US had plenty of cases of killings of black
people and Muslims in the Africa and Middle East countries because they branded
them as terrorists. The Philippine government did not question the US including
France on that case.
CabSec Jun Evasco alleged at the turn of the century there
are many people killed by the Americans in Buda Hu, Sulu. The reason of the
killings it’s because the Moro in Sulu resisted the orders of the Americans
that’s why they massacred the Moro people. In fact the .45 Caliber was invented
in Jolo because the weapons of the Americans during that time had no knocking
power. The Americans had encountered many casualties of the war against the
Moro “huramintados” in Sulu using “kris” or bolo only as their weapons. After
the invention of the .45 caliber no more “huramintado” can kill Americans. In
Balangiga, Leyte, the Americans massacred 8,000 waray people because the latter
resisted and fight against the Americans. Evasco alleged that the Americans
protected us from the Moro terrorist and was written in Philippine history
which was the most blatant lie that we received through our education. The
Americans accused the Moro leader Kamlon in Sulu that he was a bandit but
Kamlon was just stand firm inhis commitment to fight against the Americans to
protect the rights and dignity of the Moro people.
That’s why in view to this the President advice the US
not to interfere the internal affairs of the Philippine government because they
have their own problem and likewise the latter do not interfere the internal
affairs of the former. Evasco said the European Union (EU) also wanted to
interfere the internal affairs here in the country. He said the EU also waging
war in African countries. The Philippine government again did not interfere
their affairs of waging war in other countries. That’s why Evasco said the
calling of President Duterte that they should not interfere the internal
affairs of the Philippine government. The President in many of his
pronouncements invited any human rights investigation but ordered them to talk
first with him to clarify issues and concerns.
During the event a mass oath taking to all the
participants as members of the KP administered by CabSec Jun Evasco as the
Founding Chairman of KP. Mr. Abel Moya, KP coordinator in Lanaodel Norte and
Iligan City facilitated the submission of proposals, resolutions and
recommendations from the different areas in Region 10 for peace and development
programs to Cab Sec Jun Evasco.
Highlights on major issues and concerns in Iligan City,
submitted by the local government and the civil society organizations (CSOs). First,
is about the status of the case of Mayor Celso Regencia requested a review for
proper disposition. Second, is the reoperation of National Steel Corporation (NSC)
with pending debt obligations amounted to at least ten billion pesos on taxes
and loans.Third, is the enhancement of the Bottom-up-budgeting (BUB) process
into “Participatory budgeting process” originated from the people in the
Barangay to be facilitated by the CSOs and project implementation shall also be
monitored by the CSOs.
It was also recommended the investigation of the “Pantawid
pamilya pangkabuhayan program” or 4Ps. The 4Ps is a national program with an
annual budget to at least 40 billion pesos, is a financial assistance intended
for the poorest of the poor but there were individuals receiving 4Ps are even
active in government service and some are working locally and abroad.
Another recommendation is to stop the kidnapping in
Lanao del Norte. It is recommended that the national government shall crack
down the organized kidnap-for-ransom group and other extortionist syndicates in
Lanao del Norte and continue implement equitable distribution of peace and
development programs especially to the conflict affected areas. In Camiguin
they recommended to stop the political dynasty in the province. In Bukidnon,
Misamis Oriental and Occidental recommended the implementation of the Agrarian
reform program.
CabSec Jun Evasco said that his office will study all
those recommendations and will delegate it to the different departments for
proper implementation. He said that government’s campaign on illegal drugs will
continue. He added that the one billion peso donation for the rehabilitation
was coming from the group of businessmen in the country to fund the
rehabilitation centers for the illegal drug dependents nationwide.
No comments:
Post a Comment