August 27, 2004

In a Twinkle of an Eye

Yesterday despite of the typhoon, I wrote a long missive about the absurdity on how our elected senators cling to their pork barrel fund as if it was their birthright. So lengthy it was that I felt a pang of fear that such entry was practically inviting Murphy to apply his cursed law. And then I hear the door knocked; it was Murphy himself.

These were the main points from that article:

1. Senators & Congressmen are elected solely for the purpose of legislating. Period. They are not there to earmark pet projects or usurp the responsibilities of the different agencies and the local units. They should leave the initiating, planning, budgeting and implementing of schools, roads, housing, basketball courts, and watersheds to the likes of mayors, governors and provincial agency heads since these are the people who really stay put in their different locales. This "project" thing is the perfect scapegoat for some inutile senators to be absent from senate hearings, committee meetings, etc, where their representative votes are crucial for without their presence, there may not be a quorum to pass anything at all.

2. Many current senators are undeserving of their CDFs. Sen. Osmeña III may have a long list of CDF-funded pet projects in Cebu but his legislative portfolio according to PDI columnist Bambi Harper is nothing more but two bills- bills to rename España and Taft into Tañada and Diokno avenues! Sen. Lapid on the other hand excused himself in the middle of the senate meeting for the defense committee where Sen. Joker was grilling the generals because of some appropriation scam. Lapid didn't contribute as much as a pip in the hearing but instead (yes, in front of the camera) whispered to his staff while showing him the documents pertaining to the meeting. Perhaps Lapid wasn't able to read it beforehand? From what was portrayed in the news, I can assume that the honorable senator did not know what the issue at hand was. Shame indeed. Even Sen. Pimentel lamented how some neophyte senators (Revilla, Lapid & Estrada) aren't keen on learning the ropes of legislating for they are frequently absent during meetings. Probably attending to their "constituents".

Okay, finished. As I pushed the Publish button, to my horror, a terrible error struck. Server not found! What tha &@#*%$! My face went white and my skin became cold. Aaargh!! I then developed a sudden urge to pull out the roots of my hair after realizing that all the words have been erased into oblivion. I cannot believe that such a glitch happened. Aargh! With that, I ate lunch na lang to drown my sorrows and watched Ms. Global Pinay to cheer me up.

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