Editorial 3/1/16 (Marcos, mining, politics, presidential elections, justice, fire prevention)

Philippine Star "Recipe for conflagrations"

This is the season for renewing business permits, and the hawkers of fire extinguishers are again busy with their moneymaking activity rather than the work for which they are being paid by taxpayers. Combined with the inadequacy of firefighting capabilities and low public awareness of fire prevention measures, you have a recipe for more deadly conflagrations. [full text]

Sun.Star Cebu "Burying Marcos"

If the sacrifices of the victims of the Marcos dictatorship are to be extolled, wouldn't it be awkward if the perpetrator would be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani? That is the essence of Poe's stance, which is a roundabout way of saying no. But she couldn't say it because she was dealing with a big bloc of voters loyal to the Marcoses—an act that exposes a chink in her leadership armor. Although to be fair, some other presidential bets possess that leadership flaw. [full text]

Mindanao Times "Cave in"

THE MINING accident at the Las Vegas tunnel in Compostela Valley last Saturday again brought to the fore the safety of workers in the mining industry. [...] Occupational health safety of this industry should be on top of the list of government and mining companies to mitigate loss of life and properties.  Monitoring of working conditions of mines should be regular and consistent, and education on safety among miners and communities should be undertaken. [full text]

Manila Bulletin "Better sooner than later"

It has been months since Sen. Grace Poe’s eligibility to run for president was publicly disputed. After the Commission on Elections (Comelec) disqualified her last December, 2015, on two constitutional grounds – that she is not a natural-born citizen and she lacks the 10-year residency requirement for a presidential candidate – the case moved up to the Supreme Court, the final arbiter on the matter. It was hoped that everything would be settled by the time the Comelec started printing the ballots for the May 9, 2016, elections, but to this day, the issue hangs in the air. [full text]

Inquirer "Restitution required"

Leaving the Marcoses unpunished is the mother lode of the virulent strain of impunity that has since afflicted the country. Every crook in government now thinks that if the biggest crooks of them all could get away with it, so could they. The template is fool-proof so far: Wait just a few years, and they’d be the toast of the town again. [full page]