miniZibaldone

Inquirer  "Supermajority " The speed with which the national political landscape has shifted, since the election of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte as president, has been dizzying. The use of  the earthquake analogy is appropriate; in the House of Representatives and, to a lesser extent, in the Senate, the change has been seismic.  Or, to change metaphors: The rapid ripening of the balimbing or star fruit in the political orchard has been one for the farmer’s almanac. The President-elect joined  the PDP-Laban only recently; on May 9, only three of its candidates for Congress won. But a month after the elections, PDP-Laban is set to become the new majority,  not only in the House but also in the Senate. The shifting of alliances in the House will not look out of place in any episode of “Game of Thrones.” From a tiny base of three, Representative-elect Pantaleon  Alvarez was able to grow his support to about three-fourths of the entire chamber—in part...

Philippine Star  "IS at the Door" Despite military denials about the terrorist Islamic State gaining a foothold in Mindanao, IS is seen to have at least inspired the assassination attempt on a Saudi  Arabian cleric and a Saudi diplomat Tuesday night in Zamboanga City. Mindanao is already plagued by several violent groups: the Abu Sayyaf, Jemaah Islamiyah, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and, in several areas, the communist New  People’s Army. The leadership of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front has promised to continue observing a truce with the government despite the failure of Congress to  pass a law creating the Bangsamoro. But IS can inspire adherents among any of the Islamic groups, including the MILF.   [full text] Sun.Star Cebu  "New Supplemental Budget" CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama is again putting the majority Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) councilors on the defensive after he submitted a proposed supplemental  budget, the first...

Inquirer  about Duterte and presidential elections Log on to Facebook and chances are one would come across a number of posts from defenders of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos waxing eloquent about “the golden era, the  prosperity, the peace and order”  of the martial law years. Given the bad grammar, the flawed logic and the rampant name-calling, one would be tempted to dismiss such  posts as the work of trolls and hacks intended to advance the political stock of the dictator’s son, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who is running for vice- president. Except that the recent ascendancy of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, whom one recent survey pronounced No. 1 among the presidential aspirants, gives one  serious pause. [full text] Sun.Star Cebu  on Cebu councilors and budget This has become a ritual in the Cebu City Council in the past six weeks: a member identified with Team Rama delivering a privilege speech during the regular session  aski...