Impulses
Political persecution
About 3,700 or one-fifth of the 17,000 successful nursing board examinees were believed to have benefited from the leak when they attended the "final coaching" sessions at the RA Gapuz Review Center and the Inress Review Center branches in Manila and Baguio City.
That's according to popular belief. For what is clear to me is that RA Gapuz and Inress also have sister review centers in almost all major cities in the country, including that of Iloilo City.
With the technology that we have now, isn't it more than possible that there are some nursing board takers in the South who also profited from the test leak?
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A throng of US troops are now in Subic Bay for a two-week training with the Philippine forces.
Is this another exercise in futility?
Maybe not for the GIs who are here also to paint the Pampanga bays red, using vans, booze and condoms in the process.
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A seminar on parliamentary debate is set for the tweens of Iloilo City on November 9-10, 2006 at UPV Iloilo Main Campus.
This is an exotic opportunity for our locals to savor the real world of intellectual argumentation using the world-renowned rules of order with seasoned speakers.
We hope that this affair shall be attended by scores of schools and debaters possible.
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GMA says to businessmen: Security is on top of her agenda.
Few know that she might be crossing her fingers when she said it.
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DOJ will invite alleged coup plotters for a chit chat about the rebellion case whacked against them.
I smell a backdoor negotiation a.k.a. trade of principles. That might be partly possible, for some plotters are not that well-rooted anyway. This is politics and military adventurism at its nastiest.
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The United Kingdom has warned the Philippines yesterday that terrorists may be set to hold bigger and more daring bomb attacks anytime this month after a series of terror campaigns in the country.
Forget why UK got the info first before us. What is alarming is that al Qaeda, Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf are all taking turns to make this doomsday scenario possible!
Scary, for the Visayas will not be sparred by the terror bombs, the British Intelligence said.
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Some 200 kilos of chemical explosives were seized yesterday (Tuesday) by joint police and military forces in Zamboanga City. This means eight sacks of ammonium nitrate, a key ingredient in making homemade bombs!
The Brits are not joking indeed!
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DILG suspends Makati Mayor Binay.
Is this the wrath of GMA?
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Bayan has condemned in strongest, fiercest terms the suspension of Mayor Binay.
They say it's another desperate move by the Arroyo camp to politically persecute opponents under her administration.
Obviously, this is intended to weaken an opposition base-a wholesale political persecution, indeed. In other terms, this act is the executive massacre of local officials opposed to her. Truly, if unchecked, other opposition officials might suffer the same sorry fate.
Coercion and intimidation, these are GMA's cup of tea.
What a tough babe.
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Two more oil companies aside from Petron and Shell have rolled back oil prices by P.50 per liter for oil and LPG as prompted by the reduced price of crude in the world market.
This is rare good news. Perhaps we must savor its sweetness before it dies naturally.
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Just Monday:
GMA to public: "Stand up" against poverty!
Public to GMA: Do you?
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They say it will be Sen. Drilon vs Sec. Gonzalez in the Iloilo City race.
Well, if that is the case, the best choice is so clear for any thinking person. Need I say more?
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The Department of Justice (DOJ) has junked the Department of National Defense's proposal to lower the military recruitment age to 17.
This is a clear blow to the military's desperation intention to recruit not just fresh legs but warm bodies that are easy to manipulate.
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Malacañang has so far failed to achieve all the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) targets by 2015, says ADB and UN.
Nobody is surprised.
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On the other hand, the Palace has rejected the recommendation of the CBCP to make the 2007 elections credible by having a Comelec revamp.
Well, Arroyo still needs them (present Comelec officials) for her "grand scheme of things."
Why fix institutions that are not broken (as far as GMA is concerned anyway)? Better yet, why mend things that are lucratively helping the great Arroyo fulfill her whims?
Huh, nonsense!
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PRC has just sworn more nurses Monday for passing the leakage-tainted nursing board exam last June following the favorable decision by the Court of Appeals before the weekend.
At last!
Sad to say, the damage on the integrity of the profession (Philippine nursing/nurses) has already been soiled. This is a very difficult stain to erase.
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Seven OFWs have arrived Monday from Lebanon, brining 6,287 the total number of Filipinos repatriated since fighting broke out between Israel forces and the Hezbollah militants in July.
They came back to fight another war here in the country...poverty.
(Engr. Herman M. Lagon may be reached through h_lagon@yahoo.com)