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By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
In the 17 years that the Philippines has been a member of the World Trade Organization, from being a net importer of rice, it became a net exporter as production fell considerably and land grabbing became rampant. Now, even vegetables are being heavily imported and soon imported fish products would flood the country, all in the name of the WTO.
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL and JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
“This flagship program of Aquino is just a palliative measure. People don't need dole-outs. What they really need is a permanent job.” – Gloria Arellano, president of Kadamay
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO and RONALYN V. OLEA
“We need to hold him accountable for the long list of anti-people rulings he supported to favor his patron Macapagal-Arroyo... But with this move we hope that the next Chief Justice would be truly independent and decide cases for the genuine interest of the people. We do not want an Arroyo court to be replaced by an Aquino court.” – Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
"The general profiling of people as 'friend' or 'enemy' on the basis of their tweets and email is definitely dangerous and must be stopped." – Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares
By MARYA SALAMAT
The GPH talks whether with the MILF or with the NDFP remain bogged down until today, mired as these are in the GPH’s efforts to “box it in its counter-insurgency program called Oplan Bayanihan.” – Satur Ocampo of Makabayan
Sidebar: A saga of all-out euphemisms vs peace, the Moro and the ordinary people
By MARYA SALAMAT
The House of Representatives approved a P200m ($4.6m) addition to the DOH budget and P400m ($9.2m) for government-owned and controlled corporation hospitals, as a result of the intense campaign of progressive health groups for a higher health budget.
By MARYA SALAMAT
"Globally in the past ten years, the trend among countries is to put in restrictions and protection into their domestic economic policies; this is also true even among those who are pushing the Philippines to remove restrictions against foreign capital." – Sonny Africa, Ibon Foundation
Sidebar: Critics view cha cha as 10 times more disastrous than current typhoons
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Ibon Foundation pointed out that increasing FDIs have actually been accompanied by increasing unemployment, increasing labor export, falling real wages, shrinking domestic manufacturing and more volatile growth.
By MARYA SALAMAT
“It’s really ridiculous that the people are already paying for the cost of constructing roads and on top of that paying for taxes on their payments.” – former Rep. Renato Diaz, consultant when VAT law was crafted 17 years ago.
Sidebar: VAT on toll fees, a precedent for all public services under PPPs
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