GOVERNANCE MATTERS Former Vice President Jejomar Binay The term “enemies of the state” was used loosely by repressive regimes worldwide in the 1970s to justify the persecution of political opponents and activists. The Marcos regime used it as an all-embracing label against the broad range of...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Former Vice President Jejomar Binay Society invests so much power in the police and other law enforcement agencies based on an implicit trust that these powers will be wielded responsibly and for the protection of citizens. When these powers are abused, which we have seen happen...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Former Vice President Jejomar Binay Last week, the House of Representatives announced that it will be resuming its deliberation on amending the 1987 Constitution through a Constituent Assembly. The move is said to be a priority of the current House leadership, and with this...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Former Vice President Jejomar Binay A devastating super-typhoon ravaged the country last week, narrowly sparing Metro Manila but leaving a wake of destruction in large parts of Bicol. Not only did it displace thousands of families, it also battered the region’s agricultural...
Former Vice President Jejomar Binay GOVERNANCE MATTERS Ever since the government placed Metro Manila and major urban centers under a lockdown, our people have been living in a state of constant fear. The fear is real, not existential. It is brought on by economic uncertainties and the day-to-day...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS The government’s communications office has shared, on several media platforms, the contents of the National Action Plan (NAP) against COVID-19. The acronym could not have been badly done. But that is the least of my concerns. The NAP may be diplomatically described as ambitious...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Normally, news of a record-breaking increase in the number of patients who have recovered from the coronavirus would have been greeted with jubilation. Instead, the Department of Health (DOH) found itself fending off criticisms that it was fiddling with the numbers after it...
GOVERNANCE MATTERS Malacañang has clarified a controversial statement from the Interior Secretary that policemen will be conducting a house-to-house search for persons infected with the coronavirus. No, it will not be a police-led search, but one to be led by health authorities accompanied by the...