The Magna Carta bill was approved by both houses of Philippine Congress and it was forwarded to President Aquino for approval.

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Sharleen Hubbard
5 years ago
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1 DESPITE Pope Francis consistent and passionate advocacy for the poor, the Chief Executive of the country with the third largest Catholic population in the world, President Benigno S. Aquino III, vetoed recently, the Magna Carta of the Poor Bill which would have given the poor: (a) right to food; (b) right to employment and livelihood; (c) right to quality education; (d) right to shelter; and (e) right to basic health services and medicines. The Magna Carta bill was approved by both houses of Philippine Congress and it was forwarded to President Aquino for approval. Mr. Aquino disapproved (vetoed) the bill saying it was unrealistic and impossible to achieve because the government did not have money to fund what the bill wanted to give the poor (five enumerated rights above). Instead, President Aquino created a group to study a possible substitute for the Magna Carta, and maybe, only maybe, draft a similar bill, have Congress pass it, and be the one to get the credit. (I guess it doesn t really matter to the poor who help them. What s important is they are helped.) 1 / 5

2 According to data from the Philippines National Statistical Coordination Board, more than one-quarter (26.5%) of the population falls below the poverty line in The population of the native country in 2009 was estimated at 92 million. I received information from Manila that Mr. Aquino is contemplating to provide low cost housing to low income Filipinos in every municipality at affordable monthly payments. That s good if implemented. As expected, an official of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) expressed disappointment over the President s decision to disapprove the entire Magna Carta of the Poor Bill. In an interview with Radyo Veritas, Catholic radio station in Manila, Fr. Edu Gariguez, Executive Secretary, National Secretariat for Social Action (CBCP-Nassa), said President Aquino should not have trashed the entire bill and should have applied line veto on certain items he did not like. The CBCP official also said President Aquino missed an opportunity to demonstrate that he really cared for the poor. It may be recalled one major battle cry of Mr. Aquino when he ran for president three years ago was about ending poverty by eliminating corruption in government. We wished he could just have rejected the provisions he didn t like and not the entire Bill that could have helped the poor, said the dismayed Fr. Gariguez. 2 / 5

3 The priest added that the decision of President Aquino was way off the recent pronouncements of Pope Francis, who has repeatedly stated in his homilies that more attention and action are needed to help the poor everywhere. In the same interview, Fr. Gariguez answered President Aquino s no available money reasoning by noting the government has available money to buy condoms and contraceptives under the Aquino Administration s Reproductive Health Law but not for the programs under the vetoed Magna Carta. A critic of the President observed, It (Aquino s group) fought tooth and nail to have its Reproductive Health law passed, to the extent of deploying top Cabinet members to buttonhole members of Congress right inside the assembly hall. Other critics are accusing Mr. Aquino of not being able to feel for the poor because he belongs to a wealthy clan. Let s see what this President s next concrete step will be on this important issue. *** Councilman Lavarro of Jersey City, N.J. Let s move to the topic of immigrants rights. Continuing on his promise of a campaign of ideas, Jersey City re-electionist Filipino-American Councilman Rolando Lavarro, Jr. is proposing the creation of an Immigrant Affairs Commission in Jersey City that will serve as voice for immigrants in that city s government. 3 / 5

4 This project is a first in the State of New Jersey, where many Filipino-Americans, as well as other immigrants reside. We support this Lavarro initiative. According to the councilman s press release, the immigrant community makes up 38.4% of Jersey City s population of 247,000. There are an estimated 20,000 Filipinos in the city. It also stated that in 2008, immigrant workers in New Jersey contributed $47 billion to the state s economy. Councilman Lavarro said he will introduce his proposal for approval in the next session of the Jersey City Council. While Congress is looking to improve our nation s immigration laws, there are things that we can do at the local level to help ensure that there s a pathway to citizenship, workers are protected, and that Jersey City s immigrant families are kept together. An Immigrant Affairs Commission would help us do just that, said Lavarro. Under Lavarro s proposal, the Commission would be composed of community leaders and advocates, who would advise Jersey City government on issues affecting immigrants, including: civil and human rights, social services, education, and business development. The Commission would also monitor current and proposed laws at the local, state and federal levels to ensure compliance and minimize any effects that would be harmful to immigrants and Jersey City as a whole. 4 / 5

5 The Fil-Am councilman is running for Council-At-Large post in the ticket of mayoral candidate Steven Fulop. 5 / 5

Who is the candidate? Marcos Sr. or Jr.? Written by MANUEL L. CABALLERO Sunday, 01 November :59. The late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

Who is the candidate? Marcos Sr. or Jr.? Written by MANUEL L. CABALLERO Sunday, 01 November :59. The late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. The late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. 1 / 6 IF you are a social media nerd, you may have noticed the increasing presence of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. (FM) both in print media and Internet.