Walang bayad ang mangarap (you don’t have to pay for your dreams and aspirations) is a common saying.  We fantasize about earning our first million pesos as early as possible, of living in a beautiful home, of marrying the man or woman of our dreams, and so forth.

Making Fantasy a Reality: What Should Come Next?

Some days stand out and remain etched in the mind probably forever because of discussions with people who give a lot of guidance and inspiration. For me, one of these days was today.


Dreaming of a Zone

An interesting relationship exists between Hunger and Dole-outs like 4 Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program), TUPAD (Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers), and AKAP (Ayuda Para sa Kapos ang Kita), being distributed as dole-outs. It is a direct fund distribution strategy. It is a shortcut (or is it a short circuit) of the process of allocating funds hopefully making recipients productive and income-generating.

 The Connection Between Hunger and Dole-outs

In a recent widely circulated article in the Freeman, a Cebu-based newspaper, one of its columnists Atty. Josephus Jimenez dismissed the idea that House Speaker Martin Romualdez has a chance to become the next President, succeeding President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.  He said that the Speaker is suited to be Prime Minister but not President. This is another way of saying that unless the Constitution is amended in, say, 2029, our Speaker will not become His Excellency. 

Can We Make It Happen?

Last week I talked about conversations I had with the General Manager of the Clark Development Corporation, Mr. Mike de la Rosa. We talked about the long-term prospect of establishing an export processing zone in Babatngon, Leyte. This time I will reveal to the readers another conversation on a developmental topic with a person who has a lot to say but prefers to be anonymous.


Conversations

For this issue, I want to write about aspects of a democratic political system as practiced in the Philippines. Partly because the local station of Radio Bombo invited me to an interview on the topic of selecting candidates for local positions for the May 2025 elections, this is an interesting topic as I recall my subjects in Political Science at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.

When Democracy Seems to Grind to a Screeching Halt

In law, this is a common phrase: Justice delayed is justice denied. In, monitoring projects this could be a common phrase: project delayed is progress denied. 

Delays

     Last week's column deserves a second helping. I talked about the other side of many big ticket, multi-billion peso projects. For a region that has seldom experienced the simultaneous implementation of major projects that cost several billion pesos  each, this is a new experience.  The residents are amazed at the rash of projects suddenly under implementation. But the problem, as I mentioned, in previous issues is the interconnection among them in addition to their inherent weaknesses. 

More on the Other Side and its Consequences

I remember the words “the other side” from a novel written by Sidney Sheldon, a No.1 best-seller pick by the New York Times. The complete title is “The Other Side of Midnight”. If you are looking for a best-selling suspense thriller, this one should be a good read; guaranteed to keep you reading the whole night. Or you can watch the exciting movie version.

The Other Side 

From many angles, 2024 was a revelation for Eastern Visayas from the economic and political sides. The region continues to witness the construction of many big-ticket projects particularly in the first District of Leyte, the region's center of economic growth. Its political leaders are prominent in Congress's ongoing quadcom and related committee hearings. 


It’s a Wrap

I AM BACK: Atty Buenaventura Go-Soco Jr. Column

I AM BACK COLUMN: Atty. Buenaventura Go-Soco Jr.

I AM BACK

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