Shortcomings

"Will the water problem cost administration bets some votes?"

Finally after so much pressure and consumers’ outrage, the Ayalas admitted shortcomings in Manila Water service. This is also in the face of the government’s threat to sever the contract granted to the concessionaire.

The water service in the Metro Manila area is aggravated by the El Niño effect, wreaking havoc on hundreds of thousands of farmers and acreage planted to rice and vegetables. This can only bring up the price of these basic staples beyond the reach of middle-income and poor Filipinos.

The question now being asked is “If the government took over public water delivery in the Metro area, can it do better than the private sector companies?” The answer to that is at least government can be held accountable through the voters’ ballot. This is a particularly telling factor in the coming May 13 midterm elections. How the administration candidates will fare is seen as a referendum on both Duterte administration and its candidates.

Will the public outcry “tub..ii..ig!” translate into negative votes for administration candidates? I guess we will know after May 13 whether government will heed the wake up call from the people. It is a sign of how the populace will cast their votes in the 2022 presidential polls and the end of Duterte’s six-year term.

The lack of electricity is also looming in the horizon. Distributor Manila Electric Co. allays such fears as unfounded even as the high -priced Meralco rates will surely be in great demand during the hot summer months when consumers have their air conditioners almost turned the whole afternoon.

The shortage of electric power is presently being felt in politically-rocked Venezuela which has crude oil albeit high in sulphur content. Oil is an essential component in the generation of electricity. The Philippines which buys Middle East oil with the falling pesos vis-a-vis the US dollar could face another challenge in another vital service area. The government must address this issue before like the water shortage stares us in the face. Social discontent is a strong element in the stability of a nation. Lack of food was what cost the French monarchy its grip on power and led to the Fall of the Bastille revolution.

On the bright side, the Senate and the House finally threshed out their differences on the General Appropriations Act. Submitted to President Rodrigo Duterte, it’s now up to the President to veto or take out contentious parts of the national budget . This is good for government employees who render service to keep government agencies functioning.

Another bright side is the report that the government will grant industrialist Ramon Ang the right to build an international airport in Bulacan. This would allow passengers from Central Luzon and further up north to skip going to the Manila international airport for departure and arrival. If the new Bulacan airport succeeds, it would give a boost to Ang who is being pushed by supporters to run for president in 2022.

And why not? This is better than another presidential candidate from the dysfunctional Liberal Party and the political butterflies that fly to whoever is the party in power. There should really be a return to the two-party system with each having its own distinctive platform. We doubt though that the prevailing political parties would do this in case of an amendment to the Constitution. The present Congress prefers the status quo including its opposition to banning political dynasties. Why kill the goose that lays the golden eggs that perpetuate themselves in power? Dynasties equal decades in the lever of power.

There are exceptions in the present composition of the Senate. Aside from Senators Grace Poe, Richard Gordon and Francis Pangilinan, the rest are chaffs from the grain. This is why I would like to see former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile elected back to the Senate. He is really the only Juan who can imbue intelligent intercourse in the Upper Chamber. The man’s innate intelligence, sense of history that has relevance to present day events plus his deep knowledge of the law would inculcate in the other lawmakers to raise their own standard,

The poll surveys show Enrile outside the win column of 12, but surveys are not always correct. There is that socalled margin of error that could open a window to Enrile’s inclusion in the winning column. Going to the hustings has invigorated Enrile to widen his campaign swing to key out-of-town sorties. Seen more as an independent shorn of the two other parties’ political baggage, Enrile could yet be a surprise winner.