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Opinion

Tabula rasa

Last year’s General Elections saw the rise of the first independent candidate to be elected as president of the University Student Government, a break in the otherwise conventional partisan elections in a number of ways. What others would do only if backed by numerous supporters and a practiced chorus, one candidate did armed with just…

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Opinion

Editorial: After the march

More than half a year has passed since Filipinos from all walks of life, from labor unions to government agencies to indigenous groups to college students, marched to Luneta to clamor against the misuse of public discretionary funds. The so-called Million People March was a statement of dismay from the informed public; that day witnessed…

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Opinion

Editorial: A question of rights

More than a year after the extension of the temporary restraining order on the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, otherwise known as RA 10175, protesters to the law are gearing up for one more rally against the act on Tuesday, the anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution. While the Cybercrime Prevention Act does have…

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Opinion

Editorial: Market value

More than a month ago, the Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines granted DLSU a PAASCU level IV institutional accreditation after maintaining more than 75 percent of its academic programs at level III for more 10 years, while exemplifying the highest standards of research, teaching and learning, community service and contribution to economic and…

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Opinion

Editorial: Sincerity

On December 7, the UK-based Disasters Emergency Committee reported evidence suggesting that not all the £60 million of aid given by as many as 14 UK charity institutions reaches the intended beneficiaries in the typhoon-stricken regions. Reports also released on local mainstream media speak of foreign aid being left wasted by the roadsides or hoarded…

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Opinion

Editorial: Beyond band-aid relief

Over the span of almost two weeks, a supertyphoon transformed a nation – for better and for worse. Typhoon Yolanda’s 300 kph winds (The Economist compares this speed to the revving of jumbo jet engines) slammed into the Central Philippines last November 8. The worst hit provinces of Leyte and Eastern Samar – peopled by…

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Opinion

Editorial: Do we need the USG?

Midway into the year, and the USG under President Migi Moreno and the rest of the Executive Board has been coping with the structures that they have been left with from the previous administrations. Saint Anthony Tiu’s vision of a USG that served primarily as a policymaker rather than project implementer is a challenge taken…

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Opinion

Editorial: Barking mad

Janet Lim-Napoles, JLN Corporation, seven affiliate senators and 23 congressmen, 10 billion pesos – anyone in sync with current affairs would be familiar with these associations to the pork barrel or Priority Development Assistance Fund, which the press had resurrected as early as July this year, following whistleblower Benhur Luy’s unraveling of an elaborate NGO’s…

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Opinion

Editorial: Priorities

Last week, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago once again proposed the abolition of the controversial Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), just as debates on the pork barrel escalated following yet another public scandal on the alleged misuse of P10 billion worth of PDAF appropriations spread over a decade. The heart of the argument finds itself in the…

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Opinion

Editorial: For the least

Asked about the State of the Nation Address to happen this afternoon, DLSU President and Chancellor Br. Ricky Laguda hopes that President Aquino identify not only the areas for which the government has met its targets based on their plan last year,  but also address areas for improvement that will help the country in terms…