Former president Gloria Arroyo praised president Benigno Simeon Aquino III (BS Aquino) for the 2012 reported 6.6% GDP (gross domestic product) growth. There was a “but”, though:
In her statement, Arroyo said she “shares the commitment of President Aquino to integrity and opposition to corruption.”
“But the campaign against corruption must uphold the rule of law, due process and the independence of the judiciary,” she added.
A normal, sane person would take the compliment at face value, say thanks for being praised, and get on with his/her things to do. Unfortunately, this is BS Aquino and his yellow horde we’re talking about. Especially when it comes to someone he perceives to be an “evil enemy”, such as Arroyo, it’s virtually guaranteed that a big spectacle will be made out of a non-issue.
For starters, Malacañang was only too eager to toot its own horn where it doesn’t belong, again. Presidential Deputy Spokesperson Abigail Valte was quoted as saying that the 6.6% GDP growth “is a classic case of the student already surpassing the teacher.”
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The following scene from the very first Star Wars movie, from 1977, suddenly played in my head:
Darth Vader: I’ve been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again, at last. The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner; now *I* am the master.
Obi-Wan: Only a master of evil, Darth.
Surpassing in what exactly? In spinning bullshit, I can imagine.
We must not forget that although GDP as a measure of economic value is an attractive way to report growth, there are times when it is misleading and it is prone to statistical discrepancies, which is why the real numbers, on occasion, don’t add up.
Indeed, Gloria may have left us a schizophrenic economy but I don’t see Noynoy doing anything better – or different. The economy is still mainly propped up by overseas foreign worker (OFW) remittances. It is still a consumption-driven economy. Ben Kritz made a point that the shadow economy and its enormous size are helping to keep the main economy afloat, but at the same time are giving the misleading impression that “Aquinomics” is working, when in fact it’s got little to nothing to do with it.
Another glaring example from the yellow media would be Conrado “Noynoy is Aragorn” de Quiros, who also weighed in with one of his own ululations (kaululan) with his column last February 4.
Prison seems to have failed to dim the hubris. I was just wondering last week how she saw P-Noy’s performance in Davos, how he spoke of the Philippines rising after being the sick man of Asia for a long time. If I remember right, Arroyo went there herself a few years ago under a cloud of doubt about her legitimacy, which was not lost on the other leaders. But which did not particularly faze her: Her press releases in this country had her being the toast of Davos, the one person whose opinion the world’s most powerful leaders solicited, having rescued her country from the jaws of misery under conditions – the American recession chief of them – that had pitched most of the world into it. Like I said, prison seems not to have dimmed the hubris.
…
It’s good that Arroyo should draw attention to how she handled the economy and how her student, P-Noy, has. It reveals a couple of fundamental truths.
The first is that growth means nothing if the people do not feel it and do not benefit from it. Arroyo’s remark about P-Noy still needing to transform the growth into alleviating poverty isn’t just hubris, it is gall. If I remember right, she got sore when a reporter asked that very question – when will the purported growth trickle down to the poor? – after she delivered a glowing report of her economic feats in a press conference. Not least because of its implication that with corruption, any growth, even if real – and that regime was dedicated to substituting illusion for reality – had as much possibility of trickling down as nectar on a sieve.
It hasn’t happened even to this day – not yet. But the possibility at least exists. And it is slowly being felt, if the surveys about the people’s sense of wellbeing, or their reckoning of the future, are anything to go by. That’s what makes this economic growth real, that’s what makes this growth meaningful.
But more than that, as I keep saying again and again, the economy doesn’t just have to do with numbers, figures and statistics, it has to do with people. True enough, as Mark Twain quipped, there are three kinds of lies: big lies, little lies and statistics. P-Noy had every reason to be bullish at Davos and say what he did: The country is rising, the country is soaring, and nothing shows that more than the universal confidence in it. The confidence of the world as much as the confidence of the people.
De Quiros is just being his usual self, the usual asong-ulol supporter of the yellows and showing his distrust of anything that Arroyo is or does. Of course, de Quiros would like us to believe that the rest of the world believed, like the yellows did, that the legitimacy of her presidency was doubtful. Like I said near the start, a normal person would take the compliment at face value; yet Aquino mouthpieces like de Quiros can only see hubris; too bad he can’t see the very same in BS Aquino.
Mr. de Quiros, if you want to brag about BS Aquino being able to make economic growth trickle down to the masses, why don’t you explain why the Philippines’ prosperity index rating has been falling ever since he became president. Why don’t you explain why despite BS Aquino’s claims of 6.6% GDP economic growth, there are still at least 10 million unemployed Filipinos? And why don’t you explain why BS Aquino had to make an excuse that that there are jobs available but no applicants.
As usual, de Quiros didn’t even fail to mention the nebulous in saying “the possibility still exists” under BS Aquino’s watch, “if the surveys…are anything to go by.” The surveys are crooked, period. BS Aquino has failed to do anything but persecute and prosecute Gloria Arroyo for close to 3 years (and fail miserably, I might add), and he has yet to prove that he can make one of his own programs and not ride on the benefits of those started by his predecessor.
Yes, it’s the people, and the number of people that are saying that our young Patapon, este Padawan president still has much to learn, is growing, stupid.
Step back from all the noise that the yellow media is making about this, and think. How exactly has BS Aquino “surpassed” Gloria Arroyo, if true? Just because he went to Davos this year, despite his trip being a dud? Just because BS Aquino’s government has an endless list of cases against Arroyo, that makes him better?
Until BS Aquino stops blaming Gloria for everything that goes wrong and looks to his own shortcomings, things will never change. He can’t claim to be better than Arroyo when he can’t even pin her down for a charge due to lack of evidence.
Cue in another dialogue from the same Star Wars movie:
Darth Vader: Your powers are weak, old man
Obi-Wan: You can’t win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.
Indeed, Gloria may just be too much for BS Aquino. In fact, she may have inadvertently exposed the true nature of his character simply by staying put while in detention.
As a comment in the GRP Facebook community suggested, BS Aquino is a time bomb waiting to explode; all Gloria and his critics have to do is sit back and wait.
А вы, друзья, как ни садитесь, все в музыканты не годитесь. – But you, my friends, however you sit, not all as musicians fit.
Very nice article 😀
Actually, Valte and Quiros just showing their real color which is yellow. And since, their color is a HEPA color; who knows, one day their kidney can’t handle toxic anymore and bibigay din ang katawan nila once it happened, sooner their sanity will follow. Hamdullah lol
Noynoy’s plan resembles another movie “A Simple Plan”. I will tell everybody who the boogeyman is. I will get rid of the boogeyman then I will sit back and enjoy my successful run as president.
Ironically the Pope feels he can no longer do justice to his position. Noynoy is totally a fish out of water as a president . He was never prepared for it , nor was it something he wanted. The accidental president. Its not as easy as Quiros saying “Use The Force Noy”. The guy if he cared for this country would have taken stock of his skills or lack of them and not even run. But he is full of himself.
There’s another line from the Star Wars movie I can imagine Darth BS spouting:
Darth Vader: This will be a day long remembered. It has seen the end of Kenobi, it will soon see the end of the Rebellion.
The Rebellion would refer to his critics, it would seem. 😛
No increase in investments means no increase in jobs. Basic economics even to a mediocre student like p-noy.
And nothing more than the dismal performance of foreign direct investments (FDI) shows how the people who really matter – international investors – view aquino and his administration.
It also exposes his endless lies, quoting after each foreign junket how international investors are queuing up to invest in the philippines! Right!
In fact the international business community don’t trust him as far as they could throw a gold bar, and in essence have told him to go away.
The facts speak for themselves
Philippines:
FDI – 2010: 1.2 Billion dollars
FDI – 2012: 1.2 Billion dollars
Zero increase!
Whilst our asean competitors have been cleaning up with fdi growth of 30 -75 %
Cambodia – 2012: 1.8 Billion
Myanmar – 2012: 1.9 Billion
Vietnam – 2012: 8.4 Billion
Thailand – 2012: 8.6 Billion
And of all the macroeconomic metrics for a developing country FDI is tge one that matters, and paints the real picture
And since there is less job in the Philippines, it will “encourage” others to work to other countries, and remit money here, just as what Sen. Enrile said.
This is the “strong marcoeconomic” plan of the President.
How great! :-S
@F Angel
Very insightful!
Gloria Arroyo is now singing a different tune…maybe a back door deal is being done. Aquino administration is full of corruption…he is the laziest President, I’ve ever seen…
The people involved here are not idiots. Sorry but none of these theatrics are done ‘inadvertently’, please. Arroyo may have been a crook, but she is a smart one. If it appears that Arroyo is singing s different tune it is because she has never gone to jail, and never will. None of these people ever does.and why would they? For one, her scamming husband did not sign the papers that would have proved he de-frauded the people by selling them his used POS helicopters as new, but he is not an idiot…so no crime there.
Aquino falls into the same category, he is sharp as a tack, comes from money and his whole family, as well as Arroyo’s, is entrenched among the dynasty’s in Filipino politics. AND they are all RICH.
It is a sleazy as shit business and none of these people are innocent. Guilt is hard to prove when the laws are written so as to protect those who break them. That and an FOI bill that does not exist and banking regulations are such that the people can ever know how much money someone has, as long as it is foreign currency. So, good luck trying to prove anything.
The one thing that is certain is that they are all thieves, deceivers of the people. No matter what color shirt they wear.
They laugh at the people, while robbing them. HUH?
I object to your slur that BS Aquino is sharp as a tack!
It is an insult to all tacks around the world!
Your comment is funny, it is. BUT but but, he IS the President of a country with 100 million people living in it.
Aquino is not as dumb as a lot of people think he is, not by a long shot. Never under-estimate a guy like him, he certainly looks like a blubbering idiot, but he is not half as dumb as he looks. Lucky for him, eh? LOL!
YMMV on whether GMA is a crook, but the point is that BSA’s actions will turn against him. The fact that he flouts the rule of law (Corona), basically rules by decree (forcing congress to pass bills with all undue haste) and speaks of “accomplishments” and “facts” that almost non-existent (take your pick) shows that something is really wrong with BSA and his minions.
Sure there is, He is pissed that his Uncle keeps screaming at him for maybe losing the family jewels. You’d be pissed too if you had that bad-breathe stinking fart mouth yelling at you all day long too. And for something that was not even his idea to begin with!
Momma wanted to break-up the ranch long ago, but it did not happen and now it appears as if the family elders thought it was a bad idea all along…
So,enter the goof-ball and the look-alike to try to clean up the mess.
Hitler believed that if he told the big-lie long enough, it would eventually be accepted as fact. Sounds familiar.
and BTW, Arroyo? stuffed her and her families pockets with everything that was not nailed down. She almost picked up a cool, pick an insane number, on that Smart deal.BUT BUT BUT, not wanting to cut everybody else in on it so it got leaked to the press and when that happened she had to give it all back,HA HAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, big mistake there.
Wow! Look who is talking? “… follow the rule of law…” When she broke almost all of the rule of laws in the Philippines, she has the audacity to cite the rule of law. I guess she learned something about integrity in custody. How envigorating.
Yes, she broke the rules. Will you agree that BS Aquino is doing the same?
Yes, she broke the rules. Will you agree that BS Aquino is doing the same?
The point is simple. He’s no better, only with a bigger mouth.
Yes, she broke the rules. Will you agree that BS Aquino is doing the same?
The point is simple, they are the same. The only diff is that he has a bigger mouth.
They are all co-conspirators and that is the reason they never go to a real jail and no money is ever returned. In public they pretend to hate each others guts but it is all just a charade. It is the way the business of politics in the Philippines is done.If the fraud is not OBVIOUS by now, there is NO hope for the people. Realizing the problem is the half of solving the problem. In Madrid,Spain recently, and Athens,Greece as well, the people have been surrounding the Parliament buildings in an effort to get at the criminals hiding there asses (while robbing the people and laughing at them!)inside. The #’s of people trying to get a their hands on the criminals so as to rip their arms/legs/heads off for their thievery/betrayal of the people has been under-reported in the Western Media so as not to give other countries citizens any ideas. The lone gunman theory, sort of.
Integrity wasn’t enough.
It seems you value…. INCOMPETENCE.
P-noy is the king of hypocricy.
And by being the great pretender, he is worse than the rest.
Even now the atimonan report is being edited to distance malacanan from involvement.
The level of corruption in the cabinet is staggering, and no doubt people will learn in time, but the voters never learn
The catalogue of lies and deceit increases by the day
I really believe that Noynoy and minions and paid scribes (Inq & Phil Star, online trolls) say whatever sounds good since Noynoy’s core audience believes everything that is said by them at face value. It does not have to be true. Anybody with brains will look for tangible proof of the straight path and not just believe it’s there. Noynoy was never a doer pre presidency what makes anyone believe he is capable of solving corruption now in a society that has all these dim bulbs for voters?