Topping the oddities that happened over the past few days is the trending hashtag #25BillionScam which nearly overtook #ColdPlayManila a couple of times over the past few hours.
I’m not sure how many tweets it takes for a topic to trend, but I’ll estimate that it’s in the magnitude of a couple of thousand per hour and if more people tweet about the #25BillionScam over the next few hours, there’s a chance it’ll start trending worldwide.
The #25BillionScam appears to refer to alleged anomalies surrounding a land deal between the Tagum Agricultural Development Company, Inc. (TADECO) and the Bureau of Corrections and the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor).
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In a news report, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre was said to have created a panel of investigators who will look into the TADECO-BUCOR land deal which was signed in 1969 involving over 5,000 hectares and is alleged to be grossly disadvantageous to the government.
This follows the filing of House Resolution (HR) no.867 prods the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability to look into the TADECO-BuCor JVA. The resolution claims that the Philippine government stands to lose an estimated P25 billion from the lopsided deal, wherein TADECO is only required to pay a measly P5,000 per hectare per year compared to the standard P200,000 per hectare.
TADECO is owned by Dava
o Del Norte Representative Antonio “Tonyboy” Floreindo, one of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s biggest campaign financiers. Records from the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) indicate that Floirendo Jr. plunked P75 million into Duterte’s campaign, or 20 percent of the total contributions.
Whether or not such a large amount of money is meant to secure certain concessions from the current administration is something I would like to doubt. After all, President Duterte has shown himself resolute in his fight against crime and all manner of corruption.
Hopefully, the P75 million that Floreindo contributed to Duterte’s campaign will not prevent the current administration to remedy the grossly disadvantageous land deal or cause the redistributing TADECO’s land to poor peasant farmers in Davao Oriental.
ACT-Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio recently raised the possibility that the lands of the Davao penal colony that’s being used by TADECO could be turned over for agrarian reform.
“Kailangan din tignan yung working conditions nung workers as Davao penal colony. Kailangan tignan ang condition ng mga magsasaka doon, at kung dapat i-turn over yung lupa for agrarian reform,” said Tinio. (Translation: We also need to look into the working conditions of the Davao penal colony workers. We have to look at the conditions of the farmers there and whether the land should be turned over for agrarian reform.)
Given President Duterte’s recent swift decision to fire DILG Secretary Ismael “Mike” Sueno over alleged anomalous transactions, there is some reason to believe that the administration and its allies in the House of Representatives will toe the line… OR ELSE.
Writer.
I’m not sure if I can even unpick the layers of bullshit in this “only in The Philippines” story.
For one thing, the going rate for agricultural land, as of today (nevermind in 1969) is about P5000/ha/year. Since most of the country’s land has faulty titles, it’s normally less. P200,000 would be residential-zoned land near or in a town. So there’s some sort of scam going on right there – presumably a standard skimming-off-the-top operation.
Secondly, why take land away from a functioning penal colony and give it to people who will simply sell it to the first available buyer for P50000/ha, and then spend the proceeds on red horse and KTV? How does this benefit the country? What happens to the prisoners who, at the moment, are learning some sort of useful skill?
Thirdly, agrarian reform is itself an enormous scam. Its sole intent is to impoverish the entire country so that a tiny minority can enrich themselves. Again.
5,000 Ha. @ 200,000 per Ha. is 1,000,000,000 or one (1) Billion pesos.
5,000 Ha. @ 5,000 per Ha. is 25,000,000 or 25 Million pesos.
1,000,000,000 minus 25,000,000 is 975,000,000 or 975 Million Pesos.
It is not a 25 Billion Scam…it is over estimated and overblown figure… Mr. Paul Farol is shouting to us:”Fire” !… when there is only a” flicker” in the “gas lamp …
Since the “scam ” land deal took place in 1969. It is now 2017. It is 48 years passed, already. The people who did the scam, are already “rotting in hell”, or whatever place they are in now…
It is a waste of time to investigate the matter. There are more pressing scams, that are awaiting investigations. And, the people who committed the scams are still alive, running around, and enjoying their loots. Let us grab them, and hang them !
Even if Antonio Floreindo was born at that time. If he was not a signatory of the “scam” land deal. We cannot grab him, and throw him in jail.
To take back the land, and give them to Farmers, will be counter productive. It is already part of the Davao Penal Colony. The Prisoners, need that land, to make themselves busy.
The Hacienda Luisita lands need to be fully distributed to the Farmers, who are the real owners. The DAP, PDAF, Pork Barrel Bribery scams, etc…need to be fully investigated. Let those who committed such scams, be tried and be hanged !
The Typhoon Yolanda Fund, that disappeared without a trace, needs to be investigated. Let us grab Mar Roxas, who handled the Fund; and throw him to rot in jail, until he pay us back the whole amount…
The Naga Leaks of Leni Robredo, needs investigation. Along with the disappearance of Emil Aguinaldo. We have to know, if this Naga Leak is true or not. We must know the murderers of Emil Aguinaldo.
The Maguindanao massacre, the Mamapasano massacre, and other massacres, must be resolved. Let those , who are responsible, be thrown into jail or hanged !
April Fools’ Day had passed already…let us not extend it !
A lion does not flinch at laughter coming from a hyena. A gorilla does not budge from a banana thrown at it by a monkey. A nightingale does not stop singing its beautiful song at the intrusion of an annoying woodpecker.