P1 B counter-insurgency budget a piggybank for GMA's 2007 electoral campaign
From the Office of Congressman Crispin Beltran
Lisa C. Ito, Public Information Officer (+63)927.796.7006
Tel. # (+632) 931-6615 Email: crispinbeltran@gmail.com
URL: http:// www.geocities.com/ap_news
NEWS RELEASE
June 17, 2006
P1 B counter-insurgency budget a piggybank for GMA's 2007 electoral campaign, Beltran says
The P1 billion counter-insurgency fund will only be serving as a convenient piggybank to fund covert assassins and GMA's 2007 electoral campaign, Anakpawis Representative Crispin Beltran predicted of the Palace's release of P1 billion to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) for the war against the New Peoples' Army (NPA).
"Monkey business is brewing again. It's obvious that President Arroyo is all to eager to use the P1 billion to prop up her 2007 electoral campaign, whether that be a Presidential or parliamentary election. Aside from more purchases of military equipment and more black propaganda, I would not be surprised to see so-called 'humanitarian' or false livelihood projects all over the provinces bearing the President's smirking face or the acronym 'GMA'. This would be tantamount to appropriating public funds for personal advantage," Beltran said.
"This sudden and massive release of funds to the police and the military is startingly similar to the Arroyo administration's sudden and massive release of funds to selected government agencies prior to the 2004 national elections. The Arroyo Presidency will be benefitting from the P1 billion military fund just as it has benefitted from the fertilizer and Ginintuang Masaganang Ani (GMA) funds and the OWWA funds during the 2004 elections. GMA will be dipping her hands into the money pile once more," Beltran said.
Beltran also "feared that a large chunk of the P1 billion military release would be used to fund more covert assassins tasked to kill leaders and members of progressive party list groups such as Anakpawis, Bayan Muna, and Gabriela during the electoral campaign".
Beltran also blasted the Palace for "splurging on the military allotments while chronically neglecting and scrimping on the budget for basic social services".
"Alloting a staggering P1 billion for counter-insurgency operations is damning in the current chronic shortage of classrooms and educational access, health services, land reform, mass housing, and stable jobs. The Arroyo administration is always saying that it has no money to spare for the long-clamored for P3,000 across-the-board salary increase for government employees nationwide, but is now contradicting this claim through such ostentatious releases to the military and the police," Beltran said.
"But when government officials or statistics faithfully report the inadequacies of the Arroyo administration in providing basic social services to the people, the President and her cohorts resort to unfair public rebuke and bullying to recant¡½as in the case of DepEd official Fe Hidalgo¡½or outright manipulation or revision of statistics to mask the real depth of joblessness, landlessness, and hunger, as what the government did with the definition of 'employment' last April 2005," Beltran said.
"Spending big-time on counter-insurgency operations is an implicit acknowledgement that the Arroyo administration is quickly losing the war against the New Peoples' Army. It's an unwitting acknowledgement of the Arroyo administration's dismal failure to solve the root problems of this country, which leads more and more of the poor to support the revolutionary forces," Beltran said. ###
Lisa C. Ito, Public Information Officer (+63)927.796.7006
Tel. # (+632) 931-6615 Email: crispinbeltran@gmail.com
URL: http:// www.geocities.com/ap_news
NEWS RELEASE
June 17, 2006
P1 B counter-insurgency budget a piggybank for GMA's 2007 electoral campaign, Beltran says
The P1 billion counter-insurgency fund will only be serving as a convenient piggybank to fund covert assassins and GMA's 2007 electoral campaign, Anakpawis Representative Crispin Beltran predicted of the Palace's release of P1 billion to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) for the war against the New Peoples' Army (NPA).
"Monkey business is brewing again. It's obvious that President Arroyo is all to eager to use the P1 billion to prop up her 2007 electoral campaign, whether that be a Presidential or parliamentary election. Aside from more purchases of military equipment and more black propaganda, I would not be surprised to see so-called 'humanitarian' or false livelihood projects all over the provinces bearing the President's smirking face or the acronym 'GMA'. This would be tantamount to appropriating public funds for personal advantage," Beltran said.
"This sudden and massive release of funds to the police and the military is startingly similar to the Arroyo administration's sudden and massive release of funds to selected government agencies prior to the 2004 national elections. The Arroyo Presidency will be benefitting from the P1 billion military fund just as it has benefitted from the fertilizer and Ginintuang Masaganang Ani (GMA) funds and the OWWA funds during the 2004 elections. GMA will be dipping her hands into the money pile once more," Beltran said.
Beltran also "feared that a large chunk of the P1 billion military release would be used to fund more covert assassins tasked to kill leaders and members of progressive party list groups such as Anakpawis, Bayan Muna, and Gabriela during the electoral campaign".
Beltran also blasted the Palace for "splurging on the military allotments while chronically neglecting and scrimping on the budget for basic social services".
"Alloting a staggering P1 billion for counter-insurgency operations is damning in the current chronic shortage of classrooms and educational access, health services, land reform, mass housing, and stable jobs. The Arroyo administration is always saying that it has no money to spare for the long-clamored for P3,000 across-the-board salary increase for government employees nationwide, but is now contradicting this claim through such ostentatious releases to the military and the police," Beltran said.
"But when government officials or statistics faithfully report the inadequacies of the Arroyo administration in providing basic social services to the people, the President and her cohorts resort to unfair public rebuke and bullying to recant¡½as in the case of DepEd official Fe Hidalgo¡½or outright manipulation or revision of statistics to mask the real depth of joblessness, landlessness, and hunger, as what the government did with the definition of 'employment' last April 2005," Beltran said.
"Spending big-time on counter-insurgency operations is an implicit acknowledgement that the Arroyo administration is quickly losing the war against the New Peoples' Army. It's an unwitting acknowledgement of the Arroyo administration's dismal failure to solve the root problems of this country, which leads more and more of the poor to support the revolutionary forces," Beltran said. ###
posted at 6:52 PM
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