Opinion and Commentary
Ledesma: A do-not lesson for Trillanes
September 13, 2018, 3:24 pm
FROM the comfort of his air-conditioned Senate safe house, the out-of-tune Sen. Antonio Trillanes indulged himself in a fishing expedition. First, he thought he had a bite and went about the small confines of his sanctuary declaring that the father of President Rodrigo R. Duterte “fixed” his… Read More
Ledesma: Golden era of Philippine-China ties
September 11, 2018, 10:52 am
BURIED and stonewalled in the din that emanates from the never ending clash of ideas on Federalism, senseless razzmatazz over Trillanes and whining over and blaming TRAIN law for the rise of prices of commodities, is the successful foray of Finance Sec. Sonny Dominguez in China. At least 10… Read More
Ledesma: What now Trillanes?
September 5, 2018, 5:20 pm
THE week’s prominent front page story is about Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s order revoking the amnesty granted to Sen. Antonio Trillanes. This could lead to the resumption of his trial before the military tribunal to answer for his role in the mutiny against the government (of then President Gloria… Read More
Ledesma: Federalism, to be or not to be
August 29, 2018, 6:04 pm
THE eggheads, politicians, lawyers, business and those from varied ideological prisms have been locked in a seemingly endless clash over the draft Federal constitution. This is a healthy exercise except that there are quarters from each of these sector who would rather keep the status quo for… Read More
Ledesma: Wasting our vital assets
August 24, 2018, 12:02 pm
ST. PETERSBERG, Russia -- The benefit of travel is learning from other people’s experience and realizing how conditions could have been better, livelier, fun and productive if we did something right from the very beginning. But all is not lost. It needs a collective decision of people, planners… Read More
Ledesma: Conflict on contentious issues
August 13, 2018, 10:14 pm
I CANNOT understand why there is so much brouhaha over the statements of Cabinet members on some contentious issues in the draft constitution. While there are quarters who said that Cabinet members should have taken their stand on the draft constitution in an executive session with the President,… Read More
Ledesma: Attack on Cusi reveals more
August 11, 2018, 3:24 pm
THERE’S another variety of wrecking crew that hounds the Duterte government. They’re the more virulent types that had been unleashed by interest groups or individuals who felt there are officials in the government today that cannot be persuaded to follow their bidding. I have written about… Read More
Ledesma: Spooking Federalism
August 7, 2018, 10:16 am
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte wants to perpetuate himself in power. When former Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was installed Speaker of the House of Representatives, another tale was conjured: She will return to power. These are among the scare tactics of those who oppose the change of the present… Read More
Ledesma: Ending neo-feudalism
August 2, 2018, 2:22 pm
I DO not buy this crap being peddled by those who argue against Federalism that the poorest regions today will be suffering in deprivation if government system is changed. The fact is they have been deprived under the present system for several decades in what can only be be described as a… Read More
Ledesma: The dawning of a new era
July 27, 2018, 11:28 am
WHAT an outrageous fortune. In the echelon of power, the Speaker of the House is not too far away from the Presidency and wields vast powers among these as custodian of the purse and, in the language of Rep. Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez himself, can impeach a President. For Davao City Mayor Inday… Read More
Ledesma: Brief and assuring
July 26, 2018, 6:11 am
CONCISE and enlightening. The 3rd State of the Nation Address of Pres. Rodrigo R. Duterte. Brief as it is, it also gives us a glimpse of what to expect in the next 365 days. The stinging rebuke to human rights activists is clear. The President is not going to rest and waste any second against his… Read More
Ledesma: A year that was and Federalism
July 20, 2018, 11:14 am
YOU cannot suppress the truth, neither can you twist it. Even ABS-CBN has to buckle down from being the lead institution that bedevils the Duterte administration, given its sheer dominance of the radio and broadcast industry, and came out with its assessment of the first two-year reign of the much… Read More
Ledesma: Not all is well in Boracay
July 18, 2018, 9:40 pm
BORACAY will soon be opened and that indeed sounds like an encouraging news. There were directives issued and those which can easily be accomplished have been done. How much of what were supposed to be achieved to this day begs some answers. Labor Sec. Bebot Bello provided adequate assistance to… Read More
Ledesma: Satisfaction, Approval, Trust
July 16, 2018, 9:54 am
IT’S mind boggling. The Social Weather Stations (SWS) came out with an 11 points drop in the satisfaction rating of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte. Two days after, Pulse Asia came out with a startling survey results that 88 percent of Filipinos gave an approval rating for the President and a Trust rating… Read More
Ledesma: Leni can dream
July 12, 2018, 12:52 pm
THE only way to stop Pres. Rodrgo Duterte from giving up his post next year is scare the wits of him by warning that Leni Robredo had declared she is ready to take the helms of the government and re-impose Noynoy Aquino’s Daang Matuwid. That should reboot the patriotic fervor of the President.… Read More
Ledesma: Paradigm shift in peace process
July 6, 2018, 10:09 am
The oust-Duterte conspiracy hatched by the CPP/NPA/NDF and the clerico-political destabilising forces had been unearthed resulting in the immediate cancellation of peace negotiations in faraway Norway. Pres. Rodrigo Duterte consequently announced that any further peace talks should henceforth be… Read More
Ledesma: Reviving the grand inquisition
June 28, 2018, 9:59 am
IN the feud between the Roman Catholic Church and Pres. Rodrigo R. Duterte, the biggest loser is the former. Duterte for all the years that he had served as Vice Mayor, City Mayor, Congressman and early in his term as President, he never ever stepped into the realm of the religious. The few… Read More
Ledesma: One-on-one
June 22, 2018, 1:49 pm
ONE can go terribly wrong when, in choosing an enemy, harp on one who does only what is right. When the likes of Sen. Antonio Trillanes picked Sec. Bong Go as his recent target for his yet another misadventure in trying to shake down and discredit Pres. Rodrigo R. Duterte, he actually invites… Read More
Ledesma: 3rd Teleco is not dead
June 19, 2018, 4:38 pm
DEPARTMENT of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Acting Secretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr. is in earnest to pursue the mandate of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte to have a 3rd player in the telecom industry. Mind you, Rio knows what the public is clamoring for and he has the strategy to deliver what… Read More
Ledesma: The National Broadband Network
June 12, 2018, 10:55 am
THE first time we heard of the National Broadband Network was during the time of Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Prior to PGMA era, there were actually attempts at establishing a national communications backbone but these never took off from the planning stage. It was only during PGMA’s term that… Read More
