Manay Roger is sacked

The voice of Roger Gencianeo, who hosted the evening prime time program “Zona Libre” of Bombo Roger for over two years now, could no longer be heard over the airlanes. That’s because Manay Roger, as he is scornfully called by his colleagues at Bombo Radyo Iloilo, has been kicked out as anchor of this popular radio program that the legendary Rino Arcones had propelled to international fame. Manay Roger was literally thrown out of his position upon orders of Dr. Roger Florete, chief executive officer of Bombo Radyo Philippines, after management discovered there was truth to my articles on this blog about his “AC/DC” activities under the wing of Florence Hibionada.

Applause erupted in the studio of Bombo Radyo Iloilo when this move was announced. The decent men and women of the station cheered the end of a corrupt broadcaster who attacked, or defended as the case may be, depending on the instructions of his handler, Hibionada. For quite some time now, these idealistic Bombo anchors and reporters and news writers detested what was happening, but could do little because Gencianeo was given vast powers as assistant station manager and chief of reporters.

I was told by insiders that it was Dr. Florete himself who ordered a thorough investigation into the activities of Gencianeo when he read my blog post, “Manay Roger”. Auditors monitored his broadcasts and saw the apparent bias that Manay Roger displayed against Governor Niel Tupas Sr. and tracked his commentaries on issues involving clients of Hibionada. His one-sided commentaries were clear evidence of his unethical practices. He was also seen frequently in the company of Hibionada in not-so-secret meetings. It left no doubt in the mind of Dr. Florete that Gencianeo was using his position to advance the interests of his clients, and not the truth.

I have long stated that Gencianeo is a stooge of the Novie Guazo-Rhod Tecson tandem that was also booted out of the network four years ago. When Tecson and Guazo moved over to a rival station, it was Gencianeo who supplied them with inside information on what was happening in Bombo Radyo. Even when Tecson and Guazo started vilifying Dr. Florete and key Bombo Radyo Iloilo announcers, Gencianeo made no move to defend his station. His loyalty obviously belonged elsewhere.

The sacking of Gencianeo took place in two stages: first, he was stripped of his responsibility as chief of reporters. Just a few days ago, he was formally relieved of his duties as anchorman of “Zona Libre”. He is now an ordinary employee of Bombo Radyo Iloilo, and there is talk about his being transferred to other stations. The message to him is clear: he is no longer needed in Bombo Radyo. He can get out anytime he wants. The exit door is being opened for him. It’s a humiliation that he deserves, after he had abused the Bombo brand name that is respected all over the country and even among Filipino listeners abroad.

With the expected departure of Gencianeo, the purging of Bombo Radyo Iloilo will be complete. The corrupt worms that ate into the good name that Dr. Florete had built over the last three decades will have been expurgated. Bombo Radyo is totally clean once again.

Gibo Teodoro rides on massacre

We haven’t seen any satisfactory government action on the Maguindanao massacre, but the administration’s candidate for President, former Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro, has been quick to exploit the most gruesome crime in modern history in a vain effort to lift his lackluster candidacy.

As the new head of the Lakas Kampi CMD, Teodoro made a show of expelling the entire Ampatuan clan from the ruling party in a show of decisiveness and political will, and then went over to Maguindanao to console the grieving Buluan vice mayor Ismael Mangudadatu to offer the government’s protection against any threats to his life.

Naturally, Gibo got what he wanted — headlines and TV footages that would thrust him into the centerstage as the entire nation grieves over this act of barbarism and savagery. Gibo is clearly trying to ride on the tidal wave of public anger and generate a positive emotion from Filipino voters. He is making an effort to be seen on the side of the Mangudadatus, and pray that he will be identified with the victims, and not with the system that made the massacre possible.

Pardon me for saying this, but what Gibo is doing is despicable. This is political opportunism at its worst. Perhaps Gibo is thinking that this would be the equivalent of Noynoy’s getting a nation’s sympathy during the death of his mother. He is desperately seeking his moment in the national center stage, and hope that his physical presence at the side of Mangudadatu would propel him from the bottom of the survey ratings to a head-to-head level with his cousin. But his action will only boomerang on him.

What Gibo ought to be doing is persuade his boss, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, to take firm, decisive and swift action on the massacre. Six days have gone by since the gruesome incident, and all that the government has done was taken Datu Andal Ampatuan, jr. into custody. A minimum of 100 armed goons took part in the crime, and all the government could do is parade the alleged principal as being behind bars. It seems the PNP is not in a hurry to pursue the culprits and take them into custody the way its officers did to Ted Failon. Each day that goes by means the chances of obtaining strong evidence is diminished. It’s like allowing the evidence to be washed away on the beach, each wave taking away bits and pieces of vital clues.

Gibo has shown that he couldn’t care less about bringing the perpetrators of the crime before the bars of justice. He is behaving like a traditional politician and riding on the massacre “in aid of election.” Gibo missed the boat when he mishandled the series of typhoons that hit the country two months ago. His desperate move to lift his popularity through this massacre will only bury him deeper in the muck of the Arroyo presidency.

Maguindanao

Angry words are not enough to exact justice to the gruesome and savage massacre of more than 57 people in Maguindanao last Monday, not even if the angry words emanate from the President of the Republic. Four days after the massacre took place, all that we have seen are rhetorical expressions of outrage from President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo with a vow to bring the perpetrators to justice. That’s about all that we have seen and heard on the government’s action to the barbaric crime. All thunder that are short and empty on swift, decisive action.

As I write this, all the PNP and AFP have done was take physical control of the Maguindanao provincial capitol and the municipal hall of Shariff Aguak. The AFP spokesman said the Army has taken into custody the civilian volunteer organization (CVO) armed men identified with the Ampatuan clan, and believed to have taken part in the massacre. But the suspected masterminds, the Ampatuans, are still roaming freely in their turf, and the government hasn’t shown any inclination to bring them into custody.

Malacanang has invoked the rule of law in explaining its slow action on the massacre. “No evidence yet to link the Ampatuans and brand them as suspects,” said Justice secretary Agnes Devandera. It seems everybody else who did the evil deed except those in Malacanang and the Justice department. With four days gone by, the chances of finding evidence to tie the Ampatuans to the crime are also fading. It’s not remote for the Ampatuans to also eliminate the very people who took part in the crime just to erase any evidence against them.

This attitude is a sharp contrast to the overzealousness of the Arroyo administration in employing brute force on January 17, 2007 to forcibly remove Governor Niel Tupas Sr. from the Iloilo capitol. Gov. Tupas had been ordered dismissed by the Ombudsman on a fabricated charge of malversation involving the measly amount of P20,000. Even if the governor was guilty, such brazen and cowardly abuse of power was inappropriate for the crime for which Governor Tupas was accused. Gov. Tupas was then asking for an hour so that a TRO that he had secured from the Court of Appeals could reach his office. The PNP, acting on orders from the DILG and the Justice secretaries, ignored the plea and stormed the capitol.

Perhaps the reason is obvious. Gov. Tupas belonged to the opposition Liberal Party. The Ampatuans are staunch allies of the President. For a petty amount of P20,000, the Arroyo administration showed no mercy and displayed every willingness to kill Gov. Tupas. In the case of the Ampatuans, they could possibly kill a hundred more civilians and still enjoy their liberties, unafraid of the rule of the law.

The Maguindanao massacre is a very low point for the whole of humanity. It leaves a deep scar on the image of the country before the entire world. It betrays the cowardice of this administration to enforce the law and uphold justice.