GSIS claims that an audit of Meralco would reveal a can of worms. Many believe that an audit of GSIS would unravel not a can, but a barrel, of worms.

***

The GSIS introduced the eCard System Plus to pay the pension of its retirees more than two years ago. But some 700 in the United States (by GSIS' own admission) have not been paid their pension. There are more in other foreign countries. At an average of P300,000 each, a conservative figure, GSIS owes these people P210,000,000. Where is that money? Is it earning interest for the pensioners concerned?

GSIS says these pensioners have not been paid because they have not enrolled in the eCard System. How the heck can they do that when they have to travel long distances to enroll in GSIS kiosks in just four locations in the US, namely, Los Angeles , San Francisco , Chicago and New York ?

GSIS finally decided to close down the kiosks. They were not effective in enrolling the pensioners in the eCard system. Instead, GSIS resorted to using the website www.skype.com to enroll the unpaid retirees.

At first, GSIS President Winston Garcia made a show of communicating directly with Ambassador Rodolfo Arizala who lives in Santiago, Chile , to tell him about Skype. Arizala was told to buy a laptop and other paraphernalia just so he can be enrolled in the eCard system. After a painstaking process, Arizala finally got his back pension.

Arizala's experience was a breeze compared to that of Adelaida Fajilago (ilijansimara@yahoo.com), another GSIS retiree confined to a nursing home in New York because of a severe stroke.

Listen to what her brother-in-law said about Adelaida's experience:

"In my view, this e-Card and voice verification requirements re pension payment of my sister-in-law Adelaida Fajilago is an inconvenience not only for the pensioner but also for her family.
"Her family was required to prepare a computer unit with webcam capability, and to enroll at skype.com to have an account for the pensioner. Since there was no available internet access in the nursing home for this purpose, Adelaida's family took the risk - due to her health condition - to take her home for said purpose, plus the fact that it was daytime there and night time here. While to travel is not convenient for Adelaida Fajilago, her family did the best way possible in order to comply with the GSIS requirements.

"The process started a little bit past 8 p.m. here with the GSIS asking Adelaida questions about her work, residence while still there in the Philippines, and other questions to verify her identity; then they took pictures of Adelaida with two (2) identification cards, and asked additional questions about her address and situation here.
"Then the voice verification followed. Adelaida was asked to count from zero to nine three times while the GSIS personnel were taking voice recording; it took a while doing this part since there were instances when Adelaida's voice was low and could not be captured by the recording; there was an instance when she started at one instead of zero; there was an instance when she counted up to ten instead of up to nine only. It appeared to me that the count from one to nine must be clear and identical/similar, as much as possible, three times. Any error meant it must be repeated.

"When all the requirements were accomplished to their satisfaction, Adelaida's family asked them as to how long it will take to process the e-card...to which they answered, they will do their best so that Adelaida can have it before her birthday this coming September 10. I am not sure when the e-card would arrive here and what would be the next step."

Adelaida's brother-in-law added:

"Prior to this e-card/voice verification requirements adopted by the GSIS relating to pension payments, Adelaida had complied with all documents required by the GSIS relating to her pension benefits/payments; at the same time, she executed in favor of her eldest son a Power of Attorney for this purpose.

"Now that the GSIS has identified/proven that indeed Adelaida is a pensioner/alive, would it not be rational for the GSIS, and in fairness to Adelaida, to release her accrued lump sum pension to her son by virtue of the Power of Attorney?"

***

US Ambassador Kristie Kenney has done it again, exposing her forked tongue.

She just doesn't seem to get it. Last week, she said the US had no involvement whatsoever in the MOA and the MILF at all.

For one thing, she conveniently forgets her much-publicized meeting with MILF leader Alhaj Murad not too long ago.

Now, she claims that the think tank United States Institute for Peace (USIP), which prepared a study on the peace process in Mindanao , worked independently of the US Embassy. Not true. The USIP was in constant communication and consultation with the State Department and the US Embassy here.

And after the State Department decided to dispense with the services of the USIP, the US Embassy officials began meeting directly with MILF leaders as the USIP itself said in its final 2007 report, to wit:

"US official attitudes about dealing directly with the MILF changed over time, leading to less enthusiasm for a USIP role. The GRP-MILF cease-fire had effectively held for four years, making MILF areas safer for travel. The MILF remained off the US list of foreign terrorist organizations, and its negotiations with the government continued. Embassy officials began meeting directly with MILF leaders and believed that USIP was no longer needed as an intermediary. One embassy official noted to PFP (Philippine Facilitation Project) that the formal peace process, which had been USIP's focus, was not the most critical element of future stability in Mindanao. Therefore, given other priorities, funds could no longer be dedicated to USIP. Instead, the embassy would increase its direct involvement, and USAID would expand its contacts with the MILF through the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA), working with the organization to plan future development activities."

Interestingly, USIP also reported, thus:

"PFP staff often heard Moro leaders and activists declare that US support for the peace process was only a poor adjunct to the US government's over-all counterterrorism campaign. In their view, US focus on Mindanao came about because of 9/11, and the US objective was to protect its security interests rather than resolve the historic conflict over Moro ancestral land, natural resources, and governance. Many Moros associate US embassy and USAID officials with US counterterrorism 'baggage,' and that view is likely to limit the credibility of US officials as facilitators of the peace process and as bridge builders among many competing parties in Mindanao."

***

Kenney also said: "We have no permanent presence in Mindanao . We have no plans to have a permanent presence - not military, not anything - not now, not in the future, not in our hopes, not in our dreams."

I don't know what her definition of "permanent presence" is, but the fact is that American troops have been with us since the Visiting Forces Agreement was implemented in 1998. That was ten long years ago. And it's against the Constitution.

Then she said she was never given a copy of the MOA before she joined Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo and Peace Adviser Hermogenes Esperon to witness the signing of the MOA in Malaysia. Hard to believe, but assuming it's true, the MOA, as pointed out in my last column, was published in a major daily the day before she boarded that plane to Kuala Lumpur.

Enough said.

***

Instead of de-internationalizing the MILF problem, Ms. Gloria Arroyo, the person ultimately responsible for the carnage now taking place in southern Mindanao, wistfully talks about getting more foreigners involved in the peace process. She said she's thinking of engaging the services of former British Prime Minster Tony Blair and Sweden . It was during Blair's tenure when a peace settlement was reached in Northern Ireland.

In an interview in Gil Santos' Channel 3 program on Destiny Cable last Wednesday evening, I said Arroyo is probably not aware that soon after Blair retired, he was appointed by the so-called Quartet on the Middle East Peace Process (United Nations, United States, Russia and European Union) to assist in finding a solution to the seemingly intractable Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He didn't get anywhere. The Northern Ireland problem is worlds apart from the Israeli-Palestinian and the MILF problems. Space prevents me from elaborating further. Suffice it to say that the conflict there was between Christians.

On the other hand, Arroyo has conveniently forgotten that Sweden, in an obvious downgrading of her relations with us, recently withdrew its presence from the Philippines when she closed down her Embassy here last June. And now she's thinking of asking Sweden as a possible intermediary? Where's her national pride, her amor propio? I forgot - those are two traits she seems devoid of.

***

Ours must be one of the few countries in the world where good governance is shunned or rejected by officials elected by the people.

Take the case of Pampanga's Vice Governor, provincial board members and the majority of the province's mayors. They want Governor Eddie "Among Ed" Panlilio's election recalled.

The reasons? First, one of the initial acts of the priest turned governor was to prevent local politicians from laying their hands on the money made from quarrying in the province. Panlilio collected P29 million during his first month in office alone, roughly equivalent to the collection declared by his two immediate predecessors in a year! Second, he filed plunder charges against the suspected jueteng lord in the province.

Below is the appeal of Panlilio's supporters, of which I am one, to join the campaign against the recall move. I urge my readers to support the campaign:

"Dear Fellow Filipinos, last week, an initiative to recall Gov. Eddie Panlilio of Pampanga was started by people closely affiliated with Lilia Pineda, the gubernatorial candidate that Gov. Panlilio defeated and wife of alleged jueteng lord Bong Pineda. Their main aim is to be able to gather at least 100,000 signatures from registered voters in Pampanga so that they can remove Gov. Panlilio from his position through a recall election before 2010. If you will recall, just last month, Gov. Panlilio courageously filed plunder charges against Bong Pineda for his alleged involvement in jueteng operations and payoffs in Pampanga. If they succeed in doing this, we can expect that Pampanga will once again go back to the dark ages of patronage politics that has led to the propagation of graft and corruption and illegal gambling activities. More importantly, this will be a huge step backward for our country as a whole since all of us were witnesses to how people power prevailed over traditional politicians in Pampanga during the last May 2007 elections.

"We cannot just sit back, relax and allow a good and upright Filipino leader to fail. We cannot allow evil to ultimately prevail. We cannot allow Gov. Eddie Panlilio to be recalled. We cannot allow politicians with vested interests to once again rule in Pampanga. Gov. Panlilio needs us now! Support Gov. Panlilio and Good Governance in Pampanga by signing up at: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/supportgovpanlilio/"

***

Today is the 127th day of the second year of Jonas Burgos' disappearance.

Last Saturday was the International Day of the Disappeared. The relatives and friends of our own "desaparecidos" led by Jonas' mother, Edita, held a rally at Plaza Miranda. They then marched towards Mendiola but were stopped by the police on Morayta. The marchers were mostly mothers and women. What harm could they possibly have done in Mendiola, except to highlight the Arroyo regime's dismal human rights record?