Militant groups say SONA just 'recycled promises'

Militant groups yesterday said President Arroyo's State of the Nation Address is just the same old promises and is no different from her previous SONAs.

They also said that claimed that the achievements and date presented by Arroyo did not reflect the true state of the nation because millions are still down in poverty due to her anti-people policies.

Jaime Paglinawan, Bayan Muna provincial chairman, said that those who applauded the President during the SONA are politicians, foreign capitalists and supporters of the chief executive who gained and pocketed a lot of money while she sits in power.

"Ang sulod sa iyang SONA puro lang pamakak, pangilad sa katawhang Pilipino. Mentras ang iyahang polisiya nagsunod sa mando sa International Monetary Fund, World Bank ug World Trade Organization, wa'y kapaingnan ang iyahang mga gipangsaad," Paglinawan said.

He said that the true state of the nation is high prices of oil products and basic commodities, high tuition fees, increasing inflation rate and increasing incidence of unemployment and poverty.

For his part, Lito Vasquez, Freedom from Debt Coalition secretary general said he does not believe the government has enough money for the local government units as what Arroyo mentioned in her SONA that there is now enough funds for improvement and empowerment of the provinces.

Vasquez explained that the government does not have resources and in fact, 95 percent of its revenues is going to debt service and is spent on programs to ensure that she will stay in office.

"She is claiming that incidence of poverty has decreased but is there increase in purchasing power of people? The inflation rate has gone up, but the salary of workers remained low," Vasquez said.

Militant and progressive groups started their protest actions condemning Arroyo and her SONA early in the morning yesterday.

Different cause-oriented groups representing farmers, fishermen, workers, drivers, vendors, urban poor, among others, rallied in front of the Provincial Capitol, Cebu City hall, Fuente-Osmeña circle and the Department of Labor and Employment to air their demands to the respective government offices concerned.

Four big party-list and militant organizations, Bayan Muna, Sanlakas, Bisig, Kilusan Para sa Pambansang Demokrasya and their allied groups also held their launching rally yesterday.

Some 1,000 members of the movement dubbed "Katilingban sa Katawhan alang sa Kausaban" or "KKK" converged in front of the Gaisano Metro at 3 p.m. yesterday to air their demands and concerns to the government.

Members of KKK, however, clarified that they are not an anti-Arroyo group but a movement that is for genuine social change and transformation. - Wenna A. Berondo