VP Robredo’s colossal mistake
What is this so-called “mysterious virus” that has caught the attention of Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia? I understand that Provincial Health Officer Christina Giango has advised the public to avoid public places, wear facemasks and eat a healthy diet. In the meantime, the Department of Health (DOH) has implemented quarantine centers, especially around airports, taking particular notice on flights coming from China.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has not advised restrictions on the part of travellers. It cannot be said that the WHO has no idea of what kind of virus that’s spreading in China. They must ensure the general public that they are on top of the situation.
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Vice President Leni Robredo released her recommendations on the government's war on drugs on Monday. President Duterte branded her a colossal failure, and the two are now having a nasty word war backbiting each other. Come now with the President getting the highest rating ever on local or international leaders, VP Robredo risks isolating herself, thanks to her in-experience.
The whole trouble with VP Robredo is that the Social Weather Station (SWS) released its latest figures on the war against drugs last December 31, 2019, in which the general public was asked what it thought of this issue. So far, the public has responded very well on the SWS questionnaire, which literally puts VP Robredo on the spot. I read those statistics from December 2016 to September 2019 and they are very positive in supporting the efforts of the President in this ugly fight against illegal drugs.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr., who we know doesn’t react to the verbal squabble between the President and the Vice President, reacted negatively to VP Robredo’s report, saying: “How does she know that 5,500 dead drug dealers are precisely just 1 percent of the entire manufacturing, importing and marketing sales force? Only the cartels can have the exact figure. Only the cartels can have the exact figure.” This is very true.
At this point, I would like to believe that VP Robredo really had to bring down the image of the President in his war against drugs even if the SWS surveys show a different opinion by those whose opinions were collated. She had to keep up her being an opposition figure in the hope that anti-Duterte supporters would rally against her. But this could backfire on her political agenda. So she should be careful when making statements against the President.
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When the US government reported the killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, officials from the Pentagon up to President Donald Trump were careful to make clear the strike was meant to head off an immi-nent attack on Americans. That the strike, which took place last week without congressional approval or debate, should be conducted with the urgency of heading off an imminent threat is actually key to making it legal under US law. But Trump has subsequently made clear notably in comments from the Oval Office that he was also motivated by retribution after the death of an American contractor at an Iraqi military base, possibly caused by Iranian-backed militias, or violent protests at the US Embassy in Baghdad.
We saw how the Iranian Guards under the command of Qasem Soleimani surround the US Embassy in Baghdad, thus threats like those from Iranians remind us of the Iran Hostage incident in 1979. What the US has done was fire drone missiles into the vehicle of Gen. Qasem Soleimani thus killing him. Now we ask: What was an Iranian general doing in Iraq? Who, in the first place, hunted down Saddam Hussein and killed him? Certainly it wasn’t the Iranians.
Now in retaliation, Iran has fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles at two Iraqi military bases housing US troops. It comes days after President Donald Trump ordered a strike that killed Iran's top general. However, there were no reported casualties. The statement says a total of 22 missiles targeted coalition bases, with 17 striking the Al-Asad airbase in Anbar province, including two that didn't detonate.
Meanwhile, the Philippines is set to evacuate Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) from the Middle East if the time would come when hostilities might begin. With the latest attack by Iran against a US base, it seems that the Iranian military is all but a dream.
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