Here is the full video of the Question and Answer portion of President Benigno Aquino’s forum with the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP).
FOCAP would welcome a similar forum with Vice-President Jejomar Binay.
My questions are 30 minutes into the forum.
The man beside the President who looks like a bodyguard is actually FOCAP president Manny Mogato of Reuters.
The hunk in eyeglasses on the right side of the video above is Joel Guinto, formerly with Bloomberg and now with Agence France Pressse (AFP).
I’d like to thank FOCAP colleague Melo Acuña, correspondent for China Radio International, for posting the link to this video on Facebook.
JAS says
Kung may advanced na teknolohiya lang sana ang pilipinas tulad ng amerika dapat ipa forensic analysis yung original na MOA na sinubmit ni Tiu sa senado. Kung sa amerika yan, sigurado huli na si tiu na ginawa nya lang ito nung isang linggo. In short, malamang peke ang dokumento.
Den says
Ten Lessons in S-TIU-pidity:
1. Enter into a business deal worth 440 million pesos with a 1-page un-notarized memorandum of agreement, without a board resolution authorizing the signatory and no exit clause in case the seller defaults on delivery.
2. Pay 11 million pesos for downpayment using personal checks, then do not declare it in financial reports to the SEC. Disclose this in a hearing where the SEC Head is also attending.
3. Admit that you did not bother with checking the ownership of 145 hectares of land that you are buying, and expect the seller to cure the defects in 2 years, knowing fully well that the Agrarian Reform Law will not allow the consolidation of the parcel of lands. Do this in a hearing where the Secretary of the Department of Agrarian Reform is also present. And by the way, when the 2-year “curing period” would have lapsed in 2016, there would have a new president. Perhaps a president more friendly to Tiu?
4. Insist that your Agritourism Park is operational, with schoolchildren on field trip paying 100 pesos per head as entrance fee, then also admit you have not applied for nor was issued permits to operate and BIR-registered receipts. Do this in a hearing where the head of the Bureau of Internal Revenue is also present. And by the way, when pressed on details of what school have done their field trips to the park, conveniently back track and say the trips were cancelled and students from nearby schools were invited instead for free. No fees, no receipts needed. Neat, isn’t it?
5. Insist that you own the property, but admit that you do not know the employees because as CEO, you expect to be served water only by the managers. How haciendero can that get? I bet even the Ayalas, true-blooded hacienderos, would not demean their managers or even employees by asking them to serve water. Make this boast after claiming that you are a businessman with a heart for the common tao.
6. Claim that thousands of prized fighting cocks on your farm are owned by your employees, and that by a gentleman’s agreement you have tolerated their use of the land and facilities for this purpose. Do this after claiming you do not know your employees by face or name, and that you have bought the property lock, stock and barrel. Must be nice to have a gentleman’s agreement with people you do not even know, or see fit to mingle with due to your very high stature as CEO.
7. Insist that you have full possession and control of the property, while conceding that the Binay family had been in the farm more frequently than you did because they are entitled to it as a courtesy for being tenants of 9 hectares of the farm for a measly 90 thousand pesos a year. As the Instagram posts of Binay’s youngest daughter attests, these house guests seemed too much at home to be just guests of the owner.
8. Rest your case on the wise counsel of your lawyer, who also happens to be the lawyer of the suspected real owner and a partner in the law office of the daughter as well. Pepper your defense with “I asked my lawyer to take care of that” and “It is standard practice” to make it appear that everything is legal and above-board. While most investigators take years to uncover the missing link, here the missing link is as big as fattened pig.
9. When caught lying, lie again. And again. And again. Repeat as needed until the inquisitor gets exasperated. Do this with a smirk, a smile and a show of over-confidence. After a superb performance during the hearing, make sure to share some tips to Mr Canlas of Hilmarcs, who was on the verge of fainting when called to speak. Or, you can also learn a thing or two from Mr Canlas by invoking your right to self-incrimination.
10. When you feel that all else are bound to fail, bring in the clowns to derail the proceedings or distract from the real issues. Send in the jesters of the Boss to provide comedy relief with their theatrics, and set the ground for the Boss to decline the invitation because the hearing has been proven to be a sham. You do the “pa-cute”, the two clowns do the “pa-tawa”, and the Boss does the “pa-lusot”.
There you go, the ten golden rules of being a dummy. Guaranteed to make you a 5-billion-peso piggy bank.
duquemarino says
In fairness to Tiu, he is a very trusting person. He trusted everything to Binay because Binay is a scout and a scout trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. He he he.
Nightmarejack says
I am not familiar with the rules of the Senate, but as I recall Tiu is supposed to be under oath but he has been caught lying several times already. Why are his lies being tolerated? Shouldn’t a perjury charge be slapped on him already? So when will they charge him with perjury and throw him in a lockup? That should erase that smug smirk on his face.