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Task Force Davao To Disband Soon?


Out They Go? The military has been told to prepare a pullout contingency plan for Task Force Davao. (davaotoday.com photo by Barry Ohaylan)

DAVAO CITY — Despite recent talk about the possible disbandment of the Task Force Davao, some higher officials in the military still believe that the composite police-military unit is going to stay in the city.

The military’s East Mindanao Command chief, Rodolfo Obaniana, said Thursday that they have not received any order for the termination of Task Force Davao, which was created in 2003 after a series of bombings rocked Davao City.

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Arroyo’s 6-Year Record Shows Highest Debt, Lowest Social Spending

MANILA — In her response to a survey that found the Philippines to be the most corrupt economy in Asia, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo claimed that the country?s negative image was an offshoot of tough decisions she made to turn the country around, such as the implementation of tax reforms like the RVAT.

But an examination of her six-year record in office showed that her government actually brought the country to its worst-ever fiscal crisis, according to independent think-tank IBON Foundation.

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Hostaging Highlights Worsening Education System


This Is the State of RP Education — in the Toilet. Public schools around the country are like this restroom in a Metro Manila school. (Bulatlat photo by Trina Federis)

It’s as predictable as it is insensitive — the Arroyo administration’s reaction to the hostage drama involving Jun Ducat, an owner ot a daycare center in Manila who took hostage 32 of his students and two teachers and complained about corruption in the Philippine government and the failure of the administration to provide adequate education. According to Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, the incident puts the country in a bad light, blaming the intense media coverage of the situation.

Never mind that the drama actually highlights one of the more depressing aspects of the Philippines — the deterioration of its education system and the sheer inability of poor Filipinos to send their children to school.

Check out this Davao Today story on the subject. Check out, too, our coverage of education issues, as well as this package of stories from Bulatlat.

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