Yes to Remulla’s exit

By Herbert Vego

IF he were a Japanese, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla might have already committed suicide because of the arrest of his son Juanito Jose for illegal possession of kush or high-grade marijuana. We are not asking him to do that. Let him just resign out of delicadeza.

Sad to say, resignation is farthest from his mind. He was quoted to have said, “I serve at the pleasure of the President. I think that’s the most important principle here.”

Principle? Meron ba niyan when he could not decide for himself?  He was obviously making an excuse, knowing that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would not drop him like a hot potato because of their political reciprocity.

“The fault of the father,” his defenders say, “is not the fault of his son.”

While they are correct, I am not saying it’s Boying’s fault that his 38-year old son uses or sells illegal drugs. The point is that because of his highest position in the Department of Justice (DOJ), he could influence the decision of the Las Piñas City prosecutors now handling Juanito’s case without saying a word.

From the standpoint of morality governing good manners and right conduct, it is impossible for him not to intervene in the case. Look, his kapit-tuko or adherence to power is enough “protection” to keep Juanito Jose Remulla out of harm’s way.

You see, the mug shots released to the media by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) show the altered, hence unrecognizable, face of Boying’s arrested son.

Boying, while still a congressman, compared drug lords to “cockroaches” because of their ability to escape. And because of that, he wants death penalty for them.

Hmm, if the son gets convicted, will the father still want the same penalty?

As an act of atonement, Remulla should now work for the release of former Senator Leila De Lima from detention in the absence of evidence linking her to illegal drug trade.

-oOo-

DOES ANTIQUE EARN FROM SEMIRARA?

MY previous column on the high cost of coal that has turned the Antique Elective Cooperative (Antique) the distributor of the most expensive power in Western Visayas at P16.17 per kilowatt hour (kWh) has caught the attention of a legal luminary who wonders whether the provincial government earns the correct taxes from Semirara Mining and Power Corp., which operates the open-pit coal mine in Semirara Island in Caluya, Antique.

In that column, I challenged Governor Rhodora “Dodod” Cadiao to look beyond Anteco because Semirara might do the nation a favor by cutting down on coal pricing.

As I said based on Semirara’s report as published in the August 4, 2022 issue of the Daily Inquirer, the company made a profit of P15 billion in the first quarter of this year.

The legal luminary (name withheld), reminded this writer that “a big share of Semirara earnings should go to Antique coffers” in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991 (Republic Act No. 7160). This share, fixed at 40 percent of taxes paid, is mandated in that code as the internal revenue allotment (IRA).

-oOo-

SCAPEGOATS OF DISGRUNTLED POWER USERS

THERE could have been a day-long brownout in certain areas of Iloilo City yesterday had MORE Power, the sole power-distribution utility (DU) in Iloilo City, not prevailed upon the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) to postpone its scheduled maintenance work for another day.

To reiterate, NGCP is the sole transmission grid that interconnects power plants and DUs that enable electricity to reach households nationwide.

Hopefully, the granted request would stop some city residents from blaming MORE Power for every power interruption that it has nothing to do with.

It was not only MORE Power but all other DUs in Panay (Anteco, Akelco, Capelco and Ileco) that undeservedly earned the ire of their customers for the sudden power outage between 1:00 a.m. and sunrise of last Saturday.

Sad to say, a “little learning” on the interconnectivity among power generators, NGCP and DUs is often the reason why the last-mentioned are the hardest hit by fault-finders for every brownout and every bill hike.

-oOo-

100-DAY COUNTDOWN TO DINAGYANG 2023

THE return of face-to-face Dinagyang in Iloilo City is a matter of time.  In fact, its 100-day countdown began last Friday, Oct. 14, with a ceremonial drum beating at SM City Iloilo.

In a Facebook post, Mayor Jerry P. Treñas, “It is high time we go back to the streets.”

Indeed, we missed Dinagyang for two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As traditionally observed, the final presentation of the festival will occur on the fourth Sunday of January.

The weeklong festival in January 2023 will showcase major events including the Pamukaw on Dec. 16; Opening Salvo on Jan. 13; Miss Iloilo 2023 on Jan. 18; Dinagyang Food Festival from Jan. 19 to 22; Sto. Niño fluvial procession and solemn foot procession on Jan. 20; Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan, Sponsors’’ Mardi Gras, Grand Religious Sadsad, and Dinagyang Floats Parade of Lights on Jan. 21; and the Barangay Tribes Competition on Jan. 22.

Hala bira!