A6
Opinion
˜ The Manila Times
w w w.manilatimes.net
SATURDAY March 23, 2019
Regulators must impose service interruption penalties ALL INSIGHT T AL S. HE Merriam Webster Dictionary DEkNES INTERRUPTION AS gA STOPPAGE OR HINDERING OF AN ACTIVITY FOR A TIMEu AND gSOMETHING THAT CAUSES A BREAK IN THE CONTINUITY OF SOMETHING u -EANWHILE SERVICE IS DEkNED AS gA FACILITY SUPPLYING SOME PUBLIC DEMANDu AND gPERFORMANCE OF ANY OF THE BUSINESS FUNCTIONS AUXILIARY TO PRODUCTION OR DISTRIBUTION OF u ! LAW DICTIONARY TELLS US THAT SERVICE INTERRUPTION MEANS A SERVICE OUTAGE AFFECTING A NUMBER OF SUBSCRIBERS OR CUSTOMERS )T MAY LIKEWISE BE A DIMINUTION IN THE QUANTITY OR QUALITY OF SERVICE 4HIS IS LEGALLY DEkNED WITH RESPECT TO A SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT 3,! 4HIS WEEK S CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS ON THE VERY RECENT WATER SERVICE INTERRUPTION EXPERIENCED BY THE SUBSCRIBERS CUSTOMERS OF THE -ANILA 7ATER #OMPANY )NC -7#) REVEALED THAT BOTH THE REGULATOR THE -ETROPOLITAN 7ATERWORKS AND 3EWERAGE 3YSTEM -733 AND THE %AST :ONE SERVICE AREA CONCESSIONAIRE -7#) DO NOT KNOW THE SERVICE LEVEL THRESHOLD THAT SHOULD BE OBSERVED 7ORSE THERE MIGHT NOT EVEN BE A SERVICE LEVEL INTERRUPTION PENALTY STIPULATED IN THE CONCESSION AGREEMENTS 7ELL IT SEEMED THAT THESE AGREEMENTS WERE EXECUTED WITHOUT A PRIOR REVELATION OF ITS PROVISIONS AND STIPULATIONS TO THE PAYING PUBLIC
VITANGCOL 3RD
MAY BE FOR A SHORT TERM ONLY MAYBE A FEW HOURS OR FOR A LONG TERM A NUMBER OF DAYS )NTERRUPTIONS SHOULD BE PREVENTED AND MITIGATED IN CRITICAL SOCIAL SERVICES #RITICAL SOCIAL SERVICES INCLUDE POWER TRANSMISSIONS AND DISTRIBUTIONS TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS WATER SUPPLY FACILITIES PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS AND EVEN TOLLWAY INFRASTRUCTURE AMONG OTHERS 7HAT WILL HAPPEN IF A POWER OUTAGE OCCURS FOR A LONG TIME SAY A COUPLE OF WEEKS 4HIS KIND OF A POWER SERVICE INTERRUPTION WILL AFFECT EVEN THE MOST BASIC SOCIAL SERVICES &OR EXAMPLE IN AN EXTENDED BLACKOUT MAJORITY OF GAS STATIONS WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO OPERATE THEIR GAS PUMPS !4- MACHINES CANNOT DISPENSE CASH TRAFkC LIGHTS IN MAJOR INTERSECTIONS WOULD GRIND TO A HALT #AN YOU IMAGINE A BANK REFUSING TO ACCEPT TRANSACTIONS FROM CUSTOMERS BECAUSE OF POWER FAILURE !GAIN IMAGINE THAT THE )NTERNET OF 4HINGS CANNOT BE ACCESSED BECAUSE OF A LONG TERM SERVICE INTERRUPTION COURTESY OF THE DUOPOLY OF THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY "USINESSES THAT THRIVE ON ONLINE DEALINGS WOULD BE FORCED TO HIBERNATE 0EOPLE CANNOT COPE WITH A MOBILE PHONE LEFT AT HOME HOW MUCH MORE WITH NO SIGNAL Service interruptions FOR WEEKS (OW CAN YOU CALL g u FOR AN EMERGENCY IF THERE )NTERRUPTIONS OF PRIVATELY PROVIDED IS NO TELEPHONE SIGNAL AVAILABLE PUBLIC SERVICE MAY TAKE SEVERAL #AN YOU THINK OF LIFE NOWADAYS FORMS AND LEVELS )NTERRUPTIONS WITHOUT THE INTERNET
,ET S GO BACK TO THE WATER SUPPLY 4HERE WAS NO WATER FROM THE TAP FOR THE %AST :ONE SERVICE AREA CUSTOMERS FOR A WEEK "USINESSES RELYING HEAVILY ON WATER LIKE LAUNDRY SHOPS AND CAR WASH STATIONS STOPPED THEIR OPERATIONS (OSPITALS LIMITED THEIR ADMISSION OF PATIENTS AND CANCELED MAJOR SURGERIES BECAUSE OF HYGIENIC ISSUES ARISING FROM LACK OF WATER /F COURSE EVERYONE SUFFERED ONE WAY OR ANOTHER E G NO DAILY BATH NO CLEANING OF RESTROOMS NO CHANGE OF CLOTHING FOR THIS WATER SERVICE INTERRUPTION -AKE THIS WATER SERVICE INTERRUPTION LONG TERM AND VISUALIZE THE VARIOUS SCENARIOS LIKELY TO TAKE PLACE
Securing crucial services (OW DO WE MITIGATE IF NOT PREVENT THESE INTERRUPTIONS OF CRUCIAL PUBLIC SERVICES 4HE GOVERNMENT SHOULD TAKE THE LEAD IN MAKING AN ASSESSMENT OF THE NATURE AND EXTENT OF CRITICAL SOCIAL SERVICES IN THE COUNTRY AND DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE FRAMEWORK AND DOABLE PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE THESE POSSIBLE SOCIAL VULNERABILITIES "UT ALAS WE DO NOT HAVE THIS KIND OF MINDSET IN OUR GOVERNMENT 0ALAGI BAHALA KAYO SA BUHAY NINYO 4HE PRESENT ADMINISTRATION SHOULD TAKE THE RECENT WATER CATASTROPHE AS A WAKE UP CALL AND START DOING ITS JOB ‡ PROTECTING ITS CONSTITUENTS AND CITIZENS 2EMEMBER MOST OF THESE CRITICAL PUBLIC SERVICES ARE IN THE HANDS OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR 4HUS THE GOVERNMENT MUST DEVELOP COOPERATIVE PRIVATE PUBLIC PLANS
TO SECURE CRUCIAL SERVICES -EANWHILE HEAVY SERVICE INTERRUPTION PENALTIES MUST BE IMPOSED ON THE PRIVATE SECTOR TO KEEP THEM ON THEIR TOES MUCH MORE TO HONOR THEIR COMMITMENTS TO PROVIDE SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE ***
Is Pulse Asia bogus, too? )N ANOTHER AREA THE #OMMISSION ON %LECTIONS #OMELEC FAILED TO SERVE SUMMONS TO 0ULSE !SIA 2ESEARCH )NC BECAUSE THE LATTER IS NO LONGER IN ITS gPUBLISHEDu ADDRESS !N ONLINE SEARCH SHOWS THAT 0ULSE !SIA S ADDRESS IS AT 033# "UILDING #OMMONWEALTH !VENUE 1UEZON #ITY (OWEVER THE SHERIFF S REPORT STATED THAT 0ULSE !SIA MOVED OUT OF 033# "UILDING WAY BACK IN 4HE WEBSITE OF 0ULSE !SIA AT WWW PULSEASIA PH NEITHER CONTAINS ANY PHYSICAL BUSINESS ADDRESS NOR AN ACTIVE TELEPHONE NUMBER ,IKEWISE A BUSINESS ADDRESS IS ABSENT IN ITS &ACEBOOK ACCOUNT 5NLIKE OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS WHICH HAVE A BUTTON FOR SENDING MESSAGES 0ULSE !SIA S &ACEBOOK ACCOUNT DOES NOT HAVE ONE #ALLING ITS LISTED TELEPHONE NUMBER PROVED FUTILE )T SEEMS THAT 0ULSE !SIA IS A COMPANY THAT DOESN T WANT TO BE LOCATED )F ITS PLACE OF BUSINESS IS BOGUS HOW MUCH MORE ARE ITS SURVEY RESULTS #AN THE REAL 0ULSE !SIA STAND UP AND SEND ITS OFkCIAL BUSINESS ADDRESS TO THE EMAIL BELOW
ALLINSIGHT MANILATIMES GMAIL COM WWW FACEBOOK COM !LL )NSIGHT -ANILA 4IMES
Q SAMONTE FROM A5
Standing tall and shouting 2OSA 2ESTO DISCUSSIONS CAUSED MORE EVILS EXTRANEOUS TO THE 0#3/ BROUHAHA TO lY OUT OF THE 0ANDORA S BOX 4HE TALK lASHED BACK TO THE *OSE 0IDAL BANK ACCOUNT SCANDAL IN IGNITED BY 3EN 0ING ,ACSON S ACCUSATIONS OF MONEY LAUNDERING AGAINST &IRST 'ENTLEMAN -IKE !RROYO .EED WE SAY THIS WAS IN PURSUIT OF HIS NEVERENDING QUEST FOR VENGEANCE AGAINST THEN 0RESIDENT 'LORIA -ACAPAGAL !RROYO .O NEED TO lAUNT THE OBVIOUS )GNACIO THE &' S BROTHER ADMITTED OWNING THE BANK ACCOUNT BUT ,ACSON INSISTED IN HIS ACCUSATIONS OF -IKE !RROYO AND IN ORDER TO BUTTRESS HIS CLAIM HE SCHEMED TO HAVE THE #)$' S CRIME LABORATORY EXPERT TESTIFY IN A 3ENATE INQUIRY THAT THE PENMANSHIP OF THE *OSE 0IDAL SIGNATURE IN THE BANK ACCOUNT WAS THAT OF THE FIRST GENTLEMAN "UT -R #RIME ,ABORATORY %XPERT MADE A SUDDEN TURNAROUND AND IN THE 3ENATE INQUIRY HE TESTIkED THAT THE SPECIMEN SIGNATURE OF *OSE 0IDAL WAS NOT THAT OF kRST 'ENTLEMAN -IKE !RROYO
$OTERS ON THE ROMANCE OF FATE THEREFORE COULD RATIONALIZE THAT THE CURRENT EFFORTS TO CRUSH THE -ANDIRIGMA IF VIEWED ACCORDING TO THE WORKINGS OF A 'REEK TRAGEDY COULD BE A HANDIWORK OF 3ENATOR ,ACSON &OR RECKON IF ,ACSON HAD NOT THIS OBSTINATE DESIRE TO DAMN '-! THEN HE WOULD NOT HAVE SOLICITED THE SERVICES OF -R #RIME ,ABORATORY %XPERT WHO COULD NOT HAVE TURNED AROUND ON THE 0ING SCHEME TO DAMN '-! AND WHO FOR SUCH TURNAROUND WAS AWARDED IN ALL GOOD FAITH THE PLUM OVERALL "ICOL REGIONAL #)$' COMMAND THEREBY LEADING HIM TO THE LOVE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ONCE ASS WASHER WHO WOULD EVENTUALLY TURN WHISTLEBLOWER FOR GETTING INTO A FAR BETTER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE 0HILIPPINES *UETENG +ING )MAGINE WHAT MORE HORRIFYING EVILS WOULD COME lYING OUT OF THE 0ANDORA S BOX IF ,ACSON ALL FOR WANTING TO DAMN '-! PERSISTS IN OBJECTING TO THE 'ENERAL !PPROPRIATIONS !CT "UT THAT S FOR ANOTHER COLUMN TOPIC
Q Gen. Alexander F. Balutan upright Philippine Marines officer.
The phoenix Cathedral of Manila
A
",/#+ AWAY FROM THE -ANILA Times )NTRAMUROS OFFICE IS THE -ANILA #ATHEDRAL DUBBED BY 0OPE &RANCIS AS gTHE MOTHER AND HEAD OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS NATION u 1UIAPO #HURCH MAY BE THE ACTUAL SPIRITUAL CENTER OF #ATHOLICISM HERE AND #EBU MAY JUST BE THE kRST #ATHOLIC PARISH BUT -ANILA #ATHEDRAL IS THE MOTHER DUE TO THE FACT THAT WHEN 0OPE 'REGORY TH ESTABLISHED THE $IOCESE OF -ANILA ABOUT YEARS AGO IT CONSISTED OF THE WHOLE ISLANDS BEFORE THE METROPOLITAN SEE OF THE 0HILIPPINES WITH THREE OTHER DIOCESES‡#EBU .UEVA 3EGOVIA 6IGAN AND .UEVA #ACERES WERE ESTABLISHED BY 0OPE #LEMENT TH -Y FAMILIARITY WITH THE #ATHEDRAL BEGAN WHEN ) kRST MARVELED AT ITS HUGENESS IN WHEN ) WAS IN GRADE 3INCE THEN ) HAVE VISITED NUMEROUS TIMES AS A TOUR DOCENT TALKING TO PEOPLE ABOUT ITS SIGNIFICANCE )N THE 3PANISH SYSTEM OF REDUCCION THE CENTER OF THE TOWN WAS THE CHURCH THE CENTER OF THE LIVES OF THE PEOPLE UNDER COLONIALISM WAS THE CHURCH (ENCE THE PLAZA IN )NTRAMUROS AND THIS CATHEDRAL WAS THE CENTER OF THE 3PANISH %MPIRE IN THE %ASTĂœ 4HAT S WHY IT WAS SUCH A JOY TO LEAF THROUGH THE PAGES OF THE COFFEE TABLE BOOK -ANILA #ATHEDRAL 2ESTORING ! -ONUMENT TO &AITH !RCHITECTURE AND (ISTORY CREATED BY 'ERARD ,ICO AND HIS TEAM )T WAS LIKE GETTING TO KNOW AGAIN AN OLD FRIEND WHOM YOU KNOW YET STILL HAS SOME MORE SURPRISES TO SHOW 4HE TEXT WAS FULL OF FAMILIAR FACTS PEPPERED WITH MORE UNFAMILIAR DETAILS 4HE PHOTOS BOTH ARCHIVAL AND CONTEMPORARY MAKES YOU KNOW EVERY NOOK AND CRANNY AND THE MEANINGS OF MANY OF ITS SYMBOLS AND ART 4HE -ANILA #ATHEDRAL IS A TRUE TREASURE TO THE NATION 4HE BOOK IS ALSO A TREASURE 4HE FIRST #ATHEDRAL OF WAS MADE OF NIPA AND BAMBOO AND WAS PLACED UNDER ITS PATRONESS /UR ,ADY OF THE )MMACULATE #ONCEPTION )T WAS RAISED INTO THE STATUS OF A CATHEDRAL AND WAS REBUILT IN BUT WAS DESTROYED AGAIN BY A CITY WIDE kRE IN !LL FIRST THREE CATHEDRALS WERE MADE OF NIPA AND THE LAST OF THEM WAS kNISHED OFF BY A HURRICANE IN ! CATHEDRAL WAS DESTROYED BY A STRONG TYPHOON AND IN A STONE CATHEDRAL WAS kNISHED BUT BY IT WAS AGAIN DAMAGED BY AN EARTHQUAKE !NOTHER EARTHQUAKE AND SUBSEQUENT AFTERSHOCKS kNISHED THE CATHEDRAL AGAIN IN A TRAGEDY THAT TOOK PEOPLE IN THE WHOLE CITY )T WAS NOT ONLY &ILIPINOS WHO WORKED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE 3PANISH STONE CHURCHES BUT ALSO THE #HINESE AN ISSUE THAT STILL RESONATES UP TO THIS DAY $URING THE TIME OF THE 3PANIARDS THE ONE
WALKING HISTORY MICHAEL “XIAO� CHUA WITH MORE EXPERIENCE ON STONE WORKS WOULD BE THE #HINESE )N THE FOURTH CATHEDRAL WAS BEING DEDICATED 4HE FIFTH CATHEDRAL WAS FINISHED IN AND THIS CATHEDRAL LASTED UNTIL THE EARTHQUAKE OF 4HE SIXTH CATHEDRAL WAS OPENED IN ONLY TO BE DESTROYED BY ANOTHER DEADLY EARTHQUAKE IN WHICH KILLED PEOPLE INSIDE DURING VESPERS INCLUDING THE &ATHER OF 3ECULARIZATION 0EDRO 0ELAEZ )N WORK STARTED FOR THE SEVENTH -ANILA #ATHEDRAL WHICH WAS COMPLETED IN AND WAS DESIGNED BY ,UCIANO /LIVER WHO ALSO DESIGNED 3AN "ARTOLOME #HURCH IN -ALABON AND THE BIGGEST #ATHOLIC TEMPLE IN THE COUNTRY 4AAL #HURCH 4HE BELL TOWER WHICH WAS THE REMAINING PART OF THE CATHEDRAL THAT SURVIVED THE EARTHQUAKE GAVE UP AND FELL IN THE EARTHQUAKE OF 5P UNTIL THE WAR THE CATHEDRAL WOULD HAVE NO BELFRY .OT MANY PEOPLE REALIZE THAT AFTER THE SEVENTH CATHEDRAL WAS DESTROYED IN ITS RECONSTRUCTION HAD TO WAIT UNTIL LEAVING -ANILA WITH NO CATHEDRAL FOR MORE THAN A DECADE !RCHITECT &ERNANDO /CAMPO DESIGNED THE CHURCH WHILE 'ALO /CAMPO CREATED THE &ILIPINIZED STAINED GLASS DESIGNS 4HROUGH THE BOOK ) REALIZED THAT THE IMAGE OF THE )MMACULATE #ONCEPTION USED TO BE GOLD INSTEAD OF COLORED THAT 3T 0ETER AND #HINESE COLLARED 3T ,ORENZO 2UIZ WERE MADE BY &LORANTE #AEDO AND THE DESIGN AT THE MAIN ALTAR WERE MADE BY %DGAR 4ALUSAN &ERNANDEZ 4HESE AND OTHER THINGS MAKE THE POST WAR -ANILA #ATHEDRAL A REAL REPOSITORY OF OUR TALENT AND HERITAGE A TRULY &ILIPINO #ATHEDRAL 4HAT S WHY THE LATEST CONSERVATION EFFORTS FROM TO WAS IMPORTANT !S A GIFT TO THE &ILIPINO CHURCH HIMSELF ,UIS !NTONIO #ARDINAL 4AGLE CONTINUES TO INSPIRE US WITH HIS WORDS DESCRIBING THE #ATHEDRAL g)T CAN BE CONSIDERED A SYMBOL OF THE &ILIPINO PEOPLE &IRE DESTROYED THE kRST CATHEDRAL THE SUCCEEDING kVE CATHEDRALS WERE EITHER PARTIALLY OR TOTALLY DAMAGED BY EARTHQUAKES 4HE SEVENTH CATHEDRAL WAS MERCILESSLY BOMBED ALONG WITH THE OTHER BUILDINGS DURING THE "ATTLE OF ,IBERATION 4HIS #ATHEDRAL HAD BEEN RAZED TO THE GROUND MANY TIMES BUT IT REFUSES TO DISAPPEAR )T BOLDLY RISES FROM THE RUINS JUST LIKE THE &ILIPINO PEOPLE u 4HE -ANILA #ATHEDRAL IS A PHOENIX THAT RISES FROM THE ASHES
FOCUS
NZealand banned assault weapons. In US, it’s more complicated WASHINGTON: New Zealand’s swift ban on semi-automatic weapons after the Christchurch massacre showed how political courage can spur change, but in gun-obsessed America, lawmakers and activists desperate to curb firearm violence looked on with both admiration — and bitterness. “Not thoughts. Not prayers. Action,� urged Ted Deutch, a Democratic congressman from Florida where a deadly school shooting last year galvanized a youth gun control movement, but produced no tangible change to federal laws. The speed of New Zealand’s response — days after a white supremacist slaughtered 50 people at two mosques — stood in stark contrast to the congressional inaction that has followed a string of horrific mass shootings in the United States in recent years. Nearly 40,000 people were killed by firearms in the United States in 2017 — two thirds of them suicides — the highest annual toll in five decades, according to government figures. The numbers suggest Americans should be scrambling to clear the hurdles to combatting gun violence. Why aren’t they? It’s complicated. “The role of guns in our society is very, very different. It goes way back
as part of our culture, unfortunately,� Democratic congressman John Yarmouth told CNN Thursday. The United States has more firearms than people. Frontier culture and a form of rugged individualism, forged in the 19th century American settlement westward, persist. Citizens can legally carry firearms in some state capitols. Gun control efforts have always proved divisive, and Republican lawmakers have been highly successful at preventing what they describe as an assault on their right to bear arms under the Second Amendment of the US Constitution.
Sandy Hook... then nothing Little has been done at the federal level to rein in gun sales, broaden background checks, or prevent people who may pose a threat from acquiring guns. Incremental action can take years, and even the most shocking of massacres can fail to move the needle, partly due to the high threshold in the 100-member US Senate, where 60 votes are needed to advance legislation. After a gunman slaughtered 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, congressional Democrats introduced an
lobbying group beloved and reviled by opposing cultural forces.
‘Inalienable right’
Q Assault rifles and semi-automatic weapons have been banned in New Zealand, with immediate effect, less than a week after a white supremacist gunned down 50 Muslim worshippers. AFP/FILE/ROBYN BECK expansion of background checks. It failed in the Senate. Today, a similar background checks bill has passed the Democrat-led House, in the wake of several recent mass shootings including last year’s killing of 11 worshippers at a Pittsburgh synagogue. But it languishes in the Senate despite an overwhelming majority of Americans supporting tightening such checks. Democratic congressman David
Cicilline offered a bleak rationale for why New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern could act so decisively, while Americans appear unable to reduce gun violence. “Their politicians aren’t bought and paid for by the gun lobby,� Cicilline tweeted. US civilian gun ownership has been a hotly debated, constitutionally protected right for more than two centuries. Leading the charge to preserve gun rights is the National Rifle Association
NRA spokesman Dana Loesch appeared to dismiss Ardern’s action as antithetical to America. “The US isn’t NZ. While they do not have an inalienable right to bear arms and to self defense, we do,� Loesch wrote. Gun control advocates say the NRA exerts powerful influence on US lawmakers by donating millions to their campaigns and giving letter-grade ratings on gun issues. “The @NRA is already exploiting the New Zealand tragedy and subsequent legislative actions to try and juice gun sales in the US,� warned Shannon Watts, founder of gun safety group Moms Demand Action. Sen.Bernie Sanders — one of several 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls who spoke out in praise of Ardern — called for Americans to stand up to the gun lobby. “We must follow New Zealand’s lead, take on the NRA and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons in the United States,� Sanders tweeted. President Bill Clinton signed an
assault weapons ban in 1994, but it came with a 10-year sunset, and renewal efforts failed. Republican Donald Trump had initially appeared ready to challenge the NRA after the Parkland shooting claimed 17 lives in Florida last year, supporting a rise in the minimum age to buy assault rifles from 18 to 21, and more expansive background checks. But the president — who championed gun rights during his campaign — subsequently backed away from federal action on either front, and three months later appeared on stage before a cheering crowd at the NRA’s annual conference. Still, advocates believe progress is possible. The March for Our Lives movement that emerged after Parkland is galvanizing youths and changing American attitudes. Kris Brown, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said she and others are inspired by New Zealand’s response. “Most Americans are looking at New Zealand and saying ‘Why can’t we do this in the US as well?’� she told AFP, adding that US politicians are aware of the revived interest in taking action. “The NRA’s stranglehold on lawmakers is weakening,� she said. AFP