Category Archives: Government

Media 101: Lesson One for Gov’t Execs

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Government officials should STOP making statements to the press if they don’t have the facts to back them up. Especially if (a) their statement is sensational and is thus very likely to be further sensationalized by the press and (b) their statement will make them look stupid.

Dr. Delfin Tamamao, Cordillera Regional Director of the Department of Education, is our exhibit number one. In trying to explain the region’s reduced student population he reportedly said: “Sexual and psychological abuse, even within the family, has contributed to this [drop in enrolment].”

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Cordillera Roundup

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DENR’s schizophrenia: It’s right hand says, “My God the mountains are balding. We should protect them.” But its left hand says, “Come foreign mining companies. Come to the Cordilleras and rape our mountains.” Heck! The DENR is as confused (sick?) as Gollum.

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And Ye Shall Know Them by Their Websites

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Okay, this is an attempt to evaluate the websites of the Cordillera provinces and Baguio City. First off, I would like to say that I have no idea how to design a website. If I knew how, I wouldn’t be using this blogger template. Nonetheless, just because I am ignorant of the how-tos doesn’t mean that I can’t tell the difference between a good website from one that needs improvement. A movie critic need not know how to direct a movie. A coach need not be an athlete. And you don’t have to be a president to say something about President Arroyo’s (mal)administration of the country’s affairs. Now that you get my drift, let’s look at the criteria that we will be using in making our judgment:

First, overall website design, (40%): This refers to how the website looks or its visual impact.

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Kabenguetan Rules!

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Benguet is Number One. Well, that’s according to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in its ranking of the country’s provinces using the Human Development Index (HDI). Instead of focusing on income alone, HDI also measures other development indicators such as life expectancy, school enrolment, and literacy. In 2005, Benguet emerged as the top-ranked province with a score of 0.738. Other provinces in the top ten are: Batanes, Rizal, Cavite, Nueva Vizcaya, Pampanga, Bataan, Bulacan, and Ilocos Norte.

Meanwhile, Ifugao improved its performance and is recognized among the “top gainers”. It also graduates from the bottom ten provinces — it was ranked 72nd among 77 provinces in the 2000 HDI. More here.

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