March started with 'breaking news'

 

By Dr. Florangel Rosario Braid

Published Mar 7, 2026 12:05 am | Updated Mar 6, 2026 05:46 pm

PAGBABAGO

The month of March is known as a time for celebrating culture, women’s rights, social causes and of course for introspection reflective of the 40 days of Lent.

But this year, it was superseded with “breaking news” starting with the conflict in the Middle East that started six days ago. All the media – local and international TV channels like CNN, BBC, and AlJazeera, carried news on the US and Israel strikes on Iran which killed the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khomeini. Iran subsequently attacked Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.

Iran describes the US and Israel attacks as “unprovoked, illegal and illegitimate” and carried out missile and drone attacks in response. The death toll since it started is estimated at over 1,000. An attack in a girls’ school killed 160. More than 30,000 people had been forced to flee their homes. Iran has accused US and Israel of targeting nine hospitals. Analysts foresee the far-reaching effect of the recent conflict not only in terms of disruptions in global travel through airport closures, global trade but also in regional security and international alliances. At this time of writing, the conflict continues to escalate.

The impact of the recent outbreak of conflict in the Middle East on the Philippine economy is considerable. We have 2.2 million Filipinos in the region, many of whom are based in Israel, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain. The Department of Migrant Workers is ready to bring home 1,200 of our overseas workers. The Philippines, according to Nomura Global Research Portal, may emerge as one of Asia’s economic losers because of high oil prices which would rekindle inflation and erode the peso’s recent gains.

Other “breaking news” on the local scene include the recently concluded hearing on the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte by the House Justice Committee sufficient in form and substance. It was endorsed by 54 members with one dissenting vote from Quezon City Rep. Bong Suntay who was also asked to face the House Committee on Ethics for his sexist remarks about actress Anne Curtis.

For the past seven months or so, we have been deluged with front page news.

Since the flood control mess scandal broke out, our media has been coming out with “breaking news,” a mix of incredulous accounts and pleasant breakthroughs.

The “trillion march,” held several times in varied locations, and the last one during the EDSA 40 celebration, promises hope as it encouraged our citizenry to come together in addressing current social and political concerns.

Last week the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague held four pre-trial hearings which found reasonable evidence of former President Duterte’s participation as a co-perpetrator of the extrajudicial killings of thousands of suspected drug addicts. We look forward to the final deliberations. (Florangel.braid@gmail.com)

Quo vadis?

By Dr. Florangel Rosario Braid

Published Dec 13, 2025 12:05 am | Updated Dec 12, 2025 06:26 pm

PAGBABAGO

This Latin phrase which means “Where are you going?” aptly describes the state we are in today. Are we in a state of impasse because of slow response or inaction on our expectations? I hope not, and that we must not stop striving till we reach our goal. Let me share my own thoughts based on my experiences while facing a major crisis in our nation’s history.

I am fortunate to have been involved in two initiatives toward drawing a blueprint for national development in the country.

The first is the 1987 Constitution where I was one of the 47 members of the body and chaired the article on General Provisions. It was here where we were forced to envision priorities and strategies that had guided legislation in our country for the past 39 years. I had to refer to it again following the recent crisis over the flood control mess which again brought up the need to implement new laws, among them an acceptable anti-dynasty law, a party-list system, and freedom of information.

As we know, the constitutional provisions of accountability and transparency in governance, among others, provided guidance in restructuring critical systems in budgeting and brought to light the inadequacy of our current systems in keeping track of critical processes such as monitoring implementation of large-scale projects, malpractices and unlawful expenditures.

Now, we are again at a crossroad. The question on amending or merely implementing new laws as remedies have surfaced. While many including myself would disagree with Senator Lacson who recently stated that the Constitution has failed to serve national interest, we may have to think twice whether we need to amend the Constitution or shift to a parliamentary form of government and the like.

A reality that came out when I went through another review was that we had not truly taken advantage of the full strength of our Charter over past charters and over other Constitutions of the world. I am referring to the heart of the Constitution which is “social Justice.”

As former Supreme Court justice Reynato Puno pointed out, ours is not merely social justice in form like that of other countries, but one of “substance.” He meant that when we talk of social justice, it is not merely providing each man equal access and opportunity but in addition, providing him equal opportunity at the starting line. It means that there is considerable inequality in our society and therefore a boy from the hinterlands would find it difficult to compete with one from a family with adequate means at the starting line. This unique state provides our country a positive image of real democracy at work and could help us move forward.

Another area that could be re-examined is the priority we have given to our land resources. Despite being an archipelago, we have a Department of Agriculture but only a Bureau of Fisheries and thus, have given the former more resources. Today, we are still even in conflict over ownership of our own waters in the West Philippine Sea.

We are aware of our deficiencies but after the recent unpleasant mess, we shall perhaps be more motivated to turn these negatives just as long as we arrive at a consensus on where we ought to go and are confident support by the majority.

The other opportunity although limited, is having been a part of earlier initiatives on multi-sectoral consultations. This was 37 years ago when six of us, social scientists in economics, culture and communication, political science, public administration, and development studies, went around the country to gather what we described as “visions from below.”

We held focus group discussions with local government and nongovernment sectors, organized panel discussions on varied development issues with colleagues in the academe, government and business sectors. The need to focus on “the common good,” revitalization of indigenous cultural practices, creating spaces for greater participation of marginalized sectors, and decision-making based on an inclusive human development framework The two years of consultation yielded a comprehensive report, “The Philippines at the Crossroads: Some Visions for the Nation.”

Some of us who have had similar experiences could share their learnings on future directions. The difference between then and now is that while we need to act now, the outcome we desire can happen only within a time frame of two decades. Many are aware of the desired changes in the Constitution, laws to be amended and a radical restructuring of existing governance policies and practices.

It is now a matter of how we are able to sustain needed action so that we can reach our goal without getting sidetracked. It is identifying how each of us and each sector to which we belong can organize into a collective.

It means evaluating our current resources – advances in technology like artificial intelligence, and motivated human resources that can help us find the way towards 2045, at the rate of socio-political technological change, we are not able to imagine what to expect.

But we trust that the insights we have gathered over the years would help us navigate our way forward. (Florangel.braid@gmail.com)