‘With hundreds of persons
of interest in the Lapid killing, Remulla must dig deeper
to prove that Bantag is
indeed the mastermind.’
NO one really believes that suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag is the “tanda” being referred to, in the midst of speculations, as one of the masterminds in the murder of hard-hitting radio commentator Percy Lapid.
At 54, as detained former senator Leila de Lima says, Bantag is not that old to be called “tanda.” But as some sectors insist, he would, in all likelihood, as the NBI and the PNP want it, end up as “tanda,” the major plotter of the crime.
If that happens, Bantag would become one of the hundreds of inmates at the National Bilibid forced by death threats or intense political pressure, along with millions in bribe money, to take the rap and rot behind bars while the real mastermind or masterminds stay free.
Pardon us but Justice Secretary Boying Remulla may be remiss in claiming that the trail stops at Bantag, whom he insisted is the top suspected mastermind. Remulla knows too well, for instance, that Bantag does not wield power over the NBI to compel it to try to whitewash the case by conducting its obviously flawed findings on the sudden death of a middleman.
With hundreds of persons of interest in the Lapid killing, Remulla must dig deeper to prove that Bantag is indeed the mastermind. Shouldn’t he make sure that he can amply conclude that politics was not involved in the case?
***
It was a night to remember for Nitz Tamayo, who celebrated her 80th birthday recently at the Monte Vista Clubhouse in Marikina. Aside from moving testimonies on her kindness, compassion and her devout Christian ministry of fervent prayers and healings, the special occasion also made way for the reconciliation of some of her feuding relatives and friends.
For instance, a real estate executive and a brother of actor Cesar Montano, Jing Manghilot, suddenly found himself seated together with someone he had not spoken a word with for two years. Manghilot claimed he was the object of a series of mudslinging by his former friend and would have wanted to slug him the moment he bumped into him.
But upon seeing his former friend at the table, Manghilot, who like Tamayo is a member of the Christ’s Commission Fellowship for many years, felt no resentment at all as he shook his friend’s hand and embraced him, surprising himself with the reconciling gesture that overcame any memory of their troubled past.
Four relatives torn apart by years of bitterness and disappointments also found themselves seated together, warming up to each other and reconciling.
Tamayo said the seating arrangements were not planned and was sure that it was the work of our loving and healing God, who continues to work mightily to touch and heal peoples’ lives.
***
Past administrations since President Cory Aquino were not at all serious in the privatization of Channel 13 or the Intercontinental Broadcasting Network. Sequestration of the network has become a huge anomaly due to its prolonged management by the government marked by incompetence and corruption.
The networks’ two unions have repeatedly complained of unpaid benefits amounting to about P300 million, which has practically been ignored for many years. About half of the retirees are currently bed-ridden or have passed on without receiving their separation pay.
The regular turnover of network management whenever a new President is elected did not help as the top positions, like the Board of Directors, were filled up by political appointees as rewards for their campaign or election support. The holdover Board of Directors has been checking some alleged irregularities which shouldn’t be entirely blamed on several company officers and employees.
The financial and operational problems that piled up for many years had become quite unwieldy due to the deeper roots of management neglect and employee discontent. More than P600 million has been assigned by the Senate for Channel 13 to continue operating in 2023, which other broadcast network executives find hardly enough to help overturn its losses or to make it ultimately feasible for privatization.
