PGMA's Speech during the 29th Top Level Management Conference of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) |
Bougainvilla Pavilion, Taal Vista Hotel Tagaytay City, Cavite (07 Nov 2003) |
| Thank you very much, Cerge. And
congratulations for being overwhelmingly re-elected as chairman of KBP. I’d like to thank also our very young and handsome mayor of Tagaytay City, Mayor Francis Tolentino for joining us. Nasa likod raw siya kasi naka-maong siya, pero okay lang. Tagaytay is a resort city, nagugulat nga ako ba’t naka-amerikana kayo lahat. Pati sa APEC pag sa resort kami naka-casual. But anyway, it’s good to have you here. Thank you, Pinky for your excellent report of success of the KBP in this challenging times. Bobby Barriero, Jun Nicdao, Lito Yabut, Father Bungayan, Romy Yabut, Rudy Gularbal, and Atong Henares. Congratulations! You’re the new member, right? Where’s Atong? I see his father. I’m here today with you together with Milt Alingod, our Secretary of the Press; Secretary Defensor, my secretary for housing; Secretary Mai Jimenez, my secretary for ODA; and our new Undersecretary for the Press, Claro Fernandez, ‘yung sa likod. noong araw kasi noong wala pa ‘yung pwesto ni Claro, si Milt kahit na cabinet member nandoon sa likod doing the backroom work, now that he has an undersecretary he can be on the center stage. Okay. Well, I’m glad to be here with you again. Every year in the last five years, I’ve inducted your national officers. And the last two events were held in Malacanang. I would have wanted to hold this one in Malacanang but you wanted me to come to you instead this time. Masyadong sanay na kayo sa Malacanang, but we held the last two events in Malacanang because I was president. And these events recalled your courage and commitment to the high ideals of your profession. Yes, you have achieved success in difficult times even before the five years that I’ve been with you every year. You have fought in behalf of our people. You have fought for the constitution. You have fought for good governance. And our relationship goes back a long way, longer than the five years that you have invited me to be your inducting officer. In these five years before I joined you in swearing in your officers, our relationship is longer, it goes back to our mutual adherence to the pursuit of press freedom -- as Cerge said -- freedom dear to our nation. After all our nation has toppled empires and tyrants -- and you have been contributory to that -- our nation has a freedom that continues to live in the fountain of our democratic society. Our democratic society today, our republic is like a house standing on three pillars -- the Presidency, the Congress and the Judiciary. Each pillar must be strong against the wind of controversy. I was delighted at Pinky’s metaphor about going against the wind. She feels she was going against the wind. She felt I must also feel sometimes I go against the wind. I go against the wind lots of times. And that is important for a presidency to be a strong pillar in our Republic. Aside from the presidency, the two other pillars are now engaged in self-strengthening measures through introspection on the part of the supreme court and consensus building on the part of congress. I call on our people, I call on you to support these processes as they are being carried out. This is a test of democracy as well as how deeply we understand democracy. Of course, we cannot shut out the issues that are causing anxiety or even undue alarm. But we can focus our will as a people on unity rather than division, on resilience rather than defeat, on the triumph of peaceful freedom over irrational strife. Last night, I was caught... Said, why don’t I just call the Lakas congressmen to withdraw their signatures. I said Lakas is ready to do what it must do, but there are unifying solutions and there are divisive solutions. And we must first try the unifying solutions. Once more, I call for national unity as I warn all attempts to undermine the Republic through unlawful plots. If anyone attempts to turn this controversy into an illegitimate bid for political power, let them be forewarned. We will pre-empt criminal conspiracies with the full force of law. And likewise, I appeal to media's men and women not to allow yourselves to be used, wittingly or unwittingly, as pawns in political games or worst destabilization efforts. After all, press freedom itself will be the first to be sacrificed if the will of the people is thwarted by lies and false causes. As the three branches of government strive to gravitate towards a common solution, it’s the responsibility of the press to refrain from fueling the debate with intrigue, conjecture and speculation. I trust that your commitment to the ideals of your profession will be equalled by your commitment to our nation's future. Remain vigilant of wrongdoing but deliver the facts straight and true. The coming elections in May will be another opportunity for the Philippines to show that our democratic institutions are strong and vibrant. The government is putting in place measures that will minimize if not eradicate cheating in the elections. And two years ago, I signed a law lifting the political ad ban. I hope you consider that then and you still consider it now as another victory of the people in their bid to know their candidates better, and thereby secure their future with greater certainty. The lifting the political ad ban was part of my commitment to promote clean, honest, orderly and peaceful elections -- a commitment that stands firm to this day. Press freedom is meant to secure the welfare of our democratic institutions. It is meant to secure the welfare not so much of the media but of the citizens and the public interest. We are committed to press freedom, as Cerge says, despite the excesses of the media. My neighbors in the countries around us, are considered us strong. But I think part of our strength should be our outstanding and unique committment to press freedom. We know from our past -- not necessarily from the experience of our neighbors around us -- we know from our past, from our martial law experience that without press freedom our democratic institutions die. Broadcasters, just as other media practioners -- as very well pointed out by Pinky -- have become dangerous men and women to those who have unlawful secrets to hide, and to those who have the dark mind to silence the seekers of the truth. In fact, according to the national union of journalists, an average of three journalists are killed per year. Maybe you would prefer average of three journalists being slapped with a libel case. But in our country very few libel cases prosper, but on the other hand the extra legal means are the ones that are used against your profession. This morning, before I came here, I talk to General Jun Ebdane, of course, about instructions on thwarting any destabilization attempts even before they start, but also on following up what we had agreed about the task force to solve the crimes against the members of journalism. I told him I would like the Philippine national police to move faster and more resolutely in the investigation of all unsolved murder cases victimizing broadcasters and media practitioners. I’m committing one million pesos as reward money for the solution of each of the killings to the media practitioners over the last ten years. I thank Pinky for pointing out about that accused murderer in Zamboanga del Sur. And while his colleagues are here -- Jimmy Caringal, Boysie Rosales -- Boysie, give your counterpart in Zamboanga del Sur the message: "his position is on the line -- arrest that killer." and the... well, in that area a lot of the killings are also related to the terrorist threat. And Mai Jimenez is here, Secretary Mai Jimenez, she helps me go through the maze of ODA in order to see what fund availabilities are there to match what fund requirements there are. And now I’m asking her to help look for funds... to look for fund sources to augment the KBP training fund for broadcast journalists with the specific aim of helping you to better understand the threats of terrorism and the Mindanao conflict. I’m glad Pinky mentioned the Pagadian, because that is like the interface between the safety of journalists and the terrorism and the Mindanao conflict. And I thank Pinky for pointing out the different positions between the industry and the government on the wipo, so I’m asking Chairman Borje to please work with the KBP so we can have a consensus building exercise as well, like the house is undergoing now, the house of representatives. And is it true that you’re concerned over the proliferation of low-power stations? So, I’m also asking Chairman Borje, the national telecommunications commission chairman, to temporarily stop the issuance of licenses to operate low-power stations pending the approval of rules and regulations governing them. I have been with you for five years, two-and-a-half years of those as president. I have been with you in the last two-and-a-half years as I went through the learning curve of the presidency, and as I gained the experience necessary to understand what must be done -- to understand what must be done on the one hand to reform society , on the other hand to deal with its deep divisions and heal them so that we may move forward and finally break the chains of poverty on our way to building a strong Republic. I have been with you long enough to know that you as well as I dream of a future of equitable prosperity and justice. And I have been with you long enough to know, five years and long before the five years, that free and fair broadcasters are essential in fulfilling our dreams. Therefore, may you continue to achieve success. May you achieve greater success in difficult times, whether this times are difficult for your organization, for our country or for the world. In fact, in this times, they are difficult for your organization, for your country, for the world. Let us together reform the institutions of our society including media. Let us together use our own influence in order to build unity rather than to foment division. Sa inyong lahat, mabuhay! And thank you. |