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Studes junk cha-cha

BAGUIO CITY (May 1) — Student protesters from different schools in the Cordillera mostly members of the partylist Anakbayan junked President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s proposal for Charter Change (ChaCha) in a noise barrage, Saturday, at the Km. 0 here.

The protesters also expressed their grievances against political killings and against political repression as they chanted for their rights.

John Panem, Coordinator of National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP) Baguio-Benguet, said that the ChaCha is only one of Arroyo’s tactics so that she could stay longer in power.

Panem enumerated some of the effects when ChaCha comes into play; one of these is the liberalization of economy, giving up the national patrimony to the control of foreign imperialists, that is 100% of corporations will be owned completely by foreign capitalists, in comparison with what is stated in the 1987 constitution that a corporation should be 60% by Filipinos and only 40% by foreign capitalists.

Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and Anakpawis Cordillera also assailed the attempt to water down the already oppressive Philippine Labor Code omitting the provisions that guarantee the rights of workers including the security of tenure; rights to Collective Bargaining Agreement, right to form labor unions and right to living wage.

Antoni Karl Riva, the Chairperson of Anakbayan MetroBaguio said that the Bagong Alyansa ng Makabayan is proposing a Transition Council, which is a democratic council which temporarily lightens the burden of the country and which prepares and reconstructs the country into a cleaner election.

Dail Santilices, Anakbayan of University of Baguio (UB), said that Transition Council is not the ultimate solution to the country’s problems, but it is only a step to an organized country.

Meanwhile, Carlito Wayas, the President of the Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (PISTON) MetroBaguio, said that there is a continuing oil-price increase, and that they wanted an oil-price rollback.

Panem added that the oil deregulation law makes it difficult for the drivers because oil prices of oil companies tend to increase their prices simultaneously that the government has no control on it.

From May 2, Anakbayan plans to do Barangay hopping, which brings to the communities the people’s issues through cultural presentations and launches anti-ChaCha signature campaign. # Rizzle Dianne Mateo/MMSU Intern for NORDIS

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