''A candle allows itself to be burned so that others may have light. May we always be on fire in bringing out the best in people!'' - Dr. Lorina Cabaluna of the Joy in Living Foundation
MANILA, Philippines -- President Benigno Aquino III showed his leadership mettle in dealing with a very dear family friend, Gen. Ernesto Diokno, of the Bureau of Corrections.
Nicknamed ''Totoy'' and known to P-Noy and family members as a loyal ally during and after Tita Cory's presidency, he was the ''bad guy'' and clueless BuCor chief who was giving him a big headache. P-Noy could have immediately chopped off Totoy's head to heed media and public clamor and gained ''brownie points'' for himself. A ''trapo'' would have done that.
But this president is no ''trapo.'' No, he waited patiently for Diokno to explain his side. Unfortunately, the kindest thing anyone can say about him (who is also a good man at heart having known him from way back) is that he was clueless as to what his officials were doing in the BuCor!
Diokno should have tendered his resignation earlier to save the president from being the target of vociferous critics who are looking for any occasion to hit him. But Diokno didn't until he had no other choice but to ''voluntarily'' leave. He would have been fired by P-Noy after his successful trip to Thailand.
The iron hand, in putting the nation's interest above all personal considerations, was there ready to strike, but so was the compassion for a friend.
Now, here's good news for those of us who believe that children must be protected in the broadcast media and not exploited for the gains of a few profit-seekers. The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) will approve new provisions of its broadcast code to reinforce current standards on programming related to children. The new guidelines have been submitted to the KBP Board of Trustees by the Standards Authority, the industry associations' code enforcement body.
Atty. Rudolph Jularbal, KBP Legal Counsel and spokesman, said that the proposed revisions are scheduled to be presented to its members for approval this month. The proposed rules also take into account the recommendations of the Philippine Association of National Advertisers (PANA).
PANA's recommendations on program content involving children focused on three critical concerns: exposure to violence, appearance and involvement in situations and activities not appropriate to the child's age, and the use of offensive language. PANA deemed these concerns as starting points to bring focus on the rights of the child in media and to encourage broadcasters and content providers to take responsibility for their program content.
In a recent special meeting, the KBP Board of Trustees directed that the proposed amendments be circularized to KBP members for their comments and inputs in preparation for the ratification of the new rules during the KBP General Membership meeting in June.
''Once the proposed provisions are adopted as part of the KBP Broadcast Code, the self-regulatory process of the KBP will further assure accountability of broadcasters because the Code provides sanctions for violations,'' said KBP Vice-chairman Butch Canoy.
KBP Chairman Herman Basbaño added that the KBP will hold dialogues and consultations with industry stakeholders and partners to discuss ways of putting the new guidelines into operation at the station level. Industry stakeholders, including PANA, will be invited to join and give their inputs and recommendations to create a more child-friendly broadcast media.
Responding to the action by the KBP, PANA president John Rojo said: ''We appreciate KBP's open-mindedness to PANA's recommendations to assure child-friendly programs. PANA looks forward to a continuing collaboration with KBP in the area of child protection.''
It's about time! Good luck! But what about non-KBP-member stations?
More good news, as Cong. Gina de Venecia of Pangasinan is understandably crowing about her eldest son, Philip Cruz III. The young man, a former columnist of another daily and magazine editor of a media conglomerate, finished his Masters of Science in Publishing at the top of his class at the New York University! He had a cumulative average of 3.95 out of a possible 4.
Congratulations to Philip who brought honor, not only to himself but to the Philippines! The guest speaker during the graduation rites attended by Gina; former speaker Joe de Venecia; Philip's aunt, Josie Natori and Philip Cruz Jr. was former US president Bill Clinton. Previously, Philip III, attended the Stanford University Professional Publishing Course for magazine executives in Palo Alto, California.
Attention school bus owners, how safe are your buses?
Now that classes are resuming, maybe, just maybe, before any bad accident happens to school bus riders, the operators and concerned government agencies can meticulously check their vehicles and drivers' credentials!
I would hate to see unsafe school buses and unprofessional drivers handling our school children. Also, tricycles are increasingly being used by many families to ferry school children to and from school, shouldn't they also be regulated as to the number of passengers they can safely carry?
