New Way to Measure Poverty Denounced as Deceptive, Can Undermine Calls for Better Wages - Bulatlat

According to the NSCB, the annual growth rate in 2010 of 7.3 percent was the highest GDP growth since the 8.8 percent growth recorded in 1976 – the highest in 34 years, a claim that grassroots people’s organizations find impossible to believe.

Independent think-tank Ibon Foundation said that the government’s latest labor force survey pegs unemployment at 2.80 million in October 2010, slightly higher than the 2.72 million reported in the same period last year. The number of the unemployed could very well be pegged at 4.16 million instead, the economic research group said. The difference, it pointed out, is caused by the recently revised definition of unemployment and an estimate approximating the previous definition for comparability with previous years.

Ibon Foundation added that while the reported creation of over a million jobs from last year is welcome, the quality of over half these jobs leaves much to be desired. Out of the one million new jobs created, some 515,000 were in the economy’s lowest earning sectors: agriculture (201,000 jobs), wholesale and retail trade (251,000) and private households (62,000).

The stubbornness of high unemployment and rising underemployment despite the government’s declaration of a “scintillating” 6.5 percent economic growth in the third quarter affirms that joblessness remains a serious cause for concern.

Based on Ibon’s analysis, there is a problem if the economy is consistently able to register growth and deliver corporate profits but unable to create enough jobs and raise wages. The situation highlights the need for urgent reforms in the domestic economy and address its inability to create regular and productive jobs, the group said.

Indifference

Gaite said that this latest move of the Aquino administration to alter the poverty index by bringing the poverty line lower proves its indifference to the woeful plight of the common Filipino.

“It also shows Aquino’s complete inability to intervene and halt the unabated price hikes. The government’s systematic abandonment of its responsibility to provide accessible commodities and services for the people could very well lead to widespread discontent and protests,” he said.

New Way to Measure Poverty Denounced as Deceptive, Can Undermine Calls for Better Wages - Bulatlat

Beyond the Swindle of the Corporate University: Higher Education in the Service of Democracy

(Image: Jared Rodriguez / t r u t h o u t; Adapted: Earlham College, incurable_hippie)

by: Henry A. Giroux, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed

"In spite of being discredited by the economic recession of 2008, neoliberalism, or market fundamentalism as it is called in some quarters, has once again returned with a vengeance. The Gilded Age has come back with big profits for the rich and increasing impoverishment and misery for the middle and working class. Political illiteracy has cornered the market on populist rage, providing a political bonus for those who are responsible for massive levels of inequality, poverty, and sundry other hardships. As social protections are dismantled, public servants are denigrated and public goods such as schools, bridges, health care services and public transportation deteriorate, the Obama administration unapologetically embraces the values of economic Darwinism and rewards its chief beneficiaries: mega banks and big business. Neoliberalism - reinvigorated by the passing of tax cuts for the ultra rich, the right-wing Republican Party taking over of the House of Representatives and an ongoing successful attack on the welfare state - proceeds, once again, in zombie-like fashion to impose its values, social relations and forms of social death upon all aspects of civic life.(1)

With its relentless attempts to normalize the irrational belief in the ability of markets to solve all social problems, neoliberal market fundamentalism puts in place policies designed to dismantle the few remaining vestiges of the social state and vital public services. More profoundly, it has weakened if not nearly destroyed those institutions that enable the production of a formative culture in which individuals learn to think critically, imagine other ways of being and doing and connect their personal troubles with public concerns. Matters of justice, ethics and equality have once again been exiled to the margins of politics. Never has this assault on the democratic polity been more obvious, if not more dangerous, than at the current moment when a battle is being waged under the rubric of neoliberal austerity measures on the autonomy of academic labor, the classroom as a site of critical pedagogy, the rights of students to high quality education, the democratic vitality of the university as a public sphere and the role played by the liberal arts and humanities in fostering an educational culture that is about the practice of freedom and mutual empowerment.(2)

Memories of the university as a citadel of democratic learning have been replaced by a university eager to define itself largely in economic terms. As the center of gravity shifts away from the humanities and the notion of the university as a public good, university presidents ignore public values while refusing to address major social issues and problems.(3) Instead, such administrators now display corporate affiliations like a badge of honor, sit on corporate boards and pull in huge salaries. A survey conducted by The Chronicle of Higher Education reported that "19 out of 40 presidents from the top 40 research universities sat on at least one company board."(4) Rather than treated as a social investment in the future, students are now viewed by university administrators as a major source of revenue for banks and other financial institutions that provide funds for them to meet escalating tuition payments. For older generations, higher education opened up opportunities for self-definition as well as pursuing a career in the field of one's choosing. It was relatively cheap, rigorous and accessible, even to many working-class youth. But as recent events in both the United States and Britain make clear, this is no longer the case. Instead of embodying the hope of a better life and future, higher education has become prohibitively expensive and exclusionary, now offering primarily a credential and, for most students, a lifetime of debt payments. Preparing the best and the brightest has given way to preparing what might be called Generation Debt.(5)

What is new about the current threat to higher education and the humanities in particular is the increasing pace of the corporatization and militarization of the university, the squelching of academic freedom, the rise of an ever increasing contingent of part-time faculty and the view that students are basically consumers and faculty providers of a salable commodity such as a credential or a set of workplace skills. More strikingly still is the slow death of the university as a center of critique, vital source of civic education and crucial public good. Or, to put it more specifically, the consequence of such dramatic transformations has resulted in the near death of the university as a democratic public sphere. Many faculty are now demoralized as they increasingly lose their rights and power. Moreover, a weak faculty translates into one governed by fear rather than by shared responsibilities, and one that is susceptible to labor-bashing tactics such as increased workloads, the casualization of labor and the growing suppression of dissent. Demoralization often translates less into moral outrage than into cynicism, accommodation and a retreat into a sterile form of professionalism. What is also new is that faculty now find themselves staring into an abyss, either unwilling to address the current attacks on the university or befuddled over how the language of specialization and professionalization has cut them off from not only connecting their work to larger civic issues and social problems, but also developing any meaningful relationships to a larger democratic polity.

As faculty no longer feel compelled to address important political issues and social problems, they are less inclined to communicate with a larger public, uphold public values, or engage in a type of scholarship that is available to a broader audience.(6) Beholden to corporate interests, career building and the insular discourses that accompany specialized scholarship, too many academics have become overly comfortable with the corporatization of the university and the new regimes of neoliberal governance. Chasing after grants, promotions and conventional research outlets, many academics have retreated from larger public debates and refused to address urgent social problems. Assuming the role of the disinterested academic or the clever faculty star on the make, these so-called academic entrepreneurs simply reinforce the public's perception that they have become largely irrelevant. Incapable, if not unwilling, to defend the university as a democratic public sphere and a crucial site for learning how to think critically and act with civic courage, many academics have disappeared into a disciplinary apparatus that views the university not as a place to think, but as a place to prepare students to be competitive in the global marketplace."

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Save PAL's jobs - fight for security of tenure

Credits to ITF for sharing this flyer/campaign banner

Aktibismo sa panahon ng administrasyong Aquino | Rising Sun

Kahit wala pang isang taon si Pangulong Aquino, sapat na ang unang 100 araw niya mula Hulyo 1 hanggang Oktubre 8 para magkaroon ng ideya sa pangkabuuang direksiyon ng kanyang pamamahala. Ang sinasabing “daang matuwid” ay tungo sa globalistang hangarin.

Oo, walang masama sa globalisasyon, kung ikaw ay nabibilang sa nakatataas na uri ng ating lipunan. Pero malinaw sa napakaraming pag-aaral ang negatibong epekto ng globalisasyon sa mahihirap – kawalan ng subsidyo mula sa gobyerno, maliit na suweldo, kawalan ng kaseguruhan sa trabaho, pagbaha ng mga imported na produkto, pagpatay sa agrikultural na produksyon. Napakahaba ng listahan ng masamang kahihinatnan, pero pilit na sinasagot ito ng mga nasa kapangyarihan sa pamamagitan ng isang teknikal na termino – safety nets.

Simple lang naman ang lohika ng safety nets sa konteksto ng globalisasyon. Maaaring masagasaan ang interes ng mga manggagawa, magsasaka at iba pang sektor basta’t siguraduhin lang na mabibigyan sila ng alternatibong kabuhayan. Sa unang tingin, walang masama rito. Pero katulad ng relokasyon sa mga maralitang tagalungsod na biktima ng demolisyon, hindi isinasaalang-alang ang kalagayan ng mga nasagasaan dahil sila ay napupunta sa sitwasyon ng kawalan. - Danny Arao

Aktibismo sa panahon ng administrasyong Aquino | Rising Sun

Aquino Asked, Prioritize Public Health Instead of Fraudulent Loans and War vs Filipinos - Bulatlat

“Whether the Aquino government admits it or not, the massive cases of dengue mirrors a government that puts its people’s health behind debt servicing and military spending. ” – Council for Health and Development.

Aquino Asked, Prioritize Public Health Instead of Fraudulent Loans and War vs Filipinos - Bulatlat

Pagbubukas ng FMAB, Pagbagsak ng Kalidad ng Serbisyo sa PGH

Nitong unang linggo ng Setyembre, dalawang “opening ceremony” ang naganap sa atin sa PGH. Una ay ang pagbubukas ng gate sa harap ng UP Manila Oblation Plaza na agad din namang isinara nitong huling linggo ng buwan dahil sa kakulangan ng kahandaan sa mga implikasyon nito sa pasyente, mga kawani at mismong serbisyong ipinagkakaloob ng ospital. At ang ikalawa, ay ang pormal na pagbubukas ng FMAB kasabay ang pagpapakalat ng mga anunsyo sa paglalako ng kanilang mga pribadong serbisyong medical.

Mapapansin natin na hindi pa bukas ang mga klinika para sa mga doktor. Mistulang pyesta sa dami ng tarpulin na halos mismong PGH na ang nagbebenta ng kanilang serbisyo.

Sa mga nagdaang mga araw, napag- alaman natin na malaki ang ibinaba ng kita ng ating Main Pharmacy bunga na rin ng biglaang paglipat ng main gate sa harap ng Oblation para sa pedestrian. Sa Laboratory, diumano ay marami ng procedures ang hindi nagagawa dahil sa kawalan ng reagent. Pati ang ating CT Scan ay normal procedures na lang ang kayang gawin at ang mga special procedures ay sa ibang clinic o ospital na inire-refer ng ilan nating mga doctor, ang ilan ay direktang sinasabi sa mga pasyente na sa FMAB ipagawa ang kanilang diagnostic procedure.

Nagkataon lang ba ito sa pagbubukas ng FMAB o ito na ang sitwasyon ng PGH sa mga susunod na mga araw?

Sa simple nating pagsusuri,malinaw na ang pagpasok ng isang pribadong ospital (FMAB) sa loob ng compound ng PGH gamit ang mga klinika ng PGH Consultants bilang pantakip sa kanilang pagkamal ng kita. At sa pakipagkutsabahan na rin ng ilang administrador ng PGH at UP Manila ay unti-unting papatayin o papahinain ang mga serbisyo ng PGH katulad ng pharmacy, laboratory, radiology at iba pang diagnostic/treatment units. Maliban dito malaki ang posibilidad na ang mga sumusunod ay mangyayari pa sa darating na panahon bunga ng kasalukuyang sitwasyon.

a) Pagbabawas ng Job Order/ Casual/Contractual na mga kawani (lalo na sa Pharmacy) at pagbabawas o pagkawala ng sabsidyo ng libreng antibiotic para sa mga pasyente sa charity dahil sa kakulangan ng kita sa PGH Pharmacy.
b) Kakulangan ng pondo para sa mga dagdag benepisyo ng mga kawani
k) Paglalagay ng bayad sa mga dating libre at pagdaragdag ng bayarin sa mga dati ng may bayad na mga serbisyong ibinibigay ng PGH
d) Tuluyang pagpasok ng pribatisasyon bilang negosyo imbes na libreng serbisyo sa mga pampublikong ospital katulad ng PGH.

Kami sa All UP Workers Union ay kinukondena ang mga administrador ng PGH at UP Manila na tahasang nakikipagsabwatan sa mga pribadong mamumuhunan tulad ng sa FMAB upang gawing negosyo ang serbisyong dapat sana ay libreng ibinibigay sa mamamayan sa abot ng kanilang kakayanan. Nakakalungkot at nakakagalit isiping kita at tubo na ang motibasyon ng ilan sa ating mga administrador sa kanilang paglilingkod sa PGH at UP.

ANG ATING MGA PANAWAGAN:
• BENEPISYO AT KASEGURUHAN SA TRABAHO, IPAGLABAN!
• SERBISYO SA TAO, WAG GAWING NEGOSYO !
• BADYET PANGKALUSUGAN, DAGDAGAN WAG BAWASAN!
• MGA ABUSADONG OPISYAL, TANGGALIN SA PUWESTO!
• DE KALIDAD at ABOT KAYANG SERBISYONG PANGKALUSUGAN, IALAY SA MAMAMAYAN!

All U.P. Workers Union – Manila
Ika-1 ng Oktubre 2010

Justice for Nurse-rape victim, Justice for All Nurses & Health Workers

Alliance of Health Workers
PRESS STATEMENT
October 1, 2010

Reference: Mr. Jossel I. Ebesate, RN
Secretary-General
Mobile No: 09189276381


We, nurses and health workers from different hospitals and health institutions nationwide, condemn the rape of Florence, a nurse in South Upi, Maguindanao. We call for immediate and swift justice for the nurse rape victim. We call for justice for all nurses and health workers.

It is indeed commendable that she chose to serve in rural area where nurses are needed most. In taking the road less taken, she became a victim of a crime and injustice.

Like Florence, many nurses and health workers endure injustice under the present situation. After painstaking years of studying nursing and passing the licensure examination, many nurses end up as job-orders or contractual, without benefits and with pay below that of a nurse with plantilla. Worse many nurses become volunteers, without salaries and even paying the hospital for the supposed “training” and “experience”. This is not what a licensed nurse should endure.

Nurses and other health workers employed as regular employees receive low salaries, inadequate benefits, if any at all, and suffer from understaffing, inhumane conditions at work, and repression.

Those health workers who chose to stay to serve the people are even illegally arrested for trumped-up charges, just like the case of Morong 43.

This is not what should happen to those who serve the people.

Because of these, nurses and other health workers are not encouraged to stay in the country, much more work in the rural areas.

We see that the government is remiss in two counts. First it failed to ensure the safety of nurses and other health care providers, be in rural or urban areas. Second, and more importantly, the government lends deaf ear to calls to provide adequate jobs, salaries, benefits and better working conditions to all health workers. The Department of Labor’s Nurses Assigned to Rural Areas (NARS) program, which Florence participated in, did not give permanent job and adequate remuneration for nurses. Six months of work, with allowance below that received by a plantilla- holder nurse in a government hospital, is not fair and just.

The Filipino patients in the end suffer from inadequate staff and health services.

We call for swift justice for the nurse rape victim. We hope that impartial investigation and trial will convict the wrong-doers.

We call for justice for all nurses and health workers. We call for adequate jobs, salaries, benefits and better working conditions for all health workers who have heroically decided to stay in the country and serve the Filipino people. We call on the government to release the 43 health workers and protect the welfare, rights and safety of all health care providers. This will redound to better services to the people. #