Cite DAP and other workers’ issues as grounds for ouster

Militant labor group calls for the ouster of Aquino

By Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino
July 14, 2014

QUEZON CITY – A labor group has joined the crescendo of peoples’ organizations calling for the ouster of President Noynoy Aquino from office, this came after Aquino refused to accept the resignation of Butch Abad as Secretary Budget and Management over the public uproar on their Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).

Workers under the militant Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) bearing axes made out of cardboards, streamers and placards with “Patalsikin si Aquino, Itakwil ang gobyernong elitista” and “Abad, arkitekto ng DAP, Aquino, mastermind ng DAP” slogans held a protest action at Department of Budget and Management and also at Mendiola Bridge to call for the ouster of both DAP signatories.

“Even before the Supreme Court’s decision on the DAP, workers and the toiling masses have long been suffering heavily from Aquino’s economic policies. For the wage-earners, Aquino’s DAP is just the icing on the cake. We can no longer stomach another day with him at the helm”, said Leody De Guzman, national chairman of BMP, in an e-mailed statement to the media.

“For the past four years, Aquino’s regime exacerbated the already extremely miserable conditions of workers with the legitimization of contractualization, stagnant wages, double-digit unemployment rates, abandonment of social services and policies that placed profits of private companies over peoples’ interests,” De Guzman cited as the deep-seated issues that founded BMP’s position to call for Aquino’s ouster.

On the DAP’s Impact on Economy

The BMP leader explained that the intoxicating mantra of Palace officials and allies in the Batasan Pambansa that the DAP was “implemented in good faith” and that it “benefitted the economy” is a mere pretense to paint a picture of the nation’s economic and political health.

“Aquino’s much-vaunted impact of his DAP on the economy does not translate to living wages, job security and recognition of our constitutionally guaranteed rights. Aquino may fool anyone but he will not fool the lowly wage-earners for they are the ones who have religiously paid their taxes and yet get nothing in return from this corruption-riddled government,” he added.

De Guzman claimed that if there were any direct beneficiaries of the DAP; these would be the cronies and relatives of Aquino who were generously awarded with abundant government contracts. He also pushed for the full-disclosure of the bidding process and transactions with private companies and individuals that were awarded with projects from DAP funds.

Abad’s Moro-Moro Resignation

On Abad’s resignation from the Budget post, the labor group called it a “moro-moro”, explaining that it was merely the administration’s ploy to cleanse their guilt in public and end the public outcry for accountability.

“To begin with, Aquino has no moral ascendancy to neither accept nor reject Abad’s resignation, given that both of them are implementers and signatories to the illegal disbursement of public funds. More importantly, they willfully hid it from the public and used it to undermine both the legislative and judiciary branches, De Guzman asserted.

On Aquino’s Public Address

Meantime, reacting to the Palace announcement that Aquino shall address the public Monday night, Anthony Barnedo of Kongreso ng Pagkakaisa ng Maralitang Lungsod implied that, “No amount of hijacking of the airwaves will be able to discourage the poor and desolate from continuously pouring into the streets and set in motion Aquino’s ouster from office”.

The groups expect Aquino to unleash a bundle of falsified government statistics, motherhood statements and shallow reforms to justify the usage of unused funds.

Barnedo averred that, “We expect Aquino will falsely claim and attribute the positive developments in the economy in the past four years to his DAP and his economic policies. If there is anyone who should take credit for the economic growth, it should be no less than the back-breaking toil of the laborers and farmers and the remittances of overseas contract workers.”