Where's the OFW money?

Listening to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration officials and the other officers involved with overseas Filipino workers convinced me that they have more than P8.5 billion in the OFW trust fund.

Thus, it was a shock to learn that Malacañang had to rush approval by Congress of a P500 million supplementary budget for the evacuation of Filipino workers in lebanon. If there is so much cash lying around and unused, why the rush for a supplementary budget? In short, there must really be no more of that big amount ready for use so that the government has to rustle up another P500 million for the evacuation of the OFWs from Lebanon.

And Congress seems to have agreed not to push through with the probe into the OWWA funds until the evacuation shall be completed. In short. There seems to be a grand conspiracy to forget about the money held in the trust fund by the OWWA for the OFWs.

This administration seems to have succeeded in sweeping under the rug the financial anomalies or questions about them. What gives?

I think President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whose heart beats for the OFWs, should now personally get to the bottom of the funds held in trust by the OWWA. Our modern day heroines and heroes deserve no better.

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Will nuclear conflict result from the Lebanon-Israel limited war? Lebanese consul Joseph Assad raised that possibility but claimed such eventuality will come from the superpowers supporting the conflict. He did not define the superpowers he was referring to.

But for poor countries like ours, Assa warned that the price of oil may go up to $200 per barrel should the Israeli conflict with Hezbollah drag on.

Both dire predictions could have disastrous consequences. Especially for third-world countries like Philippines.

The only superpowers that could trigger a nuclear holocaust in the Middle East are Iran, on the side of the Islamists and the United States and Israel. But it is doubtful whether the US could risk it despite President Bush's well known aversion to the president of Iran.

The Israelis could presumably provoke into unleashing its known nuclear trove. If beleagured, to the point of its survival threatened, the tiny but belicose nation may opt to drag down the entire Middle East into a nuclear war. The implications of an Israeli attack remains chilling. That could signal Armageddon, the final battle.

But the Israelis have always been noted for their use of precision weapons of war. Thus, there is more to fear from Iran.

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The team of University of the Philippines lawyers now in the US believe they can convince the immigration authorities to drop the petition for asylum of former Agriculture Secretary Jocelyn "Jocjoc" Bolante. Bolante reportedly claims that he has been targeted by the New People's Army for possible liquidation. The reason-his involvement in the fertilizer scam.

I suspect the NPA may have a different conclusion. It will serve their purpose to have the former official around, flying in and out of the country and elsewhere, if only to provide them ammunition against the Arroyo administration.

You eliminate Bolante and that's the end of it. But with him seemingly impervious to prosecution, the issue of corruption and protection will continue to hog the limelight. That is a more effective boost to the communist claim of ruthless exploitation of power and influence against the administration.

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We seem to be oblivious to the many classroom donations by the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. to rural areas in our province.

The latest was the inauguration of a two-classroom school building in Barangay Cabatangan of Talisay City by Alfonso Sy, director of the FFCCCII in cooperation with the Southern Negros Fil-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Again let me applaud our Fil-Chinese brothers for what they have so generously done for many of our less privileged schoolchildren. Thousands now have good shelter over their heads while they are going through with their studies.*

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