Bagatsing to be
honored today

On behalf of the Fabricanians, I am appealing to all members of the organization to offer prayers for the repose of the soul of the Fabricanian - former Manila Mayor Ramon D. Bagatsing.

This is because the time frame is too short for the many who would have joined the tribute to Bagatsing. Based on the invitation from the family relayed to me yesterday morning by Isid De la Rama, the requiem mass for the former Manila mayor had been scheduled at noon yesterday at his Alabang (Muntinlupa) residence. Then, the remains will be brought to the Loreto Church in Sampaloc where it will remain overnight.

In the morning, it will be brought to the Manila City Hall for the Manila officials and employees to give their final chance to view the remains of the former Manila mayor.

It will be buried in the afternoon.

Only Percival Salado may fly to Manila to represent the Fabricanians. I phoned my children in Manila - Malou, Nenen, and Mary Ann - to represent our family and myself in the various activities for Ramon or Monching, as he is better known.

Anyway, the only thing I can say now is - Godspeed, my friend. May the many whom you have helped in life convince God to grant you the rest you deserve for living your life in the service of your fellowmen. God bless you.

****

The Bacolod police must track down and put behind bars the members of that "Budol-budol" gang that victimized lawyer Luz Dato-Lacson. Swindlers have victimized so many in Bacolod as well as in neighboring Negros Oriental's Dumaguete City. But often they get away scotfree.

I do hope that Senior Supt. Pedro Merced finally run down the group. It's time that the law books are thrown on their faces. They cannot be allowed to sweet-talk people into running away with their money.

****

NBI agent-in-charge Philip Pecache of Bacolod seems to have taken on PNP Negros Oriental deputy police chief Julius Muñez for failing to "cooperate with the NBI fact-finding committee" in investigating the alleged mauling by Oriental cops of a team of alleged NBI agents in Pamplona last Feb. 4.

But, while hitting at the Oriental police for having alleged mauled the NBI team members, Pecache must be able to shed light into why several members of the team had passed themselves off as NBI agents when they were two immigration agents and definitely not NBI agents. These included Benjie Belleza of the Philippine Taekwondo Association of Bacolod, and Francis Ramos, reportedly a driver of NBI-Bacolod.

The more pointed question is why did the NBI-Bacolod office act on the warrant issued by the Cebu Court of first instance and not endorse it or, at least coordinate the service with the NBI office in Dumaguete City?

Something is very wrong in what happened. And Pecache must be able to answer these things before he rails at Muñez.

****

Don't look now. But perhaps, it is time for local sugar producers to start thinking of the possibility that we may lose our preferred US sugar market. US confectionary makers and industrial users are asking for a review of the US sugar pricing and its seeming subsidy for the US sugar industry. The, President George Bush urges the US to start eyeing the possibility of increasing its ethanol production.

Then, we have US State Secretary Condoleezza Rice not ruling out completely the option of military action against Iran. Then, the frenzied attempts by Iran to rush its uranium enrichment program. Then, you have recently, the upswing in sugar prices aggravated by the Mexican government's admission of a 17 percent drop in its sugar production. This, at a time, when the US had just hiked its TRQ by 500,000 metric tons. And the Carribean nations reportedly unable to fill up their additional quota because they, too, had been battered by hurricanes.

Worse, Brazil is no longer in the position to fill up the US demand for more sugar. Then, you just have Australia announcing that it is also putting up another ethanol plant. Worse, Taiwan, for the first time in years, bought 68,000 tons of sugar, while Malaysia is rumored to be looking for raw sugar.

Then, you have Thailand reviewing its production figures and poised purportedly to stop sugar exports while trying to stave off the rampant sugar smuggling there.

Well, it's about time that our sugar industry leaders start re-thinking our position vis-à-vis the ongoing world sugar situation. We might get caught with our pants down while we keep pummeling each other here.*

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