Pork Barrel Scam: Research Summary And Reaction Paper Sample

Pork Barrel Scam: Summary And Reaction Paper Sample: Pork barrel seems to be the most favorite topic among Filipinos nowadays. But , what is this pork barrel ? Where is it intended to be ? or what are the legal bases for such fund ?

           

Pork Barrel: Fan Art Image

 Pork barrel seems to be the most favorite topic  among Filipinos nowadays. But , what is this pork barrel ? Where is it intended to be ? or what are the legal bases for such fund ?

            Pork barrel is the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or The term pork barrel politics usually refers to spending, which is intended to benefit constituents of a politician in return for their political support, either in the form of campaign contributions or votes. In the popular 1863 story "The Children of the Public", Edward Everett Hale used the term pork barrel as a homely metaphor for any form of public spending to the citizenry. After the American Civil War, however, the term came to be used in a derogatory sense. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the modern sense of the term from 1873.primarily to bring money to a representative's district.

            Pork Barrel is never a new concept . In fact , the Philippines  may just have patterned the concept and idea from the world’s practices .Pork barrel and Janet Lim- Napoles are two inseparable terms now in the Philippines .

  The  government’s chief auditor reported  that a dozen senators and scores of congressmen had directed billions in pork-barrel money into fishy NGOs over three years. The money (given to members of Congress to spend in their constituencies on projects of their own choosing) was disbursed during Mrs Arroyo’s term. But Mr Aquino’s first reaction was to defend the pork-barrel scheme. That is because he is at the apex of the Philippines’ pyramid of political patronage, so has the final say on whether other politicians get their pork. When he was member of Congress, he received pork-barrel funds. In the absence of an effective political party system, the pork-barrel arrangement gives Mr Aquino a degree of influence over Congress.

The Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), a government programme, has institutionalized pork barrel in the Philippines. Each of its 24 senators receives 200m pesos ($4.5m) per year and each of its 300-odd congressmen receives 70m pesos ($1.6m). The scheme has its merits. Roads get paved. Poor students receive scholarships. Politicians are supposed to use the fund to finance their pet projects, but some use it to enrich themselves at public expense. The arrangement shores up a political establishment made of powerful families that monopolize elective positions generation after generation.

'Pork barrel' scam issue sparks online outrage and flak. Janet Lim-Napoles now centered on controversy is the alleged 'brains' behind the P10-billion scam or mis-use of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) by some lawmakers and the P900-million Malampaya Fund issues.

The Commission on Audit (COA) confirmed on Friday that some non-government organizations (NGOs) linked to Janet Lim Napoles received the pork barrel of lawmakers from 2007 to 2009. But, the pork barrel worth P10 billion were channeled to bogus NGOs and ghost projects only.

The COA report reveals that senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada, and Bong Revilla are patrons to the many dubious NGOs controlled by Napoles.

Now , after a couple days of manhunt for Janet Lim Napoles , she voluntarily surrendered to the President .She is now in Fort Sto. Domingo in Sta Rosa , Laguna .

Reaction:

            “ Ang Daang Matuwid “ , every Filipino trust this President’s promise. Truly , the Philippines has been regarded as the most corrupt country in the world . With this promise , the Filipinos , put their trust and confidenece that under the Aquino administration , corruption will be minimized as countrywide development and progress would be the top priority of the government . Filipinos sees the light of hope , that someday , that the Philippines will be a more progressive and economically stable .  This is evident , in the popularity rating of the President which even reaches 70 % approval rating .

Now , do we still have hope for the Philippines ? Are we still journeying in the daang matuwid ? Why all of these happens ?Yes , the records for the pork barrel scam  now is still under the Arroyo administration , but why do the investigations have to stop in 2009 ? , why can’t  they progress to 2010 to 2012 ?

People now are cally to ultimately stop the pork barrel or the PDAF. Actually Janet Lim Napoles  NGO’s may have been used only by our Senators and Congressmen  for their malicious intentions of the government’s fund.

Will the President order that the Pork barrel  or PDAF be abolished ? I don’t think so . I agree with other Filipinos that it will just be repackaged in a new name , but will never be abolished . This is a challenge to the President ,  if he is rearing toward the daang matuwid .

As the investigations progress , Filipinos will still have to face many revelations , revelations that may anger them , who knows , the voice of the people can never be underestimated . What happened now , is really a realization that daang matuwid is just an imaginary concept . Corruption is still causing many Filpinos to suffer , causing many Filipinos to leave their family in order to work abroad so as to give a decent life to their family .

The Senators and Congressmen will continue to cheat the Filipino people ? There could still be many Janet Lim Napoles . I hope the President will really have to decide what is beneficial to the majority of the Filipino people and not only for the welfare of the chosen few .

May the President hear , every Filipino’s voice “ No to Pork Barrel “ !.