Author: Clift Daluz

I have a personal history with San Jose del Monte, Bulacan. Long before San Jose del Monte became a city and long before the Robes family became a political force there, I had already experienced what it was like to live in the community. It was sometime after the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution when my family moved to San Jose del Monte. We stayed there for about a year while we were looking for a permanent home in Metro Manila, particularly in San Juan. We lived in Mankor Homes – a typical mass-housing community where the houses looked almost…

The dismissal of the seven-year interpleader case involving OMI-JKG Philippines and its foreign partner, J. Knieriem B.V. of the Netherlands, should be viewed as more than the conclusion of a corporate dispute. It raises a broader question that should concern every investor, government agency, and policymaker: What is the true cost of prolonged litigation when a company ultimately turns out to be legally right? Businesswoman Annabelle Arcilla-Margaroli and her Dutch partner, Marinus Harinck – the manufacturer of imported DOTR-LTO blank plates from the Netherlands – have finally secured a favorable ruling after the Quezon City Regional Trial Court dismissed the interpleader case…

Finally, Sen. Ping Lacson said what many Filipinos have been quietly thinking about Rodante Marcoleta. The verbal sparring in the Senate on March 10 was more than just a clash of personalities. It was a rare moment when someone actually called out a troubling pattern: a senator more eager to stir controversy than to clarify where he truly stands on the national interest. In a privilege speech, Lacson didn’t hold back. He accused Marcoleta of “ego-driven provocations” and described the whole scene as a political circus – a circus that has overshadowed serious discussions the country deserves. This was not…

FORTY years ago, the Philippines stood on the brink of history, poised to complete a momentous revolution. Under the rule of a dictator, the country shocked the world by leading a peaceful uprising that would come to be known as the People Power Revolution. Those born after EDSA never experienced the historic moment that united Filipinos in a common goal: To unseat Ferdinand Marcos. From a curious perspective, what if the historic uprising happened today in the age of social media, instant messaging, and viral trends? The following is a fictional reimagining of a true event, the eventual ouster of…

New Year has barely settled, and the next massive convergence of Filipino faith is upon us: The Feast of the Black Nazarene. Millions will again flood the streets of Manila for the Traslación – barefoot, packed shoulder to shoulder, driven by panata, prayer, and the belief that a single touch can change a life. It is a powerful sight yet it is also a dangerous one. According to crowd management expert Martin Aguda Jr., two factors determine whether a gathering turns deadly: Crowd density and crowd dynamics. When density hits around 5 to 7 people per square meter, individuals begin to…

It’s Christmas season again – malls are packed, families are out late, and the streets are drowning in red brake lights. For millions of commuters, this should be the time when reliable transport is most accessible. Instead, it has become a yearly struggle just to get a ride home. And once again, Transport Network Vehicle Services (TNVS) like Grab and InDrive are almost impossible to book when people need them the most. Grab insists it has “added more drivers,” but on the ground, commuters know better. The truth is simple and inconvenient: These so-called new drivers are mostly recycled. Walang…

Something is dying in our digital life, and maybe, in us too. I call it Social Media Burnout. It’s neither a movement nor a campaign – just a quiet rebellion. People are simply… disappearing. Scroll through your feed and you’ll see it: Fewer birthdays, fewer opinions, fewer selfies, stories are shorter, and the smiles are more filtered. What used to be a noisy neighborhood of thoughts and laughter has turned into a deserted commercial strip, nothing but brands, trolls, and influencers selling the illusion of relevance. The silence is deafening and it’s eerie. For years, we built our lives online.…

When former Bulacan 3rd District Representative Lorna Silverio declared: “Ito lang kalaban namin sa pulitika ang pilit na kinukonek ako sa issue. Honestly, wala talaga akong ghost project,” it was not a defensive whimper, it was a battle cry. The statement slices through the haze of political intrigue that has recently clouded Bulacan, exposing what is at play – a calculated effort to malign a name that continues to matter. The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Bulacan, through District Engineer Edgardo Pingol, has already clarified that there is no ghost project in San Miguel. What critics branded…

The timing is too convenient to be dismissed as coincidence. Royina Garma, the police colonel turned whistleblower who once fled to the United States seeking asylum, is suddenly back in the Philippines. Meanwhile, the United States has formally asked PH to hand over Apollo Quiboloy, the self-proclaimed “Appointed Son of God,” indicted for child sex trafficking and labor racketeering. Let’s call this what it looks like: A possible swap deal in the making. Garma’s return is not an ordinary homecoming of a fugitive official. She is no mere footnote in Duterte’s bloody but failed war on drugs. She once sat…

For once, the flood control scandal might not end in the usual congressional circus. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has announced he will issue an executive order creating an independent commission to dig deep into the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) projects riddled with corruption. “The independent commission will be the investigative arm so that they will continue to investigate whatever information is received,” the President said. This is not another Senate Blue Ribbon show where lawmakers shout at contractors and then quietly tiptoe around their fellow legislators. In the last hearing, senators zeroed in on the bloated contracts…