Press "Enter" to skip to content

Category: Commentary

Remembering Kian, Carl, and Kulot: Search for justice and accountability continues

The recent court ruling on the death of 19-year-old Carl Angelo Arnaiz and 14-year-old Reynaldo “Kulot” de Guzman shows that the call for justice for victims of the so-called “war on drugs” is far from over. This is only the second conviction in the illegal drugs campaign of the Duterte…

Leave a Comment

Women-managed areas: Recognizing women’s vital role in the fishery sector

I have spent more than 30 years of my professional life in development work, but it was only last year that I came across the term “women-managed areas” or WMA. It was identified as one of the possible topics for research during a consultation held with our partner nongovernment organizations…

Leave a Comment

Strengthen community mortgage program to help DHSUD meet target

The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) reports that in the first seven months of its flagship Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Housing (4PH) Project, it has had 17 groundbreaking ceremonies in different parts of the country. More than 80 partnerships with local government units have been forged,…

Leave a Comment

Housing for those who need it most

Launched as soon as Jose Rizalino “Jerry” Acuzar was appointed head of the three-year-old Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Program undeniably created excitement, especially among ordinary Filipinos dreaming to have a home of their own. By tapping funds from the private…

Leave a Comment

Who’s not touching some grass?

The people’s organizations our institute has been working with for various advocacies—from reforming government’s housing policies and programs to opposing the killings and senseless violence in the anti-illegal drug war—are throwing their support behind Vice President Leni Robredo. Even before she announced her decision to seek the country’s highest post,…

Leave a Comment

Bishop Broderick Pabillo: plainspoken, present, prophetic

On March 10, 2020, the president delivered an off-the-mark insult to Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle. In a speech to government officials in Pasay, one of five cities in the cardinal’s erstwhile archdiocese of Manila, Duterte claimed the Pope had kicked Tagle out of that see for meddling in politics. The…

Leave a Comment

‘Fratelli Tutti’ and the Filipino family

The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating, taking precious lives, crippling the economy, depriving millions of jobs and livelihood, and exacerbating the scandal of hunger and poverty in our country and various parts of the world. As we continue to deal with this crisis, the message of Pope Francis’ encyclical “Fratelli…

Leave a Comment