On water shortage, voter registration, Grace Poe, and US mass shooting

I wish to comment on some articles that recently appeared in the Inquirer:

1. “National Water Resources Board further cuts allocation in water supply due to El Niño” (Business, 10/2/15).

I just cannot understand why the Philippines, surrounded by water being an archipelago, would suffer water shortage for household use—be it for drinking or for general purpose cleaning. Why didn’t the government from way back or the present administration put up a “desalinization office” under the Department of Science and Technology, to process salt water, which we have in abundance, into fresh water? A water shortage is ironic, isn’t it? With the climate change we are now experiencing with regularity, manifested in unusual weather disturbances like a severe El Niño, converting salt water into fresh water should be a top government priority! With a few months left of his term, perhaps President Aquino could act on this concern before it’s too late.

2. “Comelec won’t extend voters’ registration period” (News, 10/3/15).

Right! Comelec should not entertain demands for such extension beyond Oct. 31, 2015. This is to teach our countrymen to be more aware of their civic obligations. Too long have we been hearing of “Filipino time”; Filipinos often take their own sweet time to comply with time-constrained requirements, like voter registration. We have to put a stop to our countrymen’s “Filipino time” mentality to inculcate in our people the importance of time.

3. Amando Doronila’s column on Grace Poe’s candidacy for the presidency (Opinion, 10/2/15).

Doronila hit the nail right on the head when he pointed out Poe’s messianic delusions in her desire to be president of the Philippines! What has she done that is of stellar importance to the Filipino people? She likes to remind voters that her adoptive name Poe comes from Fernando Poe Jr. Who was he anyway, aside from being a movie star just like Erap Estrada whose brand of presidency was “nongovernance”? And assuming she becomes our president, then we will have Americans for a first husband and first family. Besides, I can never trust someone who has renounced her Filipino citizenship and then took it back after deciding to become president! Where is loyalty there?

4. “Oregon shooter had 14 guns in arsenal, investigators say” (World, 10/5/15).

I wouldn’t be surprised if Americans would one day become extinct in the United States because of indiscriminate shooting by deranged Americans! This is a result of their love for guns, which is encouraged by the very politically influential National Rifle Association which wouldn’t hear of the gun control initiatives of US President Barack Obama. Any American, it appears, can just go to any gun store and buy an unlimited number of guns as many as he could afford! This can’t happen in the Philippines. This is one achievement I credit Philippine authorities with—the strict implementation of laws on acquiring guns/ammo. In the Philippines, one has to undergo a long, tedious process before he/she can buy and own a gun. And I thank the government for that!

—EDUARDO G. MISLANG, Barangay Pasong Tamo, Quezon City