WHY is there no reason to fear martial law in Mindanao?

If you are not a criminal or a terrorist, you have nothing to fear about martial law being declared in the whole of Mindanao.

Fierce fighting in Marawi City between government troops and Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups prompted President Digong to declare martial rule in the country’s second largest island group.

The President, who cut short his trip to Russia, said he would be harsh on terrorists and criminals in Mindanao.

If you’re in Mindanao you’ll feel safer with the presence of heavily armed soldiers and policemen in fatigue uniform in your area.

———— Harsh is an understatement. If President Joseph “Erap” Estrada subjugated Moro rebels during his time when he had government troops capture Camp Abubakar, stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Mr. Duterte could do 10 times more than what Erap did.

Just remember what Digong did to the hoodlums in Davao City when he was its city mayor.

———— How come the Sandiganbayan seems to be slow in hearing the graft cases against the Binays—former Vice President Jojo and former Makati Mayors Elenita and Junjun?

Why is the special court fast in deciding graft cases of minor government officials but seems to be taking its own sweet time when it comes to the Binays?

The public expects a faster movement of cases against the Binays.

———— Heard from the grapevine: The current Makati mayor, Abby Binay, is having a quarrel with her brother, dismissed mayor Junjun, over how to run City Hall.

The City Council is divided into two camps, one for the current mayor and the other for Junjun.

Things are reportedly mov- ing slowly at Makati City Hall because of the siblings’ quarrel.

There’s a split within the Binay family reportedly because of the tiff between the siblings: mother Elenita is for Abby while father Jojo is for Junjun.

———— Since 2009, there has never been a major blackout or brownout when private consortium National Grid Corp. of the Philippines ( NGCP) took over power transmission.

The Filipino-led and managed corporation currently employs more than 4,700 Filipinos responsible for transmitting high-voltage electricity from power plants to distribution facilities through the transmission lines.

But what’s this talk going the rounds that the current leadership of the Department of Energy is giving the NGCP management a hard time?

———— I’d like to congratulate my baptismal godson, Neil Anthony “Jumbo” Borja, who passed the recent Bar exams.

Jumbo, whose mother Yvonne died when he was a child, is the son of lawyer Nelson Borja, a former officer of the defunct Philippine Constabulary.

Jumbo, who graduated from Ateneo de Manila College of Law, finished salutatorian in elementary and high school at Kostka School in Quezon City.

His father Nelson, an expert in criminal law, must be very proud of him.