The vaunted day of violence on Bonifacio’s Day of the Cry of Balintawak has not come about. In fact there are not even any demonstrations.
Lomotil (which I understand is used by astronauts against diarrhea) and boiled guava fruit diffusion has succeeded in stopping my diarrhea which has weakened me.
Practiced golf at Wack Wack this morning just the same.
Sec. [Juan] Ponce Enrile was met by a jeering hostile crowd in Ateneo when he went to speak before the Political Science Club. The placards called him the “tuta of the tuta of the Americans” as well as similar nasty names.
Directed Sec. [Arturo] Tanco [Jr.] to award the oil concessions in the Palawan shelf soon (not later than Monday) because of the possible claims of the other nations to the area. Overseas is ready to drill in six months. I have ordered all the oil concessioners to be called and told to drill in a year. The chances of striking oil is high. And we need it.
Official Gazette for August 26, 1970: With only one scheduled visitor and one important conference, the President again concentrated on paper work.
Later in the morning, he taped with other participants the initial presentation of the new television program, “Confrontation,” under the auspices of the Department of National Defense press corps, as the first guest. The President was interviewed by a panel consisting of Tesoro de Guzman of the Daily Mirror, who was the moderator; Filemon V. Tutay of the Free Press; Jose V. de Vera of theBulletin; and Alex Allan of the Chronicle.
Earlier, the President received outgoing Swiss Ambassador Marcel Grossenbacher, who paid a farewell call prior to reporting to his home office for reassignment. The President also met behind closed doors Undersecretaries Arturo Tanco Jr. and Isosceles Pascual and Policarpio Cruz of the Bureau of Mines.
The rest of the morning and through early afternoon, the President was focused on his desk.
Later, the President briefly disengaged from his chores to view with other enthusiasts the karate exhibition staged by Korean black-belter Bok Man Kim and members of the Presidential Security Agency.
The President then issued a directive to the Department of Justice to verify and investigate press reports that an Intelligence unit inside Clark Air Force Base, known as “Red Patch.” has committed atrocities against Filipinos in and outside the base and to report on its results immediately so that proper measures may be taken should the matter be found to have any basis.
The President also asked Executive Secretary Alejandro Melchor, Jr., in his capacity as chairman of the Power Development Council, to speed up the development and utilization of known deposits of natural gas in the country, as part of the social and economic development. The order was issued after Secretary Melchor reported on his inspection of gas fields, which are believed to have deposits in sufficient quantities to be of sufficient industrial use. The executive secretary flew early in the morning to Isabela where he saw for himself the extent of explorations made thus far, and future expansion programs to be undertaken. In the company of Chairman Geronimo Velasco of the National Electrification Administration, NEA Officer-In-Charge Pedro Dumol, Demetrio Paz of the National Power Corporation, Director Fernando Busuego of the Bureau of Mines, Assistant Executive Secretary Roberto V. Reyes and Gov. Samuel Reyes of Isabela, Secretary Melchor visited the gas well in San Antonio, Echague, Isabela
Interviewed by the Defense Press Corps and pointed out that the dissidents are on the run because of the BSDU’s [Barrio Self-Defense Units]. And that there are differences between the old civilian guards and the BDSU’s: 1. BSDU’s are voluntary and the civilian guards more mercenaries; 2. BSDU’s are directly under the control of regular PC [Philippine Constabulary] personnel headed by a non-com; 3. The firearms are not lent to the BSDU’s except for training and defense of the barrio against attack; 4. The biggest difference is that the BSDU’s have succeeded where the civilian guards failed—obtain the voluntary support of the people against the dissidents by denying them the barrio as a source of information and supplies, of new recruits and privileged sanctuary.
Have granted S[alvador] P. Lopez, President of the U.P. [University of the Philippines], permission to go to the communist countries including Russia after he goes to the U.S. and Europe where he says he will work for the grants of the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations.
But I asked him how the UP was on academic standards and the extent of its infiltration by subversives. There are inquiries as to the true state of the various universities.
He seemed to think that he is doing very well as U.P. president. He is apparently completely blind. I wish Sec. of Justice Vicente Abad Santos were the president of the U.P.