by Wilhelmina S. Orozco
SO MUCH BRUHAHA ABOUT FORMAL SCHOOLING NOW.
June is always a very grand time for all of us. Parents are sending their children to school Businesspeople are busy offering cheap school supplies. Transport vehicles are presenting cheap services to school children. Schools are busy refurbishing their surroundings, after getting the permit to raise tuition fees.
But it is so demoralizing for those who cannot go to school, or who cannot find a job after graduating, or who just cannot hack formal schooling.
Why can't we also put so much importance on many other things in our life? I am not anti-formal education. In fact, I did finish it well, and am able to write and accomplish many tasks because I was able to hone my skills well, and absorb the essential things on how to think, abstract and apply theories in reality.
What I am against is when there is a reduced emphasis on artistic achievements and an overblown propaganda about local tv and movie stars who cannot even release any inspirational statement at all.
Actually, our people view TV and the movies without knowing that these are informal media for learning. Yet, these media hardly have any uplifting values. I watched an afternoon drama and waited and waited to hear some wise statements. Pero nada, nada. Dialogues went on and on about a girl's losing her boyfriend, a father's dark past impinging on his daughter's contravida stance towards another girl, ad nauseam.
By the way, in that recent issue about the degrading comment of Vice Ganda on the size of Jessica Soho, I think that it is high time to put standards on who could host on tv. The MTRCB must gather all tv bigwigs and make them promise or pledge to make their tv hosts undergo a seminar on ethical broadcasting. You see Folks, anyone with a good face, and proper connections could land a job on TV. But recent events, including that highly corrupt way of Willie Revillame in making a child do the macho dancing in his show urge us to have hosts with moral standards. And this can only be done if government cultural authorities use this as a leverage in giving permits to operate.
Culture is a very important part of any society. If we let it go down the drain, we shall have plenty of gangsters and opportunists making cash on women's things, on children's vulnerabilities, and people's ignorance, among others.
Sure let us emphasize formal education but let us also see how other media are working on the minds and emotions of our people.
The best thing really is for us to work towards a golden age of TV and the movies, not materially but spiritually and morally.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Monday, May 20, 2013
GOODBYE TAIWAN
by Wilhelmina S. Orozco
The recent killing of a Taiwanese fisherman in the sea that is being owned by Taiwan and the Philippines has brought about monstrous consequences. Our compatriots are bearing the brunt of that great mistake in Philippine naval history. Then the snail-pace reaction of the government on how to appease the Taiwan people has been giving us added problems -- our vulnerable compariots do not have any jobs waiting for them should they be deported back to our country.
Folks, our problem is the mindset of our officials. They tend to think macro all the time. They talk about laws, treaties, etcetera when one solution could be for Pres Pnoy or his representative to go and visit the family of the victim, console with them and offer his one-year's salary as abuloy for the dead. Then he could give scholarships if ever the victim has any more children who are studying.
Taiwan, though a progressive country, with their citizens leading modern lifestyles, is still feudal when it comes to human relations. They think tribally. "Aha, one of us was killed; let us avenge his death by hitting their countryfolks here."
Now this is he reason why unbridled technological development like what is happening in Taiwan is not the way for us to go. It breeds dehumanization if not maintains tribalism because it does not touch nor raise the consciousness of the people on what is a humane socio-cultural response to development.
We also see here that the Taiwanese people who hit our compatriots have not heard yet of the UN Declaration of Human Rights, and so they are going on a rampage over there, abetted by the Taiwanese media which also has questionable foundations.
Taiwan is just a neighbor, Folks. And their anger could reach us at any time. Maybe even the Chinese businesspeople who are importing goods from them should do their share. Let them pool their resources and contribute to assuaging the feelings of loneliness of the family over the death of their kin.
Before the Spaniards came to our shores, our people were already trading with the Chinese.In fact, in the history book of Fe Mangahas, which was recently launched at the National Historical Commission, she writes there about the three routes that pass through the Philippines. One is the Silk Road which brought goods from Asia to Europe. There were no hassles in trading there, no acts of aggression as to who can use the routes. It was just plain trading: I have goods here and you have too; so let's exchange.
Unfortunately, greed set in some time in the historical past and so territorialities and boundaries were set up, thus bringing about rigid controls and building of social and economic classes that have antagonistic interest.
Maybe we should accept it if Taiwan wants to say goodbye to our compatriots and let them come home. Then let us take the time to read our history again and find out where we could give the world a better and humane look at international relations where economic needs are concerned.
The recent killing of a Taiwanese fisherman in the sea that is being owned by Taiwan and the Philippines has brought about monstrous consequences. Our compatriots are bearing the brunt of that great mistake in Philippine naval history. Then the snail-pace reaction of the government on how to appease the Taiwan people has been giving us added problems -- our vulnerable compariots do not have any jobs waiting for them should they be deported back to our country.
Folks, our problem is the mindset of our officials. They tend to think macro all the time. They talk about laws, treaties, etcetera when one solution could be for Pres Pnoy or his representative to go and visit the family of the victim, console with them and offer his one-year's salary as abuloy for the dead. Then he could give scholarships if ever the victim has any more children who are studying.
Taiwan, though a progressive country, with their citizens leading modern lifestyles, is still feudal when it comes to human relations. They think tribally. "Aha, one of us was killed; let us avenge his death by hitting their countryfolks here."
Now this is he reason why unbridled technological development like what is happening in Taiwan is not the way for us to go. It breeds dehumanization if not maintains tribalism because it does not touch nor raise the consciousness of the people on what is a humane socio-cultural response to development.
We also see here that the Taiwanese people who hit our compatriots have not heard yet of the UN Declaration of Human Rights, and so they are going on a rampage over there, abetted by the Taiwanese media which also has questionable foundations.
Taiwan is just a neighbor, Folks. And their anger could reach us at any time. Maybe even the Chinese businesspeople who are importing goods from them should do their share. Let them pool their resources and contribute to assuaging the feelings of loneliness of the family over the death of their kin.
Before the Spaniards came to our shores, our people were already trading with the Chinese.In fact, in the history book of Fe Mangahas, which was recently launched at the National Historical Commission, she writes there about the three routes that pass through the Philippines. One is the Silk Road which brought goods from Asia to Europe. There were no hassles in trading there, no acts of aggression as to who can use the routes. It was just plain trading: I have goods here and you have too; so let's exchange.
Unfortunately, greed set in some time in the historical past and so territorialities and boundaries were set up, thus bringing about rigid controls and building of social and economic classes that have antagonistic interest.
Maybe we should accept it if Taiwan wants to say goodbye to our compatriots and let them come home. Then let us take the time to read our history again and find out where we could give the world a better and humane look at international relations where economic needs are concerned.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
POLITICAL POWER, STEPPING STONE OR END IN ITSELF?
How should we treat Political Power, a stepping stone or an end in itself? Should we use it to further our personal and/or social aims? Should we use it to be known and for everyone to kowtow to us because of that power to spend, to appoint, to select, and everything else connected with the position?
Some officials I think go into politics without knowing the deeper meaning of political power. They may have watched other people, usually their relatives handle political positions. They must have seen the power he/she wields and how the people surrounding them almost kneel before them. For example, when looking for a job, people would be swarming into the office of a senator or a congress rep for an endorsement. When seeking help to pay for hospital bills, they trek to the same office for what would come out later on as a drop in the bucket of the huge PDAF that the official gets every year. Others seek the sale of tickets to a concert or an advertising space in a cultural event. Still some seek scholarships for some academic schools
But really now, what is the purpose of political power? Those mentioned above are just sidetracks to the real aim of being in the legislative or the executive branch. I recall Apolinario Mabini who was the Brains of the Katipunan. Though he had a frail body he was able to research and write on what government should be put up by Emilio Aguinaldo. Until his last breath, the American military officials were so afraid of his intelligence that they sought to exile him and later on, upon return, to confine him to a place, where they could watch who would be visiting him and getting influenced by his revolutionary ideas.
Despite the difficult circumstances he existed in, Mabini was able to come up with a body of works He wrote the pamphlets "El Verdadero Decalogo'" and "Ordenanzas de la Revolucion," inspirational books for the Katipuneros fighting the Spanish colonial powers at the time.
"Mabini also wrote La Revolution Filipina, giving the raiso d'etre for the conduct of the revolution against Spain and that against the American invaders.
So why do we mention Mabini now? He had a vision for the country, for saving the people from political opportunists, even Filipino officials-revolutionarries. In other words, his consciousness was solely for the Filipino people, and not for any personal ends. Hence, even today, we consider him a worthwhile hero, alongside other heroes and heroines.
What we have now after the death of our martyrs are their legacies, their pamana to the race. They leave us with lasting wisdom and historic behavior that catapulted our country into the first in Asia to achieve independence from colonial powers.
Now we ask, what legacy can we expect from our present crop fo leaders? Will they carve their own destiny and leave a lasting mark in our history or will they be just copycats of previous leaders, not creating any dent at all in our consciousness and a progressive change in our lives as a people?
What is the meaning of political power to them?
Abangan!
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
EXPOSING MEDIA POWER IN ELECTIONS
by Wilhelmina S. Orozco
Media power is very evident in the results of the midterm elections. Grace Poe (daughter of Fernando Poe, Jr.), Loren Legarda of Channel 2 before (#2) , Joseph Estrada, Lucy Torres who won as a Congress Representative from Leyte, Coco Pimentel (7th) who keeps a radio national program and whose father is a Sunday fixture in another radio station, and movie actor Aga Muhlach governor of Camarines Sur. Film candidates, Poe and Estrada got plum slots - number one senator and mayor, respectively.
Winners who know how to use media like Allan Peter Cayetano (senator), Cynthia Villar (10th) and Chiz Escudero (3rd) who probably has a media agent that knows how to exploit his tiff with the parents of his beloved, also won handily, landing in 3rd, 4th and 10th slots as of the moment.
What are the traits of a media-savvy candidate? They do not hesitate when speaking; know their subject matter, are clear in pronouncing words, and know how to tickle the minds of the listeners/audience. In other words, they are schooled in appearing in public, whether through a medium or in person.
How much is a tv spot? In one station alone, a 30-seconder costs almost half a mIllion. But some candidates were able to make themselves seen and heard almost everyday since the start of the campaign period. Multiply that by just 30 days, and that would come up to P15,000,000. Where will a candidate get that much money to pay for his or her exposure? Surely a way to democratize media exposure should be found to make sure that money will not be the measure of victory at the polls and that no candidate will be able to monopolize the use of a medium just because he/she has got the funds for it.
Fernando Poe, Jr. during his presidential campaign was also able to use the media and his public meetings had thunderous applauses. He lost, not because he was less media-exposed but because there was cheating. Unfortunately, instead of putting a closure to his protest, the tribunal hearing the case considered it moot and academic when he died under questionable circumstances, to my mind. I think the government owes it to every voter to show who really won in the 2004 presidential elections. No such thing as moot and academic where the people's WILL is concerned. Philippine history should not have gaps in terms of writing the history of how people vote and who we vote for as president, or any other position for that matter.
I would even suggest now that a DNA testing of the body of FPJ be done in order to know the real cause of his death. So many causes were bandied about -- centering much on something innocuous. But to my mind, the real cause is still political. The wife of a policeman told me that some ten persons did him in when he was hospitalized. Unfortunately, that wife has died of lupus and we cannot get anymore personal testimony from her.
And so, the saga continues with the ascendancy of Grace Poe to power. How effective and influential will she be in the Senate among her colleagues? Abangan!
Being elected to any government position does not mean possessing the position and earning a lot for sitting in it. The raison d'etre of being in government is to serve, serve and serve the public more. In fact I would proffer that government service should be a 24-hour commitment so long as there are poor, hungry, and homeless people.
Media power is very evident in the results of the midterm elections. Grace Poe (daughter of Fernando Poe, Jr.), Loren Legarda of Channel 2 before (#2) , Joseph Estrada, Lucy Torres who won as a Congress Representative from Leyte, Coco Pimentel (7th) who keeps a radio national program and whose father is a Sunday fixture in another radio station, and movie actor Aga Muhlach governor of Camarines Sur. Film candidates, Poe and Estrada got plum slots - number one senator and mayor, respectively.
Winners who know how to use media like Allan Peter Cayetano (senator), Cynthia Villar (10th) and Chiz Escudero (3rd) who probably has a media agent that knows how to exploit his tiff with the parents of his beloved, also won handily, landing in 3rd, 4th and 10th slots as of the moment.
What are the traits of a media-savvy candidate? They do not hesitate when speaking; know their subject matter, are clear in pronouncing words, and know how to tickle the minds of the listeners/audience. In other words, they are schooled in appearing in public, whether through a medium or in person.
How much is a tv spot? In one station alone, a 30-seconder costs almost half a mIllion. But some candidates were able to make themselves seen and heard almost everyday since the start of the campaign period. Multiply that by just 30 days, and that would come up to P15,000,000. Where will a candidate get that much money to pay for his or her exposure? Surely a way to democratize media exposure should be found to make sure that money will not be the measure of victory at the polls and that no candidate will be able to monopolize the use of a medium just because he/she has got the funds for it.
Fernando Poe, Jr. during his presidential campaign was also able to use the media and his public meetings had thunderous applauses. He lost, not because he was less media-exposed but because there was cheating. Unfortunately, instead of putting a closure to his protest, the tribunal hearing the case considered it moot and academic when he died under questionable circumstances, to my mind. I think the government owes it to every voter to show who really won in the 2004 presidential elections. No such thing as moot and academic where the people's WILL is concerned. Philippine history should not have gaps in terms of writing the history of how people vote and who we vote for as president, or any other position for that matter.
I would even suggest now that a DNA testing of the body of FPJ be done in order to know the real cause of his death. So many causes were bandied about -- centering much on something innocuous. But to my mind, the real cause is still political. The wife of a policeman told me that some ten persons did him in when he was hospitalized. Unfortunately, that wife has died of lupus and we cannot get anymore personal testimony from her.
And so, the saga continues with the ascendancy of Grace Poe to power. How effective and influential will she be in the Senate among her colleagues? Abangan!
Being elected to any government position does not mean possessing the position and earning a lot for sitting in it. The raison d'etre of being in government is to serve, serve and serve the public more. In fact I would proffer that government service should be a 24-hour commitment so long as there are poor, hungry, and homeless people.
Friday, May 10, 2013
ELECTIONS AS TRANSITIONS
After Monday, May 10, 2013, evening, we will have had a half-picture of how the Filipino people have voted. We will see who are most important for them to lead the country: will they be the persons who exhibit truthfulness in their actions? Will they be those who have had sterling accomplishments in terms of good governance? Will they be the rich ones who can afford to buy votes?
So many questions to ask. So many answers needed to see the political profile of the Filipino people. But does it really matter?
To some ordinary folks, the corrupted, those who buy votes are the best to be voted upon. A few would believe in surveys and say "kung sino ang kilala, ok na." Still others refuse to go with the tide and say, they have chosen who to vote and they need not fill up the rest of the ballot.
Thus, we can see that our voting behavior cannot be described fully, nor systematically yet. We are in this transition to seeing elections as a truly important method of shaping our government -- peopling every important position with candidates who would fulfill their promises, and who would do the utmost to raise the lifestyle of the people, their living conditions.
Our honest elections happened in 1998 when Joseph Estrada was elected as president. After that year, everything went downhill. We lived through two administrations of a fake president. It was only in 2010 that we got a real dose of what a people's elections is. Maybe it was not perfect, but still the people until now are happy with their choices.
Sometimes, I fantasize as to what our country could have been if Miriam Defensor Santiago had become our president in 1992. I am sure we would have a very exciting time with her, what with her colorful language and sometimes impulsive acts -- borne of a legal mind. Maybe 80% of ehr acts would have made us a country of note.
Unfortunately, she lost after a series of brown-outs rendered the counting of votes a tedious effort. Her protest against cheating in the elections was rendered moot and academic because she ran in 1995 and won as senator.
It is possible that protests will happen again after Monday, after elections. The tribunals involved in resolving political cases should develop newer methods of dealing with protests and resolve them in the soonest time possible. It is unhealthy for the members of the tribunals to make the protesters wait for years and years before they would render a decision on the cases. Also presidential, senatorial and congressional protests should always be decided upon in a month, and not more. The positions are highly important in running our country and hence protests with regard to the legitimate occupation of such require immediate attention.
What should be the role of the military in this case? Should they be used by persons whose holding on to the positions is being questioned? Should they harass those individuals who protest so that they would back off and not"rock the boat" so to speak? I think these are unhealthy acts just the same, unhealthy in terms of making our democratic space work.
I hope that the people would be more discerning of who to vote. This morning I was told that purok leaders in District 1 of Quezon City are already receiving their share for use in getting votes. Unfortunately, "inuuna nila ang mga kamag-anak nila na mabibiyayaan, hindi ang taumbayan." In this view of my source, she seems to to be saying that this is the system and so the system should work in favor of everyone.
I really cannot speculate as to when we could have a very accurate and bias-free method of electing officials. Some quarter say education is the key. But this is not simply education -- it is moral education. Now can we eat that as Bertolt Brecht would ask in The Three Penny Opera. Can we eat morals?
As I have continually harped on, our society must offer each individual a chance to be powerful not just in the field of politics but in every aspect of life. Why should we give so much emphasis on political positions as the be-all and end-all of things? The government -- the cultural center of the philippines, the national commission on culture and the arts -- must think up of ways of making all artistic endeavors as highly important for pursuing, and insure that the funds are democratically dispensed to deserving individuals and groups, not because they are close to the powers that be. The science agencies should also insure the same -- make science as a worthwhile endeavor to help humanity. Even farmers/fisherfolks should feel that their occupations are highly important to nation building and should be recognized by the government.
Politics should be viewed as being entered into to solve the grave problems of the country, and not as a field that would make individuals shine in society. I think that some of the candidates have that traditional view, which is why we call them trapo, because they view positions as a glittered job that would make the people kowtow to them.
Is anyone reading this? Are they listening?
Folks let us bring flashlights on Monday and help the teachers complete their job. Have a peaceful and bloodless week.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
VALUE OF A VOTE
I understand now why these elections would be the bloodiest of all. Folks from 2000 when GMA stole the presidency from Erap, and down to 2010, we have not really had any honest elections. There had always been cheating and cover-ups of the real scores. People were scared of confronting GMA of such issues until the Ampatuan massacre occurred in Maguindanao which rendered many people murdered including the wife of a candidate Mangundadatu. That incident showed the extent of embracing corruption to the fullest -- of freezing any attempt to dislodge the Ampatuans from power. It showed us the gravest acts that someone who is eager for power could ever do.
And so in this second wave of elections from 2010, candidates especially those who are vying for posts long held by corrupt officials are braver in facing the costs of running. They are more confrontational and do not mince words in calling a spade a spade. After all the essence of democratic elections is to justify why one is running for a post -- what changes in policies, programs and activities of both local and national positions will be made in order to bring about a society that is not poor, not corrupt and open to everyone to live peacefully and humanely.
The statistics are coming day by day and it seems that the presence of military and police authorities in hotspot areas is not bringing about any cowering for fear of the perpetrators of electoral crimes. Now, can we expect the people to protect their votes, to risk their lives to have their real choices win, and not some other who has manipulated the PCOS machines?
This will take a good kind of vigilance from all sectors -- the churches, the non-government organizations, the polwatchers, and many more. The people must feel that they are still protected even when questioning up to small details any electoral act that would subvert the results.
We live only once. Is it all right to risk our lives for a vote? Each one should have an answer to that.
Sunday, May 5, 2013
DEMOCRATIZED POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING
Wilhelmina S. Orozco
The spate of election paraphernalia and vast chests of radio and tv ads make methink that politics is just for the moneyed class in our country. In the morning, I listen to the radio and I often hear the name of four or a few more candidates of one political group talking about their qualifications and their future plans once they reach the Senate floor. Then when I roam the streets of Metromanila, I see various posters of candidates hanging on electric posts, pasted on fences, etcetera. One tarpaulin would cost minimum of 100 pesos; and I see more than a dozen already of one candidate in our barangay already. So multiply 100 by 12 and that would be 1,200. Add to that the flyers -- mind you colored, the tee-shirts of their supporters, the gasoline needed to run the jeepney that goes around with a loudspeaker announcing the name of the candidate. You would come up with about, conservatively, P5,000 per day of campaigning.
Who can afford that nowadays?
I think that the Comelec should already assess the political tracks of the candidates and abstract from these how best to stop such candidates who violate election rules and regulations, as well as come up with a democratic way by which all candidates could be made to toe the line of having equal exposure as everybody else as candidates.
I can think of this: all candidates before launching their campaigns must be willing to have a uniform kitty: where not one but always, all the candidates will be featured. No candidate should be made to tower over the rest when media covers them or exposes them -- radio, tv, print. In other words, those media that can expose candidates to millions of viewers should be reserved for equal exposure of all.
Now those other gadgets like celphones, telephones, and technology formats like emails, facebook accounts, should be a free-for-all use. In other words, candidates may expose themselves a million times in those as much as they want.
Also, there should be a Comelec hour, whereby the Comelec shall showcase the candidates, one by one on radio, tv, and print. Say a newspaper wants to feature a certain candidate, it should also feature the photos of the other candidates at the end of the same article with brief captions so that the readers shall have a broad glimpse of who are vying for the post. At communities, the Comelec should have one bulletin board for all candidates to use.
In this way, we are truly democratizing election campaigning and not allowingany individual or group to dominate the political scene.
By the way, I would like to invite the Comelec to visit Barangay Dona Imelda to see who are abiding by or violating Comelec rules and regulations in campaigning.
The spate of election paraphernalia and vast chests of radio and tv ads make methink that politics is just for the moneyed class in our country. In the morning, I listen to the radio and I often hear the name of four or a few more candidates of one political group talking about their qualifications and their future plans once they reach the Senate floor. Then when I roam the streets of Metromanila, I see various posters of candidates hanging on electric posts, pasted on fences, etcetera. One tarpaulin would cost minimum of 100 pesos; and I see more than a dozen already of one candidate in our barangay already. So multiply 100 by 12 and that would be 1,200. Add to that the flyers -- mind you colored, the tee-shirts of their supporters, the gasoline needed to run the jeepney that goes around with a loudspeaker announcing the name of the candidate. You would come up with about, conservatively, P5,000 per day of campaigning.
Who can afford that nowadays?
I think that the Comelec should already assess the political tracks of the candidates and abstract from these how best to stop such candidates who violate election rules and regulations, as well as come up with a democratic way by which all candidates could be made to toe the line of having equal exposure as everybody else as candidates.
I can think of this: all candidates before launching their campaigns must be willing to have a uniform kitty: where not one but always, all the candidates will be featured. No candidate should be made to tower over the rest when media covers them or exposes them -- radio, tv, print. In other words, those media that can expose candidates to millions of viewers should be reserved for equal exposure of all.
Now those other gadgets like celphones, telephones, and technology formats like emails, facebook accounts, should be a free-for-all use. In other words, candidates may expose themselves a million times in those as much as they want.
Also, there should be a Comelec hour, whereby the Comelec shall showcase the candidates, one by one on radio, tv, and print. Say a newspaper wants to feature a certain candidate, it should also feature the photos of the other candidates at the end of the same article with brief captions so that the readers shall have a broad glimpse of who are vying for the post. At communities, the Comelec should have one bulletin board for all candidates to use.
In this way, we are truly democratizing election campaigning and not allowingany individual or group to dominate the political scene.
By the way, I would like to invite the Comelec to visit Barangay Dona Imelda to see who are abiding by or violating Comelec rules and regulations in campaigning.
ASSETS OR LIABILITIES?
Who are the best killers of votes in a winning political group? I had a few chances of attending a street meeting and an in-door meeting and watching a tv program where some people were endorsing candidates.
1. At one meeting, a candidate said that after the elections, he would be buying motorcycles for all the barangays in his district since his colleague had done the same. (what is this? He falls for the band wagon, no mind of his own? I can't blame him. His number one credential is having the same family name as a very prominent official in Congress.)
2. At another meeting, an endorser of an RH candidate spoke after she did and had gone. The endorser, instead of focussing on her alone, mentioned other names that are to be voted upon. Now if that happens, the person she is endorsing could fall below the list because the others she mentioned are already in the high list of favorites in national surveys. Also, when given a suggestion, she brushed this aside, as if to say, "we have thought of that already." And with another suggestion to have a huge turnout of supporters on May 7th in front of the Supreme Court, whose decision with regard to RH has already given a blackeye to the supporters, this endorser said, "walang pera," as if people will support a massive political participation only if there is money. What is this again? A case of "Kami na lang ang bahala. Huwag ka ng mag-suggest. Alam namin ang ginagawa namin." This is a mentality of "know-it-all" and elitism, that they are the political elite who know what is best for the country.
3. In a news program, I saw the relative talk of her endorsing some members of Team Pinoy, not all. This is a blatant slap on the leader of Team Pino, who is no other than the president. What she was really saying was, "although I am a relative, I have my own mind and I don't care who he endorses. I will endorse my friends, no matter what." This is where I believe that a code of ethics should be developed for relatives of officials. The least they could do is be silent with regard to going contrary to the decisions of their relatives. That is what I would call "delicadeza." A person who rides roughshod on their official-relatives position is trying to grab the limelight, to be more popular, ksp in our Pilipino lingo, or kulang sa pansin. HELP! Please help her discern the truth, that in politics, the best position is to be known as one having the heart for the poor and disadvantaged, and not acting like a moviestar all the time. The occasion calls for restraint and political etiquette.
And so friends, let us be wary not only of how officials appear to us, but also the people surrounding them. Are they assets or liabilities?
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