People's hope may have died with FPJ
People's hope may have died with FPJ
Updated 11:53pm (Mla time) Dec 19, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the December 20, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
LIKE Macbeth who was terrified by the ghost of Banquo, the administration of President Macapagal-Arroyo is terrified by the dead Fernando Poe Jr. So terrified that it is contradicting itself by dangling so many consuelos de bobo to appease his grieving, angry family and supporters. First, it offered to make Poe a National Artist for the movies. Then it offered to bury him in the Libingan ng mga Bayani, which is reserved only for national heroes. When the offers were not accepted, it proposed flying the Philippine flag at half-mast, and when told that this cannot be done legally, it proposed giving Poe a Presidential Medal of Merit to make it legal.
The administration is contradicting itself. The National Artist award is limited only to true-blue Filipinos, that is why the award is called "National." Likewise, the Libingan ng mga Bayani is reserved only for Filipino heroes. But has the administration forgotten that it claims FPJ is not a Filipino?
That was its argument in the disqualification case against FPJ, and that was also its argument against FPJ's poll protest in the Presidential Electoral Tribunal.
Which leads us to repeat the question of FPJ's widow, Susan Roces: What happened to the bureau director who falsified FPJ's birth papers to make it appear that he was not a Filipino? The fellow has been charged with perjury and falsification of public documents a long time ago, but what happened to these cases? Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño says he doesn't have them, and nobody else in the Department of Justice knows where they are. The accused himself cannot be located. Is it any wonder that Susan is angry?
An indication of the anger of FPJ's fans is when they tore to pieces the wreaths sent by the President and by Speaker Jose de Venecia to Sto. Domingo Church. The President has also sent feelers to the family that she would like to pay her last respects to her fallen presidential rival, but they were rebuffed. Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye was earlier sent to the Arlington funeral parlor in Pasig to feel the pulse of the family and crowd, and he was disappointed. I felt so sorry for him as I watched him on television bravely walking through the hostile crowd, face set in a grim smile, knowing he was in enemy territory.
Everybody expects emotions and tempers to flare up during the funeral on Dec. 22. The parallelism between the assassination of Ninoy Aquino and the sudden death of Poe is not lost on the administration. It was the death of Ninoy that sparked Edsa I, that led to the people chasing the Marcoses out of Malacañang. It is possible that FPJ's funeral, if not handled right, could lead to the same end. Maybe not immediately, but it could fuel a smoldering anger that could explode like a volcano in a popular uprising later against the already very unpopular President Arroyo.
The parallelism does not end there. Although not yet proven, the people suspected that the Marcos administration was behind Ninoy's assassination. This time, people believe that FPJ was cheated out of the presidency, although that still has to be proven in the PET.
Indeed, judging from the millions of people flocking to FPJ's wake, and the national outpouring of grief and sorrow at his sudden death, one wonders how he could have lost the elections. The antics of the pro-administration members of Congress blocking all attempts to look deeper into the certificates of canvass, and the extreme slowness of the PET in acting on FPJ's electoral protest, only strengthened the belief that he was cheated.
Pour one hurt after another on an already suffering people and it is like playing with fire beside a pile of dynamite sticks.
It is said that the Filipinos are a patient people. Because they always cling to hope-even the poorest of the poor and the desperate among them-to pull them through. FPJ was a beacon of hope. Just as he was hope personified in the movies where he was the hero who always came to the rescue and triumphed in the end against villains. And he was a hero to them not only in the movies but also in real life. With his death, the people's hope of deliverance from oppression, injustice and poverty also died. Without hope, people resort to reckless and dangerous means, like the amoks who try to take with them to hell as many of their perceived tormentors as they can.
All these cannot be lost on the administration. I am sure they are discussing this in Malacañang. Which explains all the efforts at appeasement.
The FPJ crowds know the government is trying to appease them but they are not biting. Appeasement is not the same as sincerity. In the same way that a sinner cannot be forgiven unless he confesses his sins and sincerely repents. A prisoner cannot be given amnesty unless he admits his crime. People want sincerity from the administration.
* * *
If you still have not finished your Christmas shopping, here is a fast and easy way to do it. You still have a few days to do it.
Give the "gift of life" to your friends by donating, in their names, to the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). By donating a minimum of P100 to PAWS, it will send a "Gift of Life" card to your friend announcing that you have donated, in his name, that amount to care for abandoned dogs, cats, and other animals, which will be kept in animal shelters. You can visit PAWS' Animal Rehabilitation Center (PARC) on Aurora Blvd., Katipunan Valley, Loyola Heights, Quezon City, at the foot of the flyover going to Marikina.
For inquiries on this unique Christmas gift, you can call PARC at 475-1688.
Updated 11:53pm (Mla time) Dec 19, 2004
By Neal Cruz
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the December 20, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
LIKE Macbeth who was terrified by the ghost of Banquo, the administration of President Macapagal-Arroyo is terrified by the dead Fernando Poe Jr. So terrified that it is contradicting itself by dangling so many consuelos de bobo to appease his grieving, angry family and supporters. First, it offered to make Poe a National Artist for the movies. Then it offered to bury him in the Libingan ng mga Bayani, which is reserved only for national heroes. When the offers were not accepted, it proposed flying the Philippine flag at half-mast, and when told that this cannot be done legally, it proposed giving Poe a Presidential Medal of Merit to make it legal.
The administration is contradicting itself. The National Artist award is limited only to true-blue Filipinos, that is why the award is called "National." Likewise, the Libingan ng mga Bayani is reserved only for Filipino heroes. But has the administration forgotten that it claims FPJ is not a Filipino?
That was its argument in the disqualification case against FPJ, and that was also its argument against FPJ's poll protest in the Presidential Electoral Tribunal.
Which leads us to repeat the question of FPJ's widow, Susan Roces: What happened to the bureau director who falsified FPJ's birth papers to make it appear that he was not a Filipino? The fellow has been charged with perjury and falsification of public documents a long time ago, but what happened to these cases? Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño says he doesn't have them, and nobody else in the Department of Justice knows where they are. The accused himself cannot be located. Is it any wonder that Susan is angry?
An indication of the anger of FPJ's fans is when they tore to pieces the wreaths sent by the President and by Speaker Jose de Venecia to Sto. Domingo Church. The President has also sent feelers to the family that she would like to pay her last respects to her fallen presidential rival, but they were rebuffed. Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye was earlier sent to the Arlington funeral parlor in Pasig to feel the pulse of the family and crowd, and he was disappointed. I felt so sorry for him as I watched him on television bravely walking through the hostile crowd, face set in a grim smile, knowing he was in enemy territory.
Everybody expects emotions and tempers to flare up during the funeral on Dec. 22. The parallelism between the assassination of Ninoy Aquino and the sudden death of Poe is not lost on the administration. It was the death of Ninoy that sparked Edsa I, that led to the people chasing the Marcoses out of Malacañang. It is possible that FPJ's funeral, if not handled right, could lead to the same end. Maybe not immediately, but it could fuel a smoldering anger that could explode like a volcano in a popular uprising later against the already very unpopular President Arroyo.
The parallelism does not end there. Although not yet proven, the people suspected that the Marcos administration was behind Ninoy's assassination. This time, people believe that FPJ was cheated out of the presidency, although that still has to be proven in the PET.
Indeed, judging from the millions of people flocking to FPJ's wake, and the national outpouring of grief and sorrow at his sudden death, one wonders how he could have lost the elections. The antics of the pro-administration members of Congress blocking all attempts to look deeper into the certificates of canvass, and the extreme slowness of the PET in acting on FPJ's electoral protest, only strengthened the belief that he was cheated.
Pour one hurt after another on an already suffering people and it is like playing with fire beside a pile of dynamite sticks.
It is said that the Filipinos are a patient people. Because they always cling to hope-even the poorest of the poor and the desperate among them-to pull them through. FPJ was a beacon of hope. Just as he was hope personified in the movies where he was the hero who always came to the rescue and triumphed in the end against villains. And he was a hero to them not only in the movies but also in real life. With his death, the people's hope of deliverance from oppression, injustice and poverty also died. Without hope, people resort to reckless and dangerous means, like the amoks who try to take with them to hell as many of their perceived tormentors as they can.
All these cannot be lost on the administration. I am sure they are discussing this in Malacañang. Which explains all the efforts at appeasement.
The FPJ crowds know the government is trying to appease them but they are not biting. Appeasement is not the same as sincerity. In the same way that a sinner cannot be forgiven unless he confesses his sins and sincerely repents. A prisoner cannot be given amnesty unless he admits his crime. People want sincerity from the administration.
* * *
If you still have not finished your Christmas shopping, here is a fast and easy way to do it. You still have a few days to do it.
Give the "gift of life" to your friends by donating, in their names, to the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS). By donating a minimum of P100 to PAWS, it will send a "Gift of Life" card to your friend announcing that you have donated, in his name, that amount to care for abandoned dogs, cats, and other animals, which will be kept in animal shelters. You can visit PAWS' Animal Rehabilitation Center (PARC) on Aurora Blvd., Katipunan Valley, Loyola Heights, Quezon City, at the foot of the flyover going to Marikina.
For inquiries on this unique Christmas gift, you can call PARC at 475-1688.
posted by Dante at 8:01 PM
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