This story was emailed to me by Mr. Panguy-ab.
I could have written a similar story with a better plot. But I am so drained lately. I've just been from a marathon of grad school exams, I thought I'm now brain dead from such a hurdle. My brain might be dead, but my fingers are not. So I have to make a post, even if such is ingloriously plagiarized.
Btw, Mr. Panguy-ab is a UK resident. But he is so bored by his hapless existence in a nondescript county miles away from London that he makes panguy-ab, or yawning, a favorite hobby. In his neighborhood, everybody is absorbed with work, nobody has the time to even chat with him. His boredom sometimes mutates to homicidal tendencies especially because, as a first time UK college student and a transferee from the University of the Philippines, he finds out that his subjects which seem awefully and nosebleedingly hard to his classmates, are to him nothing but reviews of his high school subjects in the Philippines; and a slap to his nationalistic fervor - while he guiltily admits he has never finished reading and analyzing Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, his English class takes up nothing but the works of William Shakespeare, somebody he has never admired and thought of existing. And he is so bored with the Shakespearean lines he could stab Romeo if he sees him, or snub Juliet if he ever meets her. Yes, William, a rose by whatever name, still smells as sweet. And to Mr. Panguy-ab, Juliet by whatever pseudonym or guise, still sounds and looks irritating. So he takes to panguy-ab, irregardless of whether he is before friends, Romans, and countrymen without ears.
Here goes the story...
The Vote for Heaven or Hell
A powerful senator dies after a prolonged illness. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.
"Welcome to Heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."
"No problem, just let me in," says the senator.
"Well, I'd like to but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in Hell and one in Heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."
"Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in Heaven."
"I'm sorry but we have our rules," replies St. Peter.
And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to Hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. Nearby are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him. Everyone is in evening attire and very happy to see him. They run to greet him, hug him, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people. They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster and caviar.
Also present is the Devil, who really is a very friendly guy and who has a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are having such a good time that the time flies, before he realizes it, the senator has to go. Everyone gives him a big hug and waves while the elevator rises.
The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens on Heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him.
"Now it's time to visit Heaven."
The next 24 hours pass with the senator joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.
"Well then, you've spent a day in Hell and another in Heaven. Now choose your eternity." The senator reflects for a minute, then answers, "Well, I would never have said it, I mean Heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in Hell."
So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to Hell. Now the doors of the elevator open and he is in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags.
The Devil comes over to him and lays his arm on his neck.
"I don't understand," stammers the senator. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and a beautiful club and we ate lobster and caviar and danced and had a great time. Now there is only a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable.
The Devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning. Today you voted for us!"@
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Story from Mr. Panguy-ab
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Typhoons in Luzon; storm in Iloilo
Sunday, the sun shone brightly all over the Philippines. Alleluia! There were intermittent rains in some parts of Luzon. But on the whole, the weather was good. The Department of Education ordered the resumption of classes on Monday except in those areas where there are still floods and in schools still occupied by evacuees.
TV news dwell on the typhoon Ondoy experiences and footages of the devastations wrought by typhoon Pepeng as it lashed Northern Luzon last Saturday afternoon. Typhoon Pepeng was indeed a super typhoon.
Iloilo was spared from the typhoons. But last week the sky was overcast and there were also heavy rains in Iloilo.
And a storm has been brewing in Iloilo for weeks already. And this storm is comical, entertaining, and many times stupid and pathetic. The storm I am referring to is in the field of politics. Elections may still be eight months from now. But to a true blue politician, May 2010 is just some weeks away. Politicians have started getting the voters’ attention months ago.
Currently in the eye of the political storm is incumbent Iloilo Governor Niel Tupas, Sr. Since last week, local radio stations have been airing his alleged misuse of government equipment in building his resthouse at Brgy. Juanico, Banate, Iloilo. Local TV stations showed video clips and photographs of dump trucks, a grader and a bulldozer working in the governor’s house. The green dump trucks are marked “Province of Iloilo” while the blue grader and bulldozer bear the official seal of the Banate municipal government.
In a radio interview, Tupas said the trucks never got near his house. But when shown with copies of the pictures, he said he only invited the drivers to have coffee and snacks when the heavy equipment passed by his house as they were getting quarry materials from a quarry site nearby. He added that the issue was politically-motivated.
It must be recalled that early this year, Gov. Tupas established a house at Brgy. Juanico and transferred his voter’s registration to the same barangay in preparation for his candidacy for congressman of the 4th congressional district of Iloilo opposite incumbent Rep. Ferjenel Biron. Gov. Tupas is on his third and last term as governor. The 1987 constitution limits the term of local officials to three 3-year terms.
As the alluded source of the video and pictures, Rep. Ferjenel Biron, in a radio interview, hedged the accusation, and rather lambasted Tupas for allegedly stashing so much ill-gotten wealth. In so many words, he questioned the capability of Tupas to build multi-million-peso houses on his capitol salary of P38,000 a month. He asked something like ‘Ano gid bala ang business ni Tupas nga nagmanggaranon gid siya?’ Biron, a medical doctor, owns a drug company and a chain of pharmaceutical outlets.
I would like to stress that the first time I heard about Biron was in the 2004 elections. It was the first election I witnessed since I transferred for good to the Philippines. In that election, I think the dirtiest was in the 4th congressional district of Iloilo, between Ferjenel Biron and Jesry Palmares who were running for Congressman. The fourth district might be far from Jaro where I live, but the radio and TV airtimes were inundated with political black propaganda of the two candidates against each other. The attacks were so vicious, I wondered how the two protagonists could still face the people with dignity after the elections.
If Tupas is graduating, who are aspiring to be the next Iloilo governor?
When typhoon Ondoy was bringing floods to Luzon, politicians in Iloilo were also flooding the halls of Hotel del Rio in Iloilo City to hear Congressman Arthur Defensor, Sr. and Board Member Richard Garin announce their decision to run for governor and vice governor, respectively, in the May 2010 elections. Defensor said that he has decided to run again for governor (he was Iloilo governor from 1992 to 2001) to “bring back the trust and confidence of the people on the provincial government.” He added there are reasons “to put an end to the continuity of the present leadership and restore faith and dignity among our people.”
By trust and confidence, he apparently refers to persistent reports of graft and corruption committed by the Tupas administration as reported in the media. And by continuity, of course he refers to incumbent Barotac Viejo Mayor Raul “Boboy” Tupas, Gov. Tupas’ son and anointed one.
Raul Tupas is reportedly running for Iloilo governor. His running mate is former Vice Governor Obet Armada. Surprise? If you recall, it was Armada who was overtly atat-na-atat to kick out Gov. Tupas during the capitol siege in 2007, when the military barged into the Iloilo capitol by breaking a glass wall to bodily drag Tupas out of the governor’s office. Tupas was suspended by the Ombusman for corruption. Defenders said he was suspended because he withdrew his support from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo following the "Hello Garci" controversy. At the time of the capitol siege, Armada was the vice governor. He ran for governor, but lost, against incumbent Niel Tupas. Now, he will run again, but this time in tandem with the Tupas son. Oh, well, politics is addition.
And in Iloilo City?
Vice Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog officially declared his intention to run for mayor of Iloilo City at the auditorium of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV). He will run against Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Raul Gonzales, Sr. and Presidential Assistant on Water Lorenzo Jamora. Gonzales was vocal about his plan to run for Iloilo City Mayor even while sitting as Justice Secretary. At that time, when asked about a possible clash with Mabilog, his partymate, he sounded boastful and confident. Bisan pila pa kuno ka Mabilog, or words to that effect. Now, that Mabilog has announced his mayoral bid, Gonzales sounded bitter and betrayed. He could tolerate being pitted with another elderly like Jamora but not with someone who could be younger than his son.
Lately, the two mayoral aspirants attacked each other’s declarations of Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN). The two accused each other of doctoring their SALN. And more skeletons from the closet will soon surface out. Abangan.
And the congressmen for the lone district of Iloilo City? It was tauted before that Iloilo City will be divided into 2 districts to accommodate Mayor Jerry Treñas who is in his third and last term as Iloilo City mayor. The incumbent congressman of Iloilo City is Raul Gonzales, Jr. But the bill is still in limbo as it is deemed unconstitutional.
Treñas is supposed to seek a higher position. But he is a sure loser if he runs as senator. So, congressman it must be. But he cannot yet announce his intention. He does not like to act ingrato kuno to Gonzales Sr. who said that Treñas owed his being mayor to him. Treñas and Gonzales Sr. and Jr. are in the same party. So Treñas cannot run under his party because of the incumbency rule. Besides Gonzales is a party bigwig. And how about Treñas’ P130-M Pavia housing scam? Raul could be holding some aces. But there is a signature drive in the city to ask Treñas to run for congressman. The group expects to gather 5,000 to 10,000 signatures by first week of October. So who said Treñas is not doing anything? Bisan ano basta ikaw ang topiko ka mga tawo.
But I think, the most awaited fight is in the fifth congressional district. Vice Governor Rolex Suplico is reportedly running against his cousin Niel Junjun Tupas, the incumbent and the governor’s son. Who said that blood is thicker than water? I pity the two. When they were kids, the first cousins might be the constant playmates, the best of friends with one ready to suffer bruises and black eyes to defend the other in a kiddy fight. Now that they are older, more mature, professionals, and able to discern right from wrong, they become bitter enemies. Everyone is awaiting what muck, dirt, and family heirloom will fly in the fifth district. Indeed, familiarity breeds contempt.
And have you heard this news? A graduating town mayor who is a sure loser if he runs in a higher office, is running as vice mayor instead. He is scouting for a winnable mayoral candidate to support and to run with. But there is a catch – the mayoral candidate must agree to serve only for one term because this graduating mayor plans to run again as mayor after three years. Noting that power is addictive, so far none of those eyed agreed to the scheming mayor’s agendum. And the mayor's wife who was rumoured to succeed her husband was too pragmatic to resign from her job. The mayor also parted ways with his partymate and long-time vice mayor because of the one-term issue. Ang friend niya nga SB nga popular pero masakiton, indi man kay hadlok mapatay sa hapo sa kumpanya. Amo na ang iya problema – ang makakita ti kandidato nga pang one term lang. Pero sin-o nga politico ang indi kapit-toko?
So, there. In politics, your dear friend today is your worst enemy tomorrow. And your bitter rival yesterday could be your ardent partymate today. Like typhoon Ondoy, sa politika weather-weather lang yan.
My friend wanted the campaign period to be now already. She likes to be shocked and at the same time to be entertained. Nakakasawa daw and telenovela.@
Monday, August 17, 2009
Getting high blood along the roads
I hate driving along the provincial roads in Iloilo. And I hate to think that I am not alone on this diabolical scheme of things. Ga-high blood dayon ako. But to calm down, I have to remind myself that Gloria Arroyo will never give a hoot to whatever serious that happens to me on the road. So there. Daw kalmado na ako.
The object of my derision is the so many billboards along the hi-way showing the faces of Gloria Arroyo and her mole and her minions announcing the good things they have done to the road that I am using and possibly the air that I breathe. Parang may passage sa bible saying that 'If you really wanted to do good, don't annouce anymore the goodness of your deeds. Just do the good quietly and without others knowing it.' (Tama ba, Aling Ruth?)
There is a move in the Senate to investigate the informercials on TV and on the radio, which are to me, really political campaigns. But why are the billboards not included? Because these were mostly featuring the mole of Gloria Arroyo? Don't we not suspect Arroyo of engineering her running again for whatever position in the 2010 elections and therefore her mole billboards are also considered premature campaigning?
Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, head of the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs, summoned to a senate hearing several cabinet and other government officials to investigate the rationale and propriety of the airing of infomercials of the same government officials at the time when the election season is fast approaching. The senator suspects that the airing of informercials, passed on as advocacy campaigns, is part of premature campaigning using public funds. She therefore threatens to recommend the filing of graft and corruption charges against the said government officials, who have signified their raging intention to run in the 2010 election.
Summoned to the hearing were Vice-President Noli de Castro, Secretaries Margarito Teves of Finance, Gilbert Teodoro Jr. of Defense, Ronaldo Puno of the Interior and Local Government; Francisco Duque III of Health; Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. of Public Works and Highways; Jesli Lapus of Education; and Nasser Pangandaman of Agrarian Reform; and, Metro Manila Development Authority Chair Bayani Fernando. Other officials in the Executive branch who have infomercials invited to the Senate hearing were Philippine Amusements and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chairman Ephraim Genuino and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) chairman Augusto Syjuco. Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, who has earlier declared his presidential bid, was also invited in the Senate hearing to explain his own infomercial.
Duda kang raku, ginpatawag ni Miriam ang dya nga hearing para ma-imbistigahan ang ana 'kaaway' nga si DILG Sec. Ronaldo Puno, nga may ana man nga infomercial parte sa nahimuan kuno kang DILG, kag ang ana hitsura ang ginpakita sa infomercial. Sa madumduman, ginapatihan ni Miriam nga si Puno ang instrumento para mapiyerdi tana ni Ramos sa 1992 Presidential election.
Kuwarta bala ni Gloria ang gingamit para magka-kuryente ang Iloilo? Kunsabagay, sarangan gani niya magpakaon sa bili nga PhP 1,000,000.00 sa New York. Pasensiya ang mga taga-Iloilo nga waay kasunod. Magsanlag na lang kamo baringon kag magkihad kamatis.
Pero insa infomercial lang sa TV kag radyo ang ginpaimbistigahan. Insa waay ginpaimbistigahan ang mga billboard nga nag-urusbong sa baid ka mga karsada? Indi ayhan premature nga pangumpanya man dya?
Halin sa Iloilo City paagto sa Iloilo Airport, hitsura nanday Gloria Arroyo ang makita. Kag kon basahon mo ang mga billboard, sin-o ang maghambal nga indi personal nga kuwarta nanday Gloria Arroyo ang anda gingastos sa mga proyekto nga ginawaragwag nanda sa baid ka dalan?
Nagdugang pa gid ang mga hitsura ni Gloria sa baid dalan kang mag-agto tana sa Iloilo para maglantaw kang ana mga proyekto.
The public would like the government officials to account for the people's money entrusted to them. Ano, magpagusto lang sanda waldas kang kuwarto ka publiko?
Ang picture sa ibabaw kuha pagtakas sa Talanghauan MIWD Reservoir. Halin sa lugar nga dya ginguba ang karsada nga hasta tulad waay pa matapos ma-konkreta. Kon mainit, sobra kayab-ok. Kon ga-uran, sobra kalaputyak. Silot gid sa mga sarakyan kag mga sumalakay.
Drive carefully kuno. Pero naisip man ayhan nanda kon traffic hazard ang anda ginahimo? Kay naga-init ang ulo ka mga motorista kon makita ang anda hitsura?
Sa Amerang Bridge, sa duha ka approaches ginpaskilan gid ka hitsura ni Gloria kag Edbane.
Siguro nami man dya nga technique. Kon waay imo mabutang ang ngaran, patindugan mo lang ngaran mo sa tupad ka ngaran ka proyekto. And presto! Daw ikaw man gihapon ang tag-iya.
Sa approach dya kang Tabucan bridge. Tanan-tanan may karatula. Waay gid patawad.
Waay man ayhan ti naaksidente kon makita ang hitsura ni Gloria Arroyo?
Pero sa bahin kang Pavia, daw waay gid ti hitsura politiko sa baid dalan. Ginpabutangan abi ni Mayor Gorriceta ti mga 'Do not Lie. Do not steal.' billboards. Gani waay ti maisog magbutang ka anda hitsura kay man-an man kon sin-o ang mga butigon. May iba pa nga bersyon ang billboard sa ibabaw. Ang 'Do not lie to the people and to your wife.' Maan kon sin-o ang ginapatup-an nanda ka dya. @
Monday, August 3, 2009
RIP President Corazon C. Aquino
Last Saturday, I woke up early to prepare for my class. As I sat down for breakfast, I opened the TV for the morning news. I realized, it was not an ordinary day because TV networks had suspended all their regular programming and instead aired tributes to former President Corazon C. Aquino. So I thought, Cory is dead. I commiserate with the Aquino family for the death of Asia’s first woman President. But I could not help but felt relieved for the big number of journalists and their assistants who bivouacked for more than a month in front of the Makati Medical Center waiting day and night for the inevitable. Jingle lang ang pahinga. In seconds after Senator Noynoy Aquino, Cory’s son, announced that Cory died at exactly 3:18 that morning, international wires churned out press releases that could have been readied weeks ago. Nag fill-in-the-blanks na lang para madali. Yes, in the Philippines and abroad, in mainstream media and in the internet, Cory’s death was bigger news than the Obama-Arroyo meeting.
The whole day, TV and radio networks ran special programs in Cory’s honor. All carried the theme ‘Thank You, Cory’ as denizens of the TV and radio industries believed that they may not be where they are now without Cory. As everybody who knew their history by now, Cory was instrumental in toppling the Marcos dictatorship and in restoring democracy in the country.
On TV, a special death prayer production involving a number of celebrities was repeatedly shown. The smooth well prepared production couldn’t have been done that same day as even doing the make-up of celebrities could have taken hours. Obviously the prayer for the dead Cory was done when Cory was still very much alive. But then, Cory was diagnosed with terminal cancer a year ago, right?.
Such was the influence of Cory Aquino in the lives of many. Love her or hate her. But nobody could question the sincerity and purity of her intentions for the Filipino people. People lined up the streets to pay their last respect for the wife whose husband said the Filipino is worth dying for; and for the woman who assumed the maxim that the Filipino is worth living for as she lived her life as a model of how an upright citizen must be. She just wished to be a shadowy support behind the larger than life person of her husband whose funeral drew the biggest crowd in recent history. Now, her sacrifices, failures, and triumphs made her a bigger person as only her funeral could draw a bigger crowd than her husband’s.
A friend from Manila texted me, ‘2day, 1st time n yirs I shed tears. Dyahe. But Cory is dead.’ I saw Teddy Boy Locsin crying and sobbing openly and unabashedly when interviewed on TV. Humahagulhol talaga. So what harm could tears shed in private do?
‘K lg,’ I texted back, adding that I hoped I was in Manila as it seemed it was 1986 again.
1986 was the EDSA people power uprising, the time Marcos fled to Hawaii and the subsequent dismantling of his dictatorship. It was the culmination of a long and dangerous struggle which I joined as a frontliner and organizer.
The first time I saw Tita Cory upclose was somewhere along the highway in Tarlac. I joined ATOM (August Twenty One Movement) in the Tarlac to Tarmac March, when we marched on foot from the Aquino ancestral house in Tarlac where Ninoy Aquino was born, to the then Manila Intenational Airport where Ninoy died. (I was there to join friends who wanted to see the house of Ninoy Aquino, a 2-storey American style structure which occupied a whole block in the municipality. The house was old and I was awed by the presence of bathtubs in all the bathrooms. For a person like me who grew up with a bathroom called batalan, I thought that the Aquinos were swimming in money.) We met Cory’s car along the way. Her car stopped. She alighted and shook our hands. She was a humble and elegant lady.
The second time I saw her was when she was already a President. I was riding a bus along EDSA. Somewhere, near the Buendia intersection, the bus stopped for the red light. A car also stopped beside the bus. Actually I noticed only the car when some of my fellow passengers stood up and waved to the passenger of the car. When I peeked, I recognized the passenger as Cory, at that time the incumbent President. She waved back at us. I didn’t remember if there were bodyguards and escorts in separate vehicles. What I remembered was that for days after the encounter, I was overwhelmed by the sight of a sitting President stopping for the red light.
On Sunday, the tributes continued with almost all the TV hosts and guests wearing black, white, or yellow, Cory’s signature color. On cable TV, many channels displayed a yellow ribbon at the corner of the screen. Thousands braved the heat and the heavy rains to get a glimpse of Cory in the La Salle gym in Greenhills. And thousands more who could not leave their homes cried a river when Kris Aquino narrated on TV her last days with Cory and how the Arroyo administration withdrew Cory’s security detail, a privilege accorded by law to former Presidents, when Cory was dying in the hospital. Kris said she was really hurt and they rejected the government’s offer for a state funeral for Cory because of that incident. ‘Ang taong bayan ang magbibigay honor sa Mommy ko’, she said.
After that Kris episode which was replayed every few hours, more people lined up in EDSA, Ayala, and all the way to the Manila Cathedral where Cory’s body was transferred on Monday. People lined up to pay tribute to the woman in yellow, shed some tears, throw confetti, relive the days of Cory-led rallies, and curse the Arroyo regime for hurting Kris Aquino. I was privy to how people hated Kris. They would say she is maarte kasi, at malandi. My nieces loathe her. And the maids backstab her. But when Kris was on TV, you could never disturb them. And they commented harshly on her manner of talking at malandi, her hair at malandi, her clothes at malandi. But ask around kung ilang sinaing ang nasunog, ilang ulam ang nakaligtaan at nakain ng pusa, ilang bata ang hindi napaliguan at nangamoy buong araw dahil ang mga katulong ay nakatunganga sa TV para manood sa kanilang kinaiinisang Kris. Ask kung ilang meryenda ang kinalimutan, ilang pampamalengke ang kinupitan, ilang kilometro ang nilakad para makatipid sa pamasahe, ilang dates ang inindiyan – all these para lang makabili ng magazine na ang cover ay si Kris. At ngayon, sila ay nagkakandahirap sa tabi ng daan para damayan ang kanilang kinamumuhiang si Kris. TV networks suspended all regular programs to cover the five-hours march, while the government channel played and replayed the State of the Nation Address of Gloria Arroyo.
Meanwhile, thousands still lined up the streets around the Manila Cathedral to pay homage to the icon of democracy and Time’s Woman of the Year in 1986. The Senate will pass the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension Bill in honor of Cory. A law to declare a Cory Day is being readied. Congress suspended sessions so that congressmen can attend Cory’s wake. Politicians eyeing the May 2010 elections looked for photo opportunities. Manny Pacquiao, Arroyo’s unofficial mascot, talked about Cory, which he never did before and after he became a pambansang kamao. Coup plotters during Aquino’s time wept, said sorry, and gave a snappy salute to Cory on TV. And yes, they are running for elective posts next May. The tributes were nakakataba ng puso, others sounded absurd, like making Cory a saint. Well, on second thought, why not? And Imelda Marcos was jubilant. No, she did not win another PCGG case. She was just told that the Aquino family would welcome them in the wake because the Aquinos thought the Marcoses were sincere in their prayers for Cory. Kris however did not answer for what seemed like an eternity when asked on TV whether Gloria Arroyo is welcome in the wake. Meantime Gloria Arroyo through a Malacanang press conference, Remonde in New York, the PNP, the AFP, etc. explained that there was no actual pulling out of security escorts from Aquino, blah, blah, blah. But the internet and the media gave Kris’ non-answer more prominence than Arroyo’s multi answers.
Lastly, it was indeed inevitable to compare the two women Presidents’ leadership styles, achievements, legacies, and even the people's reactions to their deaths.
In her death, Cory Aquino summoned a long queue of citizens to pay her homage. With her unreachable arrogance and issues of unbridled corruption, Arroyo’s death will summon not one but two long queues – one to pass by her coffin to smirk; the other to pass by the comfort rooms to spit.@
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Road repairs
Going down to Talanghauan from Sta. Barbara. The next pictures were taken near the same spot but at a different day after a rain.
When you are on the way from the city to Cabatuan, you will feel that election is really near.
The roads which seemed acceptable yesterday are being scraped and filled up as if this is the best time for repairs. It would have been better had the repairs been done last summer, which may not be called summer because of the intermittent rains. But at least, last summer there were long sunny periods and there were less commuters because the schools were closed.
During these typhoon months, the asphaltless roads easily turn to pit holes and mud ponds. With only one lane open, the traffic is sometimes nasty. Though I pity the rain drenched civilians who help ease the traffic flow.
But then, dapat maman-an kang mga botante nga may ginahimo ang mga politiko. Gimmick man. There are people who want to send a message accross.
Ti sin-o naghambal nga waay election sa 2010?@
Saturday, June 6, 2009
On HR 1109: Dapat dito ka o doon. Walang middle ground.
My favorite nephew, a UP PolSci student, frequently texts me famous quotes/timely proverbs. Sometimes, I am irritated because I find this a waste of money (Tito naka-unli ako!). But, always, I appreciate his thoughts, and especially the messages that many times jolted me to realities.
One message I received from him was: 'Dapat, dito ka o doon. Walang middle ground.'
The message was simple. But it was one of the few he sent that I could not ignore.
Last month, I used the message as the gist of my speech in a speaking engagement for the youth. You can only be in one place - dito o doon. Walang middle ground. Just like in the issues buffeting our country. You have to take sides. Whether you're pro- or anti-, it does not matter. You have to take sides. Walang middle ground. Walang passive. You have to take action. And when you grow old and feel irrelevant, you will be comforted by the fact that when you were young, you took action and made a difference.
Sa issue sang HR 1109 o Con-Ass, ano bala ang dapat naton himuon? Dapat, diri ka o didto. Wala sang middle ground. Kon ano man ang inyo opinion, make it known. Voice it out! This could be the time for it. Tomorrow can be too late.
Ang iba sigi lang reklamo. Wala man ginahimo. Could it be that we REALLY deserve the kind of government we have?
Please click here for an article on Con-Ass. You can find many other relevant articles in the internet.@
Ga-patad ka sa LOTTO? I-memorize ang numero nga ini....
