Soon after the UniTeam was euphoric in their celebration of a new President and Vice-President, Sara Duterte assumed another office simultaneously as Secretary of Education (DepEd), where she promised reforms and immediate action over the plight of our teachers (to increase their benefits) and over the curriculum of our schools to benefit our pupils and students.
But what happened after was another matter. The problem is when eager-beavers rush toward a responsibility and tasks one cannot really function and deliver even satisfactorily.
VP Sara is one such example, that is why her former Chief of Staff, DepEd Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III did all the work for the department. Thank God we have someone like him there who certainly delivered.
If you ask me, I would strongly recommend him as Sara’s replacement. That department needs a real leader to bring the education sector to the elevated skyway. Sara simply took it on cruise control along the rutted service road.
I wonder if she made true her promise to put up a calamity fund for teachers and for the issuance of a teaching overload pay as well? But it’s a good thing she took the DepEd post instead of the DND. We would easily have our soldiers marching now under the music of Cheng Maoyun with lyrics by Sun Yat-sen.
So yes, it’s best if President Bongbong Marcos would not rush in picking a new education secretary – not another one like her. Get a replacement who has a solid background on education and not someone who feels free to punch a sheriff.
So much for obeying the law and respecting the ones who carry out court orders.
On this note, it was obvious that Sara was testing the waters by making a declaration soon that her father, former President Rody Duterte would be seeking a Senate seat together with her two brothers namely Mayor Baste and Cong. Polong.
They are already feeling the waning political clout they once had when the old man Duterte was president, and times have changed, and so, brushing aside ‘delicadeza’ and ‘hiya,’ (which the Dutertes never really had) off these three go like shameless eunuchs in a harem.
Political gobbledygook
We are slowly getting to the point once more where we will be hearing a lot of nonsense from politicians seeking our votes by grandstanding stupidly during committee hearings.
We simply got sick and tired of Senator Bato Dela Rosa’s childish behavior. The best attitude for us to take is to treat such political chatter as empty promises, and then hope that at least a portion of this bull and baloney would consist of sincere promises which the candidates will fulfill once elected.
Some of the phrases and pledges voters will hear are the following: (with interpretations):
Declaration: “I am pro--God, pro-life, and pro-family.” Interpretation: “I hope the church leaders would close their eyes to my sinister and reprehensible faults and endorse me in their pastoral letters.”
Declaration: “I simply want to serve the people.” Interpretation: “After of course amassing millions to take care of my family and relatives so that I don’t have to worry about their future and concentrate on how to ease the plight of the people.”
Declaration: “The Philippines for Filipinos.” Interpretation: “Although this should not bar me from accepting huge lobby money from Chinese businessmen who want government protection.”
Declaration: “Judge me by my track record.” Interpretation: “all those accusations that I stole from the treasury and that I have almost nothing to show for accomplishments are mere black propaganda and are all politically-motivated by my opponents.”
Declaration: “Use your conscience when you enter the polling booth.” Interpretation: “But of course you can make me the exception and write down my name.”
Declaration: “The youth is the future of this country.” Interpretation: “That is why I am sending my children to the most exclusive schools here and abroad and opening bank accounts in their names. The fact that the money I stole for my children belongs to the public is only a coincidence.”
Declaration: “We have to preserve the democratic way of life.” Interpretation: “Under a set-up where I am most happy where they don’t send thieving officials to face a firing squad and where crooked officials may hire the best lawyers and retain the best law firms and escape imprisonment.”
Declaration: “I am going to serve for only one term.” Interpretation: “Unless of course there is a clamor from the people (I paid them) made upon the prodding of political leaders, most of whom are my sycophants.”
Declaration: “My life is an open book.” Interpretation: “Until they discover the unexpurgated version which would have been a bestseller on crime and passion actually, outright pornography.”
Declaration: “Always go for the victor.” Interpretation: “Why waste your votes on upright, honest, boring, sincere, and dedicated bets who cannot even pay for your jeepney fares for the trip to the polling centers? The line forms to the right for my winning formula of buying your votes.”
A sanctioned jihad/Let’s not forget them
A jihad is a war against the enemies of Islam. Muslim fighters are told to take an oath on this. Jihad is a venerable institution sanctioned by the Qur’an and the Hadith.
It arose in the Philippines during the Moro wars, notably among the Tausugs and the Maguindanaoans as a patriotic action against the Spanish invaders.
A mujahid goes to war against enemies of Islam and actually desires to be killed to ensure immediate entrance to paradise. Jihad constituted one of the most effective and terrifying weapons by the Muslims against the Spanish and American colonialists.
Because of this, the Americans had to develop the Colt .45 and the Krag-Jorgensen rifle to stop the frenzied, attacking mujahid dead in their tracks.
Haven’t the Muslim rebels declared a jihad yet against government forces?
Remember the Abu Sayyaf? How many times have we heard AFP spokesmen and fattened generals say that the Abu Sayyaf will be history soon? Is our AFP scared of a jihad on them?
Time and again, our military brass have declared that the Muslim separatists would be blown to smithereens.
Go “tell that to the marines,” right? But they’re still there, just quiet for now.
But of course we want genuine, lasting peace, that is why we should never forget their struggles as well.
-o0o-
Random Memorandum: The tirades against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. usually come from people who simply hate the Marcoses out of sheer ignorance and miseducation from distorted data on them, those who have lost employment from the previous administration, and those who have not been re-appointed to the current administration.
-o0o-
Factoid: Daly City in the San Francisco Bay Area has the largest concentration of Filipino-Americans of any municipality in the US. Pinoys are a solid 35% of the city’s population. The Immigration Act of 1965 significantly increased the arrival of Pinoys in the city.