The Inseparability of Politics and Electricity in Sato-Gadiano Rivalry

 

Since the time of Thomas Edison, the electricity industry is already been a permanent feature in politics. Before Pearl Street (his pioneering streetlight project) ever opened, Edison had to bribe New York politicians to begin laying the foundations of his work.

As Time magazine recounts, Edison “obtained with great difficulty the consent of New York’s famously corrupt city government to build his proposed network on the southern tip of Manhattan.” As the early electricity industry grew, it became more involved with city politics over lighting contracts. Electricity providers had to receive franchise rights from city officials to serve local areas, opening the door for those officials to extort power companies for campaign contributions or personal bribes.

The year was 1882.

Fast forward to Occidental Mindoro. Present time.

Centuries have already passed as it proves that electricity and politicians are inseparable, with due respect to its deniers and pretenders from both ends.

The Island Power Corporation (IPC) controversy is the mother liquor of this sourest situation of a power failure and brownouts in the province. This situation is just the offshoot of a series of awfully debauched business decisions taken by the previous Board of Directors and management of OMECO since 1993. It all started when the OMECO BOD entered into a one-sided Contract or Energy Conversion Agreement (ECA) with Island Power Corporation (IPC) on December 10, 1993. The ECA guaranteed an onerous 25-year term (with the option to extend) to the latter, without providing for a “termination clause” that would have allowed OMECO to “automatically” rescind or terminate the ECA in case IPC failed to fulfill its obligations, without having to seek judicial recourse. A political titan represents the IPC, the former Governor Jose T. Villarosa.

The Power Supply Agreement (PSA) between Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (OMECO) and the Emerging Power Incorporated (EPI), Philippines, was signed February 28, 2014, at Sikatuna Beach Hotel in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro. According to Rep. Josephine Y. Ramirez Sato, EPI assured them then that by 2015, we would be getting an additional 3.3 MW and expected to increase each year. She said, “By 2017, we can all say goodbye to brownouts and other hassles brought about by power outage, we were assured.” The truth is, the geothermal source was a hoax, and out of nowhere, the Occidental Mindoro Consolidated Power Corporation (OMCPC) immediately appeared like Aladdin’s genie and inked a Swiss Challenge Procurement Agreement with OMECO. And the rest of the EPI story is history, I mean, a fairy tale.

Sometime in March 2018, Rep. Josephine Sato and her allies led the Solar Para sa Bayan (SPSB) opening in Paluan. Critics of the project said that the SPSB exploited a captive market of electric consumers now nailed to the power company’s greed. Cong. Sato even said then that the project “should be replicated all across Mindoro.” 

Rightly so, the Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (OMECO) has insisted that SPSB cease its operations because Paluan is part of the electric cooperative. No local politicians then stood on behalf of the EC and its MCOs, defended their electricity franchise privileges, and yielded their mandate to SPSB. OMECO did not receive any support from SPSB enablers on this problematic area. It was understandable because they are backing the solar project during its infantile stage of operation. The Municipality of Paluan, after a few years of partnership with SPSB now relinquished its power provision to OMECO. The SPSB abandoned the solar project afraid of totally losing their capital. The electric cooperative that they once bypassed redeemed them from chaos.

Sato and Villarosa are now on speaking terms after decades of hostility. Even their political allies in different political positions now merged as a group. Some known and longtime political allies of Villarosa now aligned themselves with the Sato group. Their former warring media propagandists and supporters already buried the hatchet, directing their criticisms over the radio and social media on their common "enemy": the incumbent governor Eduardo Gadiano. Gadiano recently advised OMECO to fast-track the Competitive Selection Process (CSP) to have a new power provider. The governor’s critics even pointed out that other politicians had already resolved his allegedly late proposals. The opposition rejected all his recommendations and action on the matter with all mean intentions. They belittled him saying that the governor does not fully understand the issue.

The governor failed to get from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan the resolution declaring the province under a state of emergency because of intermittent power interruptions.  Take note, too, that a crack among the provincial board members on issuing such resolution as requested by the governor arose.

This coming May 9, whether we like it or not, the issue of brownout or power shortage in the province becomes the on-point issue. It will be immaterial for the voters the reasons and justifications for technicalities and legalities in the power industry sector. They will not forget the fact that after 32 years both of the camps of the two local political titans the problem is not resolved to date.

Politics and electricity are designed for relationships and not for isolation. Politicians and the electric consumer are socializers. They, too, are inseparable. And the agony is, the politicians’ circus is the electric consumers’ crisis.

They employ power-play politics amid power failures. Even those who deny it know that.

Local politicians have made promises for decades to end brownouts, but they ignore the reality that they had been part of the problem. Since time immemorial, they had already dipped their fingers in the issue with both beneficent and sinister motives. That is all in aid of (re-)election, one may think.

The bottom line of all: This issue of power, once again, could make or break the political careers of those gunning gubernatorial and congressional seats in 2022. Failure to employ political power that caused power failure is the main meat of the discourses leading to election day and beyond as long as brownout still exists, whatever its cause. Be it rotational power distribution, turbine washing, tripping, and other trouble like the recent mechanical disturbance in the power plant.

The bone of contention is the politicians’ three years of apparent lack of knowledge on the issue contrasted with three decades (or more) of vested interests, incredible business choices, and perhaps, negligence. Be it coming from the transmission, generation, or distribution side.

It will appear like this: Politicians versus their electoral rivals and overstaying political factions against the brownout fed-up voters and electric consumers. The electric consumers who are also voters are all discontented with this situation of electric power in the province.

When asked what are the prospects of this coming election, my friend, Atty. Lawrence Villamar has this to say: "It's important to note that this election may mark an end of an era and introduction of new players in local politics."

This word picture makes the elections on Monday and the local politics in Occidental Mindoro more fun and exciting.

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References:

 https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/history-electricity/#Dawn

 https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/976292/mindoro-solar-power-project-to-supply-electricity-at-p9-per-kwh

 https://www.philstar.com/business/2014/02/26/1294492/emerging-power-eyes-mindoro-market?nomobile=1

 

 

Mindorosas 2.0, Lubang Island

Vice-President Leni Robredo will be coming to a famous island in my province Occidental Mindoro at around 9:00 AM tomorrow, April 26, 2022, and the venue is Plaza de Francisco M. Sanchez. Last April 6, the TRoPa held their sorties on mainland Mindoro, specifically in San Jose, Occidental and Calapan City in Oriental.

Lubang Island is known for being the hiding place of Hiroo Onoda, the Japanese World War II straggler who made the island his home and battleground long after the war was over. His story was made into a motion picture in 2019 directed by Arthur Harari. The movie Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle was an entry to Cannes Film Festival 2021 and bagged the Best Original Screenplay at César Awards, France 2022. Click HERE to watch its trailer.

But other than the Onoda story, the folk dance Pandanggo sa Ilaw is said to have originated from the place. It is generally danced in couples, with traditional clothes for both women and men. They carry lighted glass oil lamps on their heads and the back of their hands. Dancing to the rhythm of lilting music, they sway and balance, go around the stage or dance floor, intermingle, manipulate the glass lamps with amazing and spectacular deftness, and maneuver for the dramatic and arresting position on the floor. Swiftly of hands and agile feet, the dancers do not trip or drop the glass lamps that they carry. The oil lamp is called tinghoy.

Cabra Island, also part of the Municipality of Lubang, is the site of the alleged apparition of the Virgin Mary to eight children in December 1966.   The children were pupils at the Cabra Elementary School and this incident hit the headlines and became the subject of debates among theologians and the clergy themselves.  The purported apparitions eventually inspired the 1982 Ishmael Bernal drama film Himala, starring Nora Aunor and with a screenplay by Ricky Lee, which took place from 1966 to 1972.

Lubang too is the place of birth of world renowned human rights advocate Sr. Mariani Dimaranan, SFIC. She was born on February 1, 1921, and her name is synonymous with Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), founded in 1973, where she served as its chairperson from 1975 up to 1996. She worked hard for the release of political detainees despite being jailed by the Marcos government.

Lubang is also known for Pasandal. It is part of traditional Flores de Mayo aside from Santacruzan. In Lubang, it became part of their tradition to have 8 days of dancing known as Pasandal. On the morning of the 9th day, which is the Santacruzan, a mass was held and in the evening, selected beautiful sagalas dressed in gowns to join the religious pageant.

Lubang Island consists of two municipalities, Lubang and Looc. In 2019, according to the records of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), the former has only 13,490 voters while the latter has 7,684 registered electorates. Regardless, the Leni-Kiko tandem went down in history for giving special attention to this small but lovely island in my province. The tandem finds time to visit and build a lasting relationship with those even in far-flung areas or the outskirts of society.

The name of this island came from lumbang, a kind of tree that grew profusely on this island during the early days.  Due to constant use for so many years, the name became Lubang, according to historian Rudy A. Candelario.

The rally organizers selected pasandal as its campaign theme tomorrow.

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Photo: VP Leni Robredo's FB Account

“Mayor Lang” Explained

The Tagalog word “lang”, is short for “lamang”, which is often used as a modifier to provide an accurate picture of the quality, as an adjective or quantity, or numerical count being presented.

For example: “Isa lang ang iboboto ko sa mga konsehal” means “I will just vote one among the councilors.”

But in some usage, it is to limit the scope of the word that may usually carry ambiguous or far-ranging content. For instance, when you want to say “I have voted”, you will use “Nakaboto na ako”. But when you want to say “I have just voted” (i.e. recently, or just now), you will say “Kaboboto ko lang.” Therefore, “lang” in English means “only” or “just”.

But in many contexts, “lang” is used to express a “limitation”. There are uses in certain contexts that are very difficult to translate into English. For example:

“Magtrabaho ka na lang.”

“You just work.”

(Focus. Maybe something will turn up.)

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 “Maghintay ka na lang.”

“All you can do is wait.”

(Just wait for now….)

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 “Kumain na lang tayo.”

“Let’s just eat.”

(No point in doing anything else.)

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 “Umoo ka na lang.”

“Just say yes.”

(It’s useless to complain.)

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 “Manood ka na lang.”

“Why don’t you just watch?”

(Don’t bother with anything else.)

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Just like how Vice-Mayor Walter “Bong” B. Marquez uses the phrase in his campaign slogan in his bid for a mayoralty position in Sablayan. His catchword for May 9 Elections simply reads “Mayor Lang.” His “lang” in this particular milieu connotes a sort of limiting himself if ever elected mayor of this municipality, and constantly reminds him not to exceed his duties and functions as local chief executive of Sablayan. He promised to do only those things required by or under the law, specifically those stipulated in the Local Government Code.

It is his way of emphasizing that he will not usurp his duties and would not be involved in any moonlighting activity and be involved as a clandestine servicer of the government, a “commissioner”, supplier, power broker and be involved, directly or indirectly, in anything that beyond his thrust and mandate as a local official, and in particular, a mayor.

The context of Vice-Mayor Marquez’s “mayor lang” according to him means that he will not capitulate to unlawfully performing his mayoral duties in case he is elected. He is just speaking for himself, he said. He does not care about the other candidates nor does he alludes to his rival.

Nothing in his mind and his slogan that he emphasizes that the mayoralty post is “basta-basta” or in the bastardized lingo, “just-just”.

It is very intellectually dishonest that this use of “lang” is presented as an affront to the esteemed and honorable government position or office that he aspires for. In visioning and animating such values instead, you purify the sanctity of that office.

Nonetheless, elections and political leadership are like a winnowing fan in our hands separating the grains from the chaff.

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(Photo: VM Bong Marquez Facebook Page)

 

Pandanggo sa Dilim and the Leni-Kiko’s Sortie

The Leni-Kiko campaign rally in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro last April 6, 2022, has three important highlights at least from my point of view: it paved the way for Cong. Nene Sato’s declaration of support for the Kakampink tandem, the first-ever dance steps of VP Leni in her entire campaign sortie and it became the venue where my kababayans protested for more than three decades of an intermittent power outage that we are experiencing since January of this year. I will just focus on the last two climaxes for it’s just natural for Cong. Nene to endorse VP Leni for they are both top brasses of the Liberal Party (LP). Let us juxtapose Leni’s fandango and our being the infamous “brownout capital of the Philippines.” 

Regardless of our political affiliations, we are gravely affected by this debacle of power interruptions. We are experiencing this hellish situation even since Leni Robredo was still earning her degree in Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of the Philippines Diliman. Even when she was not yet a lawyer and married to Jesse Robredo, energy crises have been bugging my people to no end and Cong. Nene was already a vice-governor just two years later. Cong. Nene has never been defeated since 1988 and has been up and down, in a manner of speaking, as congresswoman and governor interchangeably.

After reading a placard with the message "Mga sanay sa brownout for Leni," VP Leni said, "Pero hindi ba dapat hindi tayo nasasanay because ang kuryente, basic na pangangailangan natin. Ang akin lang pong mapapangako sa inyo, kapag ako mismo and pangulo, ako mismo and tututok sa mga bagay na ito." She assured every one of us and that was after she rendered that historic Hanunuo fandango with all gracefulness and gusto. When she said, "Ako mismo," it was tantamount to saying that since the effort of the local leaders are not enough, if ever elected, the veep herself will take the responsibility of solving it.

The crowd roared for they know that electricity is as essential as lugaw in some situations. Even the nationalistic Day of Valor last Saturday, April 9, became a "Day of Brownout" in a large part of the province. Sad.

The apologists of the local power groups and the propagandists of the congresswoman herself say that she should not be faulted for such a predicament. They insist on blaming Governor Ed Gadiano for such a fiasco saying that it is his role as the province’s chief executive to provide basic needs of his constituency, especially electricity even if he was in the position only for less than three years now.

Aside from lambasting the governor for this over spinning rotational brownout in the province, the political propagandists and critics of the provincial chief executive keep on defending the Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (OMECO) and the Occidental Mindoro Consolidated Power Corporation (OMCPC) saying that though the latter had already been ready in supplying the whole power requirement of the province, the contract has been archived at the Department of Energy (DOE) and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) unsigned by the authorities concerned. They keep on censuring the supposed red tape in said national offices and Gov. Gadiano for unsubstantiated expositions. I do understand they have the right to say this because of political reasons no matter how silly their arguments are. I do believe that electricity and politics are inseparable (I will write a separate blog entry about this next time).

The rally participants found a venue to once again vent their concerns and our province’s endless tragedy that has been hounding us even during the time of the fictitious Majoma.  The million-dollar question is this, how come that after decades and decades of this situation of doom, the concerned sector only managed to provide us with limited power sources and just one producer through the years? They were a failure in this matter and we, the consumers, and the supposed co-owners of the electric cooperative were led to a dark slaughterhouse of uncertainty. 

In the past four decades or so, we are given false hopes by our sitting provincial politicians on this nagging issue of power shortage. The mammoth 18 thousand more or less Leni-Kiko crowd both came from opposing political camps, by the way. The only thing common to them is they are all pro-Leni and Kiko but they differ in their local choices for governor, among other positions.

In the 1990s, people look up the Power Sharing Agreement between Island Power Corporation (IPC) and OMECO as the ultimate solution and expected to electrify every municipality but our aspirations gradually died like a fading candle. The reasons for its failure involve financial, managerial, legal, and technical issues surrounding the agreement besides the fact that the later owner of IPC is a local political leader in the province. We more than ever were left figuratively in the dark. We as a people feel betrayed by these nothing but money-paddled transactions. EPI was allegedly a power company that is about to operate a 45-megawatt geothermal power plant in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro but EPI and OMECO including the rest of the national power industry agencies dropped it like a hot potato for reasons that I’m not privy to discuss but what’s important is, we, the people have again faced a broken political promise for a clean and secured, sustained and affordable power supply that purportedly we will be enjoying in 2017. They again lied to us about our aspirations for a brown-out free (or less brownout) Occidental Mindoro puffed like a balloon of colds in a murky kid’s stuffy nostrils.

In just a wink of an eye and away from the eyes of the public, the EPI and the OMCPC changed roles like harlequins in a circus. With dedication and fervor, Cong. Nene has been bridging coordination gaps among energy national regulatory agencies such as the DoE, ERC, NPC, the NEA and OMECO, and OMCPC, sole distributor and supplier, respectively. Until now, the light at the end of the tunnel is still a thing of the future. We still grope for true and brand new political leaders whose heart bleeds with us in our darkest moments. We still shout and cry for fast-tracking the Competitive Selection Process (CSP) and welcoming all the qualified applicants as power providers and pressuring all the involved power industry sectors to act swiftly on the matter.

But this is a thing that political apologists cannot alter: brownouts, as well as politicians, overstays on this forsaken half of the island we call home. And the people are fed-up with both!

This is their eternal legacy of Pandanggo sa Dilim, similar to Remigio Agpalo’s political analogy/analysis Pandanggo sa Ilaw, a folk dance that originated here in our province, particularly in Lubang Island, in 1965.

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My upcoming entry: "The Inseparability of Politics and Electricity: A Reflection Paper" 

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Photo: Sen. Kiko Pangilinan’s Twitter account

Reference: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1482004/mindorenos-assured-of-sufficient-power-supply-sato

 

For My Fellow Government Employees on Election "Dos and Don’ts"

The formal or official campaigning for local elections is on. The group of Cong. Nene Sato kicked off in Lubang while the team of Gov. Ed Gadiano had its opening salvo in his hometown in Sablayan on that same day of March 25, 2022. Thousands came to witness them. People from all walks of life including public officials and government employees like yours truly witnessed the motorcades and proclamation rallies.

Are government employees like me forbidden to air their political opinions or write or say something about politicians during the campaign period? Shall we stay at home when political sorties from whatever group are all around us? Nope.

(Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer and I am only getting this opinion as an advocate of free speech and expression and as a researcher. The 2018 column of election lawyer Atty. Emil Maranon III was my main reference in writing this blog post.) 

My being a government employee does not hinder me from the enjoyment of such rights. Yes, the right to expression and free speech. Election season or not.

People cite Resolution 1600298 of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), the “Advisory on Electioneering and Partisan Political Activity” for all officers and employees of the government giving us stern warning that during election season, should keep our mouths (and pens) completely sealed as far as politicians and politics are concerned. They say that by doing such an act, we can be suspended or dismissed, imprisoned, disqualified from public office, and deprived of the right to vote. 

But aside from Resolution 1600298 of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), the general policy on non-intervention of public officers and employees is also expressly laid down in the 1987 Constitution. Section 2 (4) Article IX-B provides that “no officer or employee in the civil service shall engage, directly or indirectly, in any electioneering or partisan political campaign.” CSC Memorandum Circular (M.C.) No. 30, s. 2009 enumerated partisan political activities that could be considered as electioneering or partisan political campaign that can be found in this article.

Implementing this, Section 55, Chapter 7 (Prohibitions) of Subtitle A of the Administrative Code of 1987, provides: “No officer or employee in the Civil Service including members of the Armed Forces, shall engage directly or indirectly in any partisan political activity or take part in any election except to vote nor shall he use his official authority or influence to coerce the political activity of any other person or body.” Under Sec. 264 of the Omnibus Election Code, any person found guilty of violating the above provision shall be punished with imprisonment of at least one year but not more than 6 years and shall not be subject to probation.

The truth is, the prohibition is not that absolute. There is no blanket prohibition on the matter.

Section 55, Chapter 7 (Prohibitions) of Subtitle A of the Administrative Code of 1987, for example, qualifies the prohibition to engage in partisan political activity with this:

“Nothing herein provided shall be understood to prevent any officer or employee from expressing his views on current political problems or issues, or from mentioning the names of candidates for public office whom he supports; provided, that public officers and employees holding political offices may take part in political and electoral activities, but it shall be unlawful for them to solicit contributions from their subordinates or subject them to any of the acts involving subordinates prohibited in the Election Code.”

Of course, like any other normal person, we could also go and hear campaign sorties or rallies, listen to their jingles and accept merch from politicians but we are prohibited atop the stage and campaign for them or distribute campaign paraphernalia for certain candidates, among others. That's a big no, no. 

Section 79 of the Omnibus Election Code also provided for this qualification:

“Public expressions or opinions or discussions of probable issues in a forthcoming election or on attributes of or criticisms against probable candidates proposed to be nominated in a forthcoming political party convention shall not be construed as part of any election campaign or partisan political activity contemplated under this Article.” To reiterate, protected under the very law and the supreme law of the land is the upholding of the right to free speech and expression over whatever system of voting or election regulation. 

Simply put, if one government employee would write/say/post would say s/he will vote for this candidate because s/he is good, it is okay because it was his or her personal opinion. But if the government employee says let us vote for this candidate because s/he is good, that is considered campaigning for a candidate therefore prohibited, and vice-versa.

Moreover, according to a joint circular issued by the CSC and the COMELEC just before the 2016 national and local elections, “social- media functions such as ‘liking,’ ‘commenting,’ ‘sharing,’ reposting, or following a candidate’s or party’s account,” would generally not be considered electioneering or partisan political activity.

Even a democratic exercise like elections cannot restrain us, civil servants, from our democratic rights to free expression. 

Let us all listen to the candidates, make choices and express yourselves. Let us all be instruments of democracy and be a public servant for all regardless of political leanings and be learned participants in governance!

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(Photo: Gov. Ed and Cong Nene FB pages)

Of Morals and Sablayan Muralists

One of the most visible and effective features of Leni Robredo and Kiko Pangilinan’s campaign trail are murals painted all over the Philippines. Here in Occidental Mindoro, there is a prominent political wall painting that can be found in the town called Sablayan. It was first in the province if I were not mistaken.

More than ever, mural paintings became a form of valuable testimony of how intense the forthcoming elections in May would be. Even the “innocent” artistic expressions of our youth were not spared by acolytes of this arrogant and repressive, if not immoral, regime.

Erased

There are two sad incidents of whitewashing of pink-colored murals of Vice-President Leni Robredo and Senator Kiko Pangilinan: in Echague, Isabela, on February 17 and in Padre Diego Cera corner C5 Extension, Pulang Lupa Uno, Las Piñas City today, March 13, 2022.

Both walls are parts of the private property of certain individuals. The Youth for Leni-Las Piñeros condemned the incident as “harassment” and “obvious repression.” Reportedly, the unidentified men who painted over the murals with white color are identified with DPWH Secretary and now a senatorial candidate in the slot of the deposed dictator’s son Marcos Jr and Mayor Sara Duterte, Mark Villar, another infamous dynast in the country.

The Leni-Kiko mural in Isabela on the other hand was vandalized or removed by no less than the Commission on Election (COMELEC) itself. Despite this, the so-called Pinklawan Artists said they are even more determined to fight for their right to express support for the tandem.

The two groups of young artists from Isabela and Las Piñas City cried foul and called it a form of “harassment” and “repression” by concerned authorities.

Etymology

The word mural originates from the Latin word “murus”, meaning “wall”. (That is why Intramuros was once caled the Walled City.) Mural art today is any piece of drawing painted or applied directly onto a wall, ceiling, or other larger permanent surfaces, flat, bowl-shaped, or curved. Some sources say that the art of muralism flourished during the 1920s, after the Mexican revolution. In that era, it became a powerful visual communication tool to promote the opinion of the people and to transmit social and political messages toward social change and solidarity was recognized. Since then, murals became symbols of freedom and hope, worldwide.

Mural painting is also a usual subject of controversy, especially those expressing one’s political opinion. Well, we cannot separate arts from politics, as we cannot also separate our political “murals” (read: choice of candidates) from our morals (read: personal values). Our votes are reflections of our values and morals.

Sablayan Muralists

They proudly call themselves Volunteer Artists of Sablayan Para kay Leni. The group is composed of Christerlo Rabanal, Kaizer Casil, Tiziah Diodoco, Erica Villapando, Jane Antonette Patal, Anicia Rizzi, Nina Villapando. Though they do not consider themselves artists, Kathleen Nardo, Jann Mariz, and Josefa Lontoc were with them in this heroic call of the times as advisers and general factotum if I could call them that way.

The mural can be found in the corner of J. Daño and S. Dangeros Streets in Barangay Buenavista, Sablayan (near Mar Sharkin Commercial), Occidental Mindoro, adjacent to Sablayan Public Market. It is a wall of a building razed by fire sometime last year. The wall which was blackened by coal and smoke gradually returned to life and transformed into a symbol of a bright and gloomy future. For indeed, like what the artists believe, kulay rosas ang bukas. A future when this nation is at the pink of health, so to speak.

They started the tedious painting in the first week of February until the second week of March. “We are all 100% volunteers and we do not expect any compensation whatsoever,” says Anton Ragos, their group leader. “All of the materials we used including plywoods, paints, brushes, and snacks came from local Leni-Kiko supporters. There are lots of them and they are so generous for the cause,” he further added.

All of the members of the Volunteer Artists of Sablayan Para kay Leni believe that making murals as campaign material is a manifestation of their moral and political stand.

Art as Politics

During the dark days of Martial Law, the apex of our nation’s modern-day political unrest gave birth to known Filipino social realists who felt responsible to create art that would inspire the people to take political decisions and actions. The common denominator of the artworks then and today is the people’s protest against anti-people policies of the government and their struggle and aspiration for socio-political transformation.  

Every muralist or artist, in general, must always question the status quo and maintain and fight for the inherent artistic freedom of expression, especially in these crucial moments onward to elections. The role of such an art is very important for it can be an arena of the decisive battle between the friendly forces versus the enemies of life, beauty and truth come May and thereafter.

Vandalizing any work of art or a mural is turpitude. Such an act could only come from the artless rats staying on a sinking ship.

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References:

https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/what-is-a-mural-the-history-and-meaning

https://www.cnnphilippines.com/life/culture/arts/2017/02/17/art-fair-2017-cover.html

 

 

 

 

When Hands are Raised

While Albay Rep. Joey Salceda and Rep. Sol Aragones of the 3^rd district of Laguna who are running for governor openly expressed their support for Vice President Leni Robredo's run for the presidency, that is not the case in Occidental Mindoro. The symbolic and actual raising of hands is yet to be seen.

Surprising

I am somewhat surprised why the top local political leaders belonging to the Liberal Party or the PDP-Laban and the rest, as of this moment, are not yet openly declaring who they will support in May 2022. As seen in the past elections, their open declaration came before the national campaign started. Rightly so, perhaps because the official campaigning for locally-elected positions will only start March 25, 2022.

I would not be surprised if even the opposing or rival politicians vying for the same position would go for the same president or vice-president in the end. I will tell you why.

Campaign funds should not be the ultimate factor in endorsing a national candidate, specifically for the presidential and vice-presidential positions. Good politicians, especially the incumbents, endorse a candidate because they know that they’re the best person to hold political office such as the presidency. Ideally, that is the case but in real life it’s different. Way, way different.

In the natural course of things, making an assessment of whom to endorse involve a lot of factors about who the candidate is, what they stand for, and what their goals are. Gone were the days of such statesmanship in politics.

I have heard from the grapevine that a huge amount of money is being offered in some provinces just for local political leaders to endorse a certain presidential candidate. Reportedly, it’s to the tune of 50 million pesos for an aspiring governor and Php 3oM plus for the incumbent or aspiring mayor. And I would not be surprised too if some quarters here in our locality would push for Leni-Sara or other possible "combinations".

Just being practical?

Most of the candidates intend to win “by hook or by crook”, especially in a competition as stiff as the next polls, most of them think in “practical terms”. What is important to them is to improve their chances of winning and be winnable whatever it takes and ultimately win. There is a big chance that rivals vying for same position in certain municipality would support the same moneyed presidentiable, the "highest bidder".

We do not have a law on political butterflies or turncoats so it became normal for them, the traditional politicians, to change loyalty or to abandon their hard-earned principles and long-cherished life values in exchange for their current political agenda. The politicians whose character is ever-changing like a weathervane will still prevail with the absence of such a law.

Free zones?

Gov. Eduardo B. Gadiano and congressional aspirant Leody Tarriela attended the Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte-Carpio kick-off campaign for the May 9 elections at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan. Gadiano and Tarriela are not members of Marcos Jr.’s party, the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP). They filed their candidacy under Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan or PDDS of Sen. Bong Go. Go already withdrew his candidacy leaving the supposed dominant party with no standard-bearer for 2022. Their support for Marcos Jr. is not yet officially cemented despite this fact. Suffice to say that it’s not as solid so far as the support has been thrown to Marcos Jr. by Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba and Narvacan Mayor Chavit Singson. 

On the other hand, as of this posting, it’s "all quiet on the Western Front" as far as Sato’s side of the fence is concerned. All the local politicians under her tutelage are also silent including the mayors belonging to the Liberal Party. Reportedly, there are still no instructions coming from her. But now, her supporters can only speculate that since Cong. Sato is a true-blooded Liberal Party (LP) honcho, he will endorse Robredo.

If this situation becomes permanent, placing their respective municipalities as “open city” or “free zones” is not a remote possibility. Every incumbent official or campaigner under her team can welcome or accept whoever candidate that would come to their jurisdictions or each of their party mates could endorse openly or discreetly their preferred candidates for president and vice-president.  

Not only liquids are fluid these days.

In the past

In case you are interested in knowing how Occidental Mindoro voted for presidents and vice-presidents from 1992 onwards, you can read my previous blog entry that can be accessed if you click THIS link.

Fast forward to 2016. As one of the top brasses of the Liberal Party (LP), Sato openly campaigned for Mar Roxas in the latter’s presidential bid in 2016.  

The final tally in Occidental Mindoro as far as the presidential result in 2016 is concerned is as follows: Mar Roxas convincingly edged out his closest rival Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of PDP-Laban. Roxas received 72,644 votes while Duterte only got 38,701 votes. Early favorite Jojo Binay (UNA) came in third with 37,886 votes.

Judging only from the result of the 2016 vice-presidential race, Occidental Mindoro is not a Marcos country. Leni Robredo also got a big margin, earning 79,411 votes. Robredo won over Marcos, Jr. who only garnered 57,115 votes. It was the only time in post-EDSA elections when a tandem, Roxas and Robredo, won in the province endorsed by a sitting politician by the name of Josephine Sato, then LP’s secretary-general. 

Believe it or not, Roxas and Robredo won here in our province despite Duterte’s arrogance, social media lies and him being a populist national leader. And that is something that we all could be proud of today when he is about to finish his term as a reign of combined terror and humor. 

By the way, to this very day, Duterte still holds his ground saying that he will not endorse Marcos Jr. or any candidate for president. For the “resibo”, just hit THIS.

Patronage Politics

If endorsement impact remains at the backseat of a political wagon, why local politicians are still doing this? But before we answer that, let us go to the 3 major things to consider in one’s campaign: volunteers, voters, and financial campaign contributors. Endorsements, compared to the animal kingdom, just prey to attract the predator (read: money and volunteers) and hope the majority of the voters will follow. These three things need to be considered over and above one’s political platform and/or party affiliation, including strategies and mechanisms.

Endorsements are only indicators for voters as to whether or not they could be comfortable with their chosen candidate but it can never be a driving point in any electoral contest. At the end of the day, the endorsers’ campaign will be prioritized and given more weight and importance.

Another thing is certain: the nasty Patron-Client relationship does not only exist between the politician and the voter but between local politicians and national politicians as well.

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Photo: Manila Bulletin

Catholics as Believers of Marcos Lies

Why do Catholics who are avid (and rabid) supporters of Marcos Jr. wrongly invoke the constitutional provision known as Separation of Church and the State when a certain candidate is prayed over by the bishops from dioceses all over the land while tight-lipped on the same act of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy or Brother Mike Velarde?

This is the separation of heart and the state (of mind) eating the very essence of our faith. The present political realities and patterns must be evaluated against the social realities and patterns designed by God of course from the perspective of their doctrines and teachings or interpretation of the scripture. How would a Catholic root or vote for a presidential candidate that cannot be trusted and dishonest in his educational achievements, for example?

I pray for my Catholic brethren who are pro-Marcos Jr. that they may be enlightened on this constitutional provision. The “Separation of Church and the State” is about mutual autonomy and the respect of that autonomy but rooted in cooperation from both the Church and the State for the common good and welfare. Is it good for the country to be led by an unrepentant or unapologizing sinner or a felon? It is for the common good and welfare if you vote for tax-evaders, liars, and grafters?

Are the Catholic Marcos-Duterte supporters feel good when their non-Catholic co-member in political partisan groups disrespect his or her church’s teachings and her priests, bishops, and nuns? As faithful laypeople, we have no other choice but to defend our faith and our ministers not only against those who trample democracy but even from de-orbited Catholics in our midst, in many religious organizations around us.

Reportedly, there are also Marcos-Duterte supporters both from the ranks of the lay and the clergy. They believe in lies spread by Marcos trolls that Pope Francis said that Marcos Jr. is "an intelligent leader" and that the Pope "hopes" Marcos wins the presidency in 2022. The post was published by a group called "POGINGSANDRO next generation MARCOS Pa rin," last November 9, 2021.

They also believe in the lie Marcos Sr. is the “highest scorer” in bar exam history without trying to verify the claim. This is one of the many Marcos lies because the fact is, it was former Supreme Court Associate Justice Florenz Regalado who still holds the record with a sterling score of 96.70%, not Marcos Sr.

Those who belong to mandated religious organizations, the faculty and students of diocesan schools, heads of the pastoral offices, and ministries such as church choirs, and Basic Ecclesial Communities or the Pamayanang Kristiyano, altar servers and other apostolates, those who run the diocesan radio and other social communication entities of the Church, etcetera. In this coming May 9 elections, our faith expects us not to vote for an unrepentant sinner and thief who refused to return their loots to the people. Unless Marcos Jr. shows remorse for his lies and his parents' wrongdoings, his association with known plunderers, his assertion for the unity of all would be nothing but a "noisy disorder" (Matt. 9-23).

Every lawyer in the province and elsewhere, Catholic or not, knows that the Separation of Church and the State” is strictly defined in the 1987 Constitution referring to two points ONLY: “1) that no religion may be established as the official religion of the State; 2) that the State may not favor one religion over others. At the same tie, if I may emphasize, the State shall forever allow the free exercise and enjoyment of religion and shall not require any religious test for the exercise of civil and political rights. It does not require division between belief and public action, moral principles, and political choices. Rather, the “Separation of Church and the State” protects the rights of believers and religious groups to practice their faith and act on their values in public life. This thing is called “Religious Freedom”, and it includes our moral stand of voting against a liar and a thief and supporting the candidate who animates your church’s values, teachings, or doctrines if there is such a candidate available on certain occasions.

I do not understand why the Marcos Jr. supporters from the ranks of the Catholics are also mum over the endorsement of certain cults and sects sponsoring bloc-voting without respecting and even mocking the individual voting preference of the priests, bishops, and nuns. Supporting him who is running for the presidency with no platforms, but carrying only his will to bring back his family to power, and who refuses to acknowledge the atrocities of his family is against the values of our faith. 

We should never support a Martial law enabler, a tax evader, a thief, and a pathological liar. When Catholics, including the clergy, assert that the truth shall set us free but continues to support unrepentant and unapologizing liars, that’s very hypocritical if not downright un-Christian.

This coming May election, Catholics must remember first the 7th Commandment before voting for the 7th presidential candidate. Is that a coincidence? I do not know. All I know is Albert Einstein once said, "A coincidence is a small miracle when God chooses to remain anonymous. The 7th  Commandment of God is, "You shall not steal" and Marcos Jr.'s ballot number is 7.

But if the Catholics, the laity, in particular, are going against lies and thievery by way of telling the truth and condemning felonies and crimes. By so doing, the members of the mandated religious organization, the BECs, the pastoral ministries are completely identifying themselves with Christ. In that manner, we are spreading the Word to the world.

The Jews who plotted to kill Jesus also claimed that they were likewise Abraham’s children or God’s chosen people (John 8), not unlike the assertion of the Marcos-Duterte diehard supporters of today, Jesus said to them brusquely, “You belong to your father, the devil…the father of lies.”

Christ could authoritatively and divinely echo those words today to the modern-day bigots and their supporters who want to get rid of His Truth by voting a liar.

Cum omni reverentia.

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(Photo: ABS-CBN News)

Teachers as Believers of Marcos Lies

I cannot imagine as I truly lament teachers being Marcos apologists. They are the kind of human beings who first taught us the evils of cheating, lying, and any form of academic, behavioral, and disciplinary misconduct, but continue to defend a cheater and a liar joining the Philippine presidential race.

The biggest “scholastic dishonesty” that Marcos Jr. and his minions of teachers-apologist is when he lied about his educational achievements. I was surrounded by teachers at home and relatives and friends beyond it, both real and virtual. I cannot remember any of them lying about their educational status. Much more they are condoning those who lie about it or any other lies related to the pursuit of education, teaching in particular.

But some mentors are fighting nail and tooth for the truth about the evils of the Marcos dictatorship just like the teachers from all over the world condemning Hitler’s Nazi regime. 

This blog entry is for teachers only to react and just focus on his claim that he was really an Oxford graduate (other lies or issues are to follow).

Oxford graduate?

A certain Jacques Aboy, apparently a teacher from an organization called Rise for Education Alliance rightly puts it: “The worst kind of Marcos apologists are the learned ones, especially teachers. Imagine being exposed to research in the academia but would rather believe in the conspiracies from Tiktok, YouTube, and other unverified ctto sources. And there is a potential of them perpetuating lies to their students.” I just stumbled quote over Twitter yesterday so my fingers immediately hit the keyboard.

Speaking as a teacher by profession, those conspiracy theories about Tallano gold, Marcos Jr. as the true first man on the moon, his lies about his Bachelor of Arts degree from Oxford University, among many, many, many others. But allow me to focus only on the Oxford thing for last night, as a participant in the SMNI Presidential Debate, Marcos Jr. was referred to as an “economist” twice by anchor Mike Abe which is outright dishonesty. Simple research would lead us to the truth that a special diploma in social studies is not a degree.

Talking of research at the backdrop of that Marcos Jr.’s Oxford dishonesty, it was Ferdinand Sr. who first lied on his son’s academic achievements. Joel Ariarte Jr., Miguel Paolo Reyes, and Larah Vinda del Mundo, researchers from the University of the Philippines that the lie began in 1978 when Marcos Sr. mentioned in his address before graduating students of the Philippine College of Commerce (now Polytechnic University of the Philippines) that his only son was "still a senior at Oxford." Truth is, Marcos Jr. was then preparing not for a college degree in which he had a senior standing but for a "special diploma in social studies."

Indeed, Jr. is his Sr.’s son. He shares the sins of his father. He benefitted from them.

To those in the academe who wants to delve more into studies and research, for verifiable and scientifically researched historical facts, to aid you in educating your students about the Marcos Regime, try to scroll, read and ingest the entries in this scholastic research and not just those from TikTok, Facebook or YouTube. The site can be accessed HERE.

Accessing this is good for your academic journey and …. sanity.

Critical thinking

Critical thinking is both imperative for the teacher and the learner, the educator, and the student. They must look at a source document critically in their discussions. I was taught by my teachers that the education the students get from schools is a major factor in developing critical thinking.

In the contemporary Philippine setting, the teachers and the students themselves are so accustomed to having any information they need at their fingertips, they don’t realize that not all of this content is from YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook, and other unverified sources is real especially Marcos’s Oxford lies.

I am very lucky to have my former mentors like Norma Malilay and Clemencia Mabalot, to mention just two, for instilling to my mind such a priceless virtue. Ma'am Clemen is my Philippine History teacher way back in college while Ma'am Norms taught the Works and Life of Jose Rizal.

In the end, all of us are responsible for the formation of our children, biological or otherwise. We, as a community, are the biggest influencers that will shape the hearts and minds of our children as we move on fighting for and telling the truth against lies.

Hope the scales fall from the eyes of those who don't.

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Photo: Malacanang Museum and Library

 

 

Former Activists as Believers of Marcos Lies

Firmly standing on my ground as a human rights defender and an advocate for the (Catholic) Church’s Social Teachings, I am bothered seeing politicians who are with, or identified with the progressive Left before but now enablers, endorsers, or supporters of Marcos Jr. I am having goosebumps seeing former militant activists now collaborate with the reactionary politicians or those with progressive mindsets joining the bits and bobs of the narcissist and fascist Marcos dictatorship. Like Harry Roque and the rest.

Is this a mere critical collaboration in aid of election? Or they are only being practical and already had a change of heart? Whatever,  I have my translation of the English word “collaboration”. It is “gamitan” – as in, I scratch your back, you scratch mine. I could forgive seeing former activists “socdem”, “popdem” “natdem” or whatever "dem" endorsing other presidential candidates but certainly not Marcos Jr. This collaboration, with no intention of putting the monkeys in a bad light, spells the so-called “monkey business”. It’s an insult to my fallen comrades - those tortured, summarily executed, raped, looted, and manhandled - and the masses and all the innocents who had been victims of his father's authoritarian rule and all the abuses that we have witnessed on those dark, brutal, and cruel days that happened right at our own noses. I wept with the aging parents of Abet Enriquez, a human rights worker who was abducted by the military in August of 1985 in Lucena City. They died without seeing Abet again. My heart also bled knowing the story of Puri Pedro, a social worker and church worker who in 1977 is suspected to have been tortured by Marcos's intelligence agents inside her hospital room in Bataan strangled by a piece of wire, and in her hands was a medal of the Virgin Mary. Including the story of medical intern Leo Alto who was brutally murdered by a unit of the Philippine Constabulary on August 1, 1975. Leo is the eldest brother of Ma'am Minda, MPDC of Municipality of Sablayan. 

Abet, Puri, and Leo are just 3 of the 11,103 victims of the regime from 1972 to 1986 which the presidentiable Marcos Jr was part of and benefitted from.

Such collaboration is an outright disrespect of those martyrs whose names and stories are inscribed in history and the book “Ang Mamatay nang Dahil sa 'Yo: Heroes and Martyrs of the Filipino People in the Struggle Against Dictatorship 1972-1986” and more. The present historical distortion being spewed in political campaigns demeans their memory. Forget and move on but do not condone. My 25 years in my diocese's social action apostolate as a lay worker taught me that.

Do the former anti-Martial Law activists-politician seriously support the dictator’s son or they are just using him to wangle funds and other logistics from him or the entire Marcos-Duterte political machinery? It is my humble opinion that still, win or lose, a politician should stick to his or her values and principles and every problem will be solved once and for all.

I firmly believe that politicians from the society’s outskirt can win independently without any support from national politicians with autocratic tendencies and backgrounds. Isn’t it the great helmsman once said that “The people, and the people alone, are the motive force in the making of history”? Well, I may not be in a position to say this because I am not a politician. You have all the right to judge me that way. 

But, his father's son, Marcos Jr has never accepted the crimes that happened during the dark days of Martial Law and has never apologized for it, sought pardon, nor provided amends to countless innocent victims, the poor and the oppressed, and their loved ones whose lives had been devastated or ruined. We, human rights activists back in the day worked for and struggled with the victims and their relatives almost 18 hours a day.  

“Gamitan” could also be called “Quid pro quo”, a Latin term for "something for something". It describes a situation when two parties engage in a mutual agreement to exchange anything reciprocally. “Gamitan” too has sexual undertones. (Understandably so since politics is a relationship, it also has sexual allusions.)

Their candidacy is cultivating more than mere historical amnesia, as to how Joseph Scalice puts it, but a national lobotomy. These former activists now believe that the "Golden Era" of the Philippines was during the Martial Law days. The greatest lies of Marcos Jr.

To my mind, “tactical collaboration” and/or “strategic collaboration” are collaborations still. Call me whatever you wish but it's one of many things I do not understand in party politics up to now that I am already old. But how could one respect one's political opinion if s/he could not respect historical facts?

Collaboration with this “I scratch your back, you scratch mine” actuality is plain and simple opportunism which is the art or practice of taking advantage of opportunities or circumstances, or of seeking immediate advantage with little regard for ultimate consequences and moral and ethical grounds. With this, opportunism for me in whatever form is not acceptable. Opportunism is not and will never be a positive and desirable value. Besides, according to Lucius Annaeus Seneca and Stephen Crane: “Every sin is the result of a collaboration."

My bias against this issue of “tactical collaboration” and “strategic collaboration” centers on this line of thought I’ve learned from one of the Church’s Social Teachings: “The value of any political goal stands or falls with the values which it embodies and promotes. It can be manipulated for reasons of power. Democratic practices without values easily turn into open or thinly disguised totalitarianism, regardless of ideological principles and leanings that its sponsors believe in.” (John Paul II in section 70 of his Encyclical Letter “Evangelium Vitae”) If it is true with political goals, it is also true about an individual politician.

Pardon me for seeing this issue on “old and narrow” lenses of human rights principles and my church’s social doctrines, the monocles in every socio-political opinion that I blog.

I am an old-school purist.

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(Photo: Jennifer Laude Facebook)

Mintu Be

For tourism to be sustainable, it must be community-based and community-driven. Community-based tourism provides economic incentives for residents of poor rural communities to strengthen the protection of the natural assets which are the capital of ecotourism development. This is what he believes in. It is a convergence of people, nature, and places to the maximum. This, of course, necessitates politicians with a vision. Even if that politician came from far away Tanza, Cavite, or somewhere else. He is now 86 years old for he was born on January 26,1936.

During the incumbency of Mayor Godofredo “Doring” Mintu as local chief executive, he vied for a bankable ecotourism program for Sablayan. He looks forward to sustainable and pro-poor tourism programs which highly consider the plight of the people and their base resources as a barometer of its bankability. And many more projects, programs, and activities that this blog entry is impossible to accommodate because of lack of space. These are initiatives on health, social services, education, agriculture, the environment, especially infrastructure, name it.

Doring Mintu’s leadership and confidence in exploring possibilities even in the elevated and unchartered realm put the town in its right place under the sun. This is the role that the good mayor has chosen: a model municipality for the whole province to greatly consider. And he succeeded in many ways.

No doubt, Mintu is considered as one of the initiators of the municipality’s progress. A former sleeping town of Occidental Mindoro located at its geographical center. Famously called “Doring”, Mintu became the longest-serving mayor of Sablayan which became a first-class municipality during his tenure. His son, Board Member Edwin, is gunning for the vice-mayoralty seat this coming May.

After EDSA Revolution, Mintu was appointed mayor, got the mandate of the people through an election, therefore, served from 1986 to 1998. As one of the pillars of the so-called Dream Team of Josephine Sato and Ricardo “Ding” Quintos, he also won the mayoralty post in 2001 and served until 2010, and after that, he retired from politics. From 1998 to 2001, under Governor Sato, Doring Mintu served as her vice-governor and he made the whole town proud. 

Mintu and Sablayan are meant to be. They are destined for each other, like his wife Edna, the former councilor.

The businessman turned politician is also a sportsman, a good golfer at that. There is a golfers’ group called Alabang Club 515 in 2003. The group is named as such because the sun usually rises at 5:15 a.m. and golfers like to greet daylight with a tee shot. The club has 65 members who are a mix of professionals, senior executives, businessmen, and entrepreneurs including Mayor Doring Mintu of Sablayan. As a seasoned parbuster, he lives his life of service always in full swing. 

It’s Mayor Doring’s birthday today.

Hit ‘em straight, Sir, and Happy Birthday!

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