Consumers Domain
The childish dull bully
"Neither gratitude nor appreciation has anything to do with rejecting what is wrong, censuring what is bad, exposing the ills that afflict society in order to remedy them..."
- Graciano Lopez-Jaena
Just recently Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, in pursuance of Proclamation 1017, issued a memorandum to the NBI-Region 6 and the Iloilo City Prosecutors Office to strictly monitor Panay News, Daily Informer and other media organizations including broadcast stations that are based here in Iloilo City.
Raul insinuates that may be these media entities are part of the plot or are aiding coup plotters to oust Gloria Arroyo. Where he got this notion, we still don't know. (I wonder what happened to the millions of pesos of intelligence funds. And note that they got their information about the coup plot only through TIME magazine!)
Just like a childish dull bully, Raul is attempting to get even with those who never yielded to his bullying, or those who may have bumped on this brat while he devoured his favorite ice cream and knocked his frosty treat to the ground.
I say "childish" because it reminds me of a scene of a bratty kid picking another round of fight with his neighborhood archenemy, now that his big brother who is a known serial killer is beside him.
"Dull" because its just like another scene of the same bratty kid, who after years past and who now is a professional still considers that ice-cream-event worth fighting for and decided to utilize his office to launch his attacks against his ice-cream-knocker-nemesis.
And "bully" because well, this brat loves to threaten others, and to confront his detractors he wouldn't hesitate to draft the support of his serial killer brother whose best friends are conveniently members of a dreaded crime ring.
I don't want to take sides on Raul's personal quarrel with individual politicians and individual journalists. For all we know Raul may be the one aggrieved (though I seriously doubt it). But what their squabble is all about is altogether a different story and beyond my topic for today.
What amazes me though is how Raul manages to exploit the opportunity offered by Gloria Arroyo's declaration of "State of National Emergency" to fire back at his critics especially among Iloilo-based media. Why he singled out media institutions in Iloilo (after the flogging of the Manila-based press), we can only surmise.
But by all indications, a clear high-resolution picture comes out. Raul apparently is hitching his vendetta against his personal opponents for a joyride with Proclamation 1017. In our language we call it "gin-angkas" or maybe it may also be closer to "ulayhon". (That's the beauty of using the Hiligaynon language, it can capture some important essences in our culture that English cannot.)
The fact that Raul is one of the brains behind this Marcosian declaration is already very deplorable (though the presence of brains, I still have to confirm). What is more trembling is the fact that he, in a sinister manner, decided to take advantage of such, to settle some personal scores.
And while the baseless Proclamation was rescinded by the fake president, Raul is still articulating, sort of showing off his power, on how the monitoring of the media will be pursued, in a manner as if the media is under the mercy of the office of the Secretary of (In)Justice.
Tsk tsk tsk. It seems that Arroyo's withdrawal of her controversial proclamation is just for show. Maybe the move was simply a concession to the growing flak she is receiving from different sectors for showing off her authoritarian tendencies (her true colors). To my colleagues in the media, let us maintain our vigilance.
Now, for writing this, maybe I will be the next target of harassment or censorship. Or maybe this paper will get the ire of the childish dull bully. Well, let's hope not.
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Lastly, I would like to share some excerpts of a press statement from the Freedom from Debt Coalition on the same topic that I have now. Aptly entitled "Gonzales, a shame to the legacy of Ilonggo hero Lopez Jaena", highlights of the statement are below.
"The Ilonggo hero Graciano Lopez Jaena, who is a journalist and the founder of La Solidaridad, must be turning in his grave now that a fellow Ilonggo and Jareño for that matter is the main author of a Proclamation to suppress the freedom of speech and restrict the media.
"We condemn in the strongest terms Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. for recently issuing a memorandum to threaten Iloilo-based media in pursuance of Proclamation 1017. This threat is not only against the media in Iloilo but a threat to press freedom as a whole and a threat to the Filipino's basic rights.
"Gonzalez is a shame to the legacy of Graciano Lopez Jaena, a revolutionary hero, a pride of the Ilonggos. In the late 1800s, Lopez Jaena has spent his life speaking and writing against the abuses of Spanish friars and advocating freedom for the Filipinos. He is a champion of freedom of the press, of free speech and founded La Solidaridad in 1889 in Spain. Now Gonzalez is playing the role of Fray Botod, the greedy and abusive friar in Lopez Jaena's satirical short story, who tramples upon the rights of Filipinos.
"Graciano Lopez Jaena is the epitome of a journalist who refused to be intimidated by any threat in pursuance of his profession, and bravely stood by his struggle for a free country, for a free Filipino nation. We call on the media to take their cue from our respected hero. We, the people, will always be in solidarity to your cause, as we believe that a free press is a foundation of a free society!"
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