Bad publicity on cue

Just when a publishers’ conference attended by more than 400 members of the international press is ongoing at the Manila Hotel, with the President giving a speech about the economy and how it is doing well – on cue – the usual damper happens in the form of a hostage drama situation in a bus right in front of the Manila City Hall. Three men armed with grenades and .45 caliber guns held hostage 32 daycare center kids and two teachers who were on their way to a Tagaytay field trip. A piece of bond paper taped on the windshield of the bus proclaimed the hostage takers’ demand for college scholarships for 145 students at the Musmos Daycare Center. One of the hostage takers was identified as Jun Ducat, who claims to be the owner of the daycare center. Apparently, the man is known to local Manila politicians. He is said to be a publicity hound and an "attention seeker" according to Senator Fred Lim.

This is exactly the kind of what one would call "perfect bad timing" that Filipinos seem to be very good at. Just when some good news is happening, somebody pulls a stunt like this – right on cue – to generate the kind of bad publicity worldwide that this country can’t afford to have especially at this time. As I write this column, trying to beat the afternoon deadline, the hostage drama is being covered by the international news network CNN, live on prime time television in the US – around 9 p.m. in New York City – the time when most people are at home relaxing in front of their television sets.

Modern technology now allows people to watch the news happening continents away from their home, actually seeing the events even as they unfold. So you can bet this hostage taking of five-year-old kids is creating an image of the Philippines again as a chaotic and unsafe country. As a matter of fact, I have been getting a lot of calls from friends in the United States asking me what is happening, as they’re getting the picture that criminality is on the rise again in the Philippines. The only good news that seems to have come out of this whole incident is the remark by a former FBI agent that the police seem to be handling the situation right and are taking the right steps in dealing with the hostage takers. Our PNP special units have been getting US training on hostage situations from the FBI.

There seems to be political color in this hostage drama with the man suddenly launching a tirade against politics and politicians, and then demanding to talk to GMA. The whole thing is taking on a surreal character with the guy giving a speech and turning the situation into a political rally of sorts. The bottom line however is that the situation is getting to be a circus – something that can happen "only in the Philippines." I hope the situation ends peacefully. Since this man has apparently done this before, the authorities should commit this nut into the "funny farm" immediately. The man may not be fully aware of the possible consequences of his actions but, the fact is, everybody suffers with this kind of bad publicity before the international media. It is rather unfortunate that this incident couldn’t have come at a worse time when there are a lot of international press people around. Plus, I am told that there are several international businessmen in the country this week looking at potential investments.

As a matter of fact, this is what Agence France Presse Manila bureau chief Karl Wilson and regional director Eric Wishart talked about during our lunch with the President in Malacañang last Monday. After five years, GMA has become very adept at parrying questions and she was in a relaxed mood. According to her, she didn’t worry too much about the outcome of the May elections since she’s focusing her attention on the economy. She rattled off some numbers, citing the 24 consecutive quarters of GDP growth under her administration, the reduction of the budget deficit to P62.2 billion in 2006, the creation of 1.2 million jobs last year, the P76.9 billion generated through the EVAT and other "good news" stories. It was important though to remind the President that there are still a lot of hungry people out there as shown in a recent SWS survey. She admits there is still this problem but she believes that in the long run, this will be solved, explaining that she has authorized the release of P1 billion for a hunger mitigation program. She also recently allocated P27.5 billion for irrigation and agricultural projects that could double the production and income of farmers.

But as usual, I won’t be surprised if this hostage drama will be the story of the week by the international media attending the Manila Hotel conference. The coming May elections is already enough to make some people feel apprehensive, plus the seizure of 15 British troops by Iran which could trigger an oil crisis and drive oil prices up again. But locally and true to form, the good ol’ Filipino trick of shooting himself in the foot is here again – exactly the kind of situation we see in this hostage drama. That’s the story of our lives.

* * *

Email: [email protected]