How can you vote for a ‘balimbing’?

Need I say more? The circus has arrived. Candidates for the May 2007 elections are prancing the rigodon de honor or shall I say rigodon with no honor. How can you vote for a candidate who suddenly decides to switch from one team to another? These people have been making a stand in the past – yakking at each other and then in a blink of an eye they shift to the very party they despised in the past. How can that be? I guess anything goes in politics huh? What a dirty game!

Anyway, you know who they are. They are too glaring to miss – surely, their true colors have come out. Now, it is up to the voters to allow ourselves to be fooled. It is sad to admit, but that is politics in a nutshell.

The voters must be very careful in selecting their candidates. In fact, when we vote, it is not the party that we should look at but the candidate himself or herself. Good luck to us!

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I must acknowledge however, Erap’s decision in pulling out his son JV from the race. That is a tough act to follow. And for JV, I am humbled by what he did. It also takes humility, patience and a lot of understanding – this clearly shows his deep respect and love for his father.

If JV continues to show this kind of character, surely he will have no problem in winning anytime in the future. However, if he answers all the media frenzy about this issue – he may overdo and eventually destroy his reputation. Be careful. You have said enough – everyone is happy.

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I do not blame the President for walking out on the media last week – if she really did walk out. Knowing La Gloria, she would rather talk business. She avoids being swallowed into gossips, malicious intrigues, and unnecessary talks that wastes her time. Sure we can say she is just avoiding getting into the hot seat – but hey, give her a break, she has more to do as a leader. Let us just allow her husband to do all the talking.

I may sound as if I am an avid supporter of GMA. Let me put it this way, I do not agree with all that she does but as what my father has always reminded me, whoever the President is of the Philippines – we must show our support – or else our country suffers. With all the konsumisyon she has acquired from the past and now experiencing in the present, it is not the time to always put her down. We must in fact, give her a pat on the shoulders once in a while. She is human too you know. Just like you and me.

Many people can easily say nasty things about the President but let us also look at what she has accomplished. Of course, even I am sometimes dismayed with the government but at the end of the day – truthfully, I am quite satisfied with our slowly recovering economy. At least it has been better compared to the past years.

As a matter of fact, the sun is beginning to shine, as the cliché goes. Many of our Pinoy brothers and sisters who have lived abroad for so many years are now returning to the Philippines to retire. In the past years, they were undecided because of our gloomy economy. But now it seems that they can see themselves surviving in their homeland with the retirement or the pensions they have harvested overseas. Of course the young ones still flee out of the country but after saving enough money they will soon return as well. That’s life! We have to figure out ways to satisfy our needs.

Our economy definitely still needs some strengthening for the cost of living here to improve. This may still take some time. But business and investment opportunities are improving especially for the foreigners and the balikbayans who bring in the bucks. It is a good start. Anyway, let us just keep our fingers crossed and continue to pray to the Almighty One.

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Last week, I mentioned about the many political killings arising once again. I just have to mention that Task Force USIG headed by Police Deputy Director General Avelino I. Razon, Jr. was created in May 2006 to investigate the killings of party list, militant members and media personalities. So far, based on the Philippine National Police (PNP) records, there are a total of 115 cases of slain party list and militant members since 2001. Out of this total, 49 cases (43%) were already filed in court and the remaining 66 (57%) are still under extensive investigation. The most number of party list members slain were recorded during the year 2006 (that was just last year) and the lowest in year 2003. For the media men, just in case you are interested, based on the PNP, there are a total of 26 cases of slain media men since 2001. Out of the 26 cases, 21 were already filed in court and the 5 remaining are still under extensive investigation.

I hope our countrymen learn how to turn to God especially in these critical times. Remember the Fifth Commandment: THOU SHALT NOT KILL.

Moses was taught that men were living in such unruly ways, lacking self-discipline, and all men were to be told that to kill was against God, for do not forget, God is The Creator and The Judge. Men do not have the right to kill another human being, whether it be to take his life, his will, his dignity, his skill, his mind, his hope, his trust, his integrity. Men can be depleted of physical energy, emotional control and spiritual strength by another man’s lack of self-discipline, emotional instability, greed, hate, lust, anger, lack of charity.

To kill is to rob man of the great privilege reserved for God alone. Only God has the right to judge when the physical must end.