Plain blame – no gain
First it was Jun calling the opposition obstructionists to the peace process. Then it was Manny’s turn to call Jun a sell out and accused him of abandoning the people of
So Noggie fired back and told Bert to just do his job and stop using others as an excuse. Then some Congressman named Belmonte complained that the Army or the AFP were not doing their job, so General Mark Supnet blew a fuse and burst out at the unkind and the unfair remarks.
While Belmonte and Supnet have reportedly made peace, the rest of the clan are still busy playing “One Up-manship” or simply hating each other.
The tragedy of it all is that in many cases, the opponents or combatants belong to the same team, they have similar or connected concerns, and if they actually managed to work together, their solutions would be far more beneficial to all and even for themselves. But, as is now the case, it is easier for lazy dogs to bite and bark rather than to pull the sled like Huskies in a team.
Take for instance the case of Speaker Nograles and LTO Chief Bert Suansing. The problem they have been entangled in is the long hated protocol plate or the number “8” plate for members of Congress. The truth is, the plate has long been subjected to abuse even before Speaker Nograles or Bert Suansing came into office. They did not make this baby nor did they raise this monster. But whether they like it or not, they are now Mom and Dad to the all-aluminum pest.
They both have their own set of problems, they have their individual responsibilities, and I know from talking to each of them they have great ideas, solutions and a wonderful opportunity to make a difference.
Instead they are publicly squabbling like some newly wed husband and wife! In the first place, it never works to remind your partner about his or her responsibility most especially in public! Just like any “couple” they should have discussed the matter in private. But from what I gather they lacked the confidence of real leadership, the confidence to set aside title or being correct in the interest of fostering strong alliances.
Their second big mistake is not being media-trained where one rule is to ask questions first, give answers after. The only thing their gun-slinger mouths earned them is less respect and irritation from the public and from commentators.
In this situation, the best way to get results is to first do something yourself! Do everything you can so that no one can throw it at your face, then you earn the right to ask others what they have done or are intending to do.
Speaker Boy Nograles was certainly right to call attention to Bert Suansing’s reluctance to do what essentially was the job he swore to perform. If some idiot in Congress decides to retaliate at the LTO, that then becomes Speaker Nograles’s problem. But on the other hand, Speaker Nograles was way out of line to drag everybody else in the same breath. He may have spoken in truth, but he simply enlarged a problem, which needed his solutions and his action, not his reaction.
Instead of dying down, their little spat became part of the daily news and transformed from a simple issue on plate numbers but became a grudge match. That only happens when you fall for set-up questions, gatong or when you choose to stay in your office rather than make your way to the other guys place.
In the case of Congressman Belmonte and General Mark Supnet, it was quite understandable that emotions would run high from the frustration of fighting an unseen enemy with one of your hands tied to your back. Blaming others may offer some measure of relief may be even the feeling that you at least are doing something. But we all know that to blame someone from within is like poisoning yourself. Sooner or later the blame will create anger, suspicion and strife.
Whether by chance or grace, I came across a story about King David that proves how difficult times almost always causes people to blame their leaders even if it is not their fault.
1 Samuel 30:3…
When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. David’s two wives had been captured- Ahinoam and Abigail.
David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.
Then David said to Abiathar the priest “bring me the ephod” and David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?
“Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.”
David fought them from dusk until evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back.
- Latest
- Trending
