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Aren't they all honorable men and women?
AS I WRECK THIS CHAIR By William M. Esposo
The Philippine Star 2009-03-05
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“So are they all, all honorable men.” This was the line of Roman Marc Antony in the famous Julius Caesar funeral oration written by William Shakespeare. It referred to the cabal that plotted and staged the assassination of ancient Rome’s greatest military hero.
In our country, we are used to seeing our public servants being addressed as HONORABLE. Congressmen and Senators who are undertaking an inquisition in aid of desired personal political positions have to be addressed as “Your Honor” by the very people they are savaging.
Seeing how many HONORABLE public servants we seem to have, one wonders how come we’ve gained the country reputation as one of the most corrupt in the world. If Malacanang Palace is to be believed, this is the result of shameful and systematic acts of destabilization by internal and external sinister forces.
Following the Malacañang Palace line — all those who have been trying to implicate the First Gentleman in all sorts of shenanigans are nothing more than shameless issue fabricators and mischief promoters. Critics of the First Gentleman have practically linked the poor fellow to massive electoral fraud and the rigging or overpricing of the juiciest government contracts.
Following the Malacañang Palace line, the First Gentleman is a victim and not a perpetrator of high crimes in this country. How can anyone believe that the First Gentleman, a product of the Ateneo de Manila University “Man for others” education, can be so greedy and voracious? Don’t you recall the First Gentleman having stated in the past that he was born rich and does not steal?
So, how can you link someone who was born rich and educated by the Jesuits with insatiable greed? Wouldn’t that unjustly portray this Atenean as one who lost his Christian conscience by allegedly stealing too much when millions of Filipinos have too little?
The First Gentleman’s critics must not lose sight of what Shakespeare wrote: “So are they all, all honorable men.”
Also, how can anyone criticize those Congressmen and Senators who are quick to protect the First Gentleman and his alleged cohorts in the various scandals where the First Gentleman has been dragged — from the ZTE deal to the World Bank projects and then some?
How can you question Senator Miriam D. Santiago for selective outrage like when she lambasted the so-called PNP Euro Generals while extending kid gloves treatment to the First Gentleman?
Can you fault Congressmen who desire to clear the reputation of the Filipino nation — now known as one of the most corrupt in the world? Shouldn’t these Congressmen be hailed as patriots for attempting to redeem the reputation of the Filipino nation?
The legislators’ critics must not lose sight of what Shakespeare wrote: “So are they all, all honorable men.”
By the same token, how can critics slam Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez for supposedly being the single biggest cause of anarchy in the country? While it is true that anarchy is best promoted when the law is no longer fairly applied to everybody, how can critics say that Raul Gonzalez can only interpret the law in favor of the person who appointed him to his present post?
Do you not realize the difficulty that Raul Gonzalez undergoes every time he has to render a legal opinion or order a Justice Department action that favors the current Malacañang Palace occupant and her ilk? Seeing how unpopular the Malacañang Palace occupant is, shouldn’t Raul Gonzalez be admired for having the moral courage to do what he knows will be very unpopular?
And how about his Justice Department Undersecretaries and State Prosecutors and how they are now cast in a very bad light following the “Alabang Boys” bribery scandal? For instance, how can you immediately suspect Prosecutor John Resado of accepting a bribe to clear the “Alabang Boys” just for merely having made a big deposit in his bank account on the very day he issued the Justice Department resolution that sought to clear the accused drug peddlers?
The Justice Department critics must not lose sight of what Shakespeare wrote: “So are they all, all honorable men.”
Shame on you critics of Madame Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) for your relentless tirades — accusing her of cheating her way to retaining the presidency in 2004, surrendering Philippine natural resources to China and other countries, plotting to cede Philippine territory to the US-sponsored BJE (Bangsamoro Juridical Entity) and for generating the worst level of graft and corruption in our history.
If the GMA critics are to be believed, that would make her the very personification of evil. The GMA critics do not even consider how tirelessly she works and how she would even chase the new US president, Barack Obama, half way across the globe just to show that she is in his good graces.
Haven’t GMA’s critics realized just how tough a high wire act she has had to maintain in trying to balance between accommodating US and China interests in the Philippines? Don’t her critics know that she is in constant danger of being eliminated by a superpower-backed coup at any time?
Why don’t they appreciate all that she is doing for God, people and country? Do they think that she loves power and pelf that much to take all the risks and criticisms?
Indeed, we must never forget what Shakespeare wrote: “So are they all, all honorable men.”
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