The De Lima Demeanor
Senator Leila De Lima
By Wilfredo G. Villanueva
She looked at me with prosecutorial but friendly eyes while I asked her about the elephant in the room: “For whom does your heart beat now?”
“No one,” she said matter-of-factly without surprise or resentment. After all, it was the first time she had seen me and she didn’t know exactly if I was friend or foe. She didn’t show me the door to the receiving room of her Camp Crame custodial quarters for my impertinence. Question asked, question answered, no harm done, next question.
I was with Senator Leila de Lima Friday June 16, late afternoon, a few days after the milestone of 100 days spent in detention for drug charges. She looked fresh, not a hint of worry, fear, nor resentment. “Do you have resentment?” I asked.
“No.” “Do you feel that the people have abandoned you?” “No.” “Where do you draw your strength?” “I have become closer to God.”
I had to ask in machine-gun staccato fire because I was reminded I only had thirty minutes as she had another set of visitors after me. She rode with me speed on speed, like a bike rider behind a daredevil, bending her body to keep balance; indulging my temerity, probably.
She should be sad. From the chilled senate halls dressed to the nines (read: scarf) to a dismal room with a lonely electric fan, in house dress, guarded 24/7 by a police detail, in the heart of the national headquarters of the Philippine National Police, yes, Camp Crame fronting fabled EDSA, the boulevard of broken dreams. “Do you see the other senators?” “No, they’re in a separate facility.” “Do you fear for your safety?” A little hesitation, a sigh, then, “You know they can barge in here, you know, Espinosa.” (Referring to Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa who was gunned down in cold blood inside his cell at the Baybay City sub-provincial jail November last year.)
She should be sad but she’s not. The only sadness I gathered in my half-hour visit did not come from her. It manifested itself when two of her relatives from Bicol arrived, their turn to start at 5 p.m. The lady cousin was beside herself in grief, teared up as she approached Senator de Lima. It looked like a wake and I had to bow my head in sheer awe and reverence as in Consecration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
“I’m still alive,” Senator de Lima teased, hugging the lady. The gentleman with the lady also approached de Lima and teared up, too. A grown, dignified hulk of a man in a black suit and tieless shirt, liquified in tears, again, as in a wake, when one is about to view the casket. The same words: “I’m still alive,” she said as she hugged back, giggling like a schoolgirl with not a care in the world.
Either she is a great actor or she really has nothing to be afraid of, and we chatted on and on like old friends, for she can disarm with her eyes peering through eyeglasses. She was wearing what one would normally wear gardening or shopping for groceries, cool as 17 degrees Celsius, a materteral presence, someone kids would like to drag to cinema with popcorn and soda treats.
She was in her elements, even if she had been shoved aside, charged with the most egregious crime of bantay salakay, fifth column or double agent, herself alleged to be a drug queen when she was justice secretary charged with the job of cleaning up New Bilibid Prison of drugs, guns and electronic gadgets needed in the dark business of selling drugs.
In fact, it was de Lima who busted the drug operations PNoy time, inside the Bilibid compound, the only justice secretary to do so. In the House probe, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez granted immunity to most of the witnesses against the lady senator, which makes their motives suspect. Some of the detainees on whom lie the task of proving her guilt are:
- Herbert Colanggo, detained since 2009, convicted robbery gang leader;
- Jaybee Sebastian, who together with Colanggo controlled drug operations in Bilibid;
- PNP Police Inspector Rodolfo Magleo, detained since 2004 for kidnapping
Former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay would question the allegations in Supreme Court, centering his argument on “the lack of concrete evidence against the senator, the conflicting positions of the Department of Justice and the Office of the Solicitor General over which the specific provision of the anti-drug law the senator supposedly violated, and the lack of qualification of the witnesses to testify in the case.” (Philippine Daily Inquirer.)
Not a lawyer, this writer, so I shall not delve into the merits of the case. It could be sub judice.
I see only what I see, and I see a woman who is not afraid to confront the truth. She did not run, first of all, from the charges, preferring to let justice run its course. Do you recall Ninoy Aquino standing up from his plane seat to go quietly and without drama with his would-be executioners, the whole face expressing a mixture of love for country and high ideal, a little fear, let’s get on with it?
Mother to Israel, with autism. Saw Israel in the detention visiting area. His mother hugged him, pinched his chin. The other son is Vincent Joshua, third year law, with two kids. Yes, the lady is a grandma.
Speaking of family, Senator de Lima’s mother is shielded from the truth about her daughter. Thinks the legislator is in the United States for schooling. Sad.
She doesn’t own the house she lives in, in Parañaque city. This came to me as a redemption of the senator, because I told my wife, “Mommy, I’ll start to believe their charges of drug money to finance her campaign if they can show a picture of a mansion or a flashy car, or inordinate lifestyle.” She rides an Innova.
The trouble started, she said when in 2009, she dared question then Davao city mayor Rodrigo Duterte about extrajudicial killings or EJKs in his territory. Must have stung the mayor, knowing as we know by now how he reacts to criticism or questions on his integrity and character. Obama, remember? The event is burned in her memory. Happened in Davao Waterfront hotel, the inquisition of the mayor, and hell hath no fury like a lord and master in intense scrutiny. You know how the lady cuts.
She is a persistent searcher, a human ferret. On July 13, last year, just when President Duterte was fresh at the wheel of presidency, Senator de Lima stood up in the halls of the Senate to call for an inquiry on EJKs, a phenomenon many believe to be the linchpin of the new administration. Kill ‘em all, he says, fatten the fish. She must have tested the President’s patience, and here we are, the good is probably unjustly charged with high crime, and the bad most probably unjustifiably elevated to the highest position of the land. A novelist couldn’t have created such a scenario in his fertile mind. Too impossible a plot, but hey, he or she has to sell something that grips the reader’s throat.
Thirteen dogs. Labs, dachsunds, and her favorite is Coco, a Japanese Spitz. Deprived of doting master, Coco has the senator’s smile and eye-to-eye contact on Mondays, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., the whole nine yards, up to sawa, for both dog and master.
And so we have a servant of the people who is supposed to be free to do her job as per electoral results, clamped in dignified jail but a jail nevertheless, robbed of things normal people can do without permission like dining out or watching movies, or doing Facebook. Does the brain shrink for lack of stimulus, does the heart tire for lack of human contact, does the body atrophy for lack of space to stretch and jump and enjoy life as we know it?
Ask Leila. She doesn’t seem to be slowing down, not in mind, not in heart and spirit, not in conviction. Shame to those who would snuff out an individual’s calling on a whim or just because power allows it. Shame on them. All of them.
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The Society of Honor by Joe America 
Will your writing is always heartfelt. I dont know why reading this I was brought to tears. Ngayon ko lang na intindihan bakit ang tagal napakawalan si nelson mandela and people like him. They see the future, a future of tolerance, a better place. They inhabit that future while we live in the present. The people, us we need to reach that future to make that future reality, only then can the people who inhabit the future be free. When we catch up to them. Only then.
Thank you Gian, thank you Kuya Will. Now the waterworks : Hang in there in Sen. Leila. We care and we are grateful ❤ !
You’re welcome, stpaul!
My thoughts exactly. Thank you Mr. Villanueva for this article, so well-written and cuts through. God have mercy on all of us.
You’re welcome, Marilet! And thank you! God have mercy on us all.
Thanks, Gian. Encouraged.
I,too, was brought to tears. This timely update on Sen Leila is imperative. Thank you Willie for posting it.
You’re welcome, LG!
YEA SIR…SHAME TO ALL OF THEM.
Yes, shame.
Yes, you die, everything comes to pass. But you are dishonored, consequently shamed, and you just live on and on, hoping you would die, but the shame remains. O death, be the cure!
Thank you for this article. I admire the lady, she’s brave and strong.
You’re welcome, Arlene!
Seeing her in person, with her demeanor, makes me believe more in our race. There may be many cowards, but one brave soul fighting against all odds redeems our pride, lifts the weight of cowardice. I tell you, Ninoy easily comes to mind.
You’re lucky you have seen her personally.
You may visit her. Be inspired. Be a friend to comfort, share solidarity and strength. For those who wish, have time and can manage the distance, IF you want to visit… please email me: tiu.travel.123@gmail.com or look up on messenger: Vicente M De Lima.
To Will, those who comment, “Thank you all, for sharing your good thoughts and love for a brave Filipino”. Senator Leila De Lima, exemplifies one of the best traits in our race, Kagitingan at Pagmamahal sa Bayan maging kapalit man ng pansariling kaginhawaan!
Dreaming of that, thanks!
*******
1. Those who defend Duterte claim that he has a soft heart.
2. His treatment of Senator De Lima controverts the claim.
3. Here there is malice aforethought and on a grand scale. It is personal vendetta using all the considerable powers of the state to incarcerate an outspoken critic.
4. And on what basis is the Senator detained? On very flimsy bases — on a photograph, on the word of a lover without honor, on the allegations of a murdered drug lord’s son afraid for his own life, and on the testimonies of jailbird snitches given in exchange for god-knows-what.
5. The courage and innocence of the Senator are, to my mind, beyond any doubt. ” She did not run, first of all, from the charges, preferring to let justice run its course.”
5.1. The fortitude of her spirit is shown in her demeanor. ”She should be sad but she’s not.”
5.2. And her faith in the ascendance of man’s humaneness is strong. In Rappler, she is quoted thus: “It just means that everything had to happen the way they happened. I had to be the counterweight to the selfish, inhumane, and reckless leadership of the Duterte administration. I believe nothing I have done, or will continue to do, will be in vain.”
6. There is more than shame to be cast or wrested from her main persecutors – Duterte, Aguirre, and Calida. There are justice and accounting to be done.
*****
Hold your head up high, Pilipinas, for the sun cannot hide forever in clouds of ignorance and self-doubt, for the universe will produce heroes for every tear you shed.
Hi Will, thanks for this article, im glad you have shown us another side of Sen de Lima, and “gladder” that she prefers “justice to runs its course” and in time she will be vindicated. God Sees the truth but waits. Mabuhay Sen. de Lima, mahubay Will Villanueva.
MABUHAY SEN DE LIMA, MABUHAY WILL VILLANUEVA
This is a beautiful, well-written article. Sen. DeLima is even more appreciated now that she is behind bars. Her words are inspiring.
Good job with that one-on-one. Fortunately she’s treated fairly, but outside politics is nothing but a circus full of extremist freaks. It’s a far cry from the times when jailed statesmen during the regime had to endure the worst.
————-
OTOH, Senator Trillianes will be holding an AMA over at Reddit.
Cool. Thanks for the heads up.
[WATCH JUNE 21] Sen. Trillanes BBC HardTALK Full Interview
Pinanood, pinakinggan ko yung interview. Taliwas sa intindi ng marami, ang dating sa ibang nakapanood at tila ang dating parang bwelta sa isang pakawala, magaling yung gumigisa pero nagtilamsikan ang mantika sa kanyang mukha. Talo ng isang bulag ang nagbubulag-bulagan sa pakiramdam sa nangyayri sa kanyang kapaligiran..
Some media purveyors and the DDS (Duterte’s Dakilang Sipsip) are spinning this interview as a negative for Trillanes. They highlighted the part where the interviewer said that he is “not in tune” with the general Filipino sentiment because of PRD’s poll results. Trillanes held his ground and explained the phenomenon very well. He expressed himself factually, rationally and civilly. He deserves a thumbs up for his principled and courageous stand. May his tribe increase!
Thanks, madlanglupa. Writers absorb creative energy from the world in which they live, and they are but the tongue of a collective body crying out for justice and redemption.
To Sen. de Lima, “Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” You are always in my prayers.
She will read your prayers, tocayo.
Thanks for the De Lima interview…….
Thanks, Sup!
Thank you Wil for your interview of Sen De Lima.
Thanks, Karl! You’re welcome!
Thanks Mr. Wilfredo Villanueva for this great article; and hand on Sen de Lima.
Thanks, Teresita! Love brings out the best in us.
I’m really concerned for this lady so I’m posting my two blogs I wrote in her defense and in exchange I will post this blog link under the comment sections of my two blogs below. But if you find it objectionable, you may of course delete this, no hard feelings but I will not delete yours on mine.
*******
Thank you.
I like the details of the inside info and, in particular, the inferences from what would normally be considered background and irrelevant events. Normally, people will analyze a situation in isolation and not look pass it to other seemingly unrelated situations to establish a pattern of consistency.
However, from a logical viewpoint and to paraphrase the popular aphorism that the “absence of evidence is not evidence for absence:” proof of consistency is not proof of the absence of inconsistency.
Having said that, I agree character will tell.
Oh, and I like the no-delete policy!
*****
Thank you for your kind words. I use technique used by some international investigators. First, if you can’t find any solid evidence, gather as much circumstantial evidences as possible and see if you can come up with a picture. If you come up with a picture, then you look for solid, material evidences as it will be much easier when you have a broad picture – you know where and what to look for. But of course, in my case, it’s limited to just the “picture” as I’m not in a position to look for material evidences.
Using this same technique, I predicted that there will be some form of terrorist attack just before the first Quiapo bombing and also predicted the Martial law in Mindanao just few hours before it was declared. But the big problem for our country is that IF my analysis is correct, President Duterte probably instigated the attack to justify Martial Law. Here’s the analysis I made last January and the events are turning out just as I’ve predicted. And if the President formally initiates the campaign to establish federalism in the country, that’ll be my final proof:
I’ve already found more than 10 circumstantial evidences to link the President with the “terrorist” attack but I will not post it here as I don’t want to be seen as a “spammer.” If you are interested, please navigate around the site and you’ll find it – it’s the latest. It’s written somewhat in propaganda style so please read between the lines. Thanks again.
I did read your light shedding posts. Carry on, M. C. I’s Truth.
Thank you very much. I’m coming up with a big project for Senator de Lima one of this day but I’m not sure if I will succeed as my coverage is limited, so please wish me luck…
Best of luck to you👍
“Shame on them. All of them.”
shame (shām)
n.
1.
a. A painful emotion caused by the belief that one is, or is perceived by others to be,inferior or unworthy of affection or respect because of one’s actions, thoughts,circumstances, or experiences
Someday when all of these abominations come to pass, Duterte’s administration will perhaps be best remembered for the leadership’s utter lack of shame and disgust over its own deplorable behaviour. That’s “ahrikya” (shamelessness) in Buddhist terminology.
Rape jokes, fake news, false accusations, dead children on their account – the list goes on, and neither of them all a cause for sleepless nights to this horde. Nothing to make them feel inferior or unworthy nor bothered by the growing disaffection from their own constituents and lack of respect worldwide. Because it’s shamelessness is equally matched by its recklessness and complete disregard of the consequences of its actions. Not only does it not feel shame, it also has the amazing incapacity for dread. That’s “anottappa” (disregard for consequences, recklessness).
Ahrikya and anottappa are two of 4 universal unwholesome mental factors in Buddhism. The other two are moha (delusion,ignorance) and uddhacca (restlessness, distraction)
Shamelessness, recklessness, ignorance, and distraction. Doesn’t that just about sum up the Philippine predicament of late?
That’s a crying shame.
Such a shaim!!
Getting caught or having to admit is the only shaim they know, loss of face.
But the faces, especially Calida, look as if the Dark Side of the Force made them rot..
It’s funny isn’t it, how their supporters actually recognise the loss of face and stature of their revered leader but lay the blame on those that expose the wrongdoings rather than the actual wrongdoer. That’s like Calida blaming a broken mirror for alll the pockmarks on the image in front of him.
Correct Cha… Look at the comments after writing an honest piece about travel expenses.
http://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/investigative/173127-rodrigo-duterte-foreign-trips-cost-first-year-aquino-arroyo
The comments are not appearing on the link, Sup. But I won’t be surprised if it once again has become a showcase of many a cultist’s remarkable ability to articulate absolutely nothing that makes sense or perhaps with any trace at all of sound reasoning or intelligent thought. 😊
Scroll all the way down Cha..You’ll find a reddish sign to click comments, it is now 115 comments po.
*******
1. Dread is “great fear or apprehension.”
2. I remember I used to have this feeling of dread for Senator De Lima during the Lower House hearings. This was triggered by the shamelessness of the evil conductor Aguirre and of the representatives in gathering false testimonies from equally shameless reprobates.
2.1. By the way, ex-Senator Saguisag claims, in keeping with Karl’s remarks here at TSH, that Aguirre is not “inherently bad.” He rationalizes Aguirre’s conduct with the excuse that the DOJ Secretary has just fallen into bad company. Nabarkada lang. It may be that immorality does not surface until an opportunity presents itself, but “bad company” is a gross simplification and explanation for the conduct of an active practitioner of evil who is no longer a juvenile.
3. After those hearings and in the succeeding months, there was dread in going to bed at night and at waking in the morning. What new pitfall had unfolded during the night? And what new peril would the day disclose?
4. I note that of late the feeling of dread has tapered off. I wonder, is it because of resignation? Hopelessness? Or is it because there is a point of inurement beyond which shock can no longer be felt? This is like being shell-shocked.
4.1. Is the nation suffering from PTSD? From seeing all the dead bodies on the streets?
***
5. As an outsider, I feel Buddhism is more psychology than religion. To me, this, plus its spirit of open inquiry, is its great attraction. Apart from delving into the causes of suffering, it has mapped out in detail the emotional and mental states of being. Today, it is being discovered that there are areas of agreement between Buddhism and the new science of neuroscience. When I read Buddhist writings, I am astonished at the clarity, nuance, and subtlety of reasoning and insights. I must admit most are beyond my comprehension. It’s like catching bubbles.
*****
Edgar,
I know you were talking about Senator Saguisag .But as far as I am concerned I may have included personal experience and personal bias in my assesment of Aguirre.
But, let me categorically state that:
I do not condone his actions which are too many to mention, chief of which is the pinning down Senator De Lima.
Thanks.
*******
Karl, thanks.
*****
For your number Five, I am one of those correct in calling you the guru of TSH.
You give clarity when there is confusion.
Going back to dread, this blog article of Wil and its comments showed continued support to Senator De Lima despite all our feeling of dread.
Thanks.
Hear! Hear! Edgar Lores = Zen
Hi Karl. I think you don’t do Facebook, so I’m bringing Facebook to you. Hahaha! My latest report on the article: “Thanks for welcoming this article, Joe America. Over 3,000 Facebook shares out of the blog The Society of Honor as of Day Two of publication of the article, about 6,000 views, hundreds of other comments, likes, shares of FB friends in various postings. Not bad for 30 minutes of alone time with the good senator. A river of sympathy and support for Leila runs through our society. Authorities beware. Who said the Philippines is compliant, asleep, looking the other way?”
Thanks Wil, I am not that active, but I still read some of my newsfeed and notifications.
That is very good to know.
Wil, I don’t do FB either but I take heart on the reception of your article – renders great optimism for the morrow of our country among citizens of goodwill.
I got that feeling of dread on the day the final results of the presidential election came out. Afterwards the feeling is more akin to comes when witnessing the aftermath of a tragic accident. Sadness, desolation takes over, along with resignation that one’s worst fear has just come true. And there is no turning back, just wishful thinking that the nightmare will all be over soon.
Alas, it’s looking to be a long dark night.
Agreed. The excerpt below says it all. I also relived it again in November 2016.
“Oh, and as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in Hell
Could break that Satan’s spell
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight
The day the music died”
~Don McLean, American Pie
That’s actually one of my favourite songs, JP. 😊
Even the song writer does not agree with various interpretations. He was in a trance, a prophet unaware of his own prophecy.
No one said it would be easy, building a country from a ship of fools to an armada with single purpose.
Hi Edgar! Reading you expands the mind, gladdens the soul, knocks the mind of its perch. Thanks. You make writing more circumspect, thorough, flowing as in a stream.
Remove shame and you trash civilization. We were born to feel shame, such as what Adam and Eve endured ex-Eden, planting the seed of mankind with the awareness of its limitations passed on across the generations, a self-correcting genome.
To Will Villanueva, you are indeed so lucky to encounter a great woman by the name of Leila.
To Sen. De Lima,”The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity” Proverbs 11:3 Hindi ka po pababayaan ng ating Panginoon. Marami po kaming nagdadasal para sa inyong paglaya. Mabuhay po kayo.
Watching history unfold my very eyes. Hi, Thea!
I suspect that Duterte is creating an ‘imprisoned martyr’….
Politically that is gross stupidity…
If anyone in Duterte’s inner circle has any common sense, they will bring the trial forward ASAP. And quietly arrange for her to be found not guilty and released…
And thus pull out this ‘nail’ of their own foot…
There is no wound like a self inflicted one.
Thugs don’t do contrite. They send their goons after people who talk sense or compassion.
Joe, I am talking about their own self interests here !
Dispite the attention Muslims have been getting, the Philippines is a Catholic nation.
Creating a martyr, live or dead, is political stupidity.
Surely the example of old ‘pressie’ Marcos & Aquino’s dad testifies to this.
You are idealistically correct but the evidence suggests that civility, or even sense, is not a part of this government’s thinking. We have these disagreements because you insist on sense but the real world won’t go there, no matter how much sense you make. I’m trying to explain what it’s like here.
Ahhh wellJoe, we disagree..That’s OK.. Surely you do not want TSOH to be an echo chamber ?
And I do not write for you alone anyway. The reality is that even people close to the government read or scan this blog so it is a reminder for them of what is political wisdom from their interests.
The blog is not an echo chamber and editorial policies assure that it will not be. Within that umbrella, both you and I are free to offer our own views.
As to the issue, I agree with what you say about the foolishness of the Senator’s imprisonment, so if there is disagreement, it is over the feasibility of the Duterte government seeing the imprisonment of De Lima as a risk, and setting her free. I asked my bookie Sal about the odds of her being set free by the President, and he started laughing uncontrollably. I don’t think he was drunk.
Lance
In her career DeLima took an unusual path. Instead of going sychophantic and carry balls like 99% of Filipino executive, legislative, judiciary and all those in the lawyering business so as to collect more cash, she collects enemies.
As a practicing lawyer, she undertook a lot of election cases. She was a good lawyer for opposition figures, like Allan Cayetano, Manny Villar, Koko Pimentel, etc. A fool she was to take on clientele of the opposition. She was a pain in the posterior for the Pres Arroyo who gigted her the thankless job of CHR chair in order to get rid of a thorn.
She undertook dangerous jobs with great determination, jobs where your life is worth less than 5,000 pesos, jobs where men 4 times her size has no balls to take on. She was personally there in Maguindanao during heated election time (those times when election means killing time) in Ampatuan territory and protest some.election wrong doings of the most ruthless clan there, a clan that not even president Arroyo and those before her dared to touch. It was getting dark at the canvassing center when lawyer Sixto Brilliantes had to pull her out, knowing full well the danger. (Brilliantes went on to be Collec chairman)
Years later she was back at Maguinadao to take on the Ampatuan clan in the case of the massacre of 58 people — the clan’s opposition and press members, She took the case headon, something that attracts personal risks in this country.
As CHR chair, her first job again pissed off Arroyo as she went after human rights violators in the AFP. She went after General Jovito Palparan who did some dirty work for Arroyo. She took on HR violation cases with no regard to the names of perpetrators. Which led her to Davao city to investigate a man no one dares to touch. Davao is a kingdom unto itself, highly suspicious of imperial Manila which is viewed as an enemy.
Upon info on the problems in Bilibid prison, she charged in and tried to clean the stables. DOJ bosses before her never had to balls to do what she did. She was there personally.
Maguinadao, Davao and Bilibid — 3 places in Philippines that nobody dared to touch, nobody want to go there. Every executive just pretended nothings going there, that’s why problems persisted to this day.
Because of D5, Maguinadao is more manageable now. With D5 Bilibid improved, but Aguirre has allowed it to lapse to the good old days. Because of D5, the killings temporarily stopped during her investigations there as the DDS kept a low profile. To those who thought it’s no big deal, should have listened to Lascanas tell of the chilling event when D5 party was just minutes away from a hail of bullets in a mine quarry searching for buried bodies when they almost walked into an ambush. Faith made them turn another direction when itching fingers were all at the triggers.
And now, safely ensconced as a senator, she should have sat back and do a Sotto, or Pacquiao or Erjecito and suckle up to the executive and get invited to diners at Malacanang and get to go on overseas trips. But she choose to follow up on finished business of finding justice for many who perished.
Her actions showed consistency. No politics, no moneyed deals. Just great determination to do right and at great personal risks.
Weigh her indiscretion with her driver against the above, if you still find her wanting, there is something wrong with your scale.
Thanks, chemp! That’s the results I’m looking for, not available thru Wiki!
I’m more inclined to think of her as an Atticus Finch character now. But her path, though maybe not common, still suggests not just determination but ambition to power (not that there’s anything wrong with that, chemp) . So why or how did she stumble with this driver lover of hers? If she was so singularly passionate.
You’ve definitely given me more for my scales to ponder, but this sex with the driver, just weighs heavily (at least for me), ie. more criminal than justice seeking is my reading. Or simply maybe she’s a justice/human rights geek, so busy trying to ram a square to a circle hole in the Philippines, that
like an autistic person , when her driver approached her she didn’t know how to weigh her scales … hmmmmmmmmm maybe my driver should just remain so. Was her driver a plant, whose specific purpose was to sabotage her (taking videos, etc.)? If that was the case her driver would’ve been all over the media with more videos—- I don’t think that’s happening here.
There’s something not quite right, in my reading of all this specific to the driver.
But unlike caliphman, there’s something amiss here re De Lima’s driver and De Lima, and I’m giving it full weight. You guys could be right of course, you especially are there (with non-Filipino eyes, hence more objective), I’m simply Googling. So I defer to your scales, and await the investigation/trial, chemp.
@chemrock says:
June 27, 2017 at 6:14 pm
Wow! What a grand recitation of things De Lima — Fools rush in where angels fear to tread in a manner of speaking — as a measure of the Lady to help put in perspective the stain of her relationship with her driver, a stain which may not be scrubbed clean; but there you are . Thank you.
Lance
I do agree the Dayan affair is a blemish with serious consequences as it calls into question her judgemental capacity. On the moral scale she certainly has dropped several rungs in my esteem, but as Caliphman said, this in no way has any bearing on the criminal cases she is pursuing.for that matter, it actually shows her true strength of character — that the skeleton in her closet did not prevent her from her advocacy against criminality. She was held at ransom but she ignored the threat. How many others would have given up I wonder.
You mentioned the possibility of the driver Dayan as a plant. That’s a high probability. My thoughts are Senator Lacson lurks in the shadow. Two reasons — one, Delima was going after Lacson for the double murder or 2 guys at one point, two, the slimy woman , Sandra Cam. Cam is the woman who first talked about D5 sex videos she promised to reveal but showed nothing for a long while. Was she just boasting in advance with knowledge of Dayan’s role which at rhar rime was mission uncompleted. Remember how that woman boasted of cabinet appointment at the airport VIP lounge, 3 months before the president gave her a post.. Cam is the jueteng blower that got Estrada into trouble. Lacson-Cam link is murky. She appeared out of nowhere as a resource person for Lacson in some senate or congress hearing. There was connection long ago. Dig this deep and some truth will be revealed.
I get where you’re coming from, Bill. But I tend to agree with Joe here, you’re introducing a ‘what ought to be’ variable here, when the reality on the ground is simply that 99.99999% of Filipino politicians (and the rich) are simply dirrrty. Now of course that’s no exact science, and who knows how many .000001% (NH, is my math correct?) is. My point, you’re making my mistakes early on, in superimposing Western expectations and/or values to the Philippines.
I do differ from you and Joe, in that i tend to see 3rd world politics as simply (and naturally?) dirrrty. Hence, or ergo, De Lima (IMHO, to me…) is dirrrty. I don’t see her as being martyred (though i see your point re Jose Rizal), what I see is that she is being lionized, given automatic saint status by anti-DU30s (i’ve commented something similar in the past, though i’ve not kept up with the actual case against her). But I think people, especially when it comes to Philippine politics, one should start at the lowest levels first (lowest common denominator) , then if they live up to better, or best, then lionized, exalt them , but don’t start at exaltation first, and all this fluff about her ; no, especially in Philippine politics.
Having an affair with one’s driver is akin to doing the dirrrty with your childrens’ yaya , or the women who do your laundry by hand, etc. Exactly the purview of the Filipino male powerful rich and/or politicians, they target the women beneath them (ie. victimize), simply because they can. Now the dynamics of female (powerful) and male (of less stature) is usually treated more leniently by society, but in the 3rd world I tend to not make these allowances, same-same to me.
If one starts from hersexual liaisons with her driver (and or others), the possibility of criminality by de Lima becomes very likely, now it’s simply the probability process (ie. courts, investigations, etc.), but usually sexcapades lead to bigger things.
That alone, makes me very suspicious of de Lima, where i get a gagging, nauseated feeling in my tummy (similar to the “my dogs think they’re human” quote), when I see folks writing in veneration and overpraise a Filipino politician (same as over here). Maybe its the Catholic DNA of seeing things in black/white, saint/sinner, Evil/Good, God/Devil , w/out accommodating for the area in between; but in the good and evil spectrum IMHO tis safer to assume on the side of sin first, then work up—— and not the other way around, which I think is happening here. But that’s just me. 😉
Let’s not canonize her just yet!!! Hold your horses…
Saint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_of_Lima
Good to hear from you LCX. I agree that there is a natural level of dirt in third world living and what makes a first world nation is a sophisticated ability to cover it up. Where we differ is in what we do about it, observe or scrub. You do the former, and this blog is the latter. 🙂
I didn’t say scrub, Joe. Both DU30 and D5 are both capable of whatever they are accused of is my point, maybe more so DU30 , but my point re not canonizing Filipino politicians was more on practicality, ie. investigative and judicial.
But the wider point I suppose is the impracticality of canonizing, lionizing, as well as demonizing folks in the arena (they are suppose to get things done), especially the 3rd world. Again, re amoral, immoral, immoral, my focus is in results. What are De Lima’s results? Tangible I mean. Focus on that first, then weigh this whole martyrdom stuff (ie. can a martyr be martyred if she/he hasn’t really done much? or are good intentions just solid these days to equate to tangible stuff? that’s the philosophical component to this 😉 )
Tangible De Lima results. One could I suppose go over the records of the Human Rights Commission or Department of Justice during her term. Wiki doesn’t provide much detail. I’m not inclined to put that much work into it. I know I was impressed with her as HRC head because she remained principled even as political bosses were not. That’s what got her in trouble with Duterte. It’s what got her into trouble as senator. I think she went against the dirt, had courage to do so, and my holding her in great respect does not make her a martyr. What makes her a martyr is when many thousands of people feel the same way, and recognize that dirty is unkind. You are asking people to collectively lessen their respect of her so as not to make her an idol. I say, “Huh? Aim low?”
Lance,
Since you asked: assume that the good guys in TSH — not dirrrrty, that is — numbers at least 100, not necessarily all Filipinos but Filipinos in mind and spirit. Then we have
0.0001% (=100*100/100 Million)
But there are more than 100 non-dirty Filipinos here in PH. Which means your .000001% is much too low.
But figuratively, you are correct. 🙂
*******
Ah, the old presumption of guilt.
*****
I’m simply saying the reality is that De Lima is just another run of the mill Filipino politician, Joe— hence judge by tangible results (by that I mean, results that can be felt by the guy on the ground ). Whether you (or others ) respect her or not, is not my issue. I’m simply arguing the realist side here.
As far as your “thousands of people”, DU30 still maintains an 80% polling, hence your Congress and Courts there aren’t siding with De Lima, that points to results IMHO, Joe… ie., had De Lima set her self up with results, she wouldn’t have been so easily tossed. At least that’s my reading of the DU30 vs. D5 drama, where you guys are describing a David vs. Goliath narrative, I see
only an upstart politician (most likely as corrupt and/or dirrrty as others there) that took the Icarus story waaaay too seriously. These ideals, romantic notions of humanity need to be weighed out, Gina Lopez attempted to weigh ideals and reality, only her sun that burnt her wings were mining, logging and fossil fuels interest (much more powerful than the sun, it seems 😉 )
in De Lima’s case it was failure to amass results that matter to the people or her fellow politicians. Hence the silence, in my estimation, Joe.
Thanks, for checking my math, NH! 🙂
The reality is she is not a run of the mill politician, which is why she is in jail. She is clean in a world of dirt and you want people to accept dirt. The silence reflects how dirty it is in the Philippines. You advocate dirt.
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There are 4 senators out of 24 that are outspoken critics of Duterte — Trillanes, Hontiveros, Pangilinan and De Lima. Less than the fingers of one hand.
There are also a handful of reps not aligned with the super majority. I believe there are 7 or 8 of them. I can name Lagman and Baguilat. Erice lies at the periphery of memory. Again, less than the fingers of two hands.
In my considered opinion, to describe De Lima as “run of the mill” describes more the observer than the observed.
*****
*******
Argumentum ad populum.
*****
*******
Ah, the old presumption of guilt.
*****
Which I give to all Filipino politicians, edgar (the rest of the 3rd world as well). hence why I focus on results, not good intentions, because they are all dirrrty, I ask what have they done that we can label ‘good’.
Did Cory Aquino ever have sexcapades with her driver or man servants (I believe you guys call them ‘boys’ there)? No, Joe.
You paint lascivious that which ordinary people do. She (De Lima) was not married. It is accepted for men to do the same thing. You advocate dirt and you are a sexist to boot?
p.s.~ Joe, how do I answer directly beneath the comment I’m responding to?
Go to the first ‘reply’ button above it, and use the @Joe convention to indicate who you are replying to. There is a limit as to the number of nested conversations the system will take.
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Argumentum ad populum.
*****
No, edgar… as I’m not saying De Lima is guilty because most Filipino think so; I’m saying most Filipinos don’t much care for De Lima (and the case against her) precisely because she’s not amount any results significant to them.
*******
What’s the basis for the claim that “most Filipinos don’t much care for De Lima”?
Kindly scan this entire post and see whether you can spot the figure that says this claim is false.
*****
Sounds like Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti western — the good, the bad, the ugly. And now we have: the clean, the dirty.
I say — as the Queen of Hearts in Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland — “Off with their heads!”
🙂
Lumping the dirty with the very dirty; the sinner with the worst of the kind. Mix in the “tangible” result of the worst kind with the “intangible” result of the better kind. How to discriminate; what matters. (My thought of the day.)
@ Joe, re lasciviousness , my point was simply that she was run of the mill. P.S. ~ “ordinary people” don’t sleep with the help, it takes a certain personality to predate sexually (though I think here you are assuming love? where I’m assuming dirrrty, either from De Lima’s part, or her drivers, or both, or a 3rd party…. no I don’t assume love here, Joe).
@ edgar , if people much cared for De Lima, there’d be enough uproar to make DU30 think twice, both in the public sphere and politics, in fact, silence, zero… hence not much people care. It’s a simple 1 + 1 = ? equation, only I’m not answering 3 here ;-).
@ NH, ‘Mix in the “tangible” result of the worst kind with the “intangible” result of the better kind. How to discriminate; what matters. (My thought of the day.)’ there’s the rub, NH!!! it’s difficult, hence focus on results, that’s the best way to discriminate what matters here.
@LCX. Who are you to guess about her personal, private life, or use those guesses to disparage or to argue about her job at HRC , DOJ, or Senator? So you advocate for dirt, are sexist, and hit below the belt?
She is not run of the mill, which is why she is in jail. You keep operating on the wrong assumption and keep presenting that assumption as a fact. I find it rather discouraging to find intelligent people speaking as you do. You become just one more idiot (in my opinion) to ignore as we move past the morally deaf and self-dealers to speak to those who want something other than dirt as an acceptable standard for their lives.
This npr article explains why the Senator is in jail. It is not because she was screwing her driver.
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/06/24/533794081/jailed-philippine-senator-i-wont-be-silenced-or-cowed
@The Society of Honor
I am trying this and see if it works. I am trying to put it under your note in
The Society of Honor says:
June 26, 2017 at 7:48 am
but since there are a lot of notes under the first reply with the handle “The Society of Honor” I am not too sure it will work. Here goes.
“Results” is the word of the day here:
Focus on that.
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Hitler had results.
*****
@Joe, thanks for the npr link. Nice collection of items — quotes from Duterte and De Lima and others, etc. We at TSH know these on De Lima, but nice to read them again, put together as npr does. And complements Wil’s article very nicely.
@NH, Most welcome . . .
On the posts —
LCpl_X (@LCpl_X) says:
June 26, 2017 at 8:09 am
“Results” is the word of the day here:
edgar lores says:
June 26, 2017 at 10:15 am
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Hitler had results.
*****
— short and sweet!
🙂
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Hitler had results.
*****
OK. That’s a start. How about De Lima. DU30?
Now let’s test if these results can be interpreted as ‘good’. Hitler’s? Stalin’s? Empirial Japan’s?
This is how people should test these politicians (and national policies), not in terms of saint and sinner, but in terms of practical results. Obviously, both Japan and Germany in WWII over reached—- holocaust aside, they started going outside their lines, hence affecting other’s notions of results, namely the UK and the US. But the US didn’t go to war because of the holocaust, it went to war because of both Germany’s and Japan’s expansion.
Like i’ve said Obama’s GWOT (Global War on Terrorism) was prosecuted way differently than W. Bush’s GWOT, Obama used more drones, more cyber stuff and more Special Ops; W. Bush was more conventional. The more conventional resulted in more civilian casualties, whilst Obama’s less conventional approached reaped less , but it changed the game, re robots in war and the ethics of it all.
The argument can be had more wisely within results, not in fluff —- that’s my point. Let’s talk results. Not fluff. 😉
“This npr article explains why the Senator is in jail. It is not because she was screwing her driver.”
That’s simply the clue to her character, Joe… that she in fact is run of the mill (like all others in the Philippines, re screwing maids). If I remember the charges correctly, the driver is connected to Bilibid no?
@LCX, No, that is a clue to her humanity. “Run of the mill” in the Philippines would be a personality-based person who does everything to her own benefit, as we see in the legislature. An exceptional person would deal on the basis of principle, and the results you ought to be looking for is not what the propaganda dealers are delivering, but her record as chair of the Human Rights Commission, term as Secretary of Justice, and successful election as Senator. Or you can read her daily writings from jail to get a better picture of her character. That you insist on the lascivious fake news to support your errant argument suggests you are again trolling rather than seeking to learn, or teach. Frankly, I think there is absolutely nothing I can learn from you because your line of argument is so desperate.
Godwin’s Law : “As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Hitler approaches”
We are all guilty.
For Lance,
Re: Delima’s results
In the immediate future as a legislator she can legislate, but in a limited capacity( she can file as many bills, but can’t defend them)
I doubt she will be given teleconference privileges so that makes skype out of the question as far as her attending hearings.
PS
What makes First World politics any cleaner?
PS2
Who is calling her a saint?
LCPL_X, the driver I think had no connection to Bilibid. Looks more like a typical driver/security person with PNP or military connection to me. These types can look stupid on the outside, but in the Philippines they are often streetsmart types that may or may not be into side hustles.
Subordinates often make their own hustles in the Philippines, but a woman having an affair with a male subordinate makes herself unable to check on him if ever. That was her main mistake.
Having said that, I think she is innocent. Not always smart, not always humble, but innocent.
Many people dislike her because they think she is arrogant. Those who like her see it as drive.
As for results, she was with CHR before 2010, 2010-2016 she was DOJ, who can look that up?
@LCX, No, that is a clue to her humanity.
Joe, so every other politician and rich ahole over there, when they screw their subordinates are just being human? No! If you wanna start from a principled platform, that should be the first gate from which to examine character.
Like I said I’m operating from an assumption that all politicians there, and most (if not all) rich aholes are victimizing those lesser than them. But the standard should still be, thou shall not abuse those lesser than you.
Now Ireneo, brought up a good point re the possibility of the driver hustling De Lima, now to me that’s a more dangerous possibility to entertain. The possiblity that De Lima is getting played, is much more worrying.
🤔🙄
*******
The assumption is that the relationship is predatory — either from the upstairs side or the downstairs side. The assumption could be a false dichotomy.
The relationship may be not predatory but symbiotic. To put it another way, it could be mutually predatory. 🙂
Like “friends with benefits,” this could be employer with benefits or employee with benefits. Or both.
*****
LCPL_X, the driver I think had no connection to Bilibid.
Ireneo, I think that’s the angle they are attempting to prove, that the driver was somehow connected to Bilibid… now if you’re right that the driver is in fact playing De Lima, then De Lima was taken for a ride. Though most narrative have De Lima calling the shots, I don’t know.
My point here was simply that De Lima is being portrayed like Cory Aquino. Why?
” To put it another way, it could be mutually predatory. “
I like that… “mutually predatory”, edgar. I’m still curious who owns the sex videos… I know most (if not all) short time motels there have cameras precisely for these types of blackmail opportunities.
And why I asked if Cory Aquino ever was this adventurous, as far as sexual morality goes (if there is such a thing) Cory Aquino is your saint—- and that is my basis for “run of the mill” , not the human rights stuff, because we all know simply spouting human rights is simply that, like Google and Apple, going around saying they’re making the world better. I beg to differ of course, but my default setting is austerity, but the point is
go past the fluff, and you have people selling a product or an image.
So the human right , principles stuff, needs to be weighed with her actual tangible accomplishments. Without results, we have to judge her lascivious acts, not out of spite, but since there’s nothing else really to go by… and my hunch, gut feeling, where there’s smoke… there’s BBQ 😉
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One can go with easy judgments. The thing to do is to weigh all factors. Most people tend to use the sex factor as their first criterion. But it usually is a double standard… and an excuse for misogyny. Like, why is their slut shaming but not stud shaming?
I tend to use the criterion of nonmaleficence.
o Is harm being done?
o Who is doing the harming?
o Who is being harmed?
*****
Sacre bleu. TSOH’s finest minds focusing on the equivalent of how many angels can dance on a pin whilst the Philippine ship of state is sinking with Duterte at the helm. So why quibble if De Luma is saint or not. In my opinion, her personal affairs whether prurient or not is hardly relevant to the commitment and courage she has shown in defending the democratic and legal ideals Filipinos seem to have forgotten or given up on. Perhaps the latter is very much present here at TSOH if so much verbiage is being expended on such a moot point?
“But it usually is a double standard… and an excuse for misogyny. Like, why is their slut shaming but not stud shaming?”
Actually, my point from the very start is that if guys are screwing their maids and other less powerful subordinates (ie. essentially victimizing them) , why are we allowing De Lima a pass? Sanctifying her. Saying we shouldn’t mention this particular lap in judgment.
Now I know from a cultural point, there is double standard, edgar ie. DU30 gets a pass, akin to Trump’s grabbing of pussies (which backfired and instead suggested virility which I’m sure was the same for 72 yr old DU30 over there).
But my point is not cultural, but following the suspicious conduct trail, ie. how many capable smart women go slumming? I’m sure there’s plenty, hehehe I’ve been to Vegas and have been the recipient of said “abuse” (though mutually predatory 😉 ).
And I suspect women, especially elected officials and/or powerful CEO’s keep this stuff under control (better than your average cougars), that there was a loss of control, suggest to me a potential for a series of bad judgements.
caliphman , precisely because De Lima’s an elected official, all this personal conduct she’s allowed to surfaced (whether in or out of her control) is fair game, especially since theres connection of the driver/lover to Bilibid, and I agree with Ireneo that there is a police/military angle of the driver, making him the potential extortionist/manipulator perfectly suited for Bilibid (or he was simply De Lima’s lap dog);
but true love shouldn’t be our first assumption—- especially in the Philippines. Don’t be so automatic giving her a pass, is all I’m saying here. Don’t play double standard.
@ LCpl_X (@LCpl_X)
Who is treating D5 as a saint? Who is canonizing her? We realize she is no saint but an ordinary human being who has weakness and error in judgement that many of us have. No one is perfect except Perfecto and Perfecta. We know the saints and apostles have also sinned; even after all the teachings and miracles Peter had observed, he denied Jesus Christ not just once but thrice, St Paul has killed so many before he believed and became a great figure in the Apostolic Age. Oscar Wilde famously observed that “the only difference between saints and sinners is that every saint has a past while every sinner has a future.” Today, Matthew is revered as a saint by the Church, not for what he did in his sinful past, but because of his response to Christ’s invitation for a future.
What Will and the others are discussing is her demeanor – one that reflects her inner strength and belief that what she is fighting for is for the benefit of her countrymen. She may have engaged in an illicit affair but that’s personal and the wrongness of that is between her and God. She did wrong in her personal life, yes but at the same time she did right by her country.
You seem to believe and want us to do likewise is to weigh D5 in the light of her indiscretions with his driver/bodyguard and not appreciate what she did during her tenure as CHR commissioner and as Secretary of Justice; Chemrock has posted a lot regarding that and I thank him so much. He rightfully observed that D5 could have remained silent when faced with possible public shaming because of her indiscretion but she remained steadfast in her fight.
What we are afraid of is becoming judgemental hypocrites and ingrates for not realizing that she became a victim of Du30’s and his enablers’ vengeful actions just because she dared question the Davao Death Squads when he was mayor there and the EJKs all over the country now that he is the sitting president.
Oh what joy that will be, Bill.
Or Rizal in 1898…
such an indomitable spirit. and i have always wondered where could ms. leila’s questionable wealth be, if her critics where to be believed in. thank u, sir for giving us a glimpse of her now. and your writing style made me cry all the more.
Hi Ikit! An air of nobility pervaded the conversation. The absence of evasiveness, the openness and transparency made me feel that this was no guilty person. Eyes do not dart sideways to avoid eye-to-eye contact, speech was fluid and without hesitation or parsing, the person under the microscope was completely relaxed and talking from experience, not following a script to the letter. No such things. The case is in high court, so I will stop here.
I love your article Mr Wilfredo V. I felt like I was also with you inside the cell while you were interviewing our beloved lady Senator- very personal indeed. Thank you. I get updated about Sen de Lima’s life in prison through her facebook and there are times I get disheartened by the thought of the saga that she is going through just because she exposed the TRUTH. But I always believe that there is a higher purpose why trials and tribulation beset her- Sen de Lima revealed that she became closer to God. And her heart will never tire because of her strong convictions and belief in justice and truth and her self-sacrificing and selfless kind of love for our country,
Thank you, Susan. The mountain is nothing but a collection of small grains of sand, soil, rock, water, roots, trees, and then it erupts in sheer beauty, reflecting the Creator’s love for his children.
“… I always believe that there is a higher purpose why trials and tribulation beset her- Sen de Lima revealed that she became closer to God. ”
Today (Jun 24) is the feast day of St John the Baptist, patron of San Juan, Rizal. I imagine one dares not venture through the streets of the city unprotected from dousing of water clean or foul. Here’s hoping no one gets hurt.
Yet, beyond this “rollicking” practice I am mindful of the predicament of Sen de Lima as a political hostage to our imperfect legal system and governance. Like St John the Baptist she is the object of an injustice whose source seems to be the whims and expediency of those she has called out for their malfeasance.
I pray that her being closer to God and He just as close to the beleaguered senator will resolve to the common good.
“Though I thought I had toiled in vain,
and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength,
yet my reward is with the LORD,
my recompense is with my God.
For now the LORD has spoken
who formed me as his servant from the womb,
that Jacob may be brought back to him
and Israel gathered to him;
and I am made glorious in the sight of the LORD,
and my God is now my strength!”
— Isaiah, reading on St John the Baptist’s feast
Thank you, Will, for visiting the good senator. The update on her well-being is greatly appreciated. She is a sane and brave person fighting a farcical regime. Senator De Lima will overcome soon.
You’re welcome, Juana. Small steps lead to big strides, a jog, a run, a sprint, and then the finish line. Aaah. What joy, what deliverance.
OUT OF TOPIC
A very enlightening opinion by Mahar Mangahas. He states that “Change” came and impacted Filipinos lives in 2010-2016.
His closing sentiment is sagacious:
“Regimes may change, but the Filipino people do not. Collectively, they are reliable, and should be heeded.”
http://opinion.inquirer.net/105035/change-came-2010-16
THANK YOU, Wilfredo G. Villanueva for writing the TRUTH about Sen. DELIMA… GOD has a PURPOSE for what is happening NOW.. very soon the TRUTH will UNRAVEL THE MYSTERY in JESUS’ MIGHTY NAME, AMEN😇❤️😇‼️
Do you think, the Senator is privileged to have internet connections to her phone or iPad, if allowed to have one? Does anyone know? Thanks.
She doesn”t have wifi or gadgets. Even her visitors aren’t allowed to enter with such items in their person, LG.
A political prisoner is “any prisoner whose case has a significant political element: whether the motivation of the prisoner’s acts, the acts themselves, or the motivation of the authorities.” ,,,,,, Amnesty International
A prisoner of conscience is “Any person who is physically restrained (by imprisonment or otherwise) from expressing (in any form of words or symbols) any opinion which he honestly holds and which does not advocate or condone personal violence.” …… Peter Benenson
Every prisoner of conscience is a political prisoner, but not every political prisoner is a prisoner of conscience.
So what is Delima?
Both, plus she is a prisoner of a broken injustice system that has been in the country for hundreds of years. Can the country ever change? What do you think, when a tiny lady who entered the Senate with an advocacy to help reform the laws in the land gets thrown into the trash she wanted to help clear.
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1. I agree that De Lima is a political prisoner and a prisoner of conscience (ahirika in Buddhism).
2. She is also a prisoner of lack of shame (ahrikya) and lack of dread (anottappa), in reference to Cha’s post.
3. ”Can the country ever change?”
3.1. The Executive is behind her incarceration. The DOJ Secretary plotted and the Solicitor General is defending.
3.2. The Legislature is complicit with the Executive. The Lower House conducted the hearings that gathered the testimonies against her. The Upper House relieved her of her committee chairmanship, failed to give moral support, and now refuses to allow her to do her official duties.
3.3. The Judiciary is also complicit. Two lower courts have issued warrants of arrest against her; another warrant is pending. It remains to be seen whether the High Court will dismiss the cases against her. I doubt that it has the will and the wisdom.
3.4. Public opinion is halved. The supporters of the administration truly believe she is the Queen of Drugs. The critics of the administration believe the charges against her are trumped-up.
3.5. To answer the question, “Nuh-uh. Sorry, not in our generation.”
4. Fortunately, international groups – Amnesty International, the EU Parliament, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union among others – are standing by her. And not to forget, Time Magazine.
4.1. In her profile in Time Magazine, we are reminded why she is in jail. The senator is quoted as saying: “It’s not O.K. with me that we have a murderous psychopath occupying the highest post in the land.”
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3.5 It is disheartening but true. Filipino culture in general is so steeped in dysfunctional and toxic proclivities that it will take a few generations to change it for the better.
Nice way with words, Juana. I’m pondering a new slogan for the blog:
“O rise, ye land of happy fools steeped in dysfunctional and toxic proclivities!” 🙂
We can at least strive for a sense of humor, lest our sobbing disturb the neighbors.
Since her detention, I pray nightly for justice and mercy for Senator Leila to the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and to Mary, Untier of Knots. Am pleased to know, she is a believer, too.
Thank you for the blog article, Wil.
Here are some words from Jowett, a devout Christian scholar, in an effort at balance or to find the good in the bad in two opposing camps:
They have compared the best part of themselves with the worst part of their neighbors … the ideal of one with the corruption of the other … They have not aimed at impartiality, but have been contented to accumulate all that could be said in praise of their own, and in the dispraise of the other.
While in a lot of situations, it is good to keep in mind the essence of that thought, out of Christian charity if nothing else, it is very very difficult for me to find the good in what the Administration has done to Senator De Lima.
Wilfredo, thank you very much for this powerful account of yours.