Bloody Mary, bloody Tweety?

Bloody Mary, bloody Tweety? 

"There are two powers in the world; one is the sword and the other is the pen. There is a great competition and rivalry between the two. There is a third power stronger than both, that of the women."
MUHAMMAD ALI JINNAH

By Alex P. Vidal

The Facebook grumblings of the Tupas clan's princess, Tweety Tupas-Balleza, these past days were more than a rant. It was a statement from the family.
Tweety, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) executive assistant III, became the family's unofficial spokesperson in social media in the heels of reports that Iloilo 5th district Rep. Niel "Jun-Jun" Tupas, Jr., eldest son of former governor Niel Sr. and former Barotac Viejo mayor Myrna Causing-Tupas, "endorsed" his wife, Yvonne Angeli Lee-Tupas, to succeed him in 2016 even if six other Tupas children are "on stand by" for the coveted post.
When Tweety unveiled her sentiments, nobody stopped her. They could not stop her. She was expressing her feelings in her own Facebook account and that's none of anybody's business. Like Pavlov's dog, Tweety knows and understands why she is salivating for something. Nobody begrudged it--except, perhaps, manong Jun-Jun, who instantly turned contrabida the moment the story spread in media like a prairie fire.

FRENZY

But could Tweety's Facebook diatribes and the media frenzy that followed were mere overreactions? After all, manong Jun-Jun has not yet made an official public declaration that he was rooting for sweetheart Yvonne over his younger brother, Iloilo Vice Governor Buboy, the sentimental favorite to be the next congressman in the fifth district of Iloilo.
And besides, manong Jun-Jun is not stupid to force down the throats of his "hurting" siblings--and perhaps parents (in political decisions, they actually always have the final say)--something that would shake the family's foundation. Blood is always thicker than water.
Atty. Yvonne Angeli Lee-Tupas, a lawyer of GMA TV Network, is also not stupid to short-cut her way to politics at the expense of a family Armageddon. 
She is aware that her sudden entry in the district's political landscape ahead of those waiting in line-- active members of the royal family--smacks of greed and opportunism, and would provoke insurrection and create turmoil and bad blood among the Tupas children. 

OUTSHINE

Law No. 1 in the 48 Laws of Power states: "Don't outshine the master!" Sweetheart Yvonne cannot and should not outshine the masters in the Tupas political family. She must fall in line, observe the law of succession, and, if possible, wait for the final verdict of the clan's political patriarch and matriarch. As an obedient son, manong Jun-Jun will listen to tatay Niel and nanay Myrna. Defying them would be tantamount to hubris. Whom the gods wish to destroy they make mad first.
Health Undersecretary Janette Garin had to wait for tatay Oca's and nanay Ninfa's imprimatur before she inherited the congressional post in Iloilo's first district from tatay Oca ahead of sweetheart Richard, tatay Oca's most favorite and only son. Sweetheart Janette finished three full terms without any rebellion from sweetheart Richard's sisters who are also active in politics. Politics is an integral part of family discussion. Everyone must be involved in the decision-making.
Sweethearts Jun-Jun and Yvonne are aware of the potential chaos and disturbance in the family's peace and tranquility they might create should they insist on their secessionist adventurism.

MACABRE

History tells us the fight for political turf and power always had macabre ending. Queen Elizabeth I ordered the execution of half sister, Mary Queen of Scots, after sending her to prison for life in England.
When the parliament petitioned Elizabeth I to have Mary executed, the Queen at length answered: "If I should say unto you that I mean not to grant your petition, by my faith I should say unto you more than perhaps I mean. And if I should say unto you I mean to grant your petition, I should then tell you more than is fit for you to know. And thus I must deliver you an answer answerless."
Mary's persecution from her own half sister and subsequent execution became known as the "Bloody Mary."
It can't be denied that, in one way or the other, the issue has driven a wedge between Queen Tweety and sister-in-law, Queen Yvonne. We are hoping for a happy ending.