Just do it

“Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish.”—Richard Dawkins

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

POLITICIANS, or candidates in the May 9, 2022 election who distribute goods and cash during normal times, should now come out in the open and duplicate or repeat their noble performances in the regions badly hit by the recent super storm “Odette.”

It is not enough to just make a public appeal for fellow politicians to “share your blessings.” Appeal is good, action is another thing.

Like what Nike has suggested, “Just do it” or don’t wait for others to make the first move before making a move.

It is best if generous politicians will fly directly to the badly damaged cities and municipalities without any TV camera, social media publicists or “Tiktokers” that will chronicle their kindness.

A silent deed is the most noble deed. A real kind heart doesn’t need advertisement or publicity.

Now is the right time for them not to let their right hands know what their left hands are doing.

 

-o0o-

 

IF it is true that the calamity funds in the Philippines have been depleted, government leaders shouldn’t be ashamed to ask help from other sources abroad.

There should be no more dilly dallying; each day is crucial since many regions recently hit by super storm “Odette” are still wallowing in the darkness with no electricity and enough food supplies to sustain the residents while they recover.

Others might spend Christmas and New Year with no electrical power.

The major concern is humanitarian or survival—food, clothing, shelter.

If not yet (meaning, calamity funds can still be tapped for the recent calamity)—and government leaders will just make an alibi that the funds have been consummated in the purchase of pandemic vaccines and other medical supplies—it will be inhuman to let the typhoon victims suffer and ignore their sufferings.   

Governments abroad are always prepared to assist other governments in need of calamity assistance. It happened before and countries devastated by cyclones and tornados were able to recover fast when foreign assistance poured.

Calamities and disasters brought by typhoons, earthquakes, tsunami, volcanic eruptions aren’t man-made; they’re all force majeure or “Act of God.”

 

-o0o-

 

Nobody is exempted if the mayhem is widespread. 

Rich or poor, super storms will inundate rivers and destroy houses made of light and concrete materials in the boondocks and urban villages, crops, farmlands and other agricultural and private properties.    

We have the International Disaster Assistance (IDA) that provides critical humanitarian assistance in response to natural disasters, conflicts, and other emergencies around the world. 

Interventions provide people in need with food, shelter, health care, psychosocial support, and complementary activities that support relief, recovery, and resilience. 

IDA funding helps ensure that people fleeing conflicts and natural disasters have access to lifesaving services in the countries of their displacement.

According to InterAction, natural disasters affect approximately 200 million people globally each year; that number is currently trending upward, as is the cost in damages (from $90 billion in 2015 to $147 billion in 2016).

 

-o0o-

 

The internet site Askmen asked its readers whether--if it was legal--they would like to have two wives. Twenty nine percent said yes…According to Pet World, most turkeys and giraffes are bisexual…Forty three percent of all men have cried because of love-related issues. (Askmen)…According to Joseph B. Wirthlin, “Our friends should be companions who inspire us, who help us rise to our best.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

Why Ilonggo journalists are respected all over the world

“When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home.”  —Tecumseh

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

WHETHER we are in Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Antique, Guimaras, Negros or in Gloucester, England; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Berlin, Germany; Kyoto, Japan; Pretoria, South Africa; Tuscany, Italy; Bordeaux, France; Stockholm, Sweden; and the United States of America, Ilonggo journalists are highly regarded.

It’s not only because of their skills, it’s in the Ilonggo blood.

More importantly, it’s because of Graciano Lopez Jaena.

When you’re Ilonggo and happen to be a journalist in a foreign land, you’re held in high esteem; invited in important affairs and given credentials to attend and cover international events and festivals. 

And because of his talent and the way he fought the “enemies”, the pride of Jaro, Iloilo City, who died in poverty, would have been a celebrity today in his own style, and could have earned for his account millions of social media followers vis-à-vis the superstars in the Vlog and TikTok generation.  

But Lopez Jaena, the first ilustrado to arrive in Spain, belonged in the generation where Filipino heroes had to offer their lives in a unique fashion and circumstances so their country could gain freedom from colonizers.

 

-o0o-

 

Born on December 18, 1856 and died on January 20, 1896, Lopez Jaena was not only an outstanding journalist, but was also an orator at par with the country’s and even the Asia’s best.

He started the Propaganda Movement against our Spanish colonizers and became revolutionary when he formed a triumvirate with Dr. Jose Rizal and Marcel H. del Pilar.

But he became well known for his newspaper, La Solidarid.

No wonder contemporary journalists in Iloilo and Negros today flood the community with newspapers despite the advent of Internet, a technology that almost emaciated general newspaper circulation and readership.

Almost every lover of letters and literature and freedom-loving Ilonggos who wanted to communicate to the world and expressed nationalistic sentiments through the printed medium would want to become newspapermen or own and manage a newspaper.

As a nobody, Lopez Jaena was first sent by his parents to study at St. Vincent Ferrer Seminary in Jaro, which had been opened under the administration of Governor General Carlos María de la Torre y Nava Cerrada.

In the seminary, the Ilonggo national hero served as a secretary to Claudio Lopez, his uncle who was the honorary vice consul of Portugal in Iloilo.

Because of his ambition to become a physician, Lopez Jaena convinced his parents that he needed to enroll in a university in Manila.

He was denied admission at the University of Santo Tomas because he did not have a Bachelor of Arts degree when he was at the Jaro seminary.

Lopez Jaena was eventually appointed to the San Juan de Dios Hospital as an apprentice but dropped out due to financial difficulties. He decided to return to Iloilo.

His assimilation with the poor ignited his feelings about the injustices common in that era.

 

-o0o-

 

Lopez Jaena’s potentials as a reformer and writer became apparent at the age of 18 when he wrote the satirical story “Fray Botod” which depicted a fat and lecherous priest.

Lopez Jaena ribbed Fray Botod’s false piety which “always had the Virgin and God on his lips no matter how unjust and underhanded his acts are.”

The story was not published, but a copy circulated widely in Iloilo. The infuriated friars could not prove that Lopez Jaena was the author, thus he became off the hook, so to speak, temporarily.

The son of Jaro refused to testify that certain prisoners died of natural causes when it was obvious that they had died at the hands of the mayor of Pototan town, thus he was pilloried.

He continued to agitate for justice. When he received threats on his life, he sailed to Spain in 1879, where he pursued the Propaganda Movement.

In the land of our colonizers, Lopez Janea became a leading writer, propagandist, and speaker for reform of the homeland.

He finally pursued his medical studies at the University of Valencia but did not finish, thus incurring the ire of Rizal.

Lopez Jaena defended why he did not finish his medical studies by saying, “On the shoulders of slaves should not rest a doctor’s cape.”

“The shoulders do not honor the doctor’s cape, but the doctor’s cape honors the shoulders,” Rizal intoned.

The national hero died of tuberculosis in poverty on January 20, 1896, 11 months short of his 40th birthday.

He was buried in an unmarked grave at the Cementerio del Sub-Oeste of Barcelona the following day.

Marcelo H. del Pilar’s death followed on July 4. Rizal was killed on December 30 by firing squad in Bagumbayan.

Their deaths ended the great triumvirate of Filipino propagandists, but their works contributed in the liberation of their compatriots from the Spanish colony.

Lopez Jaena’s remains have not been brought back to the Philippines.

 

-o0o-

 

(PG 13) Sexsomnia is the term US scientists use for people who perform sexual activities unconsciously during sleep. The spectrum ranges from masturbation to sexual intercourse - in the event that that the sexsomnia patient comes across a partner. (Journal of Clinical Forensic Medicine).

NOT GUILTY. That's the verdict on fertility drugs and the possibility that they increase woman's chances of developing ovarian cancer. Doctors had long worried that there might be such a link. But now Danish researchers have analyzed records of 54,362 women and found, over an average 16-yr follow up, that those who took fertility drugs faced no greater risk of cancer.

NO DISHWASHING LIQUID? Let's grab the laundry detergent. A teaspoonful of liquid laundry detergent in a basin of hot water will cut grease on dirty dishes equally well (though we may want to wear gloves, as detergent can be drying to hands).

IF WE'RE LOW ON SILVER POLISH, LET'S USE TOOTHPASTE: Plain, non-gel toothpaste (without additives like whiteners) can rid small silver pieces of light tarnish without damaging the surface. Moisten the silver piece; apply a bit of toothpaste to our finger. Rub gently and rinse, then buff with a soft cloth. Source: Goodhousekeeping

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two Iloilo dailies.—Ed)

Technology aids Santa

 “The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live.” 

—George Carlin

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

It all looks so effortless.

Innocent children would swallow the propaganda, a fantasy peddled by generations of Christmas cards to divert attention away from what is, undoubtedly, the most spectacular research and development outfit this planet has ever seen. 

In the Physics on Christmas, Roger Highfield differed on the view that, apart from the occasional slip up with drunken reindeer, narrow chimneys, and blizzards, Santa manages to deliver millions of gifts on Christmas Eve, maintaining his smile and composure all the while.

Santa’s support team: a few reindeer and a handful of diligent elves.

“I have good reason to believe that Santa has drawn on the benefits of centuries of inventions and insights generated by a scientific effort that would make the likes of Albert Einstein weep with admiration,” observed Highfield. 

Somewhere in the North Pole, or perhaps buried in a vast complex under Gemiler Island, original home of Saint Nicholas, there must be an army of scientists experimenting with the latest in high-temperature materials, genetic computing technologies, and warped space-time geometries, all united by a single purpose: making millions of children happy each and every Christmas.

 

-o0o-

 

“Put yourself in Santa’s boots,” Highfield suggested: “How does he know where children live and what gifts they want? How can he fly in any weather, circle the globe overnight, carry millions of pounds of cargo, and make silent rooftop landings with pinpoint accuracy?”

Some years ago Spy magazine reportedly examined these issues in an article that has since proliferated across the Internet.

The piece concluded that Santa required 214,200 reindeer and, with his huge mass of presents, encountered “enormous air resistance, heating the reindeer up in the same fashion as a spacecraft re-entering the earth’s atmosphere.”

In short, the article concluded, the reindeer “will burst into flame almost instantaneously, creating deafening sonic booms in their wake.”

The article continued: “The entire reindeer team will be vaporized within 4.26 thousandths of a second. Santa, meanwhile, will be subjected to forces 17,500.06 times greater than gravity…If Santa ever did deliver presents on Christmas Eve, he’s dead now.”

The point is that Santa is now dead.

He delivers presents every Christmas Eve, as reliably as Rudolf’s nose is red.

And he overcomes the kinds of problems outlined above with the aid of out-of-this-world technology.

 

-o0o-

 

COMMON SENSE 1: Can we send an e-mail thank you (for the Christmas gifts), or do we have to use snail mail?

A: An e-mailed thank you is simply not as warm and personal as a note. If we have a casual relationship with the gift giver and we regularly correspond via e-mail and Facebook, and electronic thank-you may be OK. But for most people, a written note is the best way to offer an expression of genuine thanks.

COMMON SENSE 2: Q: Should I send Christmas cards to non-Christian friends? 

A: It's more considerate to go with cards that offer the message "Season's Greetings" -- with no religious figures, messages, or symbols—when we aren't sure of a friend's religious preference.

TO MY FELLOW GROCERY HABITUES: While reusable shopping bags are best, plastic bags are recyclable. Most large grocers and retailers now have recycling bins. The plastic is made into fences, decks, and new bags. Source: Kathleen Huddy, GHRI textiles, paper and plastics director… It's confirmed: Hawaii has implemented a state law imposing a fine of $500 to any bus passenger with B.O. One of those nabbed and fined recently was, believe it or not, a female tourist from Arizona…The word "pornography" comes from Greece, meaning the "writing of prostitutes".

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

Time for Treñas to say thank you

“None of us got to where we are alone. Whether the assistance we received was obvious or subtle, acknowledging someone's help is a big part of understanding the importance of saying thank you.”

—Harvey Mackay

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

WE expect Iloilo City Mayor Geronimo “Jerry” Treñas to thank the 229 solons, including Aambis-OWA partylist Rep. Sharon Garin and House Bill 10464 author, Iloilo City lone district Rep. Julienne “Jamjam” Baronda, for the approval on December 13 on third and final reading in the House of Representatives of the bill that seeks to establish the Iloilo City Hospital.

No more hard feelings and animosity.

The bill was the genesis of the boisterous tremor that erupted between the city mayor and Rep. Garin recently owing to the delay of its passage in the Lower House.

Now that Baronda had nothing but a piece of good news for Treñas and the Ilonggos in Iloilo City in general, it’s also time for the city mayor to also thank House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, Majority Floor Leader Martin Romualdez, Appropriations Committee Chair Eric Yap, Health Committee Chair Angelina Tan for their support for the bill.

Baronda, who described the approval of the legislative measure as “an early Christmas gift to the people of Iloilo City” in a statement, also formally put to a closure the controversy that almost shattered the political relationship of the Garins in the first district of Iloilo and the city officials sympathetic to Trenas and Baronda. 

All’s well that ends well but the hurting words, which are expected to heal by the passing of time, hopefully.

Baronda beamed: “We pray that the counterpart measure in the Senate is also passed real soon. We are doing our best to strengthen the healthcare system by putting up our own hospital so that the Ilonggos will have an easy access to affordable and efficient medical care."

 

-o0o-

 

Government officials in the Philippines who attach their names and photos on projects financed by the taxpayers are ridiculed as “epals” for their inappropriate action.

In fact, a Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) memorandum circular no. 2010-101 dated September 23, 2010 bans them from placing their names, initials, photos and other images in the billboards and signages of government programs, projects and properties.

And while we laud the Commission on Audit (COA) for stumbling into Passi City’s P629,564.21 worth of “irregular expenditures” in it’s audit observation for the calendar year 2020, we aren’t sure if chiding local officials of Passi City, Iloilo “for plastering their names and faces on certain government projects, programs, and properties and on procured goods” was part of its mandate.

If it is, then COA deserves another accolade even if it may have duplicated DILG’s function and power to lower to boom on all “epals” all over the Philippines.

 

-o0o-

 

In Section 2 (1) of Article IX-D on the Commission on Audit of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, COA shall only have “the power, authority, and duty to examine, audit, and settle all accounts pertaining to the revenue and receipts of, and expenditures or uses of funds and property, owned or held in trust by, or pertaining to, the Government, or any of its subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, including government-owned or controlled corporations with original charters, and on a post-audit basis…”

COA’s constitutional mandate clearly doesn’t include berating the “epals”, but the state auditors can always assert that pointing out the “epals’” transgressions will justify their findings of the “irregular expenditures.”    

COA scored Passi City officials saying the “practice of putting up of billboard and signage’s and other information materials bearing the names, initial or pictures of government personalities on all government projects, and government properties (fire truck, ambulances, vehicles etc.), is prohibited.”   

Also, COA lectured them that information on government project should be limited to the “name of the project and location, contractor, the date when it started and the projects completion date” and that government projects or properties and official vehicles must also only contain the “official seal or name of the local government unit.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P1,000 bill not a history book

“Money is my military, each dollar a soldier. I never send my money into battle unprepared and undefended. I send it to conquer and take currency prisoner and bring it back to me.”

—Kevin O'Leary

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

HERE we go again. 

Much ado about nothing amid the pandemic?

Instead of giving priority to helping each other enlighten family members, friends, neighbors about the need to urgently inoculate and ward off the Emicron Variant in the fastest and most practical means, some of us have become fixated on the rather mundane and complex issues that can’t even save a single life if COVID-19 will further unleash its wrath in 2022.

Everyone now wants to join the fray in putting in the guillotine the heads of those responsible for removing the portraits of the three Filipino World War II heroes from the design of the new Philippine banknotes and replacing them with the Philippine eagle.

While we are trying to wiggle out from the deadly pandemic, why can’t we just leave the matter on which image or images should be printed on the P1,000 bill to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the National Historical Institute? 

We have experts and artists tasked to tackle this issue while our health authorities prioritize the vaccination.

 

-o0o-

 

The entire hullabaloo that started when Bayan Muna partylist Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate questioned the removal from the P1,000 bill of Filipino heroes Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos, Brig. Gen. Vicente Lim and Girl Scouts of the Philippines founder Josefa Llanes Escoda, who were killed during the Japanese occupation in the Philippines, has become a national frenzy.

There’s no logic in making a mountain out of a molehill about the banknotes images. 

Peso bills aren’t history books. We don’t forget our war heroes if they are removed from any currency or social being. 

We know, recognize and are proud of them even during our elementary days because we were taught to honor and pay tribute to their heroism as kids. 

There are many ways to remember and place them in the portals of history aside from the P1,000 bill.

The Americans own the world’s strongest banknotes and economy but don’t give a damn if their dollar bills don’t print war heroes—except  former presidents and some economists who contributed in the growth and expansion of federal banking and economic system.

United States currency notes now in production bear the following portraits: George Washington on the $1 bill, Thomas Jefferson on the $2 bill, Abraham Lincoln on the $5 bill, Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill, Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill, Ulysses S. Grant on the $50 bill, and Benjamin Franklin on the $100 bill.

 

-o0o-

 

Although there are facts about US money that will make us jaw drop, Americans don’t quarrel or debate on national TV about the need to retain or replace the 13 symbols composed of 13 arrows, 13 olive branch leaves, 13 olive fruits, 13 stars above the eagle, 13 steps of the pyramid, and 13 bars on the shield of their one dollar bill. 

Both the “annuit cœptis” and “e pluribus unum” have 13 letters. 

And Americans don’t run berserk and protest about these strange facts as long as their economy is exciting and life is good in general.

If there is a valid issue to be addressed, it’s the correction of what the congressman described as the “glaring errors” in the bill’s new design where the scientific name of the Philippine eagle was misspelled as Pithecophaga “jefforyi” instead of Pithecophaga “jefferyi.”

To dispute and debate non-stop on national TV whether the three images of the war heroes should be retained and the Philippine eagle be removed can be a waste of time at this crucial moment when the pandemic has continued to pose a serious threat to the national survival economically.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

Gov’t has failed the Ilonggos

 

“The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.”

—Ronald Reagan

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THIS is a clear case where the government has failed to protect the interest of the taxpayers; in this case, the Ilonggos in Iloilo City and Western Visayas for that matter, who have been neglected by the country’s health authorities. 

It’s tantamount to treachery and abandonment, to say the least.

Starting January 1, 2022, Ilonggos, who will be hospitalized, will be the ones to process their PhilHealth coverages and benefits after the heads of the Iloilo Directors’ Hospital, Iloilo Mission Hospital, Medicus Medical Center, Metro Iloilo Hospital and Medical Center Inc., St. Paul’s Hospital of Iloilo, The Medical City-Iloilo and Qualimed Hospital-Iloilo decided not to renew their accreditation with PhilHealth during a meeting on December 9, over unpaid reimbursement claims.

The patients will have to deal separately with the private hospitals, which will charge them the full amount of their admission and medical bills before they could get deductions as PhilHealth beneficiaries through their own initiatives.

Under the law, PhilHealth and beneficiaries have access to a comprehensive package of services, including inpatient care, catastrophic coverage, ambulatory surgeries, deliveries, and outpatient treatment for malaria and tuberculosis.

 

-o0o-

 

Accredited hospitals make it easier for patient beneficiaries by directly  processing the deductions with the PhilHealth. It’s no longer the case for the seven Iloilo City hospitals starting January 1.

The hospitals claimed that a reconciliation process initiated by PhilHealth last Oct. 8 resulted only in the payment of 15 to 20 percent of the account receivables, which has reached the “staggering” P545,094,532.45 as of Aug. 31, 2021.

With the pandemic and terrible financial woes the Ilonggos have been facing, the PhilHealth’s latest bungling that will now compel PhilHealth members to apply for reimbursement themselves directly with the state insurer or pay their medical bills out of their own pockets, has added insult to their injury.

It’s a shame and hard to accept when the government has failed its people.

When we realized that PhilHealth’s disastrous relationship with the private hospitals could have been prevented in the first place, the pain and frustration become double.   

 

-o0o-

 

New York Governor Kathy Hochul sent me an e-mail, which she also probably sent to other New Yorkers, regarding the state’s fight against COVID-19 and the Omicron Variant:

Alex, If you've been tracking the COVID-19 numbers, we are confronting a winter surge.

Hospitalizations and positivity rates are on the rise, we're seeing reduced hospital bed capacity, and vaccinations are lower than we'd like to see in certain areas of the state.

That's why on Friday, I announced a temporary requirement for businesses to require either proof of vaccination or mask-wearing indoors. The requirement starts Monday and lasts through January 15, when we will reevaluate based on current conditions.

As Governor, my two top priorities are to protect the health of New Yorkers and to protect the health of our economy.

These temporary measures will help accomplish this through the holiday season. 

We shouldn't have reached this point, especially with the vaccine at our disposal, and I share many New Yorkers' frustration that we are not past this pandemic yet.

I want to thank the more than 80% of adult New Yorkers who have done the right thing to get fully vaccinated. If others will follow suit, these measures will no longer be necessary.

We must take action. I'm confident we can do this.

AN UPDATE ON OMICRON. While there have been new cases of the omicron variant found in New York State, the dominant strain we're seeing is still the delta variant. We have the tools that work against COVID and its variants. Protect yourself and get vaccinated, get boosted, and wear a mask.

CELEBRATE GETTING BOOSTED WITH THE ROCKETTES. What better way to celebrate the holidays in New York than with the Radio City Christmas Spectacular? The first 50 people who get their booster at one of five New York vaccine locations will get two free tickets to see the Rockettes at Radio City.

NEW STATE-RUN VACCINATION SITES. We are opening nine new vaccination sites to bring the vaccine closer to New Yorkers across the state. In coordination with local public health departments, sites are opening in Allegany, Broome, Clinton, Cortland, Delaware, Erie, Fulton, Suffolk, and Yates Counties.

THIS WEEK'S COVID TRENDS. As of December 10, 2021, 3,603 New Yorkers are hospitalized with COVID-19. Our 7-day percentage positivity average was 4.58%, which is down from 4.85% last week. There were 51.13 cases per 100,000 people statewide. 

Per the CDC as of December 11, 2021, 93.1% of adult New Yorkers have at least one vaccine dose. So far, 31,186,056 total vaccine doses have been administered, and 139,505 doses were administered over the past 24 hours. 

QUESTION: I am fully vaccinated with Moderna. Can I receive a Pfizer booster? (Carmen, Dutchess County)   

ANSWER: Eligible New Yorkers can receive any of the FDA-approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccines for their booster dose, including Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Janssen/Johnson & Johnson. If you have questions, talk to your primary health care provider or vaccine administrator.

To the more than 80% of adult New Yorkers who have done the right thing to get fully vaccinated: Thank you. Let’s get more New Yorkers vaccinated this week and beyond we can all put this pandemic in the rear-view mirror. Ever Upward, Governor Kathy Hochul.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

Show of force

 

“The intelligence of the creature known as a crowd, is the square root of the number of people in it.”

--Terry Pratchett

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

POLITICAL crowds are always meant to be a “show of force” in any election in the Philippines and anywhere in the world.

Their impact for certain political parties or candidates is as astounding and remarkable as the performance in the debate.

No political party will hold a rally and caravan in a big metropolis or province if the organizers are aware that only pedestrians, sidewalk vendors, kanto boys and girls, barbershop customers, market goers, pedicab drivers, electric post repairmen, construction workers, and neighborhood gossipers will witness them.

Rallies and caravans are always well-organized, well-funded, and well-publicized.

A big crowd or well-wishers in the political rally and caravan can be used to condition the minds of the people so that some of those who are undecided can decide right away if they can be convinced by the phenomenon that they witness.

 

-o0o-

 

A mammoth crowd can also be an effective propaganda weapon if reported in the media, especially if newspapers will carry it in the front page the following morning.

It is normally used as a visual basis and evidence to determine how strong is the political party or the candidates and how much support they get from the residents in that metropolis and province.

This explains why organizers and supporters of different political parties and candidates fight passionately in the social media like they are disputing a prime territory each a time a caravan and political rally are held.

Each is claiming of having the bigger crowd. 

To convince the public, some organizers and supporters go to the extent of fabricating photos showing a well-attended caravan and political rally if their results (like small attendance) weren’t favorable.  

 

-o0o-

 

All political parties actually are very capable of gathering a large crowd and participants in rallies and caravans. 

Administration and opposition parties, as long as well-oiled and well-planned, can attract a reasonable number of people enough to call the rallies and caravans as “very successful.”

The crowd doesn’t determine though which party will dominate the election, or which candidate will win. 

You may have the bigger crowd and still lose the election; you can still win even if you have a low turn-out of attendance in the rallies and caravans.

Not all those present in the crowd will or can vote. 

This happened in the most recent presidential election in the United States. 

Former President Donald Trump claimed there’s no way for him to lose against President Joseph Biden because he had the bigger crowds anywhere he held his rallies.

Biden’s rallies, on the other hand, were attended only by a few cars and motorbikes, and were “anemic” due to social distancing and not-so-good-weather conditions, bewailed the defeated candidate Trump.

 

-o0o-

 

When Manny Pacquiao, Isko Moreno, Leody de Guzman, and Panfilo Lacson hold their respective caravans and rallies in Iloilo and in other regions all over the archipelago, they are also expected to produce a substantial if not the same number of people who showed up during the recent rallies and caravans of Vice President Leni Robredo and Bongbong Marcos in Iloilo.

The difference maybe in the way the people will react, but the crowd they may still be something they can brag about. 

In Pacquiao’s crowd, no one can tell if people will come because they want to see him as a boxing superstar or a presidential timber. 

In Moreno’s crowd, no one can tell if those who will elbow their way to shake his hands are showbiz fans or Manila residents who happen to be in the metropolis or provinces he visited.

The same thing can happen to Lacson and De Guzman, who are extremely popular among the Filipino-Chinese and peasants/laborers, respectively. 

Crowds are, in one way or the other, easy to please and manage. 

It’s the votes during the election day that are hard to predict.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)