Think about it
Was Rizal a playboy?
By Jun Velasco
FRIDAY morning, Joe Taruc reported that Malacañang has approved a plan to oust Joe de Venecia from the speakership while he was on an official trip to China.
There you go. In politics, as most of you know, anything goes.
We remember that fateful day in 1998 when presidential candidate Joe was shopping for his running mate that included Fred Lim, James Barbers and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. At the instance of his close advisers including Dr. Ado Duque, Joe de V picked Gloria.
Gloria won, but Joe de V lost to the popular movie icon Erap Estrada. The rest is history.
This GMA-JDV political romance, intrigue, sob story and a back stabbing classic ill affair is an ugly if nauseating character of our kind of politics this side of the globe.
We are amazed at people who have impressed us to be morally upright for their gall in staying in the snake pit for a long time. They must really be made of sterner stuff (pun intended).
From the horizon, we could already imagine, if we know, how the political genius Joe de Venecia churn out countermoves fit only for the ingeniously honed political titans in our midst.
Let’s wait for developments.
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A Knight of Rizal luncheon tendered by Don Emilo Yap on December 30 after the rites in Bagumbayan elicited a spirited conversation in our table consisting of Joey Lina, Mayor Fred Lim, Knights stalwarts and the gracious host himself. The subject: the loves of Jose Rizal.
Was Rizal a playboy? A dominant view stood out: his romantic flings came one at a time.
We recommend a book authored by our best pal in the knights’ circle, the scholarly historian Dr. Pablo Trillana, “The Loves of Rizal and other Essays.”
By the way, we are delighted by City Administrator Alvin Fernandez’ treatise that Rizal has Pangasinan blood through his mother, Teodora Alonzo y Quintos. The Knights research committee is validating it.
Stalwarts of the KoR supreme council headed by former SC chief Justice Larry Davide will come to Dagupan on Jan. 26 to hold investiture rites for a reorganized chapter here.
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Los Angeles-based Dan Nino, a friend of Al Mendoza and this writer from way back, is in town.
Tuesday night, we had a sing-along with his brod Amor, Dr. Diony Galvan, Min Gomez and host Manny Santos at Badong’s restaurant. Dan and Al used to do the Beatles like they were the orig. Dan and Amor’s parents, Atty. Bonifacio Nino and teacher wife, Silvina Estabillo, celebrated their lovely 60th wedding vows on Dec. 29. Congratulations, Kuya Boni and Atchi Soling! We and Al M were regular visitors of the Niños at their love-filled home in Project 8 before and during the early days of Martial Law. The Niños are a well loved and love-welded family. We surmise that the parents’ staying power (now in their late 80’s) was an account of that.
In l992, Dan brought us to the Los Angeles Fil -Am Press Club after which we joined the Bani association ball at the Hyatt with the late Mayor Marcelo Navarro as guest speaker. The joke was because of the club members’ non stop clapping, the old man did not want to stop his Demosthenic exercise for almost an hour! When he stopped, only ten people were in the hall!
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As past president of the Tondaligan Blue Beach Subdivision Homeowners Ass’n, we are happy to see the resurgence of interest and enthusiasm by members to be officers.
While clashing views and approaches are inevitable, we appeal to our fellow homeowners to focus on the subdivision’s greater interest so that the intervention of an arbiter, say, the HLURB, would not be necessary.
Someone has said, those who oppose are actually meaning to show their best foot forward to improve the situation. Let us open up and listen.
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Know the scholarly and dashing Judge Clifton Ganay? It was refreshing to renew our friendship last week with a visit of his idyllic home in San Fabian town. Main attraction was his “colossal” (Bert Barlaan’s description) library consisting of quality titles. That explains why Clifton makes the soundest decisions for which he has received several citations locally and nationally. More about him in future issues.
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We need to put up or open a school that will offer a course on the shipping of goods whether inter-island in the local or international sphere. In the US and other developed countries, they have schools of shipping entrepreneurs. As the country modernizes and expands its contacts worldwide, shipping of goods should come as matter of course. We know a friend who wants to embark on shipping Philippine-made goodies abroad, but he is in the dark on how to go about it. Will anybody please come to the rescue?
(Readers may reach columnist at junmv@yahoo.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/think-about-it/ For reactions to this column, click “Send MESSAGES, OPINIONS, COMMENTS” on default page.)
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