Punchline
Lip service
By Ermin Garcia Jr.
THE Dagupan sanggunian finally adopted the resolution of Councilor Joey Netu Tamayo seeking to create a special committee (Blue Ribbon) that will investigate complaints filed before the city council.
Finally, the majority group got its act together to adopt the Netu resolution to support the transparency and accountability advocacy of the Belen Fernandez administration.
Actually, I was beginning to wonder if the majority had already turned cold feet when finally confronted with an issue that compels them to engage their own colleagues and acquaintances to establish accountabilities in the city’s governance. I know it’s something that they never had to do in their political lives. When their sessions were being cancelled week after week, it was obvious they were waiting for the Netu resolution to go away like a bad dream.
For too long, past city officials merely paid lip service to their claim as advocates for good governance and enemies of graft and corruption. And, to their credit, they never had a problem keeping their image without doing anything about it.
I hope they realize that the national mood is already beyond being critical but angry. Anger towards corrupt politicians to shamelessly plunder the people’s wealth, and towards do-gooder politicians who do nothing to stop the widespread corruption.
I do pray that the Dagupan councilors today finally begin to realize that paying lip service will no longer be equated with being responsive and sensitive to the people’s plight.
We do have variations of Napoles scams in the city staring back at them….and the people know it.
Tally ho councilors! The wily foxes are all around you! Now let’s see who among you are truly for the interests of the people and who are not, who are willing to stand up in defense of the people’s money and who would rather be silent to protect their pockets.
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LIBEL. Just as we were just starting our noon presswork on Friday, we received a copy of the complaint filed by the Citystate Savings Bank for allegedly publishing the lie that the bank has been using the city government’s electric meter for the bank’s operation as published in our August 25, 2013 issue.
We respect the right of the bank to seek redress for what it felt was an affront to it. Libel is one of the hazards in the practice of journalism and nobody is above it. The plaintiffs, however, need to prove that we acted in malice and that our reports were concocted.
Had the bank sought to correct the statements issued by our sources, the bank would have known that The PUNCH as a matter of policy always accommodates any side without need to invoke the right of reply which all legitimate newspapers recognize.
We have countless proofs of this policy in The PUNCH. Sadly, the bank never bothered to issue its reaction or statement to any of our news reports on the issue.
Having said that, I cannot but interpret the process it applied as sheer harassment. The bank filed against everyone in our editorial box (including all our correspondents) and even filed it in Pasig City, not in Dagupan. It could have limited the case to me, being the editor-publisher if full accountability is what the libel case is all about. It also filed in Pasig when the supposed aggrieved bank branch is in Dagupan. Oh well.
Harassments against legitimate journalism practice come in many forms and we’ve seen a number of them. But whatever, we will defend the integrity of our news reports wherever and whenever.
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HUMBLING LESSON. Our story about Jason and Thea, the two street children in Urdaneta written by our Eva Visperas, is most heartwarming amid national and local political issues that report on lying, stealing and cheating in government.
Jason and Thea would have been justified to keep the pricey digital camera because they found it, they didn’t steal it. They could have easily sold it for P1,000 to tide them over for a whole week’s meal, but they chose to surrender it to the police because they didn’t own it.
How I wished Jason and Thea were the ones elected to the senate…or to congress… They would have easily put to shame all the corrupt politicians responsible for their present circumstances.
While I am certain our readers share our own admiration for the two kids, my only lament is that their honesty has not earned them even one full decent dinner in Urdaneta. But that perhaps is understandable because the camera owner had not turned up to show his gratitude.
But the example demonstrated by Jason and Thea is even beyond the need for the usual monetary reward. It was a lesson and a wake-up call that there are Jasons and Theas in every community who continue to embrace the good basic values of man but are not given the opportunity to be developed as productive, model citizens.
I can only pray that their recent experience in the adult world, hungry as they were, will continue to instill in them the values of being a good and upright citizen. I pray that there are affluent Urdanetans who can volunteer not only to look into their physical and social welfare, but to guarantee them the quality education that Jason and Thea deserve for teaching Urdanetans and us all a humbling lesson in honesty.
If any grateful Urdanetan or Pangasinense wishes to be connected to the two to look into their welfare, I’m certain Urdaneta police chief Jeffrey Fanged will be more than happy to assist. The kids’ personal circumstances, I believe, are in the police blotter.
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