What does public condemnation of a partylist lawmaker’s arrogant behavior at a screening area of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport terminal 2 and the exit of a controversial Cabinet official have in common?
Other than being noisy distractions meant to gloss over the administration’s incompetent handling of the country’s worsening inflation and other economic woes, not much else except of course if one were to zero in on the personalities involved.
ACTS-OFW partylist lawmaker John Bertiz and former assistant secretary Mocha Uson of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) have become the proverbial albatross on the necks of their respective bosses/offices by virtue of their refusal to become accountable to the public they were supposed to serve.
It was only after receiving strong public backlash over a viral video that showed his arrogant behavior towards an airport screening employee that Bertiz, an elected official, acted contrite and apologetic though not without acting like an insensitive prick by comparing his boorish airport behavior to a woman’s monthly period.
For her part Uson, who claimed that she resigned in order not to delay the passage of the PCOO budget at the Lower House, was unapologetic and even defiant towards her critics and those who exposed her penchant for spreading fake news and inflammatory monologues against the administration’s political opponents that border on—some say is even tantamount to–hate speech.
And while Uson also didn’t rule out plans to run for Congress or the Senate, Bertiz’s political career may be all but done for as allies and colleagues in the Lower House consider penalizing him for his brazen display of privilege and refusal to comply with airport security rules.
But while public sentiment was stoked, other more pressing issues are being glazed over, if not diverted by administration officials who have so far become detached from the reality of their constituents dealing with high fuel prices and costlier basic commodities.
In case the Duterte administration didn’t notice major oil firms imposed their oil price increase effective today with the minimum being 10 centavos.
With inflation pegged at 6.7 percent, transport groups will press on with their fare rate increase even with a fuel subsidy provided by the government.
President Rodrigo Duterte’s admission of responsibility for the worsening inflation won’t ease the pain of thinning wallets and shrinking budgets for Filipinos across the country and his people had better make good on their promise to “work double time” in resolving the country’s economic woes lest they find themselves on the crosshairs of growing public discontent.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
