|
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Speak out: ‘Tryin hard’ Teddy
By Joseph M. Dabon
Hermag Subd., Basak, Mandaue City
Expressions of vanity can range from the harmlessly funny to the more serious obsessive-compulsive behavior. The danger lies in its progression from the benign end of the spectrum to the more alarming end. And this seems to be the case with our Mayor Teddy Ouano of Mandaue City.
For a start, Mayor Teddy never misses an opportunity of making it known to one and all his vision of making Mandaue City a world-class city. Great! Problem is he sorely lacks the idea of what it takes to be one – despite his countless opportunities for benchmarking. It’s going to take more than a vision to remove the stigma of Mandaue City as “shabu” city, or to rejuvenate its one and only river long dead, dirty and smelly due to unabated pollution and neglect, or to prevent severe flooding in some areas of the city after a heavy downpour. And these are just few of the problems plaguing our city. Visions are one of the characteristics of great leaders, while it remains hallucinations for most. It’s easy to know which is which in the case of Mandaue City.
Then the clincher – the recent revelation of Mayor Teddy of the arrival of 80 terrorists in Cebu, which elicited guffaws of ludicrousness and incredulity rather than images of exploding bombs, torn limbs and gore splattered all over among Cebuanos in general and Mandauehanons in particular. The width and depth of the US intelligence network cannot identify more than a dozen people directly involved in the 9/11 attack on the one and only superpower in the world, yet a platoon of terrorists are converging into a geopolitically and economically insignificant Cebu. To do what? The Tourism Department’s promotion of Cebu must have been very effective even terrorists are having their R&R here.
Vain as Mayor Teddy is, he upped the ante by declaring further that he is one of the targets of these terrorists. An ant carrying a crumb of bread so many times heavier than its own weight over long distances has more power than Mayor Teddy over the political, economic, social and cultural facets of Cebu. What lunatic of a terrorist would spend precious logistics on a target with zero strategic and propaganda values? A benevolent terrorist, perhaps?
Mayor Teddy, don’t flatter yourself so much. People so engrossed with oneself have really nothing to be engrossed about.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (June 20, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
SUPERBALITA
WEEKEND
|
