Monday, December 03, 2007 Mongaya: GMA and media By Anol Mongaya Panahom
A DAY after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo wined and dined with members of the Cebu media, her crack police troops rounded up and handcuffed reporters who covered the stupid coup attempt of Sen. Antonio Trillanes and Gen. Danilo Lim in Makati.
Even the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos never ordered the arrest of journalists covering protests and a coup attempt. But then, Marcos lost the presidency four days later after he cautioned himself against attacking the throng around then Gen. Fidel V. Ramos and Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile. President Arroyo won several rounds of battling renegade soldiers.
I pity administration officials who had to utter stupid excuses for the unpardonable crime of arresting and putting plastic handcuffs on the journalists inside the Manila Peninsula together with Trillanes and his companions. Police officers like Gen. Geary Barias cannot vouch for known media faces like Ces Drilon?
I just hope President Arroyo learns her lesson and spanks Police chief Avelino Razon for the dastardly act seen by the nation via live television coverage.
One, the shocking sight of journalists in handcuffs robbed President Arroyo and the police of the public accolade she deserved for nipping using only teargas the stupid coup try of Trillanes et al.
Two, the arrest of the journalists gave credence to some of Sen. Trillanes’ accusations against the Arroyo administration.
The way I see it, Trillanes forced the coup try before the public catches the election fever virus. He probably thought naively that the 11 million who voted for him would spontaneously sympathize with his cause and rush to his rescue in Makati.
He failed to see that the public is already looking to 2010 as a way of getting a better president in Malacañang. Thus many silently asked why the renegades could not wait for 2010.
In a way, the activities of the early birds in the 2010 presidential race had made the Trillanes call for immediate political change fall on deaf ears. I just hope other groups will learn what Trillanes still fails to comprehend.
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Talking of early birds, my sources confirmed the alliance of Liberal Party president Sen. Mar Roxas and Mayor Tomas Osmeña. Some say even as others deny that Tomas is eyeing a Roxas-Osmeña tandem in 2010. Mmmm, both are grandsons of former great presidents and Liberal stalwarts. Other Liberal party insiders are however talking of a possible Roxas tandem with Sen. Chiz Escudero.
And Roxas seems to be busy after he got the Liberal Party top post. For example, he was reportedly here last week meeting some mayors during the LMP confab. Today, some Liberal stalwarts will be in Cebu. Tomorrow, Roxas will be back for another affair in Marco Polo Hotel.
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Be careful in dealing with the Asian Spirit. My sister-in-law booked her family tickets for Caticlan last week. Unfortunately, the dimwitted clerk did not type the family name in the ticket of my niece. When my sister-in-law complained, the clerk and the manager at their main ticket booking office said the information was already encoded in the computer and could not be changed. She was told to get a refund for the ticket, pay the penalty, and buy a new one. She was made to pay for the dimwit’s mistake. Is this an isolated Asian Spirit experience or a company policy to profit from dimwitted clerks at the public’s expense? Tubag!
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