GREEK mythology speaks of the first woman created by the gods. Aphrodite gave her beauty, and Hermes gave her boldness and cunning. Then she was called Pandora, meaning “all gifts.”
For her wedding, Zeus gave Pandora a storage jar which she was not to open. She did, however, thus releasing the swarm of evil spirits trapped within and causing miseries to all mankind.
Since then, the allusion to “Pandora’s box” includes a caution against generating many complicated problems as the result of unwise interference.
As President Rodrigo Duterte’s close friends continue to feud, observers chuckle about two Pandoras triggering the feud between House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Davao del Norte Rep. Antonio Floirendo Jr.
And so two boxes of worms are now open, one about a conflict of interest involving the lease of property of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) for Floirendo’s banana plantation, and another about Alvarez’s many women and children by them.
“O, naunsa na hinuon ang gidangatan niini? Sila na man hinuon ang nag unay og away!” Old folks shake their heads, and they are right.
After sending a Davaweño straight to Malacañang, fellow Davaweños Alvarez and Floirendo are now in the center of people’s attention.
For wrong and shameful reasons.
Alvarez quickly reminded media people to focus on the issue, saying the extended joint venture agreement (JVA) between Floirendo’s Tagum Agricultural Development Corp. (Tadeco) and the BuCor disadvantages the Philippine government.
Supposedly, the government will lose some P25 billion because while plantations of Floirendo’s properties should be paying P200,000 per hectare, Floirendo pays only P5,000.
Alvarez charges that the new JVA has a life of 25 years. But since Floirendo was already a district representative in 2003 when the JVA was first inked, then Floirendo violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act even then, and continues to do so now.
Moreover, he also wants a congressional inquiry on the issue.
Nice explanation, Mr. House Speaker. But why speak only now? Why the silence since 2003?
Should this issue not have been mentioned prior to the 2016 elections? Instead, both Davaweños even filed their certificates of candidacy on the same day.
Now that Alvarez’s box has released a Pandora not his wife, both media and lawyers are at his feet. In a phone interview with House reporters, Alvarez hedged and hawed about until he finally said, “D’yos ko naman, kayo naman; sino bang walang girlfriend?”
No wonder netizens comment, “Noon, mistresses used to hide, while wives stayed in the open. Now, wives are hidden while mistresses are in the open.”
IBP members mull over Alvarez’ disbarment, to which he arrogantly says, “…go ahead; file a case. No lawyers will be left.”
As if this sad state of affairs is not shameful enough, President Duterte issues the classic condonment: “All politicians have girlfriends.”
Duterte has planted the culture of impunity. Must he also condone the culture of shamelessness?