JUST when you thought that the third State of the Nation Address (Sona) of President Rodrigo Duterte would be long, tedious, and expletive-laden rhetorics... it was quite the opposite.
There was never a hint of insult towards Vice President Leni Robredo and her ilk of opposition politicians, as the latter had expected that Duterte would have done so before the actual event.
The president's third Sona was clean, to say the least, although some would say the words he spoke of were motherhood statements, meaning, there are no actual or concrete talking points in addressing the social ills the country is facing and specific plans to deal the challenging economic landscape.
There were three, however, that would stand out:
First, he mentioned the open-pit mining operations that continue to destroy the country's environment, while extracting the natural resources. Open-pit mining is the trade of local miners here in Cagayan de Oro and Opol town that share the Iponan River. Six years ago, it caused the river to be heavily silted, turning the water muddy brown.
The operations happened in the hinterland barangays of the city and Opol town. There were task forces that apprehended these operators. They were able to capture illegal Chinese aliens who operated there, but God knows what happened to them now.
Then, Duterte talked about ease of doing businesses in the government. Talking about removing red tape and breaking the traditions of bureaucracies in government especially in front line services. Duterte should find a time in visiting government agencies especially in Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC) and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Again, despite of the digitization of DFA in passport appointments, it remains troublesome for many because of the limited slots given each day, and to add the folly, travel and tour operators are preying on it acting as fixers. PRC has a universal problem: professionals are almost camping to the regional offices just to get a priority number. In Cagayan de Oro, the PRC office may have transferred to a better location inside Limketkai compound, but the long lines still remain.
And lastly: “your concern is Human Rights. Mine is human lives.” Duterte has reiterated again that the War on Drugs will continue, and his policy to run after drug syndicates and shoot-to-kill those who fight back is still apparent. The problem of this is: his policy is subject to the interpretation of the law enforcers. Some are trigger-happy and use this against innocent civilians. Some police force gave weak rules of engagements.
Most importantly: human lives are better lived when Human Rights are observed. Because had it not been, we would be slaves to those who are in power. Sold to masters, and denied of almost all the comforts we are enjoying now.
(Nefluczon@gmail.com)