REVILLA’S privilege speech was critiqued by many, with many having one conclusion: that it was pure mockery and an insult to the institution and to the citizens. It was a speech full of emotions and pettiness. I want to highlight the senator’s misuse of the privilege, his act of mockery against the institution and the people, and the dysfunctional pairing of politics and showbiz.
First, the senator wasted his chance in clarifying issues by diverting the subject. He confidently advised the president that there are other issues that should be given more focus and attention. Instead of expressing his regret, he delivered his words of gratitude to the audience and even used ‘faith’ to appeal to the emotions of the people.
This is wrong. Maybe those in the middle class know that Revilla was really messing around but for the masa, they don’t.
Second, he was mocking the institution by transforming it into his own theatrical stage. As an actor, Revilla has the capability to lure the masa and freehim from any charges by acting with sympathy and humility thanking all the people who helped him all throughout.
He structured his act in a way that people will realize that they should forget about the real issue and just focus on the other concerns. He even had the guts to talk about criminals to be captured but the truth is criminals are not only found in the streets but also in those places where they are least expected.
Third, politics and showbiz should never ever be coupled because the outcome would likely to become more controversial. Senator Revilla, an actor for how many years now, has strived to think politically. He has used his talents as his mechanism to lure the people into thinking that he should be given sympathy.
The senator’s words and actions during the day he delivered his speech was more than mockery and insult. It was more than disrespect to the Filipino people. It was pure evil that he plotted his words thinking that he could fool everybody out of feigning humility and immature music video. (Gwena Dale M. Caubang)