Time flies so fast — or am I just aging? (lol)
It has been 34 years since the renowned Gawad Plaridel awardee, Atty. Pachico “Cheking” Seares, organized the first Cebu Press Freedom Week.
This week, the Cebu press and media celebrate the very freedom that was lost during the martial law years under the late dictator, President Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr.
The celebration always falls on the week of Sept. 21st, marking the day in 1972 when martial law was decreed, clamping down on the entire country. I was a second-year college student at the University of the Visayas back then.
I still recall how journalists and politicians critical of the Marcos administration were arrested and jailed without charges. Subsequent protest rallies were suppressed, and the Philippine Constabulary executed martial law decrees to the letter.
Today’s celebration of Press Freedom Week serves as a crucial reminder to the younger generation: without a free press, democracy dies.
We also express our deep appreciation to the late Cebu City North District congressman Raul del Mar for his steadfast support of Cebu Press Freedom Week. Del Mar authored Republic Act 11122, officially declaring Sept. 21 as Cebu Press Freedom Day.
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The arrest and detention of former House speaker Martin Romualdez on plunder charges in relation to the multi-billion ghost flood-control projects has, without doubt, severely strained the personal and political relationship between him and President BBM.
Although President BBM and Romualdez, who are first-degree cousins, have not publicly declared that their family relationship has reached a dead end, it appears that their political and personal relationship is beyond repair for the foreseeable future.
The President has repeatedly said that he will not interfere in the case involving his cousin. In a statement as early as July, Malacañang said the President would not interfere with the Ombudsman’s planned charges against Romualdez.
Are we to believe that the present predicament of Romualdez is merely theatrics to somehow give the Duterte clan — particularly VP Sara Duterte, who is facing an impeachment trial in the Senate — the impression that this administration is fair and fearless against those who have wronged the government?
It may be recalled that in 2022, the alliance between PBBM and VP Sara Duterte was deemed extraordinarily strong. They represented two of the country’s biggest political dynasties and won by a landslide under the “UniTeam” banner. At that time, many of us saw the alliance as a way to promote stability after years of political division.
However, governing together proved much harder than campaigning together. Several factors appear to have contributed to the split, particularly policy differences. Coalitions often face tension over appointments, influence and priorities. As time passed, disagreements within the administration became more visible.
But President BBM, in a statement on Sept. 7 after the arrest of Romualdez, denied and rejected allegations that the arrest was merely “drama.”
Romualdez was arrested on the evening of Sept. 7 at the hospital on a warrant of arrest issued by the Sandiganbayan, where he was indicted in a P7.4-billion plunder case together with fugitive ex-congressman Zaldy Co and two others.
The former House speaker, however, maintained his innocence. In a statement, he said: “Haharapin ko ang kaso. Sasagutin ko ang mga paratang. This is a difficult moment for me and my family. But I will face the days ahead with dignity, with faith in God and with confidence in the truth.”
Romualdez, through his lawyers, requested that the Sandiganbayan allow him to continue his hospitalization, as he is suffering from Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, primary hypothyroidism and other illnesses, including depression and anxiety.
Then came satirical posts on socmed mocking the sudden, impeccable timing of his medical emergency. Commenters joked that politicians seem to have a severe “allergy to justice,” developing sudden “cardiovascular events” and “anxiety attacks” the exact moment a non-bailable warrant is issued, only to have remarkably stable vital signs on their hospital monitors.
This political symbolism, if you can call it that, is particularly striking because Romualdez is not only a cousin of PBBM. He was a central political ally of Marcos and, as then-speaker, occupied one of the most important positions in the administration.
Blood may make them cousins, but politics has built a wall between Malacañang and Martin Romualdez that may be far more difficult to tear down than the bridge they once shared.
The political bridge between President Marcos and his cousin Martin Romualdez has not merely been damaged; recent events have put that family-political bridge under extraordinary strain.
President BBM, on several occasions even before the indictment and arrest of Romualdez, has publicly insisted that even a member of his own family must face the law.
This is a situation where family ties collide with political survival and the rule of law.