STEVE Herman is Voice of America’s White House bureau chief and is thus covering United states President Donald Trump’s Asia trip and his attendance in the Asia-Pacific Economic conference (Apec) Summit in Vietnam. One of his tweets on the Vietnam activity was rather innocent: “#Philippines is next stop on @POTUS itinerary after #Vietnam. And there will be a bilat with President Duterte.” POTUS is short for President of the US.
That was immediately re-tweeted on Twitter and posted and shared on Facebook by Cebuanos, who got a laugh at the use of the word “bilat.” The Philippine Daily Inquirer would later use the same word in its headline in a news on the Apec Summit: “‘Bilats’ are where much of the talking happens.” Oxforddictionaries.com defines “bilat” as “a diplomatic meeting between parties representing two countries.” It is short for the word “bilateral” and first surfaced in the 1990s.
But the word means vagina in Cebuano. That was why Cebuanos chuckled in social media while sharing the post. The good thing is that at least another term has been added to their vocabulary.
Here in Cebu, city councilors identified with the opposition Barug Team Rama talked about the possibility of suing Mayor Tomas Osmeña. No, this wasn’t for what he did but for the hashtag in one of his numerous posts on Facebook. The post was about the foul smell at the Inayawan dump site and City Hall’s effort to solve the problem even as Barug Team Rama councilors supposedly is blocking it. The hashtag used for the post was #TeamRamaBahogB__at.
“That’s discrimination,” Barug Team Rama Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera told reporters. “Unsa man iyang tan-aw sa mga babaye baho na lang gyod? It’s really below the belt, literally and figuratively.”
Another city councilor identified with Barug Team Rama, Pastor Alcover Jr., added: “Bastos gyod na iyang gihimo coming from an executive. Dunay issues na-discuss nga legitimate kaayo unya himopan niya og tubag nga binastos.”
Pesquera is a lawyer, I am not so I won’t dare say Barug Team Rama can really sue the mayor for the use of the word “b__at.” Or can Voice of America’s Steve Herman can also be sued for using the word “bilat” in his tweet?
Osmeña, who is not known to be solely managing his Facebook account, said he was not aware that the said offending hashtag strayed into a post in his Facebook account. “No, I did not put it there. Some people administered it. I will have it withdrawn, with my apologies. I don’t know, I did not put it there myself,” he said.
The mayor’s denial sounded lame but I say is close to the truth. I don’t think he is social media-savvy but he ventured into it because he said he does not have easy access to traditional media, or that was what I heard him talk about in one radio interview. Now he also knows the perils of social media, especially when he allows other people to tinker with his account.
But back to the words “bilat” and b__at. It’s a matter of context really. The former has been reduced to a joke because it was used differently the way the latter was used in Osmeña’s FB account. And I agree. The use of the latter is offensive not only for Barug Team Rama but also for women.