Buencamino does political affairs analysis for Action for Economic Reforms. This article was published in newspaper Today, January 14, 2005, p.7.
Love your enemies just in case your friends turn out to be a bunch of bastards. – RA Dickson
Dear Joma,
You should review your statements before you release them to the press.How many times have you been advised, “Don’t respond in anger kasi taloang pikon?”
Do re-read your three statements on Walden Bello and Etta Rosales: “Walden Bello Exposes Himself as a Pro-US Pseudo-Progressive” ; “Complaints Should Be Submitted to The NDF-JMC And Not To The NDFP Chief Political Consultant” ; “Character Assassination and Cheap Shots by Rabid Anti-Communists and Pseudo-Revolutionaries.” Honestly, just from their titles alone, don’t they sound rabid, full of cheap shots, and character assassination?
Okey lang when you said Bello and Rosales raised a bogus issue about a harmless doodle drawn by the CPP International Department. What elsecould you say?
Mas okey when you assured them they had nothing to fear because youfavored debate, “… targets of their malice will always always respect their right of free speech and will answer with facts and well-reasoned arguments in order to win the ideological and political struggle through debate.”
But you blew it when you added, “But I do worry about the malicious letter writers and their kind, not because the revolutionary forces might hold themculpable for crimes which can be proven in the people’s court butbecause the murderous type of rabid anti-communists in the military andpolice might harm these pseudo-revolutionaries and then blame thecrime on the revolutionary forces.”
Bello and Rosales now have a real reason to be afraid. They have bulls’eyes painted on their backs and everyone can see the paintbrush in yourhand. Never mind that you are only a consultant to NDFP.
Actually, you ought to stop arguing you’re just a consultant. Peoplearen’t buying it and you only remind them of a taipan who never signedanything because he was merely a consultant to the companies he owned.
Criticizing Bello and Rosales for writing an open letter to you insteadof filing their complaints with proper authorities shows you are completely out of touch with current sentiments at home. The May 2004 elections were not that long ago and the mantra, “proper venue, proper authorities” still hurts people’s ears.
Instead of bickering with Bello and Rosales, you should focus on things that will make you relevant again.
For starters, you can demand that Mrs. Arroyo replace all BIR collectors with your people. They are well-known for efficiently collecting taxes from rich individuals and corporations. If they remain honest, this country’s fiscal problems will disappear.
Consequently, you can do away with this lateral attrition horseshit law, the masses will not have to be burdened by more VAT, and Mrs. Arroyo will have no excuse to sell off our fabled mineral riches to foreigners.
More important, everybody can quit cigarettes and alcohol without feeling unpatriotic. Right now, the patriotic revenue-enhancing thingto do is to smoke and drink as much as one can.
As tax collector, you might actually accomplish something for health,unlike Mrs. Arroyo whose ironic and circular health program is to spend the bulk of alcohol and tobacco taxes on improving health services.
Also, you should demand that Mrs. Arroyo appoint members of your organization to military tribunals Their unique relationship with the military will make them credible judges in all but illegal logging and drug cases. No one will cry cover-up if your people find anyone innocent of plunder and human rights abuses. No one will complain if you hand down many guilty verdicts because everyone believes the military brass are all guilty of something anyway.
Finally, you should make a harmless doodle of all those UP professorswho fooled Mrs. Arroyo into believing she actually learned economics.
As Always,
Manuel
P.S. On the bright side, it’s good you that phrase “permits- to-campaign” as “terms of agreement for the benefit of the people and the revolutionary movement.”
Normal language is easier to follow than communisms like “the US-liningcomprador big bourgeoisie and landlord class” or “pseudo -revolutionary petty bourgeois grouplets” affiliated with “Trotskyite factions.” Remember, communisms do not sound revolutionary anymore. Trotsky and your chinaman died decades ago.
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