The Tribe Has Spoken: JDV has been voted off the house speakership

And so, history as we know it now has just added a few more pages to its thick and entangled sheets.

The new additions are like transcripts from a reality TV show. Except that instead of a bunch of strangers whose life’s decisions do not affect any of us, the key players in this “show” do hold us by the collars sometimes. And whatever they do, their blunders and all their jazz, reflect who we are because, as it should be the case, we were the ones who voted for them.

I wonder if they are aware of that fact still. Not when they are out to protect themselves. Well, at least more than they are out to protect us.

The irony of it all is, we, the taxpayers, are the ones who throw in our hard-earned money so that there will be enough funds to run our country. And I think it is safe to assume that it is from us who honestly pay our taxes that the leaders of our land get their income. But we have little power over them. So much so that whenever they step up to the microphone, sporting their expensive barongs, we are reduced to crossing our fingers, hoping that they’d say and do the right thing—the right thing for the majority of us, if not for our whole country.

What happened last night which extended till this morning wasn’t at all promising.

The big dogs ate the old dog. And we couldn’t give our full sympathy to the old dog because even he would not call himself sinless. Although I have to admit that it really isn’t fun seeing a lolo talking for almost an hour, dropping hints of obvious personal hang-ups in a tone we all cannot deny is repressed rage.

We could just conclude how dirty politics truly is.

And then there’s the semi political black hole, I’d rather not name, which frightens the wits out of me. It has a lot to do with those in power who seem to find it so convenient to get rid of whoever challenges them, and maybe even those who irritate them. Kakatakot lang.

In this 7,107 islands, I am relatively powerless. If they can kick out an old man who has been speaker of the house since I was 12 years old (there was a 3-year hiatus though), what would stop them from erasing me from this planet?

The thought (or threat) may give me nightmares for days.