EDITORIAL - June 10, 2006

GMA does not refer to Global Media Arts. It pertains to Ms. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo who has tantrums. According to the dictionary, tantrum is a violent, willful outburst of annoyance, rage and others. Tantrum is a childish fit of bad temper.

GMA’s latest tantrum was two weeks ago when she cut short Ms. Fe Hidalgo while giving her report during a cabinet meeting in Malacañang. Ms. Hidalgo is the Undersecretary and OIC of the Department of Education. She was reporting about the state of the DepEd school buildings in the Philippines. GMA did not believe that there is a shortage of school rooms in the country. Ms. Arroyo cut her short in the presence of the cabinet members and the media. She claimed "there is no school room shortages" for at the rate of 100 pupils per room for two shifts a day the ratio will be 50 pupils per one room".
Ms. Fe Hidalgo suffered public humiliation after the tantrum of GMA. But did GMA earned public credibility and respect by her manipulation of schools statistics?
Another tantrum is the stand of Malacañang to remain unrepentant even if the Supreme Court of the Philippines has ruled and "denied with finality" a motion for reconsideration a "ruling declaring as unconstitutional the arrest of protesters, the forcible breakup of rallies and the raid on a newspaper offices carried out by the security forces in line with GMA’s declaration of a state of national emergency" in February 2006. According to Secretary Ignacio Bunye, "we respect the decision of the Supreme Court, but maintain that the action taken at that time were warranted." This statement just tends to show Malacañang believes it thinks right while the Supreme Court thinks otherwise.
The Supreme Court ruled that Presidential Proclamation No. 1017 is in order. It also ruled that the implementation of the said order was unconstitutional. The motion for reconsideration was filed by Solicitor General Antonio Nachura which according to the Supreme Court "has no substantial arguments presented to warrant the reversal of the questioned decision".
Another tantrum was the "Hello Garci" tape. GMA said, "I am sorry" but did not reveal what and with whom she is sorry.
GMA’s desire to abolish the death penalty law maybe interpreted as pro life and pro culprits but anti - victims. In her presidency since January 2001, nobody was hang despite of thousands lined in the death row. Last month, she signed an urgent bill to abolish the death penalty law. Her proposal was approved in record time for at 3:00 in the afternoon, June 6, it was approved in the Senate.
In the House of Representative, 119 voted yes, 20 voted no and one abstained during the voting on Tuesday evening of June 6, 2006. /MP mailto:madyaas_pen@yahoo.com