EDITORIAL

Mrs. Arroyo Is Harvesting Grasses
She Planted With Grains

Circle is round and it rotates like a wheel of a car. Sometimes, a portion is up and a part is down. This is true in the case of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. She thought she can be up all the time. Yet, now she is down.

And former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s life has been rotating. She is a daughter of a very honorable couple. Her father was a poor man from Lubao, Pampanga, a highly intelligent person that Don Honorio Ventura of San Fernando, Pampanga bankrolled all the school and college expenses of Diosdado Macapagal who later became congressman of Pampanga, Vice President, and finally President of the Philippines. Macapagal’s integrity was never questioned until his death.

Her mother, was Doctor of Medicine from Pangasinan. She performed her part well as First Lady of the Philippines.

"Father like daughter?" This is not all true to Diosdado, the father and to Gloria, the daughter. Diosdado was a lawyer, judge, congressman. He was a poor boy who was educated through the generosity of a rich man. Yes, both Diosdado and daughter Gloria were vice presidents and presidents.

However, Gloria is the daughter of a poor man who became president of the Republic of the Philippines. What Gloria wanted as a baby, as a student, as a wife, and as politician, Gloria got them all.

Gloria was under-secretary of DTI, senator, vice president, and president of the Philippines. She married a man who belongs to one of the wealthiest families in Negros Occidental and the Philippines.

What more can she asked for? She belongs to a distinguished family, occupied the highest and most powerful position of the nation, and possesses all the resources she can spend lavishly and endlessly during her lifetime.

Yet, after her term as president expired, she aspired to become congressman of her district in Pampanga and won. She wished to serve more.

But this greed: greed for power, for honor, for money. She cared for more, for high profile, for prestige.

Because of greed, now she is in terrible pain physically and mentally. Former president of the Philippines Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is in grief. The mug shots of the former president which appeared in the Philippine Daily Inquirer of Nov. 22, front page confirmed she is in pain and in terrible grief.

If at the beginning, she joined public service to improve the socio-economic condition prevailing in the Philippines, her genuine aspiration for her country and people earned her pain, grief, and shame because of that human greed. She has all the more, still she asked for more – unsatiable.

Today, Cong. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is in hospital arrest. She is accused of "election sabotage". She is in for more troubles. A civil case is being prepared for filing in court for her alleged role in the gruesome Maguindanao Massacre, lawyer of victims said.

Some complainants had asked the Office of the Ombudsman to resolve soonest the plunder case against Ms. Arroyo over the US$329 million National Broadband Network. There is also the P728 million fertilizer scam among others.

What is happening to Mrs. Arroyo is truly painful to her and her family but there is more and terrible pain to the nation and the Pilipinos. The Philippines and her people are experiencing indignity abroad lead by her former leaders like Mrs. Arroyo who is now reaping what she planted: dishonesty in thinking, in speaking, in thoughts, and in doing things. How can a nation command admiration and respect from others when the leaders are cheats? Cheat money? Cheat positions?

When can our leaders act with integrity? accountability? and transparency? For the best interest of the Filipinos and the Philippines, start now! /MP