[dropcap style=”dropcap2″]B[/dropcap]eing unique is not presto wrong, and it is a no-brainer to argue that uniqueness is what sometimes defines the true, the good and the beautiful. While many of us just choose to go with the flow, with the majority and the mob, there is still a province of the few mavericks or non-conformists. They go against the tide, suffering the hate and spit of the multitude, branded as crazy and without any iota of sanity.
Number is the source of power of those who do not waste any time questioning the establishment, the status quo. A larger number of the populace just get accustomed to the daily routine, and any attempt to introduce change is dumped outright, castigated and condemned to the sky, and even cursed in elephantine proportions. We have always found comfort in the embrace of the present scheme and system, and we take pleasure in what is routinary. Any member of the society who shall declare that the Emperor has no clothes, that the earth is the center of the solar system, that the world is flat, must be prepared to face the repercussion of a perceived intellectual deficiency.
When the then presidentiable Rody Duterte said that he will eradicate crimes and drug problems in just three months, the mob went rallying to his cause. It was music that they heard, and they all fell into the lure of the sirens of the sea. They fell into deep slumber and even up to now, are humming to the tune of the new President. This is perfectly normal, an idea I would not dare contest. A new president must be given all the support that he needs to make things happen. I am one of those who are willing to change this country, and supporting the Chief Executive, the seat of power, is the best way I can be of help. When he asked for an additional six months to make true his campaign promises, with the justification that he never thought that the magnitude of the drug problem is so huge, though during the campaign he projected to have known everything, still, the people yielded. I too yielded, for second chances must be given for noble causes.
It took someone like Dick Gordon, the beneficiary of the gullible Pacquiao moving for the declaration of vacancy of the Chairmanship of the Justice Committee, kicking away the former justice secretary to give way to the former tourism secretary to become chair of the justice committee, to tell the Filipino people that we now have a president who speaks his mind, tells what needs to be told, and does what many former Presidents never dared to do before. The very good lawyer from Subic must be referring to the badmouthings of Duterte, and what dishonor we could have had if all the former Presidents also cursed the Pope, the US President, the European Union, the United Nations and its Secretary General and rapporteurs. Sen. Dick must have been penetrating the untrodden parameter of opinion when he said that we now have a unique president, someone unafraid to speak his mind and just does what he thinks. But he failed to complete the sentence: A president who speaks his mind, does what he thinks and then says sorry afterwards.
Janelle Monae, a celebrated garbage collector-turned-award-winning-singer once said, “Do not be afraid to be unique, even if it makes others feel uncomfortable.” The President’s war on drugs is executed in a unique manner, so unique that it got the attention of the international community. Hail to the President for his very strong will to combat drugs and all that go with it. Hell to the President if it be true that lives have been unjustly taken away to attain such purpose. Either way, the Filipino people must remain vigilant and uncompromising. Six years is too long for a bad President and too short for a good one. TNF
DISCLAIMER: The opinions of this writer do not represent the view of the The Northern Forum’s Editorial Board on any concerned issue.
