‘The whole stretch of Emerald Avenue in Ortigas turning spotlessly clean after the huge Leni-Kiko rally should set the standard for all political candidates after the elections, win or lose.’
WITH posters and tarpaulins strewn in nearly every nook and corner of Metro Manila, you wonder if discipline thrown out of the window will ever be restored when the winning so-called public servants start to hold office. Designated poster areas have been virtually ignored and supporters of both local and national politicians are having the run of the place.
The whole stretch of Emerald Avenue in Ortigas turning spotlessly clean after the huge Leni-Kiko rally should set the standard for all political candidates after the elections, win or lose. Volunteers from the opposition camp had accomplished a stunning clean-up of mostly the confetti that poured endlessly from the buildings there.
As the ordinance against littering seems suspended during the campaign period and election day, it is common for losing candidates to leave their campaign posters and other materials as is, to become part of the mountainous piles of garbage left to the hapless underpaid and overworked street sweepers.
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No one can blame President Duterte for refusing to bring down the Alert Level to zero, which seems to reverse his negligent and irresponsible handling of the virus crisis when it broke out in Metro Manila and Cebu. We recall how he degraded the real danger of COVID-19 by telling the people “na wala yan” and not to be anxious or fearful. While many continue to ignore wearing face masks and other health protocols under Alert Level 1 during political rallies, the President is concerned that the undisciplined rallyists would trigger dreaded surges, which is not remote.
Local officials are not expected to cooperate with the AITF and the local police in strictly enforcing health protocols, which would likely lead to discouragement among the voters, jeopardizing theirs and their candidates’ chances at the polls.
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As the slaughter of civilians and innocent children continues to escalate in Ukraine, will the United States and NATO wait until the number of fatalities reaches 250,000, as what happened at the Balkans after the disintegration of Yugoslavia? Centuries of simmering conflicts and animosities suddenly exploded in a war of brutal ethnic cleansing when the Muslim civilian population, including women and children, were heavily targeted by the Croatian Serbs. Then US President Bill Clinton hesitated for over a year before ordering bombing missions to protect the remaining civilians.
Serbian chieftain Slovodan Milosevic was promptly arrested along with his blood-thirsty generals and brought to trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). Vladimir Putin repeatedly warning a nuclear launch against the US and its Western allies remains a major factor.
