‘Subversive’ book not the issue

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‘So, there. The issue of “subversive” books that has stirred the literary, legal, and human rights circles… is nothing but an internal squabble inside the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino.’

A LESSER known government office attached to the Office of the President (OP) is in the news because it allegedly banned the publication of certain books several of its officials consider as “subversive.”

Such is the problem confronting the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF) at present, which became a big thing when media got wind of it and explainers who believe that they are communications gurus and legal luminaries began a noisy public debate on the matter, expanding the discourse to clashing interpretations of the Anti-Terrorism Act, NTF-ELCAC, the former Anti-Subversion Law, freedom of expression, and the like.

Last August 10, five KWF commissioners complained to the Office of the President that their chairman, Dr. Arthur Casanova, has authorized the publication of books with explicit anti-Marcos and anti-Duterte contents and caused their distribution to state colleges and university, media and school and public libraries “poisoning scholars with these political text types which are beyond the mandate of our agency under RA 7104.”

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Commissioners Carmelita Abdurahman, Benjamin Mendillo Jr., Hope Yu, Alaine Russ Dimzon, and Angela Lorenzana said “these books are not the kind the Commission publishes which should be inclined in linguistics research, grammar, orthography, translation and ethnographic studies, language preservation and revitalization.”

Chairman Casanova has denied these allegations and said he is willing to appear in any probe by the Congress to explain his side. He said all the books and publications of the KWF passed the vetting process of the KWF-Publication Unit and received the imprimatur of Commissioners Abdurahman and Mendillo, who he charged as having started the red-tagging accusations against him.

Casanova also stressed that President Marcos’ marching orders were clearly to enrich and develop the Filipino language, and so KWF publications should not be limited to dictionaries and technical linguistic materials. He explained that the other commissioners were getting back at him only because he earlier filed a case, together with Rebecca Añonuevo, against these officials.

So, there. The issue of “subversive” books that has stirred the literary, legal, and human rights circles and made the blood pressure of both Rep. France Castro and Rep. Edcel Lagman shoot up is nothing but an internal squabble inside the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino.

It’s no big deal and nothing to worry about, writers Ruel Aguila and Marilou Jacob, and lawyer Chel Diokno. Internal feuds are common in government agencies transitioning from an outgoing to an incoming administration, just like in the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority. Instead of celebrating the Buwan ng Wika (National Language Month) this August, these officials chose to sweat out some intramurals.

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