The Pangasinan Star ONLINE

The Pen Speaks
Danny O. Sagun


A TOWN councilor, very much married, is accused of having an affair with a young lass and the accuser is the girl’s father himself. Another alderman is charged of raping a woman, while the family of a legislator from another town was surprised to see the supposed girlfriend suddenly showing up at their house. A doctor of education-pretender is stripped of her doctorate degree for falsifying her records but still clings to her position as principal of a high school in the fourth district. Two mediapersons engaged in a fistfight over manna from a board member after an interview because the group (more than 10?) have difficulty dividing the money among themselves. A mediaman (again, kuno) shows his plain ignorance by shooting the wrong question in a presscon with the BIR chief on Tuesday.

Such news reports landed in local broadcasts this week as local radio anchors delightfully feasted on the controversies. Indeed, what is happening to our society, or to rephrase it, what is happening to those people supposed to be our guiding lights and leaders? Take as example that educator who herself could not pass the honesty test since, as reliable reports went, she had falsified her records? If she still has the face to mingle with her colleagues and the students despite such serious charges, I really don’t know what’s happening in our midst.

Regarding the three municipal aldermen, well, politicos have long been there. We mean the electorate seems to look the other way as regards moral qualifications of a candidate during elections. We have mayors, and presidents even, who maintain mistresses, okay, girlfriends left and right and yet they are politically ensconced in their turf.

Lest we be misunderstood, we do not want immoral persons to rule us (serve may be the proper word). Public servants are supposed to be exemplars of good morals. We are only talking of the realities prevailing now in our society, however.

As to our colleagues in the profession, it pains us to note that some mediapersons are no longer looking for news during coverages, presscons, interviews, and the like but, to put it bluntly, for money or envelop. We cannot entirely fault them, because politicians, lobbyists, propagandists have turned them that way – in quest of dole-outs, not news. They have become accustomed to it so that without the padulas they could not write or broadcast news anymore. Some even go to the extent of attacking the news source. There are many mediamen committed to their profession though. With or without any ‘blessing’ they just do their job.

Mediapersons are looked up to as knowledgeable and skilled in the art of questioning. But what happened in that presscon with BIR Commissioner Bunag at the EVAT roadshow betrayed the ignorance of some self-styled newsmen about the nature and qualifications for the job, prompting a senior newsman to shake his head in disgust and anguish as he watched that fellow (we do not know who he was and which media outlet he was connected with, if at all) shoot his off-tangent question. “Agyo ipapaway so inkaignorante yo ... kababaing,” the senior member was overheard saying.