When acting Davao City mayor Baste Duterte made a challenge to a fistfight with PNP Chief Gen. Nicolas Torre after police raids at Davao cockpits, not just his fists furled in wrath struck, it was a slap on the face of public office. What otherwise has been a space for service and sense becomes the space for boyish fistfights. When senior leaders yelp and snap at one another publicly like rabid canines, we must wonder: Where is professionalism?
It’s a national shame, watching men in positions of authority turn the government into a sandbox of hurt feelings. These are not backyard bullies swapping insults over marbles and pilfered snacks—they are government officials, sworn to duty, paid on the public dime, and entrusted with lives. And yet there they are, playing out gladiators in a cockfight, depriving their offices of tact and decency. The distinction between public duty and private vengeance has been so blurred by now that it is a smear.

What’s most maddening about this testosterone theater is the complete banality with which it is treated. It’s mocked by some, applauded by others, as if they’re watching a pay-per-view. But we, the audience, are victims as well. A minute spent on these ego battles is a minute lost from working on real issues—poverty, hunger, injustice, crime. Leadership is now a performance art, and unfortunately, it’s not spectacular or compelling.

The reality is that there has been too much politicking that has consumed the substance of public service. What had been an elevated calling has become a game of who can create the most thunderous applause, who can deliver the best put-down, and who gets blood first. Policies are set aside for showboating, and merit is bargained for clout. Everyone is campaigning for something—power, reelection, revenge. Those were the days when statesmanship was about restraint and quiet determination. Now it’s who appears tougher, meaner, and less forgiving.

Observe how these encounters are presented—not as intellectual debates, but as pride squabbles. When the two engaged in their run-ins, there was no reference to policies, no discussion of police tactics or ordinances. Only name-calling, chest-thumping, and an open call to duke it out in public. It’s pitiful. Government is now a circus, and these men are not ringmasters—they’re clowns who have lost sight of who the audience is.

And what does that say to young people, the next leaders who are watching this go on from the sidelines? That government is a macho world, that power must be fought for with fists, not with facts? The decline in public trust does not come quickly. It begins with moments such as these—moments when the leaders make their pride more important than their duties, their hurts more important than their people.

Better still, this is not a one-off. Political disagreements here are likely to spill over into physical bullying, Shakespearean exit tirades, and burned-earth rants. From Senate hearings turning into shouting matches to provincial governors slapping detractors in open daylight, our democracy is afflicted by an infantilism epidemic. Decency has abandoned the field. Statesmanship is in hiding.

If anything can be salvaged, it begins with a reminder to public officials what precisely “public” entails. The people didn’t elect generals and mayors to engage in a duel of attempting to outdo one another. They were given the responsibility of improving lives, of making them safer, more decent. The solution isn’t to condone immaturity with contempt, however, but to demand better: more reason, less rage; more service, less show. Leadership is not considered who can throw the first punch, but who puts the people first.

Construction of the simple term that does not require knowledge in law or rocket science had drawn people into debates that divide not just the senate and the lower house but the Filipino nation as well. It is the intentional misconstruction of the word that ignited debates in the senate halls and on social media. The delaying tactics of the senate president in commencing the impeachment trial of the vice president is so appalling to observers. Legal luminaries had expressed the common view that the word forthwith is a mandate for the senate to convene as an impeachment court and immediately begin the impeachment trial.
We do not know where those who choose to make understanding the simple word took their elementary education, but this writer’s elementary school taught the simple word forthwith its simple meaning that is immediate. It is not later or any convenient time one wishes to perform the required act. To proceed immediately and without delay is the simple interpretation of the word.

With the turbulence caused by the intentional misinterpretation of the constitutional provision, the incumbent senate president had taken liberty is delaying the impeachment trial of the impeached vice president. The tactic is clearly giving the impeached vice president the luxury of time to travel anywhere, chiefly to the Hague in the Netherlands to visit her beloved father, the former and now detained president who is in detention under the order of the International Criminal Court.

The issue of the impeachment delay had hogged the limelight as headlines in social media. Many legal experts had been invited by the senate to shed light on the issue. The resource persons included retired supreme court justices, constitutional law professors and members of the constitutional commission that drafted the present constitution. All opinions failed to overcome the stubborn position and interpretation of the senate president.

While the senate has not yet started the impeachment trial, two senators who are long-time loyalists to the former and now detained president, took the floor to move for the dismissal of the impeachment complaint. The motion to dismiss was purportedly based on the defective impeachment complaint and the alleged violation of the constitutional provision that allows only one impeachment complaint in a year. The motion seeks the dismissal of the impeachment complaint without trial.

Then another grandstanding lawyer in the senate manifested that the articles of impeachment be returned to the lower for it to certify that the same was made in accordance with law. Such return in process is out of deemed out of the books aimed to rip the entire impeachment process.
comments to alellema@yahoo.com

The arena was set, gloves were laced, cameras primed—yet one of the central figures of the anticipated bout was missing. Acting Davao Mayor Baste Duterte’s conspicuous no-show from the boxing match against PNP Chief Gen. Nicolas Torre was more than just a broken bout—it was a metaphorical dodge of accountability. It was a case of no -show and we see beyond the default, we say the problematic reality that optics in times of trouble are not dependable.

From where we sit , the now no-show event was more than just a let-down it is a study of quitting. In Waray waray words na-irit, in Eastern Samar words Nabuwit/Nabuyet, which means running away from the task at hand or better, yet the ultimate Waray is Nanalaw ( naduwag in Filipino). The eagerly anticipated boxing match was waited on by Filipinos, most of them hoping that the fight will take place, and someone can defeat another . But it was sad to say that the duel never happened because the Acting Mayor Baste Duterte had other things to do, perhaps better than defending the honor and refusing to face the challenge he even called.

It was problematic for the Duterte camp because it shows a clear example of how the clan falters on matters that are vital, like the fact that public service entails sacrifice and that honors of constituents including their needs must be defended and fought for. How can people expect the delivery of promise when it can just be deflected by an excuse or a deflection?

This was not just a spectacle of fists and footwork. It was a stage where principles were to be tested, not in bravado, but in service. And in that light, Gen. Torre stepped forward, alone but unshaken, embodying a quiet strength that true leadership requires. He understood the crowd was not there for punches alone—they were there to witness commitment, courage, and care. With the absence of his opponent, Torre’s decision to fight anyway—and raise over P20 million for calamity-stricken Filipinos—became the actual victory.

And that for us Waraynon, we saw the clear opposites, one who is willing to heckle and run or someone who is willing to be bloodied and even manhandled because of the defense of one’s honor. According to noted Film Director Woody Allen, 80 percent of success is showing up. Today, we are given a throwback of that Filipino saying Ang Umaayaw ay hindi nagwawagi!!

The Market Linkage Caravan recently organized by the AMAS-AMAD of the Department of Agriculture has achieved great milestones for the agriculture sector in Eastern Visayas.
After this 3-day event in Tacloban City, it became a resounding success, connecting suppliers with institutional buyers and fostering meaningful partnerships.

But what makes this event extra special was the unexpected “crying scene” that happened in the end while participants were giving their personal impressions.

Ms Virgie Pagad-Gozo of Pearlfoods, a buyer from Luzon whose roots came from Tanauan, Leyte, felt overwhelmed with emotion as she gave her impressions.

According to her, she just realized that she need not go far in looking for suppliers of banana after figuring out the needs of her fellow countrymen (kababayan) and the extent of their own potential to supply such raw materials or products her company (Pearlfoods) really needed or wanted.

This realization triggered a strong emotional response, likely a mix of empathy, sadness, and perhaps a sense of responsibility.

Right there and then, a marketing contract was sealed on-the-spot between Pearlfoods and the Enales Farm of Jaro, Leyte.

Mr. Ernesto Enales, a farmer leader and agripreneur, signed the marketing agreement for the initial delivery of 10 tons of Cardaba Banana at P22/kilo starting first week of August, and every month thereafter.

Aside from this, the Century House for Spices, commits to buy vegetables, fruits and bananas from local suppliers to bring together healthy selections of farm products at affordable prices in a refreshingly clean and organized shopping destination such as Robinsons Malls in Tacloban and Ormoc Cities, and four more upcoming Robinsons Malls in Region 8.

Other instutional buyers like Dizon Foods, Ridad and Global Foods also made positive business pitches providing endless opportunities not only for our local crop producers, but to the organized groups of fisherfolk in the region as well.

So far, these are bold lifelong commitments and opportunities afforded to our local FCAs as a result of the Market Linkage Caravan jointly organized by AMAS-AMAD, the Department of Agriculture’s national and regional marketing arms.

RED Andrew Rofolfo T. Orais of DA-RFO 8, made his presence felt during the first and second day of the Market Linkage Caravan. In his inspirational message, he said that all production efforts of farmers will just go in vain if they could not connect or link up with the markets.

He then thanked AMAS Team led by Ms Joyce M. Bengo for working in tandem with AMAD in coming up with this Market Linkage Caravan. “This is the venue or platform where perceived gaps on production volumes of our local food suppliers, and the volume requirements of institutional buyers will be aptly adressed or settled,” the DA-8 Chief stressed.

In a related story, there’s a new acronym that caught the fancy and imagination of our farmers during the recently concluded market linkage caravan.

It’s not about the dreaded EJK which became a buzzword in the recent past, nor is it a war on drugs, but another kind of war or revolution for the poor.

Most participants representing farmers cooperatives and associations (FCAs) were one in saying that UJB should be popularized so that it may become a fast rising phrasal expression that could make a big difference and spur socio-economic and rural development in the countryside.

I am referring to “UJB” which was repeatedly highlighted by institutional buyers during the market pitching sessions vis a vis our farmers and fisherfolk.

As we all know, EJK sends fearsome message of human rights abuses, but UJB (which stands for Ube, Jackfruit, and Banana) ignites hope, strength and inspiration that would motivate our communities to plant extensively these market-driven crops.

Perhaps, there’s no need for any further elaboration. It’s a public knowledge that since June 2016 up to June 2022, a violent ‘war on drugs’ has allegedly claimed numerous lives in the Philippines. Executions targeting drug dealers and users not only exacerbate the drug problem, but constitute a violation of the fundamental human rights.

UJB is far different since it is a reminder for our small farmers to focus on high value priority crops. Growing market-driven crops that could sustain lives, as well as ensure increased famers’ income.

So, whenever you hear people saying UJB, fear not. Instead, help us spread the news and promote Ube, Jackfruit – especially, the EVIARC Sweet variety which is the sweetest jackfruit in the country, or rather, in the whole world.

Finally, the Ube is a profitable crop to venture into with its high production returns and growing export market potential. It is a crop with many uses. The most famous of these is being an ingredients in many desserts and pastries.

Almost all the 12 instutional buyers from Luzon were looking at Ube as a sunshine industry in the region. The strengthened collaboration between the local suppliers and buyers will focus on sustaining the production of the Ube Kinampay variety, touted as the queen of purple yam, and the variety that is preferred in the international market.

The DA has pledged to work on the expansion of Kinampay plantations across regiobs, as well as look into possible areas not only here in Leyte, but also in Samar.