Bongbong’s humility
Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. did not only have to pass through the hole of the needle but also the process of martyrdom before becoming the 17th President of the Republic of the Philippines.
It was only on 28 June 2022, one month and 15 days after being elected by the people with a 31 — million margin over his closest rival, that the Supreme Court rejected a final bid to disqualify him from enjoying that landslide victory accorded him by his countrymen when the way was cleared for his inauguration.
“The court held that the exercise of its power to decide the present controversy led them to no other conclusion but that respondent Marcos Jr. is qualified to run for and be elected to public office.”
The court added that thirteen justices voted to dismiss the petitions, while two did not take part.
Opponents of Marcos had appealed to the court to overturn the election commission’s dismissal of their petition, which sought the disqualification of Marcos because of his alleged decades-old tax violations, which they argued made him ineligible to run.
The Commission on Audit endured pain similar to the “body blows” in the martyrdom and sufferings of Bongbong. In July 2014, a local paper came out with a banner headline of CoA telling Bongbong to return his P10-M pork. CoA central office old-timers were quick to comment that the headline was linked to the former CoA chair’s bid to be appointed by Noynoy to the vacant SC post.
But God, in His omnipotent goodness, exalts the humble and rejects the proud. Pride goes before the fall and failure of the corrupt opposition.
From the viewpoint of the auditor, I believe there is an inner living lesson that is often overlooked that to me seems summed up in Bongbong’s humble and simple life, and a great and as simple as his mind. He is an example of how we Filipinos should live our life.
His rejection of the idea of convicting an innocent chief justice, and refusal to receive the bribe money worth more than a hundred million as a judge-senator in the impeachment case against a chief justice, Bongbong did not only speak of honesty and justice for an innocent man — he is living that life.
Yes, no less than his father Ferdinand had indeed discerned some weakness in Bongbong when he was a young boy, but that is usually the case among the youth, they turned out later as great men.
Albert Einstein, who revolutionized the science of physics, was a poor student and some of his teachers thought he might be retarded; he was unable to speak fluently with ease and grace at age nine. Still, he was fascinated by the laws of nature, experiencing a deep feeling of wonder over the invisible, yet real, force directing the needle of the compass.
He began playing the violin at age six and continued to play throughout his life. At age 12 he discovered geometry (the study of points, lines, and surfaces) and was taken by its clear and certain proofs. Einstein mastered calculus (a form of higher mathematics used to solve problems in physics and engineering) by age 16.
Basing his observation on that of Ferdinand Sr., thenPresident Rodrigo R. Duterte said Bongbong is weak, but was it not that the good Mayor himself also said, he finished his high school in seven years? And that in the San Beda College of Law, he got grades of 75 and 76, and yet he turned out to be the only legal genius with a grade of 75, for noticing and resolving the disadvantageous provisions of contracts which Bar 7th placer Franklin Drilon failed to solve if only to save Metro Manila from being mired in dirt and waste.
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Yes, no less than his father Ferdinand had indeed discerned some weakness in Bongbong when he was a young boy, but that is usually the case among the youth, they turned out later as great men.
“But
God, in His omnipotent goodness, exalts the humble and rejects the proud. Pride goes before the fall and failure of the corrupt opposition.
(To be continued)