America wants the Balangiga bells returned

It just made my day just looking at the photograph of US Secretary of Defense James Mattis shaking hands with Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel “Babes” G. Romualdez near the bells of Balangiga during his visit there last Wednesday, November 14, 2018, (Thursday, Manila time) at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming. Mattis was on hand to visit the bells which are planned to be returned to the Philippines. While many pundits say that even today the bells have not yet been returned, just think; we are talking about top-level cabinet members deciding for the US president that the bells should be returned.

What I also like was the talk by Mattis that returning three war trophy church bells to the Philippines would help cement ties between the two countries. Indeed, the Philippines and the US had very close ties which to many of us are just too close for comfort. Too many Filipino presidents surrender themselves to be America’s number one ally, meanwhile other lesser-known US allies seem to be getting more in US aid than the Philippines and that’s sad.

Last month I was watching a Netflix show called “Narcos” and later I watched “El Chapo” and you will certainly see how America came to support its South American allies in the war against illegal drugs. The US has the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) which even the South American drug lords wouldn’t dare touch. When President Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte won the presidency; he got a mouthful from then President Barrack Obama on the number of dead in the war against drugs. At least he is not getting bad treatment from US President Donald Trump because the latter knows the seriousness of our illegal drug problem.

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo says Malacañang welcomes the United States’return of the Balangiga bells to the Philippines but added that it will withhold any further comment on the matter “until the last bell has been properly delivered to the country.” In the words of the president himself: “It ain’t here until it’s here.” I fully agree that for as long as the bells are still in Fort Warren, it is not yet returned to the Philippines.

President Rodrigo Duterte has demanded the return of the bells to the Philippines in multiple speeches. Mind you, no other Philippine president has been as serious as President Duterte on the return of the bells. If these bells are returned sooner or later, we have to salute President Duterte for his commitment to have these bells returned. Today as we read in the news the US government formally beginning the repatriation of the Balangiga bells to the Philippines.

“After 117 years, the bells of Balangiga will be coming home. This morning the Government of the United States announced it would be returning the historic bells to the Philippines,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said. All we can say is “God bless America!”

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I tip my hat to Judge Dennis Larrobis, the presiding judge of Branch 76 of the Regional Trial Court in Naga City for inhibiting himself from the P4.5-billion class suit filed against Apo Land and Quarry Corp. (ALQC)

Larrobis said he decided to inhibit from the case to avoid the slightest suspicion of bias and prejudice because of his alleged close association with Atty. Benjamin Cabrido, one of the lawyers of the 39 Naga residents who filed that class suit.

“The inhibition is in order to free this court of the slightest suspicion of bias and prejudice, and to preserve the parties’faith in the proceedings of this case nationwide significance and magnitude,” Larrobis’ ruling read.

It was ALQC that asked for Larrobis to inhibit from the case, arguing that he and Cabrido were fraternity brothers in Lex Cervus Fraternity and graduates of the same Law school, the University of San Jose Recoletos (USJ-R).

With this inhibition, there should be smooth sailing in this class suit. But like I said, it does not look like Naga is going to be the biggest loser, it is economy. Give money to the victims, but make sure that Naga maintains its cement-based products known worldwide. Remember, the cement used to build the Golden Gate Bridge came from the town of Naga!

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For email responses to this article, write to vsbobita@gmail. com. His columns can be accessed through www.philstar.com