‘The Manila Bulletin has been my life’

started to write for The Manila Bulletin (MB) when I was barely out of my teens. It was also during the pre-Martial Law years when the media scene was free, lively, and fun. The newspapers reigned supreme —aside from the oldest running paper, (MB) there were the Manila Times, the Manila Chronicle, Daily Express and the Journal Group.

Manila Bulletin’s editor then was the legendary “Judge” Felix Gonzales, a gruff stocky man, the very incarnation of the hard-boiled, tough-talking, know-it-all editor. I was recruited to contribute for “The page for the Young-at-Heart” edited by an equally young editor, Ethel Soliven.

The stories were naturally aimed mostly for the campus set. Much later we branched out to espousing consumer affairs with a column called “Consumer Observation Post” and this column became quite influential with readers writing about their complaints.

In the meantime I was being assigned to “human interest” features by “Judge” who sensed my curiosity to think “out of the box” and seek out “unusual” persons or situations in the city. I remember writing about a family living in a“kariton” near the office. The mother, father, and their new-born baby were just too irresistible not to write them up for a Christmas feature.

I asked a photographer from the office to take their picture and dashed off a story on their homeless plight after interviewing them and submitted it to “Judge.” The story and photo of the “Holy Family” in the cart saw print the next day on our front page and our readers, touched by the plight of the family responded with pledges of food and donations for them to go back to Cebu where they were from.

We were able to send the family back to Cebu via plane with money in a bank account, too. So I found my “calling” as a crusading features writer. My career in MB was cut short when I was “fired” by Judge because I was too carefree, coming to the office in my golf attire and playing at the nearby Municipal Golf Links during office hours.

I readily transferred to Manila Times where I wrote a teen column, “Dee’s Daze.” Unfortunately, Marcos declared Martial Law and we all lost our media voices.

I was able to write again during this time with Chronicle, got married, and started our family. When MB got its “Ok,” thanks to ex-MB columnist Francisco Tatad’s (then Marcos’ Information Minister) intervention to open the paper again, I was recalled and taken in again as correspondent.

I remember going to the office daily and seeing our military “guardian angel” Col. Honesto Isleta seated at the desk with our editors, looking over their shoulders to see that they behaved in putting out the “true, the good, and the beautiful” news according to the Palace.

When Senator Ninoy Aquino was assassinated on Aug. 21, 1983, I was already absorbed in the staff. It was my day off and I was with my family celebrating my youngest son’s birthday. I heard the news over the radio and rushed to the MB office. The editor then was Pat Gonzales who took over Judge’s position. I asked what happened and he took one look at me and barked, “You’re supposed to be a reporter. Go find out.”

I rushed to the modest bungalow on Times street and joined the bewildered siblings of Ninoy, Butz and Ditas, in waiting for the corpse to arrive. In the meantime, a Veritas van outside on the street kept replaying the last interview with Ninoy from Taipei where he stayed overnight in an effort to throw his trackers off course.

He knew he was a marked man he said, and that he expected to be thrown in jail as soon as he arrived, but he wanted to talk to Marcos for the sake of the country. And then the obscenity of the assassination before the whole world, with a gaggle of international media with him on the plane.

That day marked my “politicalization.” My thoughts then were—“If they could do this to an important person, what would they not do to ordinary folks?”

Early evening, Ninoy was brought in his casket, his face and his white shirt caked with dirt and blood. His mother Doña Aurora said grim-faced: “I want them (the people) to see what they did to my son!”

I began my story for my paper with Doña Aurora’s quote, and every day it was like that, a news-feature, a human interest angled article for the front page. It managed to pass our censor, even the widow’s coming home and a young Kris’ poignant observation to us the day they arrived from Boston, “I do not like to see men in uniform...they killed my dad.” The funeral was another hurdle, editorially. I covered it, all the long hours from Sto. Domingo to the memorial park. Again, instruction from our desk, tone it down the Palace is watching.” Photos had to be cropped, don’t show too many people, etc. We managed.

From the assassination to the opposition marches and the awakening of the Filipinos to People Power, The Manila Bulletin was there. Covering events, even the opposition marches, which the others papers didn’t do. I had this yellow ribbon on my typewriter in the office and it stayed there until we got back press freedom.

I had to resign from my beloved paper when I accepted President Cory’s invitation to join her as her media person in June 1987. My big boss, the late Don Emilio Yap, was delighted about me joining President Cory, but, resign first, he said. He didn’t want anyone to accuse him of having a “spy” in the Palace.

This hurt but I did resign and joined Cory’s team with his fatherly admonition “Remember to be loyal to the President and DON’T BE CORRUPT!” Let me know, he added, if you need anything, “but do not ask or accept any gift from anyone.”

I enjoyed my three years and a half in Malacañang, made lots of friends and got a few haters. All part of the job, I would console myself.

After the term of Pres. Cory, Don Emilio asked me to apply again and I started from the bottom of the ladder. I didn’t mind. I missed writing because I had to stop writing while I was in government.

Although my typewriter was gone and I had to slowly learn to use computers, I enthusiastically went back to writing columns for my paper. I had missed seeing my byline, expressing my views, helping others through my writing. I had retired as the spokesperson of President Cory but in everything I said or wrote, readers saw her in the background.

I have had my share of brickbats and happy bouquets, too. The Manila Bulletin has been my life, and it has been a beautiful one.

Editor’s note: Deedee M. Siytangco writes the column “Angel Thoughts” every Sunday.