By Atty. Howie M. Calleja
In Literature, Cirque du Freak (also known as Circus of Freaks) is the first novel in The Saga of Darren Shan by Darren Shan, published in January 2000. The story begins with Darren Shan and his best friend Steve “Leopard” Leonard, who visit an illegal freak show, where an encounter with a vampire. But in our country’s “Political Circus”, our CIRQUE DU FREAK is embodied by our candidates’ immoral SUBSTITUTION PROSTITUTION.
In our country’s “Political Circus of Freaks” you will see the daughter of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte file her candidacy for the vice presidency ending months of speculation about her 2022 election plans. Added to this President Duterte likewise plans to file his candidacy for the 2022 polls, Sec. Andanar was quoted by ABS-CBN as saying. Finally, according to Sen. Bong Go, it was the President’s wish for him to withdraw his vice-presidential bid and to instead gun for the presidency in the 2022 elections — a perceived showstopper destined to fail!
Juxtaposed to this we will see VP Leni where the clamor emanates from the people and not from personal and family ambition. The MARCOS-ARROYO-DUTERTE (MAD aka “psychotic” or “lunatic”) politics is obviously to resurrect and preserve their political dynasties and to secure the personal benefit. It is a continuation of decades of dynastic and corrupt practices, and the 2022 Polls is finally a chance for the Filipino People to show the strength that emanates from them and give the final blow to stop the MARCOS-ARROYO-DUTERTE political culture of corruption and deception. In Substitution Prostitution the loser is the Filipino people.
First Mr. Duterte denies running then says he will resign from politics. Then his daughter Sara says publicly not to include her in their “circus”. But what do we see? The circus comes into full swing but the Filipino people is no longer amazed by their FREAK SHOW. In this pandemic, we will all undergo hard times (most especially with our National Debt) and made even harder with the runaway corruption and mismanaged pandemic response. Now we have this ZARZUELA and CIRCUS of trying to “sugarcoat” a family’s desire to remain in power. But how can we trust the same DUTERTE Family, when obviously this “Substitution Prostitution” has from the get-go been a series of dishonest statements and deceptive political maneuvers. How do you trust a liar and “political freak”? You simply CANNOT!
A MARCOS-DUTERTE tandem with an ARROYO as powerbroker makes this substitution prostitution a sham. Then a bigger sham is the Sen Bong Go – President Duterte tandem. It brings us back to the bad rotten days of politics ruled by Guns, Goons and Gold & by Pay-off, Personality and Patronage. In the height of the Roman Empire, they built coliseums and held gladiator fights to amuse the people and to misdirect their attention from the burning cities and the corruption & evils in government. Now these families are doing the same by bringing their brand of a political circus of confusing the public through fake news to the amusement of the unsuspecting poor vis-à-vis the continued reign of EJK corruption and ultimately the selling out of the country to China.
This is how they run our motherland, through the fanfare of camouflaged lies, deceit, dishonesty and distortion of the truth. How can Marcos-Arroyo-Duterte (M.A.D) lift our country from this pandemic and trillion-peso debt that comes with it when even with the mere filing of candidacy is marred with lies; and when the filing of CoC prostitutes the spirit of the law? A campaign that started with a lie will end up in governance of lies.
We will fight MAD like never before. We will make a stand now because our country’s future and our children’s life are on the line. In the end, it is a fight between WE THE PEOPLE and THEY, the dynastic MAD (MARCOS-ARROYO-DUTERTE) family. We the Filipino people as one family (1SAMBAYAN) Laban sa MAD dynasty!
