Performance beat propaganda in Pampanga
Reelected Rep. Gloria Arroyo won by a huge margin over her rival Vivian Dabu in the race for the congressional seat of Pampanga’s second district, but the Commission on Elections had a problem with how to proclaim Arroyo as she was detained at Veterans Memorial Medical Center for plunder charges. The Comelec officials should have asked the Palace how to go about the problem; after all, it was the Palace that forced Arroyo’s detention in the first place.
President Aquino and his administration have slapped Arroyo with all sorts of charges. She has been accused of being a thief, a cheat, a plunderer, and whatnot. These accusations, however, have not been confirmed up to this point because there haven’t been any proofs of these. It’s just that the Aquino administration has been repeating the charges endlessly that many have already been tricked into believing the accusations.
The Palace may have deceived many people because of its demolition job on Arroyo, but it certainly couldn’t play with the minds of the people of Pampanga. Even with all the charges, accusations and unkind remarks hurled by the Palace against Arroyo, the people of Pampanga have made a clear statement that they still want Arroyo to be their representative. These people know the truth because they are the beneficiaries of Arroyo’s hard work as a representative. This just shows that good performance will beat propaganda any given day.
—RICARDO PEÑALOSA,
