‘Atta boy, Alan! Woof-woof!’

Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano’s calmness and coolness were again in full display when he came face to face with British journalist Mehdi Hasan on the Al Jazeera show “Up Front.” One of the hot-button issues tackled was, of course, President Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.
Cayetano was remarkably unflappable, even during that most discomfiting moment when the feisty Hasan asked him: “So every single one of the three and a half thousand people who were killed was a drug dealer?”

As the word “yes” robotically came out of his mouth, he neither flinched nor twitched, he remained poker-faced, and he showed no sign of discomfort whatsoever. Instead, I was the one who felt deeply uncomfortable (and perhaps many others who watched it, too), prompting me to wonder if he can really stomach his job that entails spewing out lies to enhance and protect the international image of his master in Malacañang. Then I remembered that he has been in the political scene for so long; he has already compromised and lost so much of his integrity and principles.

For his obedience and loyalty, Cayetano will continue to be in his master’s good graces. It’s all about political longevity, and the guy cannot be faulted for playing his cards right. So brace yourselves, everybody, we are sure to see more of him in the future.

Atta boy, Alan, atta boy! Woof-woof!

CLAUDE LUCAS C. DESPABILADERAS, [email protected]