I WAS so amused watching Mayor Sara Duterte box a sheriff who was implementing a demolition order of a court of justice in Davao City. Her reaction was so spontaneous and obviously unplanned. However, almost everyone knows it was not the right behavior for a public official.
But I understand why Mayor Duterte lost her cool. For several days, everything seemed to be happening at once: a sudden flood, the deaths it caused, and the properties it destroyed, hundreds of people dislocated, etc. Trying times for her. Pressed for time, she requested the sheriff to hold off the demolition for two hours as she was still attending to the flood victims. But the sheriff had his own agenda, his own mandate—and did not accommodate the mayor’s request.
Human beings are vulnerable to the pain and pressure caused by sudden catastrophic events, and Mayor Duterte is no exception.
In the face of present disasters or possible calamities, we are rediscovering the fears and anxieties with us; but if we remain confident, helpful and forgiving, we will come out of all these “acts of God” unscathed.
—LOURDES AMOR PARAS, lourdesamor25@gmail.com