THE PICTURE THAT MOCKS THE POOR AND THE LAW

 

A picture paints a thousand words.

This popular quote is often used to describe the power of image to tell stories about our lives, experiences, and understanding of the world. Images are particularly potent when they not only depict but instruct us about social norms – when they shape attitudes and behavior on everything from the role of women to ideas about nationhood.

The origin of the phrase is generally attributed to Fred R. Barnard, an advertising executive who wrote this phrase in the advertising trade journal Printers’ Ink, promoting the use of images in advertisements that appeared on the sides of streetcars. December 8, 1921, the issue carries an ad, One Look is Worth A Thousand Words.

I came across the line on a college campus in the 70s, presumably like most seniors like me, in the lyrics of the song If popularized by the group Bread.

One of the most famous examples of a political picture that paints a thousand words is the one that shows the meeting between US President Richard Nixon and rock star Elvis Presley in the Oval Office in 1970.

The picture was taken during an impromptu and bizarre visit by Elvis to the White House, where he delivered a handwritten letter to Nixon, offering his services in the government’s war on drugs and requesting to be made a “federal agent-at-large”. Elvis, who was a collector of police badges and a user of prescription drugs, believed that having a badge from the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs would give him the special power and freedom of a federal agent.

Nixon, who was not familiar with Elvis or his music, agreed to meet him after being persuaded by his aides, who thought it would be good publicity for him. Nixon also wanted to appeal to young voters and enlist Elvis’s help in promoting his anti-drug campaign. Nixon granted Elvis’s wish for a badge, and the meeting concluded with Elvis hugging Nixon in a surprising gesture.

The picture captures the awkwardness and absurdity of the encounter which reveals the hypocrisy and manipulation of both men, who used each other for their interests and image. Elvis wanted to gain access and authority as a federal agent, while Nixon wanted to gain popularity and support as a president.

The picture became the most requested item in the US National Archives, more popular than the pictures of the moon landing or the Declaration of Independence.

Let’s look into a recent striking political picture that paints a thousand words, and it is closer to home. It is the picture of President Bongbong Marcos (PBBM) and his newly appointed presidential adviser for poverty alleviation, lawyer Larry Gadon. The picture shows PBBM swearing in Gadon as his anti-poverty czar.

But behind such a picture lies a mockery of the poor and the law in our country. It exposes the blatant disregard and indifference of the PBBM administration and Gadon toward the people they are supposed to serve.

The picture shows PBBM’s disregard for the rule of law and the judicial system by appointing Gadon as anti-poverty czar despite his disbarment by the Supreme Court for his abusive and sexist remarks against journalist Raissa Robles, which were captured in a viral video clip. The Supreme Court found Gadon’s video clip as “indisputably scandalous that it discredits the legal profession” and violated the new Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability for lawyers. Gadon reacted to his disbarment by saying that he can serve the Filipino people.

But how can Gadon serve the Filipino people when he has shown disrespect for the legal profession, the media, and women’s rights? How can he uphold the law when he has violated its ethical standards and principles? How can he advise on poverty alleviation when he has insulted and threatened a journalist who was doing her job of informing the public about the issues affecting them?

The picture shows PBBM’S indifference to the plight of the poor and the marginalized by appointing Gadon as an anti-poverty czar despite his lack of qualifications in poverty alleviation. Gadon touted his vast experience in several industries such as manufacturing, hotel and restaurant, healthcare administration, realty and development, and construction.

He has no background or expertise in social development, community organizing, or human rights.

Senator Risa Hontiveros said that “a disgraced former attorney does not inspire confidence in the Cabinet.” She said Gadon had held “neither title nor expertise to justify his appointment.” His appointment “will only demoralize the bureaucracy by incentivizing an official whom the Court unanimously does not trust. This will be a slap in the face for our legal professionals, and yet another black eye on good governance so early in the current administration,” the senator said.

“Lawyers are supposed to be champions of justice and equality,” Rep. Arlene Brosas, House assistant minority leader said.

While Gadon’s disbarment was a “slap in the face” of PBBM, his eventual appointment after that was an “insult” and a “great disservice to women who continue to bear the brunt of poverty in the Philippines” said Liza Masa, former chief of National Anti-Poverty Commission.

“My God! …I don’t know what is going on…That’s unforgivable… The President does not give too much importance to poverty… I would have screamed… What an insult to the poor,” UP Professor Solita “Mareng Winnie” Monsod, reacted on Gadon’s appointment, in the heat of the moment, appalled.

The picture is a mockery of the poor and the law. It shows how the two characters who have no respect, compassion, or integrity can rise to power and exploit it for their benefit. It shows how our nation that once fought for freedom and democracy can fall back into “something bleak and mind-bending” for lack of an exact term to describe this recent political turn of events.

But it also ought to enkindle us, Pinoys, as our responsibility and duty, to expose and stand up to such mockery. We have to press for justice and accountability from Gadon and other corrupt officials who have betrayed their oath and their office. We have to support alternative voices and movements that advocate for democracy and human rights.  We have to frame our picture of a better and brighter future for our country.

Just as the picture of Nixon and Elvis unveiled the hypocrisy and wheeling and dealing of American politics in the 1970s, so too the picture of PBBM and Gadon unveils the same for Philippine politics today. But in contrast with the Nixon-Elvis picture, which became a source of amusement and curiosity for the public, the PBBM-Gadon picture should become a wellspring of outrage and a course of action for the public.

For this is not a picture that paints a thousand words, but a picture that (in Mareng Winnie’s venting) screams a thousand whoops.

Content put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered co-pilot

Head collage and still photos courtesy of Time, Philippine Star, & Alamy.

Video Clips courtesy of YouTube