FROM FRONTRUNNER TO LAGGARD: THE PHILIPPINES IN ASEAN ECONOMIC RACE

 

Have you seen the viral video of the Somali female athlete running the 100-meter race at the FISU 2023 World University Games in Chengdu, China? If not, you may like to watch the following video before you go on in reading this article.

It will shock you.

 

The runner, Nasra Ali Abukar, finished the race in an embarrassing 21.81 seconds, almost 10 seconds behind the winner who clocked 11.4 seconds. For context, her slow speed is way too far from the U.S. women’s Olympic 100m team's qualifying standard of 11.15 seconds.

How did she end up in such a prestigious international event? The answer is nepotism. Abukar is the niece of Somali Athletics President Abdullahi Ahmend Tarabi, who allegedly used his influence to include her in the team amid corruption claims.

The video of Abukar’s poor performance has gone viral with more than 19.8 million views, sparking a global outrage and criticism. Many Somalis have expressed their anger and disappointment on social media, accusing the government of incompetence and misrepresentation. One Somali posted the following comment on Twitter:

“It’s disheartening to witness such an incompetent government. How could they select an untrained girl to represent Somalia in running? It’s truly shocking and reflects poorly on our country internationally.”

WAKE-UP CALL

Abukar’s case is not only a matter of shame for Somalia, but also a wake-up call for other countries to reflect on their own situations. Let’s take the Philippines as an example.

The Philippines is now in an economic development race running against the top Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries – Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

How does the Philippines compare with these countries? Let’s look at the following table of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures. GDP is the total monetary or market value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s border in a specific period – a comprehensive scorecard of a given country’s economic health.

Country	1965	1986	2021	2023
Indonesia	*	79.95	1,186.51	1,391.78
Thailand	4.39	43.10	505.57	505.57
Singapore	0.97	18.59	423.80	515.55
Malaysia	2.96	27.73	372.98	447.03
Vietnam	*	26.34	366.14	449.09
Philippines	6.52	33.99	394.09	440.90

*No data

Source: The Global Economy

The table shows that when Marcos Sr., who ruled the Philippines for two decades under authoritarianism, started his presidency in 1965, the Philippines was the frontrunner among the neighboring countries that would later form the ASEAN in 1967.

However, when Marcos Sr. was ousted by the People Power Revolution in 1986, Indonesia and Thailand had overtaken the Philippines, while Malaysia and Vietnam were catching up fast, as Singapore was closing behind.

GREATEST ROBBERY

The following excerpt from the Inquirer article, Marcos [Sr.’s] martial law: Golden age for corruption, abuses, speaks volumes and could explain the Philippines’ lagging behind its ASEAN neighbors during Marcos Sr.’s martial law rule. Content researcher Kurt Dela Peña writes:

“The World Bank and UN Office of Drugs and Crimes said Marcos [Sr.], having the longest reign as dictator, stole between $5 billion and $ 10 billion from the country’s coffer.

“The corruption was so outrageous that it earned the distinction of being ‘The Greatest Robbery of a Government’ from the Guinness World Records.”

In 2021, Singapore has left far behind the Philippines, as Malaysia and Vietnam tailgated. Such was a snap shot of PBBM -- working up at the starting line of the race – the yearend picture just before he had assumed his presidency.

What about 2023, when we can assess PBBM’s one-year presidential performance equivalent to his running the first 16 meters in the analogous 100m race? How has he been doing so far? The answer is found in our GDP table, at the projected 2023 yearend column.  Malaysia and Vietnam will get ahead of the Philippines -- which will end up, sad to say, running behind the rest of its top ASEAN neighbors.

For lack of table space, it is worthy to note, based on the IMF 2023 yearend forecast that, in terms of the GDP per capita, the Philippines will fall farther behind the pack as Brunei will get ahead just at the rear of the frontrunner Singapore.

The Philippines' economic cloud’s silver lining is its GDP growth rate which will outpace all in 2023 yearend forecast. But, not so fast to count the chickens before they hatch for such metric only compares the quarterly change in a country’s economic output to measure how fast an economy is growing. It’s so volatile that it can change rapidly and unpredictably as evident in the IMF forecast when Vietnam and Cambodia are projected to cut in front of the Philippines in such metric the following year 2024.

To sum up, in 1965, Philippines took off in tip-top shape. Over the next 5-decade stretch, it has eventually bitten the dust in a highly-competitive ASEAN economic race by the end of 2023. Ouch!

Is this the kind of performance we expect from our leaders? Is this the kind of representation we deserve as a nation? Is this the kind of legacy we want to leave for the future generations?

These are the questions we need to ask ourselves as we watch Abukar’s video and think about our nation’s economic development situation. We need to realize that we are not only spectators, but also participants in this race. We need to work together, not against each other, to achieve our common goals.

THE RACE IS NOT YET OVER

The story of Abukar, the Somali runner who performed so poorly in the 100-meter race that she became a global laughingstock, is a sad and sobering reminder of how corruption, nepotism, and incompetence can ruin a country’s reputation and potential.

The story of PBBM, our president who inherited the legacy of his father’s dictatorship and won a controversial election, is a disturbing and alarming warning of how history can repeat itself and how democracy can be undermined and manipulated.

The story of the Philippines, the ASEAN country that once led the region in economic development but now lags behind its neighbors, is a tragic and frustrating tale of how opportunities can be wasted and how progress can be reversed.

But the story is not over yet. So too is the race. The Philippines still has a chance to catch up, to recover, to redeem itself. It still has a chance to reclaim its dignity, its destiny.

It all depends on us, Pinoys. We have the power to demand accountability from our leaders. We have the courage to challenge the status quo. We have the vision to imagine a better future and work for it.

We, Pinoys, have the spirit to run faster, not slower, to catch up with our competitors. We have the heart to be better than Abukar-like character.

We have the will to win the race.

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

Head collage photos courtesy of Marcadotcom & ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint, 2025

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

THE RIGGED ELECTION MESS: NOW I KNOW WHY

 

“Now I know why last year’s results in my vote-rich Cavite home province defied historical data since I first ran for the Senate in 2001.

“Save for ‘class-act’ Noli de Castro, who beat me in that midterm poll by 30,000 votes, I was consistently my province mates’ top choice in all succeeding elections in which I participated.

“That includes the 2004 presidential election in which I beat powerful incumbent Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the very popular Fernando Poe Jr. Not to forget my 2007 and 2016 senatorial wins.

“Last year I got only a measly 91,000 out of 2.3 million votes.”

The above statement was made recently by Panfilo Lacson, a veteran senator, and former presidential candidate expressing his dismay over the rigged May 9, 2022 election in a column by Jarius Bondoc in Philstar.

Just when the Comelec came up short in its explanation, the possibility of the rigged election – based on Brig Gen Eliseo Rio’s position paper “A Preponderance Of Evidence Shows That The May 09, 2022 Election Was Rigged”-- has pumped up and given free rein to people’s imagination, forming now-I-know-why images in their minds as Lacson showcased. We couldn’t find fault with people who can’t help conjuring up now-I-know-why pictures like this one below:

WHY BONGBONG SNUBBED PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE

Now I know why presidential candidate Marcos Jr. snubbed the presidential debate during the campaign season. Looking back, Comelec’s presidential debate was organized “in the spirit of civility and dialogue for the continuing education of the electorate.” It was “the venue where the presidential candidates can reach out to as many citizens at the same time and share the same forum to explain what they stand for and why they deserve to be elected president for the next six years.”

The widely held sneaking suspicion then for his snub – he was scared to be found out as an “emperor with no clothes”. The more profound one then – he didn’t care about the people.

But, with the rigged election mess turning up lately, the real reason may be a no-brainer -- it was his in-your-face “what’s the use” stance – a subtle clue of the looming large “game over” by then on its way.

Mindful of the timidity of most mainstream media, burying their heads in the sand on this controversy, President Bongbong Marcos (PBBM) may now be holding assuredly the unwavering view that the rigged election claim is neither here nor there as laid out by the following pundits.

Philstar’s Ana Marie Pamintuan’s thoughts in her column “Apathetic” may be tranquilizing to PBBM:

“The biggest challenge is making people care [about the rigged election mess] … Filipinos bend with the wind and can be patient to a fault. It would take over a decade before the assassination of Ninoy Aquino would end the [people’s] apathy…”

By the same token, Vergel O. Santos in his Rappler article “Where our miseries began”, wrote:

“As for the beneficiaries themselves of election riggings, they seem able, as a rule, to somehow keep their hands off the stink or otherwise wash it well off. And since election protests take too long to resolve, the truly elected end up with hollow victories, because the terms of the positions finally judged rightfully theirs have by then all but expired.”

As a former lecturer, that reminds me of this dry and trite expression in the classroom: “Turn in your papers; time is up.”

Come what may, in the course of PBBM’s whole six-year term when such election protest is being resolved in the court, people’s conjuring up of now-I-know-why images in their minds, will keep going, even impacting the talking points of pundits in the opinion pages like this one below:

WHY PBBM TURNED THE TABLES ON FPRRD

Now I know why PBBM turned the tables on Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (FPRRD) along with his China-appeasing policy. Not only was the sudden turnaround – aligning with the USA -- clashes with FPRRD, it flies too in the face of the themes of “unity” and “continuity” of his political party with FPRRD’s daughter VP Sara. PBBM has welcomed instead with open arms the USA.

Many pundits were caught flatfooted by such a 180-degree about-face in foreign policy and theories abound for such an unexpected move.

Here is the now-I-know-why take on such a move -- deep-rooted in the rigged election claim’s what-if worst scenario: What if a bunch of techie whistleblowers suddenly enters into the picture, exposes the mechanism of the rigged election mess, escalates the situation, gets it out of control, and ultimately turns the public into a towering rage?

The key to the answer is embedded in history and fleshed out in the following excerpts from the book “Impossible Dream: The Marcoses, The Aquinos, and the Unfinished Revolution” by Sandra Burton:

“After conferring with [U.S. President Ronald Reagan], [Senator Paul] Laxalt called [President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.] back. By now [Day 4, People Power Revolution, February 25, 1986], it was 5:30 in the morning in Manila. The senator told him that power-sharing would be impractical and undignified. He repeated the president’s invitation to the Marcoses to move to the U.S. His considerable reserves of determination and defiance now practically depleted, Marcos [Sr.] turned to Laxalt for advice. What should he do? he asked. Laxalt put it to him straight. ‘I think you should cut and cut cleanly. I think the time has come.’

“The silence at the other end of the phone was so pronounced, so profound that Laxalt finally had to ask if Marcos [Sr.] was still there. He was, but his persona had changed. He had no brash comeback with which to respond to Laxalt’s recommendation. No counterproposal. For once, he was honest in showing his emotions. ‘I am so very, very, disappointed,’ [Marcos Sr.] said.”

US CALLED THE SHOTS

Beyond the shadow of a doubt, that extraordinary and emotional phone conversation turned out to be the now-or-never moment of the People Power Revolution which let the cat out of the bag – the U.S. -- being then the most powerful nation in the world -- called the historic shots.

Whether such reality is still true or not today, no doubt, Marcos Jr. has not erased from his memory his father’s indelible once-in-a-lifetime high-stake taste of geopolitical power play and may have decided to align himself with the US in case of a similar scenario.

Abounding now-I-know-why images in people’s minds are just around the corner and could come on the scene at any moment like, for instance, this one:

Now I know why there was a viral letter circulating on the internet in the thick of the May 9, 2022 election about a Chinese IT hired to do a man-in-the-middle attack to hack the Transparency Server, hence the 3x faster transmission of the election results  during the first hour after voting ended, and whose source could not be traced.

Or, this:

Now I know why there was a viral post in the thick of the May 9, 2022 election about a mother who grimly told about his military son, clued in on a covert election rigging, who warned her not to get involved with the election issue.

Or this from Ret Col Leonardo Odoño as shared by his knowledgeable friend in Philstar Jarius Bondoc column:

Now I know why Smartmatic and the incoming First Lady celebrated less than two hours from the close of voting on May 9, 2022.

Or as plain as this:

Now I know why I’ve never felt the jubilation in the air of this so-called 31-million voting multitude.

Only when the doubt about the rigged election is cleaned up, will the episodes of conjuring up now-I-know-why images in people’s minds eventually dissipate.

                               The International Foundation For Electoral Systems

Head photo courtesy of depositphotosdotcom

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

THE MYSTERY OF IP 192.168.0.2: A TECHIE ANALYSIS

 

HOST: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Tech Talk, the show where we explore the latest and hottest topics in technology and how they affect our lives. Today, we have a special guest, Mr. AI, a techie who will share his perspectives on Ret. Brig Gen Eliseo M. Rio’s position paper claim that the May 9, 2022 election was rigged based on a preponderance of evidence.

Mr. AI, thank you for accepting our invitation. We look forward to your expertise to illuminate our viewers on the nuts and bolts of this controversy.

But before we dive into this serious and profound issue, let me just say that this show is not related to or endorsed by TikTok. This is Tech Talk, not TikTok. However, if you are interested in learning more about TikTok, you can just download the app and try it for yourself. But please do that after our show, okay? We don’t want you to miss out on our important discussion with Mr. AI.

So, without further ado, as the timeless catchphrase goes, let’s get ready to rumble.

MR. AI: Thank you for inviting me. I hope I can help clarify some of the issues and questions that many people raised on this controversy.

HOST: As we speak, this is now the most crucial question spreading around the political landscape. Rio claimed that in the first hour of counting after voting closed at 7 PM on May 9, 2022, the “Raw Files” shown on the COMELEC website depicted a number of Election Returns transmitted by VCMs using one private internet address, IP 192.168.0.2 in transmitting 98.8 percent of Metro Manila precinct results as well as of Cavite, Batangas, and other provinces that “mysteriously” transmitted results within an hour of balloting’s end at 7 p.m. Could you expound on this subject and its implications?

SERIOUS SECURITY FLAW

MR. AI: As a techie, I think the use of a private internet address like the IP 192.168.0.2 by VCMs to transmit election results is a serious security flaw that could enable a man-in-the-middle attack through IP spoofing. A man-in-the-middle attack is a cyberattack where the attacker secretly relays and possibly alters the communications between two parties, in this case, between the VCMs election results and the COMELEC Transparency Server. Rio claimed that the data shown by the received ERs of the Transparency Server from 7:00 PM on May 9^th to the afternoon of May 13^th DO NOT MATCH the data shown in the Reception Logs uploaded on the website of COMELEC on March 23, 2023 -- implying that a man-in-the-middle attack took place through IP 192.168.0.2.

IP spoofing is the creation of Internet Protocol packets that have a modified source address to either hide the identity of the sender, impersonate another computer system, or both.

If an attacker can intercept and modify the IP packets sent by the VCMs, they can potentially manipulate the election results and send false data to the main transparency server. This could explain the unrealistic peak count of votes shown by the COMELEC Transparency Server (TS) in the first hour after the voting closed, as claimed by Rio’s position paper. The attacker could also hide his identity and avoid detection by using a spoofed address like IP 192.168.0.2.

HOST: Rio claimed that “The reception Logs shown to the public were never corroborated by the Telco’s Transmission Logs.” Could you explain what are Reception Logs and Telco’s Transmission Logs (TL)? What is the significance of their corroboration?

MR. AI: Sure, I can explain that. Reception Logs are documents that record the data received by a server from various sources, such as the vote-counting machine (VCM). Telco's Transmission Logs are documents that record the data transmitted by a Telco provider from various sources, such as VCMs. The significance of their collaboration is that it can provide an independent and reliable way to confirm that the data received by the server matches the data transmitted by the telco provider, and that there was no tampering or interference with the data during the transmission process.

HOST: I see. So why do you think Rio said that they were never corroborated? What evidence did he present to support his claim?

MR. AI: Well, according to his position paper, Rio said COMELEC Chairman George Garcia committed to showing the Telco’s TL to the public on October 18, 2022, but he never did. Instead, he deceptively showed the RECEIVED VCM TRANSMISSIONS data in a COMELEC Server, which are not the same as the Telco’s TL from COMELEC and its service providers.

Rio was ignored.

UNBELIEVABLE PEAK COUNT

HOST: Rio claimed that “There was an unbelievable PEAK count of 20 million plus votes shown to the public by the COMELEC Transparency Server at 8:02 PM on May 9, 2022, just an hour after voting closed.” Could you explain why this is unbelievable?

MR. AI: This is unbelievable because it means that more than 20 million votes were counted and transmitted in just an hour after voting closed at 7 PM on May 9, 2022. This is very unrealistic considering that nine major tasks had to be done first in all precincts before any vote-counting machine could start transmitting results. According to Rio’s position paper, these tasks would take at least 19 minutes per precinct before any transmission could start. Therefore, it is highly improbable that more than 20 million votes could be counted and transmitted in just an hour after voting closed.

HOST: I see. So why do you think there was such a high peak count of votes in the first hour? What evidence did Rio present to support his claim?

MR. AI: Well, according to his position paper, Rio said that there was a possible manipulation or fraud in the election process. He presented some evidence to support his claim such as:

The sudden and unexplainable drop of votes in the second hour, when logically more VCMs would be ready to transmit results.

The constant vote ratio for all candidates in both the presidential and vice-presidential positions is highly statistically improbable.

The receipt of election results by the transparency server before they were transmitted by the precinct VCMs indicates a discrepancy or inconsistency in the time stamps.

The mismatch between the data shown by the received election returns of the transparency server and the data shown in the reception logs uploaded on the website of COMELEC.

STATISTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE

HOST: That sounds very alarming. Rio claimed that 113 precincts had exactly 1,000 registered voters, all 1,000 voting, or a 100% voter turnout.” Could you explain why this is statistically impossible?

MR. AI: It is statistically impossible that all 113 precincts had the same number of registered voters and actual voters, which is very unlikely to happen considering that many factors and influences affect the voter turnout in different precincts, such as, among others:

The voters’ political preferences and affiliations

The candidates’ competitiveness and attractiveness

The voting facilities’ accessibility and availability

The weather conditions

HOST: That’s beyond the realm of reason. How do you think COMELEC should respond to this allegation?

MR. AI: As a techie, I think COMELEC should be transparent and accountable for their actions and decisions regarding the election process. They should provide valid and verifiable explanations for why they did not show or provide copies of the Telco’s TL to the public or Rio. They should also cooperate with any independent investigation that may be conducted to verify or refute Rio’s claim.

HOST: We have reached the end of our show today. Thank you, Mr. AI, for joining us on Tech Talk. Any final words for our viewers?

MR. AI: Thank you for having me on your show. As a techie, I believe technology can be a powerful tool for improving the efficiency of the election process. However, technology can also be a source of vulnerability and risk. I urge you to be vigilant and informed about technology that affects your lives and your rights as citizens.

HOST: Thank you, everyone, for watching Tech Talk. Have a great day!

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

Head photo courtesy of The Times of Israel

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

WHAT'S RIGHT WITH PINOYS

 

“What’s wrong with the Philippines?” was the banner of the Bangkok Post column, by Gwynne Dyer, a British-Canadian military historian, and journalist, published four days after the May 9, 2022, Philippine presidential election.

A haunting question, indeed, it’s the last straw that broke Pinoy camel’s back in the eyes of the world. Here are his column’s pertinent excerpts:

“Bongbong” Marcos didn’t just win the presidential election in the Philippines this week. He won it by a two-to-one landslide, despite the fact that he is the extremely entitled son of a former president who stole at least US$10 billion and a mother who spent the loot partly on the world’s most extensive collection of designer shoes (3,000 pairs).

“[I]ndonesia became a democracy … elected only presidents who were under accusation of purging political opponents and siphoning money … some Filipinos hurl themselves enthusiastically at plausible fraud who gains a bit of notoriety. Why?

“Two hypotheses, both weak, come to mind. First … alliance between the Marcos family … and the Duterte family …”

“The other hypothesis? Ninety-nine percent of adult Filipinos are online, and Filipinos aged 16 to 64 spend on average nearly four hours a day connected to social networks.”

TWO HYPOTHESES

The first hypothesis: Marcos-Duterte alliance – a sweetheart deal rumored to have been brokered at the exclusive island resort, political pundits theorized that such a deal ultimately pulled off the 2022 election in a landslide.

The second hypothesis: “Ninety-nine percent of adult Filipinos are online” can be lumped with a variety of other hypotheses dished out in opinion pages, most well summed up by the following news item by The Guardian:

“The Marcos family has spent years rebranding its image, falsely portraying the authoritarian rule of Marcos Sr. in which billions were plundered as a golden era and downplaying past atrocities. Research have described an onslaught of disinformation designed to revise history, enhance the reputation of the Marcoses and undermine their opponents.

“Many voters are not old enough to remember Marcos’s rule, which ended in 1986, and academics warn that the period is not taught thoroughly in schools, creating a vulnerability the Marcoses and their backers have exploited …”

DAMAGED CULTURE

The early straw that saddled Pinoy camel’s back went over decades ago. Teresa S. Abesamis, AIM former professor & DAP Fellow, in her article Our Damaged Culture in the January 5, 2021 issue of the Business World, wrote:

“In 1987, American journalist James Fallows won an award for writing a long piece in the Atlantic Monthly about the Philippines, where he spent six weeks as an investigative reporter after the EDSA Revolution. He concluded that our main problem was the lack of nationalism, which would deter progress for our country. He correctly predicted that Korea and our neighbors Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia would do better because of a sense of nationalism. Perhaps he is right in many ways.

“Certainly, South Korea, which had been our peer in terms of economic development when Marcos [Sr.] came into power, has more than quadrupled its economy compared to ours today. And Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, which were behind us in economic development at the time, have out-performed our country in many ways. The corrupt Marcos [Sr.] regime, notwithstanding its authoritarianism, was clearly a failure. The aftermath of political and media corruption and weakening of institutions of democracy have continued to this day and clearly at their worst in our history.

“Why are we being such sad sacks?”

After having subjected ourselves to degradation for decades, particularly in the eyes of the international community, I believe it’s time for us Pinoys to change the narrative about the Pinoy persona on the world stage.

TNT TRIO WILL TRANSFIGURE PINOY MISCONCEPTION

The TNT Trio’s claim of the rigged 2022 election will negate the first hypothesis on the fairy tale of the Marcos-Duterte unity sweetheart deal along with debunking the misconception on Pinoys’ conduct that they put up for sale their votes during the last election. The rigged election claim will unveil the character of Pinoy voters as not gullible or ignorant, but critical and informed, who resisted and countered the onslaught of disinformation propaganda that tried to whitewash the atrocities and corruption of Marcos Sr.’s dictatorship and glorify his son’s candidacy.

The TNT Trio’s claim of the rigged 2022 election will bust the second hypothesis to reveal the authenticity of Pinoys -- not as “suckers” for tons of Marcos Jr. disinformation -- but as “busters” of this rigged 2022 election which, in the words of the TNT Trio, is “the biggest scam in our electoral history”.

Attesting to the Marcos Jr. disinformation campaign, the recently published study, “Political Economy of Covert Influence Operations in the 2022 Philippine Elections,” showed thousands of political influencers that were presumed to have been commissioned to perform political campaigning in the last elections spending an estimated P600 million to P1.5 billion.

The study claimed that Marcos Jr. spent the largest amount on covert political influencers for his campaign. Fact-check coalition Tsek-PH reported that Marcos Jr. was the biggest beneficiary of fake news; Robredo, his opponent, was the top victim of disinformation.

WHAT’S RIGHT WITH PINOYS

Have you ever wondered that this rigged 2022 election exposé by the TNT Trio may be a blessing in disguise to Pinoys and the Philippines? Maybe, the TNT Trio are heaven-sent instrument and the exposé is a wake-up call on a platter, as a gift dropped from the sky, to pave the way for the rare opportunity to reveal the truth about the “scam”. Their exposé will bust a smorgasbord of political myths and concocted theories bandied about by a bunch of pundits in opinion pages. Thus, it will bring about the transfiguration of Pinoys’ long-suffering despondent image from “suckers” to “busters” in the eyes of the world.

The TNT Trio’s claim of the rigged 2022 election is not only a legal battle, but also a moral crusade. It is not only a matter of justice, but also a matter of dignity. It is not only a test of our institutions, but also a test of our character.

It is not only a question of what’s wrong with the Philippines, but also a question of what’s right with us, Pinoys.

Head collage photos courtesy of executivechroniclesdotcom, primesdotcom, blogspotdotcom, & pinterest

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

WHAT ARE WE TO MAKE OF THE TNT TRIO?

 

“After a yearlong search for truth about the anomalous 2022 election, Gen. Eliseo Rio found direct evidence that Smartmatic, not the Filipino people, ‘elected’ Mr Marcos, in conspiracy with Comelec. Given that, I say Mr. Marcos is an illegitimate ‘president’. No legal authority nor moral ascendancy to govern.”

This was the bold statement of Col. Leonardo O. Odoño at the Global Transparency and Transformation Advocates Network last July 23 as quoted by Jarius Bondoc in his Philstar column GOTCHA on August 4. The “direct evidence” he referred to was detailed in Rio’s position paper “A Preponderance of Evidence Shows That The May 09, 2022 Election Was Rigged.”

The TNT Trio – the acronym TNT signifying Truth and Transparency, and a name for the three Information Technology experts Eliseo M. Rio, Augusto C. Lagman, and Franklin F. Ysaac – exposed the anomalies and discrepancies in the 2022 election and presented their findings to the public through Rio’s position paper.

WHAT ARE WE TO MAKE OF JESUS CHRIST?

Odoño’s bold statement reminds me of the dilemma that faced the people during the time of Jesus Christ. In one of his works titled, “What Are We to Make of Jesus Christ?” (which inspired me to write this article), C. S. Lewis wrote:

“[Jesus Christ] says … ‘I am begotten of the One God, before Abraham was, I am,’ and remember what the word 'I am' were in Hebrew. They were the name of God…

“[T]he only person who can say that sort of thing is either God or a complete lunatic…”

Lewis emphasized: “Either [Jesus] was a raving lunatic … or else He was, and is, precisely what He said. There is no middle way. If … the first hypothesis [is] unacceptable, you must submit to the second.”

Let us apply Lewis’ logic to Odoño’s bold statement and see the parallel between the two contexts.

“Smartmatic, not the Filipino people, ‘elected’ Mr Marcos, in conspiracy with Comelec. Given that, I say Mr. Marcos is an illegitimate ‘president’. No legal authority nor moral ascendancy to govern.”

The only person who can say that sort of thing either is telling the truth, or, a liar, if not, in Lewis’ words, “a complete lunatic.”

Just as Jesus’ moral teachings and character have refuted the accusation of being a complete lunatic, so too have the TNT Trio’s preponderance of evidence that countered the suspicion of their being liars as well as their impressive credentials that dismissed the impression of their being “complete lunatic”.

            On the question, “What are we to make of Jesus Christ? Lewis wrote:

“This is a question which has, in a sense, a frantically comic side. For the real question is not what are we to make of Christ, but what is He to make of us? The picture of a fly sitting deciding what it is going to make of an elephant has comic elements about it.

“But perhaps the questioner meant what are we to make of Him in the sense of “How are we to solve the historical problem set us by the recorded sayings and acts of this Man?”

CAN PH SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?

Adapting this question to our current situation: “What are we to make of the TNT Trio?” along with following Lewis’ line of reasoning, we arrive at this answer from the same logic as Lewis’.

This is a question which has, in a sense, a frantically comic side. For the real question is not what are we to make of TNT Trio, but what are they to make of us? The picture of a fly sitting deciding what it is going to make of an elephant [in the room: the rigged 2022 election] has comic elements about it. But perhaps the questioner meant what are we to make of the TNT Trio in the sense of “How are we to solve the 2022 election problem set to us by their preponderance of evidence showing that the election was rigged?

The crucial point: Can PH solve this problem?

What is going on with our Big Brother USA today? The following Politico headline speaks volumes about the state of its political health.

“641 years behind bars? No, but Trump’s risk of prison is real.”

The headline tells us that Donald Trump is facing 78 felony charges across three criminal cases, many of them carrying the potential for hefty prison time. And if convicted on all counts, Politico reported that he would face 641 years in prison, based on the maximum statutory penalty for each one. The charges that might carry the most severe penalties for him involve obstruction of justice – which include allegedly impeding the government’s attempts to retrieve the classified documents and disrupting the Jan 6, 2021 session of Congress.

Various newspaper editorial boards across the U.S. largely endorsed Trump’s latest indictment.

The New York Times Editorial Board wrote that the U.S. “had never seen an indictment of this magnitude”. The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board called the indictment “especially grave”, adding that “indicting a former president is a traumatic event for the nation.”

“In some ways, certainly, this is yet another new low for the country…” the Miami Herald Editorial Board wrote. “But it may also show us that our institutions are strong enough to stand up to the kind of prolonged assault that a person like Trump – an amoral person with money, power, and massive, easily wounded ego – has heaped on it.”

Uncle Sam seems to be sliding down its political slope, but its strong guardrails – the institutions – are holding out and staying on course.

TNT TRIO CHALLENGES OUR SOCIETY

Let us come back home, here and now, and ask again: “How are we to solve the 2022 election problem set to us by the TNT Trio’s preponderance of evidence showing that the election was rigged? Can PH solve this problem? Here is a prerequisite question: Can we trust our institutions?

The recent headlines on Trump indictment prompted me to look up the meaning of the word “indictment” from the online dictionary which gave me this one insightful definition: “A thing that serves to illustrate that a system or situation is bad and deserves to be condemned.”

Then the dictionary gave this striking usage example: “These rapidly escalating crime figures are an indictment of our society.”

By simply replacing the subject, the resulting sentence turns out to be a fitting statement in wrapping up this article:

The 2022 election rigging controversy is an indictment of our society.

But is that all we can say? Is there no hope for change? Is there no way to restore trust and integrity in our electoral system? Is there no role for us citizen, to play in holding our leaders accountable and demanding justice?

I believe there is. I believe we can make a difference. I believe we can learn from our Big Brother USA and from our world happiest country Finland. I believe we can challenge our institutions to do better, to serve us better, to protect us better. I believe we can challenge ourselves to be better informed, better engaged, better empowered.

The TNT Trio has given us a wake-up call. They have shown us the truth and transparency we deserve. They have challenged us to face the elephant in the room: the rigged 2022 election.

The question: How will we respond?

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