The time I was eagerly waiting for arrived when Rep. Manny Pacquiao took the podium and squabbled with Rep. Edcel Lagman, his colleague in Congress.
Issue: RH Bill.
Too bad, I was not able to follow up the details of the live exchange of ideas. I was doing something at that time that required me to exert full concentration.
The following day, some daily papers headlined that the representative of Saranggani province has been knocked out in the debate.
Did Rep. Pacquiao volunteer to take the floor and debate Atty. Lagman, a UP alumnus or some pushed him to oppose the RH Bill in the august hall of congress?
Congressman Pacquiao was obviously coached and rehearsed by a ghost aide by furnishing him important facts about the bill. Unfortunately, as the exchange of ideas developed, former Pres. Fidel Ramos noted Pacquiao’s argument as “fallacious or very weak”.
Inside the ring, Manny is full of courage; not scared to fight bigger and taller opponents. The same courage did not work for him in the congressional floor. Debating in the senate, Rep. Pacquiao gave his best; sometimes speaking in English to drive his point but his best was not enough.
I appreciate congressman Paquiao in opposing the controversial RH Bill but he should have taken the courage not to engage in a fistfight of words against a lawyer.
If some quarters pushed Pacquiao in the lopsided fight, it was a disastrous decision. I am not familiar with the rules of congress but I assume that any one can be invited to deliver a talk (lecture?) about pressing issues.
Bishop Luis “Chito” Tagle could have been an excellent resource person. The bishop is not a lawyer but his academic record tells that he is very competent to clearly spell out the opposing position of the Catholic Church vis-à-vis the RH Bill. To say the least, Bishop Chito can argue with any member of the House.
Well, come on; since the government and the Catholic Church are both determined to fight for what they believe, probably it is better to cool down and relax and see what comes next. Will the bill be enacted into law or thrashed?
One way or the other, so long as graft and corruption is not controlled, if it cannot be eliminated, poverty stays even if our population is drastically reduced. So long as the government does not care to find ways to create jobs for the many, even if our number is much lesser, poverty remains. So long as greed, unequal distribution of wealth and lawlessness remain, so does poverty.
Hi bro,
ReplyDeleteActually, the news outlets were quite unfair in presenting PacMan as a pitiful loser in that exchange with Lagman, which is understandable since media's bias is well-known. Our prolife circle in the audience tells of a different story. Indeed, Pacquiao did not present a suave and articulate demeanor, compared to veteran Lagman who presented an aura of confidence (while peppering his stance with smirks and snide remarks). However, if we look at the substance of Pacquiao's arguments, they were all valid arguments really even if the detractors say otherwise. Now here is a point towards the end of Pacquiao's interplellation which was NEVER covered in the regular news outlets. Pacquaio exposed an irregularity in Lagman's argument and procedure: the supposed amendments were not valid and official.
Lagman was parroting an irregular and disordered premise. According to the on-site crowd, there was an uproar among the legislators at this point. Manny has unloaded a vicious left-hook that landed its mark. Here is a neophyte Congressman calling to task a veteran legislator for a breach in the legislative rules, and the thing about it - it is a valid and stunning argument. Lagman - for all his smirks and haughty demeanor - was exposed woefully. I score a TKO for the PacMan here. GO MANNY!
http://www.cbcpnews.com/?q=node/15566
WillyJ, thanks for your observation.
ReplyDelete