Injustice in politics

I was watching the news last night and I couldn't help but react on this issue.

The DOJ, after conducting a re-investigation, asserted that Hubert Webb WAS NOT in the US when the Vizconde killing took place. This is contrary to Webb's defense of alibi which was initially accorded greater weight by the Supreme Court as against the testimony of Jessica Alfaro who later on adjudged as not credible witness.

I am wondering why the DOJ conducted a re-investigation on this case in the first place. With these findings, they only worsen the scenario. Clearly, the DOJ rebutted the findings of the highest court of the land which had long become final and executory. It is to be understood, however, that this latest development would not necessarily revoke the acquittal of Webb and his co-accused from the charges since SC decisions are, again, final and executory per se. The newly discovered witnesses and evidence are, practically, futile so to speak. So, why bother to re-investigate? To give false hope to the aggrieved, Lauro Vizconde? Or this is another trial in publicity?.

I am not a lawyer myself. But I fully understood the contents of the SC decision acquitting Webb and other accused from the crime imputed against them by the hapless Lauro Visconde. In the said decision, the SC ruled that the prosecution has not sufficiently proven the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt as there are inconsistencies in the testimonies of Alfaro, ruling otherwise, giving credence to Webb's alibi that he was in the US when the incident happened, making it impossible for him to be one of the perpetrators. In support thereof, the SC cited the maxim “it is better to acquit ten criminals than to convict one innocent accused”. According to the magistrates, in criminal cases, the word “beyond reasonable doubt” should be construed in verbatim.

I, on the other hand, read the dissenting opinion of Justice Martin S. Villarama in the said case. I was rather convince about his intellectual analysis regarding the possibility of Webb's participation to the crime. According to him, giving the connections and wealth of the Webb family, it is not possible for Hubert Webb to freely leave and enter the country anytime he so desires. There was even a question about the authenticity of Webb's passport because the Bureau of Immigration had no record whatsoever of his arrival and departure from Manila to US on the questioned date and time. Lastly, the date of the video footage that he presented does not appear to be the exact date when the merciless Vizconde killing occurred. Justice Villarama, thus, found no probative value on this evidence at hand.

Which is which now? Does it mean the latest decision of the SC, which is now considered as jurisprudence, in effect, erroneous. If so, how could the people rely and trust an institution whose reputation has obviously been tainted?

While the whole nation had respected and accepted the decision of the SC in the Vizconde case under the presumption of regularity, it seems now that our judiciary is not serious in its mandate to serve fair and equal justice to the people.

At the end of the day, Lauro is still the LOSER in this fight....

Dad's Day

While the entire archipelago is paying tribute to all the fathers in the household, I am here treating the day as rather ordinary. No matter how I try to be a part of the event, I can't actually relate myself from it – by heart.

First off, I am not a father yet. Secondly, I never had the chance to play along with my father. Not an occasion that I had the so-called bonding moment with him. I didn't feel what it is like to have a father at all. When I was a growing kid and went curious to everything, he was not there to entertain my questions. When I had myself circumcised, he was not there to give moral support. When I had a crush for the first time, he was not there to be my confidant. When I was an adolescent and started to explore on adult stuffs, he was not there to explain my limitations. As a result, I learned to be timid. I felt lost. I felt left behind.

Until I reach this age.

Part of me is envious. To the son who plays basketball with his dad. To the son who is being taught how to play guitar by his dad. To the son who is receiving monthly allowance from his dad. To the son who is being scolded because he messed up with the wrong peers. I wonder what it feels like being guided by a father.

Before my mom and dad parted their ways when I was about four years of age, I seldom see my dad at home. At night, he had to go off the shore. While during daytime, he was in the farm. Yes, he was a fisherman and a farmer at the same time. During Martial Law era, Samar was indeed a grueling place to live at. People had to really work hard to survive. The word “pleasure” has no space in everyone’s home. This might be the reason why we ended up to a broken family.

In her attempt to alleviate our status in life, my mom went to Manila and there she contracted marriage to another man. I didn't know if she was worried about us having no father to guide, either she couldn't simply carry the burden of raising us alone or she is still a woman that needs a man to live with. Be that as it may, only one thing was certain, she had put ourselves in jeopardy.

My step-dad never succeeded in his attempt to steal the role of a father to me. That probably explains why he, in turn, gave us a miserable life. He was a drunkard. My mom was a battered wife. He turned evil when he's under the influence of liquor – he respects no one. I will never forget those nights while I was on a deep sleep and suddenly awakened by a loud banging of the door and smashing of the kitchen utensils with simultaneous utterance of unremarkable words. It was consistent that every after drinking spree, he runs amok. We're all conquered by fear. We couldn't do anything as if we had no other alternative except to embrace this fate. True enough that notwithstanding our association to the umbrella of the so-called “poverty”, I did not consider it as my top problem. I could have been happier, despite of this mediocre life, had I granted instead of a happy and complete family.

At this rate, I know it's pointless to narrate further. I do not want to key in every details as these are memories not worthy to preserve for. The saga had long been laid to rest charging all to experience. After all, were it not of the struggles and sufferings, I couldn't have learned being independent.

This is now the 2^nd Season of my life story. This time, I am in control.

I may not have given the opportunity to enjoy the benefit of having a dad, but I still have the chance to prove my worth by being the best dad ever to my soon-to-be child.