ARSENIO H. LACSON AS MANILA MAYOR (Last of Three Part Series)

By Philip M. Lustre Jr.

(Nota Bene: Arsenio H. Lacson, mayor of Manila for 11 years, no relations to the creepy character named Panfilo Lacson Jr. , was a fiery and upright man, who hated corruption. Essentially a political romantic, Lacson could be likened to a Don Quijote, who never wavered to battle the political windmills.

Lacson’s politics escaped definition. A man of many sterling qualities and even contradictions, Lacson could not be defined within the context of the politics of his era. He was a party man, who adhered to the politics of the Nacionalista Party to which he belonged throughout his political life. Yet, he was fiercely independent of his party and even went to the extent of criticizing his own partymates.

The truth is Lacson was nobody’s man. Lacson was a curmudgeon, a hot-tempered maverick, who never hesitated to speak out his mind on the nagging issues of the day. He criticized the conduct of his fellow politicians. He was the political leader, who did not want to be straitjacketed by their norms and niceties. The truth was he defined the politics of his era, as he transformed himself as its keen guardian, critic, and advocate.

My three-part series were lifted from Amador Brioso Jr.’s biography book simply titled “Arsenio H. Lacson of Manila,” the paperback edition of which came out this year. Jun Brioso’s book could pass the rigorous requirements of scholarship. But the author did not include vital footnotes, endnotes, and sources of his assertions.

Jun said they were omitted on the last minute, an editorial decision that he seems to regret because other readers have the same observation. Jun could probably include them when he does an enlarged edition in which erstwhile omitted but important details would be included.

Perhaps, Jun could include the endearing nickname journalists of his time gave him. They called him “Mambo.” His book does not include this detail, which is intimate for us, journalists.

Just to inform our readers, older colleagues, whom I had interacted early in my journalistic career – they are all now dead – called him Mambo. That’s it without exception. NBC correspondent in Manila Benedicto David, Bulletin Today columnist Ben Lara, Manila Times and Manila Chronicle publisher Chino Roces, prolific freelance writer Manuel Almario, editor Tirso Rodriguez, veteran reporters Calixto “Stootz” Fernandez and Tony Gloria, among others were among whom I heard calling him Mambo.)

Last of Three Parts

ARSENIO H. Lacson was prominently mentioned as a viable running mate of Ramon Magsaysay in the 1953 presidential elections. His popularity was at its height. Although he only had four years of experience as a politician – the first two as member of the House of Representatives and the next two as Manila mayor – Lacson was perceived to represent a fresh wind of political change to typify the postwar era.

But Lacson himself felt it was not yet his time to seek a national office. He barely warmed in his seat as Manila mayor. He felt he did not have the wherewithal to go for a national office.

Nacionalista Party leaders convinced Lacson to seek the vice presidential nomination but he refused. Magsaysay personally pleaded him, but he still declined. In the party convention sometime in April, 1953, Lacson rejected the official nomination, gave way to Sen. Carlos P. Garcia, and campaigned for him. The pair of Magsaysay and Garcia won over the tandem of Elpidio Quirino and Jose Yulo.

Magsaysay believed that Lacson had better chances than Garcia. Lacson was a gifted public speaker; he could enthrall the public with his bombastic speeches. Moreover, he could reap votes from the Visayas and Mindanao. Lacson could have been elected as vice president and become the president when Magsaysay died in a plane crash in 1957.

It brief, it was not his destiny to become president.

But it did not deter him from participating in the political dynamics of his time. Why not? Lacson was doing well as Manila mayor. Moreover, he had captured the national imagination. Hence, he was always on the public limelight as mass media sought his opinion on burning issues of the day.

This was unexpected of a local official of those days. Lacson was indeed part of the processes when it came to public debates of political and policy issues. He was the darling of mass media. He exuded political verve, virtuosity, and versatility.

Lacson was the Renaissance man, who was pugnacious at times when either his personal honor or the nation’s was at stake. A vignette said Lacson, not yet a politician, overheard an American tourist berating the country in a restaurant at posh Manila Hotel. Lacson stood from his chair, confronted the American, and gave him a wicked punch that sent him to the floor.

Lacson almost figured in two gunfights shortly before the 1953 presidential elections. The first was on July 13, 1953, Oscar Castelo, who replaced Ramon Magsaysay as defense (Magsaysay resigned to run for president), sent a contingent of soldiers to arrest Lacson for crimes of sedition and rebellion. Lacson, with his bodyguards and mediamen, met the soldiers at the Luneta Park. He disarmed the commanding officer of the arresting soldiers, a certain Col. Sayson, and poked his service pistol to him, warning that he would shoot the officer if the soldiers would not lay down their arms and leave. They left.

On Oct. 4, 1953, Lacson flew to Bacolod City and stayed in sister Amparo’s house. He was to speak in the political campaign of the Magsaysay-Garcia ticket there. Since Lacson and his men did not stop at a police checkpoint set by Mayor Jose Amante, a rival, a police contingent surrounded his sister’s house to arrest him. 

His sister did not wake him up as he was asleep when they arrived. Lacson learned the incident later in the day. The rally did not push through because they did not have a permit. But when Lacson met Amante at the airport, he challenged Amante to a fight. Amante did not oblige.

Although Magsaysay and Garcia won, Lacson did not have smooth relations with Magsaysay. Although they were partymates, they differed. Lacson spoke openly of their differences. He openly criticized the president for his initiatives, although Magsaysay never stopped to hold dialogues with him. This process led to compromises and agreements.

By this time, Lacson had a radio program and a newspaper column, where he spoke out of his mind on many issues with Magsaysay. Among the issues they differed included Magsaysay’s imposition of meat importation, which Lacson felt would adversely affect local meat producers, Japan’s war reparations, the unacceptable provisions of the Bell Trade Act, and even the U.S.-Philippines bilateral relations, particularly the lack of iron-clad guarantee of U.S. protection in case of a new war.

Lacson opposed Magsaysay on other issues. When Hukbalahap Supremo Luis Taruc was about to surrender after negotiating with young journalist Benigno Aquino Jr. , Lacson immediately came to the rescue of Ninoy Aquino after Magsaysay was about to renege on the terms of Taruc’s surrender. He urged Magsaysay to help Aquino. Taruc later surrendered and the rest was history.

As mayor of the country’s premier city, Lacson had his own travails. In April, 1954, Lacson had a spat with a Manila councilor, who spread the canard that he was raising a million pesos for the 1955 local elections. The rumor reached Lacson, who confronted councilor Fausto Alberto, who owned up the rumor. Lacson punched and challenged him to a gun duel, which a perspiring Albert declined. It was later found that Alberto got angry over Lacson’s move to compel a detective agency Alberto owned to pay back taxes to the city government.

Lacson handily won in his first reelection bid as Manila mayor in the 1955 elections. He defeated Liberal Party candidate Salvador Marino. His second term enabled him to consolidate his political grip of Manila. Immediately, Lacson launched campaign against vices and jaywalking. He personally led raids of massage parlors and prostitution dens and arrested offenders.

On March 15, 19576, Magsaysay was among the visitors of Lacson, when he was convalescing after a four-hour surgery of his sinus condition, which the doctors did two days earlier at the Manila Doctors Hospital. It turned out that it was the last time he saw Magsaysay, as the latter perished with 25 others in a plane crash on March 17.

In his quiet but unguarded moments, Lacson could not help but feel eerie over the possibility that he could have been the president had he acceded to Magsaysay’s invitation to be his running mate. He felt Garcia could not continue Magsaysay’s works.

In his view, Garcia was too old school. Garcia believed in dividing the spoils of victory. He was inclined to grant favors to families and friends, who helped him in his political career. Lacson thought of running either for president or vice president in the 1957 elections.

Sometime in March, 1957, Ferdinand Marcos, an ambitious congressman, visited Lacson in his Earnshaw residence to propose what he described a “dream team,” where Lacson would leave the Nacionalista Party and join the rival Liberal Party to run as its president with Marcos as his running mate. Lacson rebuffed Marcos’s advances, saying half-jestingly he would not want to run for president with a running mate, who was a murderer because he could plot his death to replace him.

Although Lacson was bruited as a strong and viable contender for either the presidency or vice presidency, he did not figure prominently in the 1957 Nacionalista Party convention. His expose against Garcia before the national convention did not gain momentum to catapult him to prominence. It somehow backfired, as he lost the vice presidential nomination. The year 1957 proved bad for him.

Garcia won over Jose Yulo of the Liberal Party in the 1957 elections. But his running mate, Speaker Jose Laurel Jr., lost to Yulo’s mate Diosdado Macapagal, giving the country a mixed combination. Garcia lost in Manila, prompting Lacson to resign his post as mayor. But Garcia and other Nacionalista leaders prevailed on him to stay.

During this time, Lacson pursued several projects which could be regarded as his legacies for Manila. He initiated the lighting of Dewey Boulevard, later renamed Roxas Boulevard, the main thoroughfare in front of famed Manila Bay, the establishment of the Manila Zoological and Botanical Garden in Harrison Park, the construction of the Quiapo Underpass, later renamed Lacson Underpass, and the modern slaughterhouse in Vitas, Tondo.

In the 1959 midterm elections, Lacson won for the third time, besting seven other mayoral candidates led by his vice mayor Jesus Marcos Roces, Rep. Augusto Franciso of Manila’s fourth district, and Liberal Party’s Rep. Salvador Marino of Manila’s first district. It was a landslide victory of Lacson over a divided opposition. But the surprise came with the election as vice mayor of Antonio Villegas of the Liberal Party.

Lacson and Villegas had acrimonious relations characterized by frequent fights that bordered on the ridiculous. For instance, Villegas insisted and, in fact, actually assumed the post of acting mayor whenever Lacson left to attend to speak in the provinces. Lacson was never happy with Villegas public display of unwarranted enthusiasm to become the acting mayor. But it was in 1960 when the colorful Manila mayor in a controversy that became the talk of the country.

On March 16, 1960, Lacson filed charges against Marcelino Calinawan Jr., whom Garcia appointed as presidential assistant to look into the alleged corruption at the Bureau of Customs. Lacson alleged Calinawan received a salary as lieutenant commander, when he was not commissioned in that military position. This provoked Calinawan, prompting him to issue pubic statements that were personal to Lacson.

Knowing that Lacson had the goods on him, Calinawan alleged that since Lacson’s father was an illegitimate child, he did not have the right to use the surname Lacson. Calinawan claimed that his father was listed as Ledesma in the Talisay Church’s baptismal registry, but somehow managed to change his surname to Lacson. Ergo, the mayor did not have the right to carry the name Lacson, making him “the biggest fake.”

In Lacson’s view, what Calinawan did was below the belt. He did not have to drag his parents’ name and honor to the controversy. This pushed him to challenge Calinawan to a gun duel, of which the latter obliged because he was younger and bigger. Lacson sent him a note specifying the place, date, and time of the gun duel. Capt. James Barbers, Lacson’s aide, personally delivered the note to him.

The ballyhooed gun duel was set to take place on the following Monday, 3 pm, in front of the Rizal Monument in Luneta Park. Many political leaders dissuaded the two protagonists to desist mainly because dueling is illegal in the country. But the two persisted in what appeared to be their final appointment with destiny.

From his suite at the Filipinas Hotel (it burned down in late 1977) along Roxas Boulevard, Lacson and his aides went the the Rizal Monument at exactly 2:50 pm, bringing with him a .357 Magnum revolver as his weapon for the duel. He felt uncomfortable to see a huge contingent of mediamen waiting to cover the duel.

Defense Secretary Alejo Santos and Brig. Gen. Antonio de Veyra rushed to the scene to stop Lacson, but the latter was adamant, telling them that Calinawan went too far by insulting his parents and ancestors. It was no-show for Calinawan. By 3:15 pm, Lacson left, hitching a ride in Santos’s car, which took him to the Manila Zoo, where the mayor later acted as guide to show the new animals.

Calinawan arrived a few minutes after Lacson left, but he stayed in an area near the Rizal Monument, as a contingent of Philippine Constabulary officers stopped him. He was unarmed. He told the PC officials he did not bring any firearm because he thought the duel would be with bare fists because gun duel was against the law. He lamented the fact that Lacson made what he described a “public show” of the supposed gun duel.

Lacson spent the rest of 1960 and 1961 feuding with Villegas, who liked to assume the post of acting mayor, whenever Lacson went out of town for speaking engagements, and barking at politicians who like to nominate him for the 1961 presidential elections. He declared he would not support Garcia in his reelection bid in 1961. But he and Villegas later had a reconciliation to work closely for Manila.

In the run-up of the 1961 presidential elections, Lacson supported Senate President Eulogio “Amang” Rodriguez, who openly feuded with Garcia after the latter reneged on his earlier promise that he would not seek a reelection. But Rodriguez and Lacson were outmaneuvered by Garcia’s supporters within the Nacionalista Party.

This prompted Lacson to resign from the Nacionalista Party, an initiative which was not acted upon immediately. But Lacson, although a nominal Nacionalista, chose to assume the post of campaign manager of the Liberal Party ticket of Vice President Diosdado Macapagal and Sen. Emmanuel Pelaez.

Macapagal and Pelaez won over the tandem of Garcia and Sen. Gil Puyat. Lacson campaigned vigorously for the winning ticket, wowing the public with his oratorical skills during the political campaign. In fact, Lacson was always the last to speak in every political rally because people waited for his fire and brimstone. Lacson had gained the reputation for being a skillful orator, who could hold his audience in awe.

The Nacionalista leaders did not act on Lacson’s resignation, although it was generally conceded that his presence as campaign manager of the political campaign was a big factor for the political victory of the Macapagal-Pelaez ticket. Lacson remained with the Nacionalista Party mainly through the efforts of Rodriguez, who as party president and Lacson’s staunch ally, kept him off the political Siberia.

But his association with the Liberal Party, which became the party in power, had political dividends. Although Lacson was a nominal Nacionalista, he was able to swing concessions from the party in power, which included legislations for the construction of reclamation projects extending Manila North Harbor and Manila South Harbor,  a big part of which is now the Manila International Container Port, a modern-day hospital, now the Ospital ng Maynila, and the establishment of a Manila university, now the Pamantasan ng Maynila.

Lacson had other sterling ideas for Manila, most of which were not pursued because of his death. These included the construction of an oceanarium to be located in a lot adjacent to the Manila Zoo (this is now occupied by Harrison Plaza), terminals at the boundaries for provincial buses, the conversion of the Manila City Jail into a modern national jail, and a multi-level parking building in Plaza Binondo.

On the political front, Lacson was elected chair of the League of Provincial Governors and City Mayor with Tarlac Governor Benigno Aquino Jr. as his secretary-general. Lacson took steps to sustain the Philippine claim of sovereignty over the North Bornean state of Sabah He went publicly to urge for the settlement of the proprietary rights of the heirs of the Sultanate of Sulu over the state, which was then to become part of Malaysia federation.

Although his relations with Macapagal was getting sour because the frequents raids were done in Manila without informing him, Lacson’s popularity soared, making him viable for the 1965 presidential elections. Political pundits claimed his time had indeed come. But it was not something meant to be. His political stars never came.

On April 15, 1962, an Easter Sunday, Lacson suffered a heart attack, his first, leading to his death. The circumstances of his death were quite confusing- or conflicting. One version said he was at his Earnshaw home, preparing details for his radio program. Another version said he played golf at the Wack-Wack Golf Course in Mandaluyong  and even had a talk with Rodriguez.

Lacson had lunch with his family at his home. He even cooked food for the family. By 2 pm, he left for Filipinas Hotel, where he had a suite. By 5 pm, he woke up and called up friend Nick Osmena, son of former president Sergio Osmena Sr., asking him to listen to his radio program, where he intended to discuss the claim over Sabah. By 5:40 pm, a hotel boy received a call from Lacson asking for some ice.

Pablo Olazo, the hotel staff, brought ice to him, but he saw the mayor was in pain and perspiring. He informed the mayor’s aides, who rushed to his room. Lacson asked them to summon his personal physician at the nearby Manila Doctors’ Hospital. Lacson even raised his hand, but he collapsed into the arms of one of his aides.

Dr. Godofredo Banzon, the first doctor to arrive, administered emergency medicine to the mayor, but he died anyway. A second and third doctor arrived, but they all saw him dead. News of his death jolted the entire city and the country. By almost midnight, news of his death was flashed over radio and TV.  It was the newspapers’ headline the following day.

Macapagal declared a four-day national mourning. His internment was set on April 18 at the Manila North Cemetery, The book said nearly a million attended his funeral procession. He was buried at noontime.

Postscript to Lacson’s Death

The book discussed issues of Lacson’s death that has reached the level of urban legends. One of the issues was the gossip that actress Rosario Violeta Solis Hernandez, aka Charito Solis, was beside Lacson when he died. Rumors said some people saw Charito Solis running half naked away from Filipino Hotel, when mayor was having his heart attack. In fact, it had become a sick joke when men would naughtily say that Lacson’s death was not a case of DoA, or dead on arrival, but DoT, or dead on top. Solis died in 1998.

The book said the following: “Over the years, she (Charito Solis) was subjected to some foul gossips that she was supposed with (Lacson) on that fateful April 15, 1962. There are various versions … that have refused to fade.

“At that time, Solis was already an international movie actress. She had been going in and out of the country due to her international commitments. In fact, she was being considered to a film to be produced by famed Italian producer Dino de Laurentis. It was but natural for her to catch the fancy of men, whether from the industry or beyond it.

“On April 11, 1962, Solis arrived at the Manila International Airport. She and her sister had just come from Tokyo, where she had attended to the preparation of a movie she was about to shoot with a Japanese actor, Kujiro Hongo.

“So, at the time of Lacson’s untimely death … Solis was in the Philippines. But was she there beside the mayor at the time of his death? Two people who were friends of Solis swore that they were with the actress on that day.

“When interviewed on the matter, James Barbers laughed loudly and said there was no truth to the foul story. It was unfair, Barbers said of the rumor.”

Despite all the brickbats against Lacson and charges that he enriched himself while in power, Lacson died a poor man. He did not have a fat bank account. He did not leave any piece of property except the Earnshaw residence, which was a gift to them by his rich parents-in-law. His wife and kids had to work to earn a living.

But he showed how to live a life of integrity as a public official. Although his wit and humor and courage was unparalleled, Lacson has enriched the country’s political history by becoming a model of upright living for every public official.  

ARSENIO H. LACSON AS JOURNALIST, POLITICIAN (Second of Three Parts)

By Philip M. Lustre Jr.

(Nota Bene: After the first installment, some netizens commented that my three part series on Arsenio H. Lacson, former Manila mayor, was creating excitement for them. Pardon me, dear folks, just to be honest, it’s not my intention to create unnecessary excitement. On the contrary, it’s my fervent wish to create a more balanced presentation of what I could consider a unique and exceptional character named Arsenio H. Lacson.

Lacson certainly looms a bigger than life persona in our political horizon. His life has many details and colors. Netizens may not see other important details, milestones, and colors if I would write a long, single feature article about him. Netizens may just focus on three important characters: Imelda Marcos, Imee Marcos, and, of course, actress Charito Solis. Judging the initial reactions on the first installment, I could smell an inordinate interest on those three characters.

Lacson’s career spanned for almost 14 years. He was first elected as member of Congress representing the second district of Manila in 1949, and as Manila mayor in 1951, 1955, and 1959. Hence, he was undefeated as a politician. As a politician, Lacson stood tall for a number of advocacy and positions on burning issues of those days.

Incidentally, the Amador F. Brioso Jr., author of the biography book “Arsenio H. Lacson of Manila,” which happens to be the source of my posts, is my friend here in Facebook. Netizens, who wish to know some more details about Lacson’s life, could direct questions to him. His FB account is Jun Brioso. Because he is the author, he is more qualified to answer your questions.)

(Second of three parts)

DAYS after the treacherous Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and Japan’s subsequent occupation of the Philippines, Arsenio H. Lacson resigned his post at the Department of Justice and went jobless to his hometown of Talisay in Negros Occidental. Soon he joined the Free Philippines, a secret guerilla organization, and did intelligence works. He also joined the Allied Intelligence Bureau, which was organized in 1942 by American, Australian, Dutch, and British military officers.

Soon, he was back in Manila doing intelligence works for the Allied forces. He was among the Filipino operatives, who did works for the American liberation forces. He was the lead scout for the 1^st Cavalry Division, which fought the Japanese forces in Manila. He was also among the scouts for the American forces which went after the retreating Japanese forces in the Naguillian Trail and Baguio City. Hence, he was among the recognized guerilla leaders.

Amador F. Brioso Jr.’s 356-page biography book, simply titled “Arsenio H. Lacson of Manila,” discusses Lacson’s intertwining, albeit, overlapping journalistic and political careers in the postwar era. From the ashes of the last world war, Lacson, always brash and irreverent but never cowardly, rebuilt his life by writing commentaries first on the shortlived Philippines Press in 1945 and next on the Philippine Liberty News in 1946. Henceforth, he gained prominence as a hard-hitting, uncompromising opinion writer, who never wavered to criticize the political gods of those days, including the likes of Manuel Roxas and Elpidio Quirino.

Brioso described his journalistic ways in the following words: “Lacson would take on anyone and anything. He launched tirades against the high and mighty. He ridicule (sic) any character, who took his fancy. His style, his language is pure Lacsonesque (sic): profanity-laced, rough, replete with ungrammatical niceties, fraught with flowery prose. And the subjects he covered ranged from the powerful to the not-so-powerful, the mundane to the inane, the filthy and the unsoiled.

“It was the start of a new Lacson – as the tough and fiery newspaperman, Lacson the fightingiest (sic) columnist, Lacson the Arsenic.”

Lacson opposed the Bell Trade Act, which the Americans rammed into the Filipinos’ collective throat to provide equal rights to U.S. entrepreneurs as Filipinos’, saying it was a “big joke” and its acceptance by the Roxas government a “sellout.” He did not spare U.S. point man Paul McNutt from his criticisms, as he took notice of his machinations to include in the U.S.-initiated Philippine Rehabilitation Act, a provision which tied U.S. postwar aid to the approval of the Bell Trade Act. In fact, American leaders mistook Lacson for being anti-American.

While he assailed Roxas, Col. Manuel dela Fuente, chief of Manila Police, and other ranking public officials his published commentaries, Lacson started his weekly radio broadcasting job in 1946. But he took less than a year in his radio job as Roxas maneuvered to have him eased out mainly because of his incessant attacks on the president. His dismissal from the job somehow revealed the dynamics inherent in radio business. Roxas also instigated the closure of Philippine Liberty News, where Lacson wrote a weekly column that contained attacks against the president.

On his Sept. 21, 1947 radio broadcast, Lacson made an expose alleging that first lady Trinidad Roxas could have misused the P500,000, which she raised for war widows and orphans.  This angered the president, who asked Col. Andres Soriano to remove Lacson from the air within 24 hours mainly to prevent him from touching the same issue in his next broadcast. This caused embarrassment to Soriano, prompting him to ask Lacson to see Judge Mamerto Roxas, the president brother. Lacson refused and he was out of job by the following week. But Roxas was publicly criticized for his controversial acts against Lacson.

For a while, Lacson was jobless. Soon, Sen. Vicente Madrigal hired him as the public relations man of his private firm, Madrigal & Co. But Lacson was not happy with the job that required him to do a lot of backslapping. Six months later, he was back in his element, when he started writing a column for The Star Reporter. That was on April 15, 1948, or two days before Roxas had a massive heart attack that led to his death and Quirino’s assumption of the presidency. By that time, Lacson did not have a Roxas, who used to his power to ease him out of his job as journalist.

Brioso did not lose track of doing a narrative about Lacson’s subsequent meeting with Quirino, who immediately clamored for a dialogue with him. In their meeting at Malacanang, Quirino did not hesitate to remind Lacson that, although he could criticize him for misdoings or underperformance, He could only do it to certain extent.

“I am still the president” Quirino told Lacson. It was the sentence that he heard a dozen times in his conversation with Quirino. In the end, Quirino offered him the job to go after the corrupt officials in his government. Unlike Roxas, who unabashedly suppressed his radio program, Quirino allowed Lacson to continue his weekly radio broadcast provided that Soriano would allow him. The owner refused.

In his weekly column, Lacson did not stop to lampoon Quirino, calling him various names and assailing the presidential decisions, which did not meet his standards and expectations. By March, 1949, Lacson quit writing for The Star Reporter, as he prepared for a political career. By November, 1949, he was elected as member of the House of Representatives. It was his first try in politics.

Lacson’s entry in politics to represent Manila’s second district composed of Binondo, San Nicolas, Quiapo, and Sta. Cruz, was not without difficulties. First, he defeated Manila councilor Joaquin Yuseco in the convention of the Nacionalista Party. Then, he won over Valeriano Fugoso, the Liberal Party candidate. During those days, the country had a two party-system dominated by the Nacionalista and Liberal parties.

Despite his election as a congressman, Lacson continued writing for The Star Reporter, becoming his forum to air his views as an elected official. In Congress, the fearless Lacson did not lose time to vent his ire on top officials, who used their positions to benefit financially.

On Dec. 30, 1949, the start of the six-day special session which Quirino called to enact pending bills, Lacson, in his first act as a lawmaker, stood on a question of collective privilege to ask if Speaker Eugenio Perez was fit to lead the House of Representatives because of the latter’s alleged involvement in immigration quotas. This was a scandal, where elected officials cornered and sold quotas for immigrants, mostly Chinese, during those days.

Lacson’s first two years of his four-year tenure as lawmaker proved his mettle as oppositionist in Congress. He opposed sending Philippine troops to Korea, worked to reduce Chinese immigration quota to 50 from 500 annually, urged for an independent foreign policy while supporting the Philippine claim of sovereignty over the North Bornean state of Sabah, and stood against corruption in government. A group of journalists representing 10 publications ranked as one of the “ten outstanding lawmakers.”

Brioso could not help but narrate two vignettes about Lacson’s separate tussles with two future presidents – Ferdinand Marcos and Diosdado Macapagal, who were first time legislators like Arturo Tolentino, Jose Roy, and Emmanuel Pelaez. While engaged in a fiery debate with Marcos on the floor, Lacson took notice how the Ilocos Norte lawmaker kept point his index finger during the interpellation. Lacson protested and asked “protection” from the chair because Marcos’s use of his index finger reminded him of the trigger finger used in Nalundasan murder. Marcos got angry and shouted an invective against Lacson.

In another instance, Lacson, irked by Macapagal’s frequent objections to the issues he raised on the floor, challenged him to a fistfight outside the plenary hall. Macapagal obliged and they went to an unoccupied committee room to settle the issue. Their colleagues were stopping them, but to no avail. As they reached the room, the two stopped momentarily and sized up each other. Then, they broke into laughter and hugged each other. They took their colleagues for a ride. Lacson and Macapagal, although they belonged to rival political parties, were classmates in the law school.

Although he was adjudged as “the most colorful lawmaker” of his time, Lacson was not happy to remain in Congress. He did not want to remain entangled to all those debates and lawmaking. In the 1951 elections, he ran and won to become the first elective mayor of Manila, besting his arch-enemy, incumbent Manuel dela Fuente of the Liberal Party. Now, Lacson had the unique chance to improve in Manila, which was badly damaged by the last world war.

In his first term as Manila mayor, Lacson sought to improve its financial position (its fiscal position was in the negative), improve police works and visibility, cracked up criminals in the underworld, and cleaned up the city of its garbage and mess. He also uncovered anomalies in City Hall, earning the enmity of the councilors, most of which belonged to the Liberal Party. Lacson openly quarreled with his vice-mayor, Bartolome Gatmaitan. His flamboyant ways did not sit well with his colleagues.

Lacson took extra efforts for the city government to pay its debts, stopped the practice of political appointees who received salaries without working, personally led raids of the underworld, undertook cleaning operations programs of the city, and broke the lines between criminal gangs and police. His efforts resulted positively. Lacson evidently captured the national imagination. Shortly before the run-up to the 1953 presidential elections, Lacson was bruited as a possible running mate of Ramon Magsaysay, who resigned as defense secretary of Quirino to run as the standard bearer of the Nacionalista Party.

Lacson rejected his possible nomination as Magsaysay’s running mate. He did not feel that he was politically ripe to go for a national position. He instead supported Senator Carlos P. Garcia as the vice presidential candidate and ran for reelection in 1955. His decision had profound effects on his political career. Based on his rising popularity, he could have won as vice president and became president after Magsaysay perished in a plane crash in 1956.

Issues with Imelda, Imee

But what seemed to be pre-ordained by fate, an incident which the author described as “apolitical” became a controversy even after his death in 1962. This incident happened on March 23, 1953. A tall lady from Leyte went to his office on what the author said was “on the strength of a previously scheduled appointment. Imelda Romualdez, who later became the wife of Ferdinand Marcos, appealed to Lacson that she should be the winner of Miss Manila, not a certain Norma Jimenez, who was earlier declared winner by the pageant’s board.

This is Brioso’s narrative: “After Romualdez’s visit, Lacson issued a strongly worded letter, which was in nature of a protest against the choice of Jimenez as the city’s representative to the beauty pageant. According to the letter, the board’s decision was contrary to the decision of the special committee (whose members had been appointed by Lacson per the authority of the board itself) which had adjudged Romualdez as the first choice for Manila with Jimenez as runner-up. The letter went on to clarify that the committee’s choice was based on the standards of individual beauty of facial expression, personality, carriage and educational attainments.

“Under these criteria, it was the committee’s decision to adjudge Miss Romualdez as the winner with 655 points, while Miss Jimenez tied with Miss Amparo Manuel with 453 points each. Lacson claimed that even before the committee could submit its official report to the board, ‘the newspapers (had) announced that the board had chosen Miss Norma Jimenez as Miss Manila of 1953 in absolute disregard of the committee’s decision and my personal judgment.’

“Since the board had committed a direct violation of the contest regulations, the decision reached by it was void, and thus, under the circumstances, so Lacson’s letter concluded, the mayor’s office ‘would like to inform you (the board) formally that it (the city of Manila) has no official candidate for Miss Philippines other than Miss Imelda Romualdez.’

“Armed with the mayor’s decision, Romualdez was able to attend the presentation of candidates for the Miss Philippines contest, an evening affair graced by no less than Finland’s Armi Kuusela, the first Miss Universe winner. It was, in fact, an oddity simply because there were two Misses Manila that represented the city, one chosen by the board directors of the Philippine International Fair, and another by the mayor of Manila.

“But the Philippine International Fair officials would eventually overrule Lacson’s decision. So aid the press release by the Fair’s Board of directors: ‘Manila, for the purposes of the beauty contest, had been considered an area like Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, so the Mayor of Manila, unlike the mayors of other chartered cities and the governor of the province, was not empowered to choose the candidate for Miss Manila. Miss Jimenez had received more votes than Miss Romualdez, and, hence, had been declared winner.”

This initial discussion on Miss Manila issue merited two pages in Brioso’s book – pages 149 and 150. But the author went to discuss the issue in full in a separate chapter in the closing pages of the book. In Chapter 14 (Arsenic: the Stories), the author went to discuss Imelda Marcos’s denial of any liaison with Lacson. The author cited Winnie Monsod’s two-part TV interview of 84-year old Imelda aired by GMA-7 on Oct. 7 and 14, 2013.

The author said: “One of the questions asked her by Winnie Monsod was about the rumor that Imee Marcos not Ferdinand’s daughter but Lacson’s. Professing ignorance of the rumor, Imelda said she saw Lacson twice in her life and this was when she joined the Miss Manila beauty contest. Pressed on by the host, Imelda said with vehemence that she never fooled around her marriage. Her answers completely denied that she ever had any affair with Lacson.”

Quoting an American author in a book about Imelda, Brioso said Luchi, Lacson’s wife, was said to have confronted her husband once about a purported affair with Imelda, to which Lacson denied. But the author quoted Luchi as saying that she would not know if Imee is indeed Lacson’s daughter. “I said I didn’t know, but, of course, the wife is always the last to know,” the American author quoted Luchi as saying.

Millie Lacson Lapira, Lacson’s eldest daughter and wife of TV newscaster Bong Lapira, told the author that since she was the mayor’s daughter, people gravitated to her. Imelda was among her acquaintance. But mother Luchi admonished her to stop seeing Imelda, an admonition which she responded positively. Somehow, the author speculated that Imelda’s friendship with Millie was one of the reason she was able to get an appointment with the mayor.

Former senator Jose Diokno and former Manila vice mayor James Barbers were two persons, who were closely associated with Lacson, but they too answered in the negative whenever the issue of Lacson’s affair with Imelda was raised. He speculated that since Lacson had made many enemies when he was Manila mayor, certain people would exploit any rumor about him. But the author confirmed that Lacson indeed played around, although he did not reach the point of leaving his family or losing his love for Luchi and his children.

In brief, the issue of Lacson’s alleged liaison with Imelda Marcos and Imee’s fatherhood did not have any confirmation. Everything that has been said so far has been largely circumstantial that did not have any probative value to make a conclusion. (to be continued)

Next and Last Part: Lacson’s political career and death  

INTRODUCING ARSENIO H. LACSON (First of Three Parts)

By Philip M. Lustre Jr.

(Nota Bene: Last week, or June 23, I bought a copy of the book, “Arsenio H. Lacson of Manila,” which happens to be the biography of the colorful former Manila mayor. It is authored not by a historian, but a once Riyadh-based Filipino overseas bank worker named Amador Brioso Jr. I did not regret spending P495 to acquire a copy. It was a well-written book by a professional banker. Proof: It won the National Book Award in 2016.

I am not new to this guy. The name Arsenio H. Lacson first came into my consciousness, when I heard Paeng Yabut interviewing then Manila Mayor Arsenio Lacson over his spat with a certain Marcelino Calinawan Jr., whom then President Carlos P. Garcia assigned to probe the reported massive corruption at the Bureau of Customs  (it’s a pity that this corruption issue still nags that office after 55 years). That was in 1960. Lacson challenged Calinawan to a gun duel at the Rizal Park on a designated day and time after the latter made a public statement to say that his father Roman was an illegitimate son of grandfather Hilario, a fairly rich landowner, who fathered several kids out of wedlock.

“Ang pagkakasala ng aking mga magulang ay hindi ko pagkakasala (the fault of my parents is not my fault), Lacson thundered in heavily Visayan accented Tagalog over the airwaves. It was a single line statement that still reverberates in my ears whenever I come across the name Arsenio H. Lacson. On April 15, 1962, an Easter Sunday, Lacson died suddenly of a heart attack. I vividly remember the morose faces of my mother, my Lola Feliza, and uncles, who all harbored the opinion that Lacson was too good to die quite young.

I don’t possess memories of personal encounters. I was eight years old when he died. The many things that I have had heard about him came from secondary sources, mostly older journalists, whom I had the opportunity to interact, when I became a journalist. From those colleagues, I came to learn that Lacson was also a journalist before he launched his political career – and he wrote well. These people showered me with kindness their insights of the man. Practically every colleague held him in high esteem. They had high respect for the man, as they spoke glowingly of him.

From the late Benedicto “Ben” David, son of the illustrious human rights lawyer Juan T. David, and who used to represent NBC News, U.S.-based network, during the dark days of the Marcos dictatorship, I have learned that Lacson was “the best president the Philippines never had.” Ben David (he should not be mistaken with a deceased radio talent who had the same name) told me that if Lacson did not die early, Ferdinand Marcos, the president and eventual dictator, would not be president because Lacson was more popular than him. Lacson would surely beat him in honest, clean, and orderly elections, he told me.

But what enthralled me with Ben David’s recollections of Lacson was his frequent use of the nickname “Mambo” whenever he referred to Lacson. I did not bother to ask Ben about such term of endearment. I heard the same nickname from other colleagues. It was much later did I learn that Lacson earned it from journalists, who noticed that he could dance the Latin dance “mambo” with unparalleled grace and skill. Somehow, that nickname had stuck even after his untimely death.

From Teddy Benigno, the Agence France Presse’s’ Manila bureau chief, who later became Cory Aquino’s press secretary, I learned that Mambo (yes, he used the same endearing nickname to refer to Lacson), died a poor man, leaving his family in almost penniless state. Despite his high political profile and vast powers as Manila mayor, Lacson left nothing but a good name to his family, which had to fend for themselves to survive after his untimely death.

From the late Joaquin “Chino” Roces, publisher of the pre-martial law Manila Times and the revived post-Marcos Manila Chronicle, I gathered that Lacson was an intrepid and fearless man, a larger than life political figure, who stood against practically every president. He was never afraid of any politician of his era. Likewise, the late columnist Ben Lara of Manila Bulletin, the late writer Maning Almario, and other older colleagues liked to regale younger colleagues like me with vignettes about the guy they all preferred to call Mambo.

The following is my book review of Brioso’s book about Arsenio H. Lacson, whom many politicians called “Arsenic” for his hard hitting style and profane tongue. This is for the millennials, many of whom hardly know our history. This is also for other netizens, who need to update their knowledge about this guy.)

(Part One)

NO, SIRS and mams, the distinction of being a colorful political leader does not belong to President Rodrigo Duterte, but to Arsenio H. Lacson, who was mayor of Manila for 11 years to cover 1951-1962.

While they are both profane and irreverent, Duterte is vulgar, who uses gutter, or “imburnal,” language without feeling guilty. Duterte personifies ill breeding and lack of culture, or reflects the mentality of a typical lumpen proletariat, or a dreg of society, Duterte insults the helpless and powerless, or even women, but keeps quiet, or appears cowardly, on people, who bear arms and, ergo, exude power.

Lacson, who was “Arsenic” to friends and foes alike, but “Mambo” to working journalists, who liked his sweeter side, was the exact opposite.  Although prone to give acidic remarks at the slightest provocation, Lacson possessed the gift of language, using Shakepearean prose whenever he criticized the high and mighty, and the corrupt and powerful. He had tremendous following among the best and the brightest, or even the less fortunate and the downtrodden among our people, making him a perennial presidential timber during election time.

According to Amador F. Brioso’s biography book “Arsenio H. Lacson of Manila,” the 35-page paperback edition of which was published this year by Anvil Publishing, Lacson was born the stormy night of December 26, 1912 in the idyllic town of Talisay in Negros Occidental. Lacson was the fourth and youngest of Roman Lacson and Maria Rosario Sison. Three girls – Soledad, Amparo, and Estrella – were born in succession before Arsenio came into this world. Because his father feared that the young Arsenio would grow effete in the presence of three sisters, he hired kids in the neighborhood to box with him. This enabled Arsenio to know and understand boxing.

(Incidentally, Soledad was the mother of the late Manila Times business editor Alfio Locsin and the late BusinessDay and BusinessWorld publisher Raul Locsin. The late Philippines Free Press publisher and writer-editor Teodoro Locsin Sr. and son Teddy were their relatives. Arsenio Lacson was also a journalist before he became a politician.)

After studying in his hometown, Lacson went to Manila to complete his intermediate and secondary education. It was in 1922, when he first set foot on Manila, which at that time, underwent massive changes to reflect the U.S. colonial rule. He went to the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Manila and stayed in the dorm for boys.  Although he stayed most of the time in Manila, he did not lose touch of his origin, as he went home every summer.

At 15, Lacson joined the Ateneo football team, which competed in several inter-university competitions and foreign tournaments. By 1930, he completed his high school education, took his two-year pre-law course there, and continued to play for the Ateneo football team. Afterwards he went to the University of Santo Tomas for his law education. Diosdado Macapagal was among his classmates in the law school. He also played for the UST football team and captained the national football team.

According to the biography book, Lacson originally wanted to take up medicine, but had a last minute change of heart as he opted to enroll in the law school. Lacson was not limited to his law education; he honed his writing skills during those days. Lacson had the flair for writing, which proved useful when he pursued a career in journalism.

He was a 20-year old law student when he met the comely 18-year old Luz Santiago, a daughter of Geronimo Santiago, a veteran prewar political leader in Manila, and Ildefonsa Sychangco, owner of the National Drug Store chain. Don Geronimo was described as instrumental in paving the way for Lacson’s entry into Manila politics, while his mother-in-law earned a fortune from her business. When they got married, Lacson’s parents-in-law gave them a house on a piece of property along Earnshaw Street in Sampaloc. Their Earnshaw residence was the venue for a number of political meetings during his career as politician.

Lacson passed the Bar examinations in 1937. He was employed in the law office of the famed Vicente Francisco, who was regarded the local version of the famous American lawyer Clarence Darrow. Lacson was in the legal team which Francisco formed to work for the defense of Ferdinand Marcos, then a University of the Philippines law student, who was one of the accused in the Sept. 20, 1935 murder of Julio Nalundasan, the Ilocos Norte politician who defeated Mariano, Ferdinand’s father, in the first congressional elections under the Commonwealth government.

Marcos lost in the defense and went to jail. But his legal team succeeded in their appeal to the Supreme Court. The legal strategy of the Vicente Francisco team included using Ferdinand to raise his own arguments and appeal to the Supreme Court, the chief justice of which was Jose Laurel Sr., who later became the wartime president and postwar senator. The legal strategy worked, leading to the reversal of earlier decision at the lower court and Ferdinand Marcos’s acquittal.

Lacson never held Marcos in high esteem, particularly when they both became politicians in the postwar era. Lacson treated Marcos with derision and condescension, as indicated by his deprecating description of the latter. Since Lacson, as part of the defense panel, had intimate knowledge of his participation, Lacson described Marcos as “Nalundasan’s murderer” as their paths crossed several times in the postwar era. Ferdinand Marcos, who later became president and dictator of this country, never fought back and did not bother to counter Lacson’s shabby treatment of him.

In 1938, Lacson transferred to the Department of Justice to work as one of its lawyers. By this time, he support his growing family, he wrote a regular column in the 20-page Philippine Commonweal, one of the prewar publications. His column “Straight from Shoulder” discussed mainly sport matters and, on several times, even non-sports, which included politics. His column gained notice in the journalistic community. Arsenio H. Lacson could write. And he could write well was the consensus. But his journalistic career was stopped by the outbreak of the war. (to be continued)

(Part Two: Lacson’s Political Career) 

LAW OF THE JUNGLE

By Philip M. Lustre Jr.

The political dynamics in every setting is no different from the law of the jungle. In the jungle, animals that get sick or injured fall prey to predators, while predators kill injured predators to lessen competition in the food chain. The same is true in Philippine politics.
It was when the Marcos dictatorship was at its strongest in 1979, when astute dictator Ferdinand Marcos was rumored to have been suffering from a systemic autoimmune ailment called lupus erythematosus. This disease, which has no known cure, weakens the body's autoimmune system and attacks healthy tissues including kidneys. Marcos suffered kidney failure that arose from lupus.
Marcos had to undergo regular dialysis treatment. On August 7, 1983, he underwent kidney transplant with son Bongbong as donor. His condition was a tightly guarded secret. It was never confirmed. It was only after the Marcoses were kicked out of Malacanang in 1986 that details of his precarious health condition were made public.
But during his incumbency, Marcos and his minions hid his health condition. Although his face was bloated during the waning years of his dictatorship because of heavy steroid intake, Marcos cultivated the myth he was in perfect health. The scuttlebutt was that Marcos did not only have hidden wealth (he was notorious for being corrupt); he also had hidden health.
In fact, Marcos health was the favorite topic of discussions in opposition circles. Rumors of his death did not only circulate once of twice but several times. Every time those rumors went wild, Marcos would appear smiling to dispel them. But he was truly in bad physical shape. That he was sick could be denied as indicated by his limited public appearance outside of Malacanang, particularly in the 1980s.
When his health condition was confirmed, the Laurel brothers - former Speaker Jose Laurel Jr. and younger brother and former senator Salvador, or Doy - bolted out of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL), which, during the years of dictatorship, served as the umbrella organization of all political parties, as if it was the Nazi Party. Marginalized by the KBL, the Laurel brothers negotiated and succeeded to form the United Democratic Organization, or Unido, with key opposition leaders like Gerardo Roxas and former president Diosdado Macapagal.
The Nacionalista Party, in which the Laurel brothers were key leaders, and the Liberal Party, to which Roxas and Macapagal belonged, were the two political parties that alternated in power during the premartial law days. The KBL virtually supplanted the two parties and a number of their leaders were absorbed by the KBL. Meantime, the Laurels and other LP leaders were consigned by Marcos to the sidelines. He did not share power with them.
Almost overnight, Marcos had an organized enemy when rumors of his failing health circulated in key political circles. It was said that no less than the station master of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency in Manila during those days knew and leaked the confirmed information about the health condition of Marcos. Although it was tightly guarded secret, this piece of information was immediately passed to opposition leaders, prompting them to organize, as Marcos weakened due to his ailment.
The rest is history. Unido became the second political coalition in the 1980s. It clamored for an end of the dictatorship and fought for the restoration of democracy. It called for a transition, which included the holding of clean, honest, peaceful, and orderly elections. Unido served as the political vehicle of the Cory Aquino - Doy Laurel ticket that challenged the Ferdinand Marcos - Arturo tandem in the 1986 "snap" presidential elections. Unido also represented the yellow political forces, which triggered the EDSA People Power Revolution that toppled the Marcos dictatorship immediately after the 1986 presidential elections.
Can we expect the same trend particularly now that the sick old man of the South is rumored to be very sick?

Certainly, of course. Marcos was so strong during those days to the point that he was so feared by his contemporaries and his minions. Yet, it took a handful to leaders to defy him to form the opposition coalition against his KBL. The sick old man is not in the league of Marcos to be feared. He is not expected to cast a deep influence in the reshaping of the alignment of the political forces in the political spectrum. It is most stupid to believe that those bloggers, their trolls, and fake news could influence the flow of political developments.
As his health deteriorates, the political dynamics is expected to change drastically too, altering the nation's political landscape. A new coalition would rise to challenge the sick's old man's coalition and even take over when he further dies or gets incapacitated. New political centers are expected to rise. The incumbent Vice President is expected to be the new center of political gravity. Who would assume the opposition is everybody's guess.
For sure, nobody wants to be left out in the next party in town. Everybody wants to gets invited. Political survival is the accepted norm among politicians. In fact, many politicians in the so-called "Super-Majority" know that the sick old man and the kind of politics he espouses are temporary trends, or even a political aberrations. When they see his health plunges, we would see them distancing from the sick old man and later criticizing it. There are no permanent things in this world. There are only political interests to protect.

THEIR IGNORANCE IS CULPRIT

By Philip M. Lustre

Obviously , the digoons (I will use the lower case to refer to the rabid, fanatic supporters of the sick old man of the South) were outsmarted by Time. I don't think Time intended it. It was more of a function - or consequence - of the digoons' ignorance. 

Time has a global market to meet. The Philippines is a small market for them. They know and understand that Filipinos are not a reading people. Their revenues (sales of printed copies and advertising income) in the Philippines have been not that high compared to bigger markets like North America and Europe.

The digoons' problem stems (I prefer to use the present tense) from their ignorance of the operations and dynamics of the newspaper business. They may have generated some savvy in nontraditional media, particularly social media, because of their ability to produce troll accounts and engage in bot operations to reflect am inordinate quantitative interest on their troll operations. 

But traditional media is different.Very, very different indeed.

Now let me engage into some lectures. In journalism school, I use to tell students that there's such thing as newsroom management. Those news accounts and feature stories that normally appear on the pages of print media materials like newspapers, newsmagazines, and magazines usually undergo some processes. 

The publishing processes are different from the social media processes. They are more rigorous. They are products of centuries of traditions. They do not appear as whimsical as one could imagine as in other media platforms like social media. 

Traditional media like print media have sets of professionals, who work in news publishing: the writers, the editors, who function as gatekeepers too, and the logistic officers, who provide the resources necessary for smooth news gathering, news writing, news editing, and news publishing. They comprise the editorial arm, or half of the print media business.

The other half is the business arm. They are distinct and different from the editorial arm. This is comprised of the revenue guys. The advertising people bring as much as advertising revenues for the publications. They go out and solicit ads from industries, governments, civil society, and other entities that would place advertisements of the publication's pages and pay. 

The circulation people sell the printed copies and bring in revenues. Hence, the business side ensures revenues and income that could propel the business operations of a publication.

As a rule, the editorial and business arms of any publication operate as separate republics. One does not dictate on the other. But they talk and coordinate. 

The business arm could tell the editorial side what the market want. The editorial side could inform the business arm on the thrust of the editorial contents of the publication. The editorial side does not have to seek the permission of the business side when it comes its editorial judgment. Neither do the editorial side interferes in the business judgments of the other side. 

These are the dynamics in the print media. Such dynamics are products of centuries of traditions.

Little did the digoons understand that the polls called by Time were not initiated by its editorial department. It came mainly from the business people, whose intention was to create a hype on its project on 100 most influential people in the world. 

The polls were launched to create some hype to boost sales of printed copies and generate advertising revenues. The polls were a marketing ploy, which the digoons took hook, line, and sinker without understanding their ramifications, implications, and complications. 

They wrongly thought that by joining the polls and making the sick old man from the south the first in the polls, their idol would land on the cover of Time magazine. Wrong. Their limited mind hardly understands the dynamics in print media. They are grossly ignorant of its operations and dynamics.

As a rule, Time's editorial department does not hold such kind of polls, which are unscientific and crude by all means. If ever it does, it would likely commission a credible polling institution to do an equally credible opinion poll. 

Editorial people do not resort to popularity contests. On the contrary, they abhor those things, knowing that they could yield unfavorable results. 

Hence, the digoons were surprised to find that the sick old man was just one of the 100. He was not on the cover page. The devastating fact for them was that Sen. Leila De Lima, their idol's nemesis, was listed as another influential leader - and in a different category: Icons. 

They could not believe it. They were mad. Now, they are calling for a boycott of Time. Who have the last laugh? Your guess is as good as mine.

What had happened to the Time's polls. Actually, they were no polls by standards of social research. They were just inquiries.. The hard copies of their results most likely ended in the filing cabinet for future use or whatever. The polls could have been hyped, but they were of very little use. In hindsight, which is always 20/20, the digoons were used.

WRONG JOURNALISM

By Philip M. Lustre Jr.

This is an experience I’ve almost forgotten. I was about to consign it to oblivion, when I felt that the current situation required me to narrate it once more, if only for its latent wisdom.

Nearly five months ago, I attended a media forum and workshop, where participants were some journalism students from a downtown university, while the rest were a mixture of working journalists. The moderator, a seasoned journalist, who had worked in local dailies and now a journalism teacher in one of the better universities, opened the workshop by asking participants, particularly the students, their assessment of the current state of Philippine media.

A student in his early 20s immediately responded by declaring his frustration over what he described as the nature of new coverage. It’s too one-sided, he declared, but not to favor the current administration, which, at that time, was gaining international notoriety and condemnation for the growing spate of extrajudicial killings (EJKs).

We were mostly inclined to accept his diatribes because it was his right to express his mind. But what surprised us was his sweeping generalization that the perceived lack of fairness to favor the government was caused by the machinations of what he termed as “dilawan,” or “yellow forces” in local mass media. He did not offer any proof. It was just one sweeping statement to reflect the thinking of many people, who support the incumbent president and his violent antidrug war, which is now being perceived as a war against the poor, or those people "with a pair of dirty feet."  

Not a few quizzical brows went up by such daring, sweeping generalization. It did not escape my attention either. As a journalist and teacher, I had to do my share to disabuse what I considered the student’s poisoned mind.  I did my share to explain. I spoke out of my commitment to truth.

Journalism has three basic tenets, I said. These are truth, balance, and objectivity, or fairness. Every journalism student should understand those basic tenets because everything revolves on these tenets, I said.

Truth is the journalist’s fundamental commodity, as he goes out and competes in the marketplace of ideas, I said. Of course, I express my indignation at the sweeping generalization that if the news reports did not conform to his mindset, it was yellow and should be condemned.

Then, I went to explain media’s role as society’s watchdog. Mass media’s role is to report the truth. It works without an agenda. If ever it works to favor certain parties, then it becomes a propaganda machine, I said. It was my way to inculcate into the young man’s mind that mass media should not be a propaganda machine of the party in power.

As I explained mass media’s role, I could not help but take a dig on the kind of journalism education he was getting from the downtown university, the owners of which are known supporters of the incumbent president, and, of course, his teachers. Then, I summed p my discussions by telling him that mass media functions basically "to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted."

I could not help but frame my statement with the clarifying premise, saying “I don’t know what your teachers taught you in school and I don’t have any personal knowledge, but if I were your teacher, I would tell you … blah … blah … blah.”

Actually, I viewed the poor student as victim of prevalent mind-conditioning - or even mind-poisoning - that emanates from a growing culture of populism, where every issue should be settled by taking a short cut instead of engaging in the circuitous route premised on the twin principles of rule of law and due process.

The student hardly spoke as I explained the rudiments of journalism, which his teachers apparently deprived him in journalism school. I did not have to engage in any sophisticated discussions of the issue. I just stuck to the fundamentals.

Incidentally, it has been a habit among the president's rabid supporters to blame everything to the "yellow forces," which, at this point, have become some sort of a phantom enemy. 

If they were referring to the Liberal Party (LP), they should at the very least know that the LP has been emasculated by mass defections to the ruling PDP-Laban and the "Super Majority" in Congress.

Blaming everything to the Yellows is easy. It is the product of a lazy mind. Engaging in that sweeping accusation is a function of monumental ignorance and stupidity.