Arrogance is an ugly thing

The President’s State of the Nation Address was disturbed by the power play for the leadership of the House of Representatives.

If you think about it, Pantaleon Alvarez’s fall from grace was no surprise.

Now, Bebot Alvarez is my friend. He was a very pleasant, amiable man, and I was proud to call him a friend.

But his personality changed when he became the Speaker of the House.

Bebot developed hubris, which is excessive pride or self-confidence, because of the power his position had.

His actions created enemies even out of friends.

I remember the times when Bebot, Tonyboy Floirendo Jr. and I were good friends.

In fact, we both tried to reach out to Bebot when we saw what was happening to him, but he refused to listen to us.

Tonyboy and Bebot would later become enemies.

He also abused his power in other ways.

He sought revenge against an influential businessman.

What he forgot was that this person had helped many people, and they all remembered his kindness.

His rift with Davao City Mayor and presidential daughter Sara Duterte also contributed to the situation, with his offensive accusation that Sara was a part of the opposition.

This was because she formed a separate regional political party.

There were times when Bebot would go to five-star hotels, wearing only shorts and slippers.

For the Speaker of the House, that was improper.

It was unbecoming of people with higher intelligence and dignity.

That is why former President and Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo had no problem gaining most of the votes.

Bebot’s hubris allowed GMA and the influential businessman to use their carefully cultivated political relationships to have a majority vote, with Sara playing an influential role.

This political exercise demonstrated Sara’s role in current politics, and Gloria’s enduring power and political skill.

I miss the Bebot I used to know.

I hope that this situation will be a wake-up call.

*****

Speaking of arrogance, I saw this online viral video where a police officer slapped a bus driver.

There is no excuse for that.

PO1 Edmar Costo claimed he was insulted by the bus driver’s bribery attempt.

He was about to give the bus driver a ticket for reckless driving, when the driver offered a hundred pesos.

What Costo should have done was to arrest the driver right there, and let the law take its course.

Slapping the driver was not the right thing to do.

It’s disgusting to see many law officers caught on video abusing their powers.

If you are going to enforce the law, do it right.

Otherwise, it’s plain stupidity.

It doesn’t matter if you are the Speaker of House, or if you are a police officer.

Do your job right, and serve the people properly.