Nothing is definite

Batas Mauricio

IS it really final now, the declaration made last Monday by Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte that he is not (again) running for the presidency in 2016?

How about his statement the week before that what his supporters and possible political foes should really watch out for is his going to Manila on Oct. 15, 2015, a day before filing of certificates of candidacy lapses?

My take is this: as long as the filing of certificates of candidacy would not have ended by 5 pm of Oct. 16, 2015, nothing is really definite yet on Duterte’s plans. It can happen, by some stroke of fate, that he may yet be convinced to flip-flop (deliberately, that is) once more, in the greater interest of the country, of course.
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If a picture paints a thousand words, then, the proclamation photo of the Liberal Party that came out on newspapers on Tuesday, showing President Aquino with Mar Roxas, Leni Robredo and the party’s candidates for senators in the 2016 election, could draw up only one word: “failure.”

It was an epic failure in fact of the Liberal Party to live up to the billing proudly trumpeted by Aquino himself after the senatorial candidates were presented to the public, who said only the Liberal Party managed to complete its senatorial line up as of that time.

Yet, Aquino’s declaration became a laughing stock among many election watchers the day after because it was clear that Aquino was clearly bluffing. One supposed candidate––a very important one, if I may say so because it is former Sen. Panfilo Lacson––was missing from the proclamation, showing to all and sundry that Aquino’s candidates were in fact not complete yet!
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Lost in the excitement of the 2016 elections is the forthcoming yearly commemoration of All Saints’ Day or the day where relatives who have gone to the great beyond are remembered by the living once more. It is an annual event, yet, it is clear that many believers are at a loss as to its real significance.

Indeed, why do we remember the dead? Is it only to enable the living to hold reunions with other living relatives? Is it only to pray for the souls of the dearly departed ones? With due respect, it is much more than these things. If we are to study the Bible, we will see that there is a much more important reason for remembering those who went ahead of us.

What is this more important reason? It is to proclaim, once more, the Word of God to the dead. According to the Bible, a person who dies will no longer be able to know anything, as he will no longer be able to hear anything. Yet, the dead can hear the Word of God, which can even transform them, even if they are already dead, from being sinners to righteous souls.

E-mail: batasmauricio@yahoo.com