Aftermath of Grace Poe’s party

Letter to the Editor

I RECEIVED a traffic advisory memo for Grace Poe’s Thanksgiving Party on April 20, 2016 at the Pueblo de Oro Township, Cagayan de Oro. I was asking my Dad what was the thanksgiving party about. Has she won already? It’s not even May 09, 2016 yet.

Since the event was scheduled from 3 pm until 10 pm, we had to leave the township before 3 pm for our personal appointments so we won’t get caught in the traffic. While approaching SM Cagayan de Oro, I didn’t see just three or five buses nor did I just see 200 or 300 people. There were a whole lot of buses and a whole lot of people wearing white. At the back of my mind, I was asking, where did these people come from? I didn’t really give that further thought since she’s No. 2 in the survey.

But browsing social media, I saw photos of people waiting for buses at Agora Terminal and video of buses at Bukidnon lining up to leave for Poe’s party in Cagayan de Oro. Oh, that’s why there were way too many buses at Pueblo de Oro. I thought they were all Kagayanons who truly support the presidential candidate. Looks like, this was what they call “hakot”.

Since I’ve too much accepted reality, I didn’t dwell too much on vote buying and the “hakots”, but seeing photos this morning of the aftermath of the thanksgiving party got me all ill-tempered.

There was trash everywhere. If you’ve been to the area behind SM Cagayan de Oro, then you are well familiar with how clean the place always is – not until Grace Poe’s Thanksgiving Party. In as much as possible, I didn’t want to resort to calling people names, but when I saw the photos, all I ever said was “Trapo”.

I’m not fan of that term circulating on media but Poe made me just say it with so much conviction I wanted to say it right to her face. “Trapo.” Having also recently attended the Earth Day event at Centrio recently, the photos got so much into my nerves I want to tell Poe she’s a sick garbage and a foreign object.

Campaign. Get supporters. But never ever try to buy people’s dignity. Poe may want to apologize also and give support to “supporters” in that bus that flipped yesterday on the road. And the “hakots” she had waiting for her promised amount at the campaign in Baguio.

To the people who went to yesterday’s Thanksgiving party, be smart enough to vote wisely. I hope you rode that bus so you can ride free to Cagayan de Oro and not really return the favor to Poe on May 9.

For what it’s worth, I would like to thank Grace Poe. Thank you for visiting Cagayan de Oro. Please don’t come again. (name withheld upon request)