That tarpaulin connection

Nora Soriño

ILIGAN City–Thankfully, there was the four-day respite from all the mundane affairs we’re dealing with these days. But after that, back to basics, back to reality.

So, back to seeking wi-fi connection. If there’s none at the office for the moment, that is. Of which there is none most of the time unless I buy load for the pocket wi-fi.

There’s that connection at the plaza which is only a few walks away. That is, if we know in what portion of the plaza to standby along with the gadget.

It was Ric, a media practitioner, who told me of this wi-fi connection there. And I thank him very much for this.

Aside from this, I got another connection, and that is, a nutty connection. I mean, I got to connect with some of the “nuts” there.

   Not all nuts, or crazies are created equal. There’s a nut who poses silently in one portion of the stage where all the chess players,  meet to play their games.

So I connect with her with a smile, or an offer of a “snack” from a snack seller passing by and she accepts gratefully.  And that somehow makes my day (shades of Clint Eastwood of Dirty Harry fame) as it is one of my  mottos “to do something good” for someone each day even how small that is.

Recently, a reality sank in with me. There’s another connection that has overcome me recently, without my even realizing it for some time.

I  call it  a “tarpaulin connection” for want of a better term.

That might be kind of funny but it is a reality!

The city public plaza, otherwise known as Rizal Park is per my estimate,  a one-tenth of a hectare space for people “who do nothing.” In this  regard, some words come to my mind some notice at some jeepney, “If you’ve nothing to do, don’t do it here!”

I had sometimes wondered about that. Why forbid someone to do “nothing” and cautioning him not to do “nothing” here? It was like someone voting for status quo and a friend Lydia said to me in hushed tones: “I never knew until today that there’s a candidate by the name of ‘status quo’.”

But back to the “tarpaulin connection,” my recent discovery.

The plaza has been overtaken, I mean, overran, or “conquered” ha ha, by the “pulahan” or “red” team of Mayor Celso Regencia! Silently, that is.

When had all this happened? Suddenly the tarps who had all looked at me in  all their splendor in their sweet and not so sweet smiling faces had come to life, begging me for something.They all had connected with me, making me forget for  the moment the other connections that I had sought there.

There was one face that said beneath a somewhat lopsided smile: “Gahi dili hiwi.”

What, describing himself like coco, not coco of “Probinsyano” fame but of the coconut lumber kind.

Another described himself: “Gusto ko safe ka.” Ha? He has become indespensable to my safety? But has he made my money at city hall safe?

Another said: “Gusto ko may tambal ka.” What? But is not the city hospital always running out of  “tambal?” Another said, “Ang buhat maoy pasultihon.” But was she unable to liquidate the funds used for the past two fiesta seasons?

“How much are you worth?” Asked another big faceless tarp. After that statement, there was a compute of P500 divided by 365 which amounted to just P0.45 daily. And “not even some amount of ‘ginamos’ could be bought by that much with the price of the vote that you have sold.” This was an allegation of some other color, say “solid blue” color of “vote buying” coming from the “pulahan” because the “blue” could afford to buy as “they are businessmen.” Buying the voter like me for P500, say the message.

Some clarifications on “ginamos” or salted fish though. An American then was said to be asking his Pinoy bride “what’s that rotten thing that they are  eating.”

The Pinoy bride answered: “Darling, that’s a kind of fish that died long ago!”

Now back to that particular tarp. The “blue” team of Rep. Frederick Siao though has that allegations of “vote buying” against the “pulahan” camp, too.

There are tarps on “party-lists” too, maybe those that are close to the hearts of the mayor as they are inside the plasa. Relative to this Jun Ramos of CDO had texted this writer: “‘Comelec Manila Nasecore filed petitions to disqualify partylists Philreca; Recoboda; Ako Padayon, Apec.’” For they are using the funds of electric cooperatives.

This  allegation of “how much are you worth” that could also be thrown by the other colors like blue or green or yellow to the “pulahans” of Regencia.

   And if the “reds” have “conquered” the inner portion of the plaza, the other colors could not be outdone. For they have thoroughly “fenced” the outer portion of the plaza, most notably by the “solid blue” team with their “MMDA” cry which is “Maghiusa, Magpakabana Dakbayan Alagaran.”

There is a smattering too of other colors, the greens, the whites and the independents that joined the “fencing” of the outer portion of the plaza. One “independent” councilor wannabe has this battle cry beside his face: “He he he he.”

It occurred to me: Since when did “he he he he” become a mantra for a councilor wannabe? Is this some kind of a joke? Or maybe he considers us voters as jokers.

I asked myself: In relation to tarps, who’s gonna come out as sure winners, the ones who “occupy” the insides of the plaza? Or the ones who’s “fencing” the plaza? A silly question actually. For election battles are not won by tarps alone. Kind of like saying, “man does not live by bread alone.” Meaning, he also needs butter too? Just kidding again.

“You want to know who’s winning by tarps alone?” Someone said over my shoulder. It was Phil a friend as if  reading my thoughts. Without waiting from words from me, he continued: “Look at the tarps pasted in private houses, and you’ll know who’s gonna win.”

Logical, I thought. So I set out to see, at first one barangay. Del Carmen was my first choice. There were many tarps pasted there for the “solid blue’’ team of Cong. Frederick Siao, Dodong Alemania and Sammy Huertas. They are congressman, mayor and vice, although Siao is for the second time as he’s the incumbent for this lone district of the city.

Well, the barangay chairman here in del Carmen is an Abragan, and among its candidates is Atty. Providencio Abragan Jr., a “councilorable.” Maybe, they are believers of the “theory of relativity.” Not of Albert Einstein’s theory but its variation. Like, “the more successful you are, the more you have relatives.” Hi hi.

And there was one that struck me as somewhat funny too. A house there had all but pasted his walls with the red tarps of City Mayor Celso Regencia and the rest of his ticket who are running mostly again in their present positions.

Not contented with all those tarps in his walls and fences, there were at least ten red-colored flags flying over those tarps. Maybe, a gesture of “fight to the  death for the red as far as Barangay del Carmen is concerned, even if they’re outnumbered there.” So, in said barangay, in this local fight, it’s clear, who’s got the numbers there and I’ve got to thank Phil for that newly found “truth.” Now, there are only 43 more barangays to find out the “truth,” the  “tarps” way. Wait, there’s still one barangay, which is barangay city hall. And without the need for survey the tarp way, we know who’s ticket is leading there.

The score is even then for the blue  and the red. Now it’s time to find who’s who in the 43 other barangays.

On second thought, there’s no need anymore because the “truth” can be obtained come May 13!