Ben Contreras THIS is a sequel to my “Income and Taxation” article of Sept. 23, 2015. One thing I didn’t include in that article was a question asked of me by a friend. He asked about about the P600 million allegedly withdrawn by a certain “so and so” in Manila or Quezon City. Yeah, what about it? It didn’t make sense withdrawing that money somewhere else, and brought to Cagayan de Oro. Lately, a group of people were talking about what I wrote, and suspected that this administration is siphoning off money to Quezon City for the Liberal Party campaign chest. Holy smoke! If this is not a rumor, was that money sent back to support LP candidates? Was there someone sent for this particular mission? Is there something we, the people of Cagayan de Oro, do not know, like how much income the city really has. And that doesn’t hurt, right? I remember what a former President allegedly told cabinet men and allies: “Magnakaw na kayo kung gusto nyo. Huwag lang kayong pahuli.” I am beginning to wonder why there seems to be no investigation on the nasty stories about who are building homes in posh subdivisions, who are buying flashy cars, and who are into illicit affairs, and all those stuff. Ayaw lang pasapon. Ugh! Consider all these, LP stalwarts in the city must be financially prepared this time, not to mention the VG and BP meeting with LP bigwigs in Manila.
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After so much speculation, the people of Cagayan de Oro finally saw the latest photo of Dongkoy, smiling from a car he rode. Two things tell different stories. His smile tells us that he is okay, but his hair says otherwise. I am no doctor. But everybody knows how Dongkoy’s hair looks like and what the photo shows us. Like I said, he is 74 and has proven his worth. He needs not prove anything further. Retire!
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Next week is crucial for Filipinos. The focus has been on the presidential aspirants. I am more interested on Rody Duterte, he who has been deliberately ignored or downplayed by some quarters. Duterte is not a candidate of any party. He is the people’s candidate and that makes him formidable. I don’t want to imagine what will happen when he ultimately files his certificate of candidacy. As they say, everybody loves a winner.
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In the past, I wrote about a meeting with a friend at Southwinds Hotel where after that, we asked the waiters who they would vote for as mayor. Coming out of Robinsons a few days ago, I saw a group of taxi drivers discussing political issues. I said, “Bibo na ang pulitika. Kinsa inyo mayor sa tulo?” “Libog lagi mi, Sir,” one answered. “Kinsa man imoha, Sir?” another asked. I mentioned one name, and all of them gave the thumbs-up sign. “Approved.” But if you know how to play basketball, you know the ball is round, right!