President Aquino needs more than mantras and prayers to be spared from criticism

noynoy_aquinoOnce again, we find Philippine President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III lamenting the “negativism” from the local media:

“Negativism has continued in the media. It is as if there is no controversial issue, media coverage becomes boring,” Aquino said in his speech aired over state-run Radyo ng Bayan. “There were some who were very good at criticizing – breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and sometimes midnight snack,” he added.

At this point, critics can tell BS Aquino: but you did not die, right?

In that same gathering, he was given a “Man of Steel” award for “showing strength in times of adversity.”

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If you ask me, he does deserve that award, albeit for a very different reason; because he’s thick faced (matapang ang apog), dense (di na natuto), difficult to cause to move without a lot of effort (mabagal kumilos), and because he has very few OTHER facial expressions (iisa lang ang mukha) that he’s capable of.

It’s kind of ironic that he is given that “Man of Steel” award in the same night that he complains about media’s negativity. And it’s not the first time he has done the latter.

Unfortunately, once BS Aquino starts opening his mouth, he doesn’t know how to stop. The previous quote and the following ones are taken from his remarks at the recently concluded Christmas gathering of the Bulong-Pulungan media forum:

Mr. Aquino said he had tried everything to rally support from his critics.

“Actually, I’ve appealed, I’ve complained. I’ve given time, for instance, especially to media. And I am sure, between you and I, we can point to so many columnists who have never said anything nice about me,” he said.

“So I’ve prayed for them also. And I mean that not in jest, I really have prayed for enlightenment for a lot of these people. The message simply is that what you put down affects the lives of people. Are you confident that what you put down helped them?” the President said.

Source: Manila Standard

Sure you can say you “tried everything”, but did you try listening to them? Did you try being more receptive to what they had to say? Did you try to see that perhaps, they did have a point? Did you try to do the right thing? Did you even stop to think that the reason some columnists “have never said anything nice about you” is that you don’t do something that is worth it?

By what right does BS Aquino consider those who criticize him “not enlightened”? Is he infallible? Why don’t we ask the residents of the city of Tacloban what they think of his so-called infallibility?

It would actually be better if BS Aquino prayed that it be 2016 already, where he will be scheduled to step down due to the one-term limit of presidents. BS Aquino is one to talk about “what you put down affects the lives of people”, if you consider that some of the decisions he has made in critical situations have led to the deaths of people, institutions and principles here in the Philippines.

So now, apparently, he has resorted to chanting mantras:

Aquino added he had adopted a new mantra which, aside from the oft-repeated “straight path,” would be “para sa bayan” (for the country) to keep him going during the worst days in his presidency.

Aquino, speaking at the Christmas gathering of the Bulung-Pulungan forum in Pasay City, said reciting his mantras keeps him from backing out from the challenges facing him.

“I have my mantra on days that I really could use some good news. And many people appear to have adopted this mantra, ‘for the country,’” he said.

Source: Daily Tribune

Is this another nebulous slogan/motherhood statement from BS Aquino? Who exactly constitutes this “bayan” he’s talking about? Only those who unconditionally agree with him and do not bother to call him out on his wrong decisions?

Last thing worth noting is that BS Aquino claims to remain unfazed by the dip in his approval ratings:

The President, meanwhile, said he is not affected by the slide in his popularity rating as reflected in the recent surveys of Pulse Asia and Social Weather Stations. “At the end of the day, the important thing is did I do right?” Aquino said during an interview with members of the Bulong Pulungan media group.

“Maybe it will rebound but that’s not important,” he added. Based on the SWS survey for the third quarter, Aquino’s net satisfaction rating went down 15 points. The number of Filipinos dissatisfied with Aquino’s performance also increased from 12 percent in June to 19 percent in September. The Pulse Asia survey, on the other hand, showed that majority of Filipinos believed that the misuse of the pork barrel funds continued under the Aquino administration.

BS Aquino can claim all he wants that dips in approval rating don’t affect him, but the image-conscious nature of his government has been obvious ever since the start of his term. For a presidency whose sole foundation of legitimacy is grounded on popularity, the approval rating affects him more than he is willing to admit.

Let me repeat here what I’ve said in the past about BS Aquino’s attitude towards “negativity”:

The post of president, the highest government post in the land, is one where intense public scrutiny is not only experienced, it is expected. It has aged and sucked the life out of those who have held its position. If BS Aquino and his supporters do nothing but complain about critics complaining about BS Aquino’s less-than-stellar performance, then perhaps he shouldn’t have been put there in the first place.

BS Aquino, under-performer that he is, would like to have us believe that it’s the effort that counts. And he once again makes a reference to his dead, over-rated parents. As quoted below:

He said his late parents, former Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. and former President Corazon Aquino, had said that “if they could have done something and they chose not to, then they would not have been able to live with themselves.”

“I would rather have said I did all I could. If there are good results, then thank you very much. If not, at least I could say I did not surrender,” he said.

Excuses and lamentations don’t shut critics up. Results do, and as long as BS Aquino keeps producing dismal ones, not even the strongest mantra or prayer can save him.

Thus, the question to be addressed to and by BS Aquino is remarkably simple:

Where are the results?

At the end of the day, any schmoe can wax poetic about “doing all he/she could”. But as that epic line from The Rock goes: Losers always whine about their best. The winners go home and f*ck the prom queen.

Where BS Aquino falls is ultimately up to him. It’s time for him to stop whining and start salvaging what’s left of his “legacy”.

80 Replies to “President Aquino needs more than mantras and prayers to be spared from criticism”

  1. Its must be time for philippino to roar with frustration and unite to vote in honest and intelligent leaders trained in economics and with a fair sense of Justice for all.We dont have that and all i can say is that every critic of the president and his team has been accurate and factual and constructive.Mr President you are a danger to all good hearted and hard working people.Step down sir and go back to your play station please

        1. Don’t underestimate a narcissist with delusions of grandeur (I can see it in his motives and writing). He is one really fucked up dude.

        2. Atheist:
          Do you mean MLQ3? I don’t trust him. A writer (was it Tiglao?) described him as “brilliant but morally challenged.”

        3. I’m not a fan of Bongbong and will certainly not vote for him, but surprise of surprises, in an interview with Kara David, he said that when he became governor of Ilocos Norte, the first thing he did was to assess what his people needed, and when he realized that majority of the people in the province were farmers, he concentrated on improving agriculture there. Today, thanks to the Marcoses, including the younger ones (Bongbong and Imee), Ilocos Norte is so progressive and is such a lovely place, and VERY CLEAN. The people there love the Marcoses not because they’re loyalist fools but because they’ve seen that the people’s lives became better because of the leadership of the Marcoses. The only thing that’s keeping me from deciding to vote for Bongbong in case he runs in 2016 is that he has not given any indication that he does not agree to his father’s corruption and human rights abuses. Go to Ilocos Norte and you’ll see what I mean. I fell in love with the place.

    1. Gordon or Gibo aren’t suspect as far as I’m concerned. They could be our best bets for change in the government. I know they don’t have winnability as of the moment, but who knows, especially after the major disaster that Aquino’s government has been so far?

  2. hndi nyo ba naiisi na ini-implement lng nya ang kanyang pangako na habulin at pgdusahin ang mga lumapastangan sa kaban ng bayan, maaaring mgdalawang- isip ang mga tao sa kkayahan
    ni PNoy, tlagang hndi nya
    kaya yan kung tayo mismo
    ang maglalaglag sa kanya, e bkit hndi natin cya tlungan, sa pmamagitan ng pgsira ng baluktot na sistema sa pamahalaan na minana pa sa mga unang namuno.

    1. Tatlong taon na ang pangulo mo sa palasyo eh wala parin siyang magawang maayus kundi sisi ng sisi. Matatawag mo parin bang mahusay yan kung puro iwas lang naman siya sa mga criticism?

      Sarap talaga maging UTO-UTO no?
      Sige, Singhot pa ng rugby

        1. Eh, siya rin naman ang nagdulot ng lahat nito sa sarili niya, gunggong.

          Yan lang ba ang kaya mong sabihin?

          Sige pa, singhot pa ng rugby, BOY

        2. Tacloban kasi ang unang-unang probinsiyang diretsong tinamaan ni Yolanda. Yung ibang probinsiya naapektuhan din pero di diretsong tinamaan, o kaya diretso ring tinamaan pero pagkatapos na ng Tacloban kaya humina na ang bagyo dahil tumama na sa lupa.

          Bakit may suspetsa ako na alam mo naman lahat ito, kathniel, pero lumulusot ka lang dito. Ang tutoong pangalan mo ba ay Ricky Carandang?

        3. “yung mayor ang nagdulot nito.”

          Same old spiel. That’s not effective, you idiot.

          “bakit sa ibang probinsya mababa lang ang pinsala?”

          Paano ka ba makakapaghanda ng maayos sa sobrang lakas at tindi na bagyo? Mas malakas pa yang Yolanda kaysa hurricane katrina, idiot.

          Face it, your arguments are very weak.

    2. Panong hindi negative, eh walang natupad sa mga pangako nya. “Kung walang kurap, walang mahirap”? So far wala pa ako nakikitang nakulong dahil sa corruption. NAIA still the worst airport. public transport still sucks, etc. wala!!

        1. 3 taon na nga, umaasa parin siya sa mga katulad mong tanga.
          Anung klaseng lider yan kung umaasa siya sa mga katulad mong UTO-UTO?

        2. marami nang nagawa ang pangulo.isa na dyan ang mataas na gdp, peace talks imbes na giyera at 4p’s para sa mahihirap.

        3. “marami nang nagawa ang pangulo.”

          Talaga ha? eh bakit NGA-NGA parin siya hanggang ngayon???

          “isa na dyan ang mataas na gdp”
          Bale wala yan kung hindi naman ramdam ng tao ang asenso. Nakakain ba ang gdp?

          “peace talks imbes na giyera”

          Bakit nagkaroon ng Zamboanga Siege hmm?? Akala ko ba may peace talks??

          “at 4p’s para sa mahihirap.”

          Wala parin nangyayari sa 4ps mo gunggong. Marami paring mahihirap

    3. Tinutulungan nga namin siya, kaya lang ang problema e kasama siya sa baluktot na sistema, kaya kailangan siyang atakihin para matigil na siya sa panloloko sa mga kagaya mong bulag.

    4. Inuna pa niya ang paghahabol ng mga `baboy` sa putikan…

      Siguro nga iniimplement niya ung sinasabing tuwid na daan. Pero, mukhang nafocused ata nang husto dun, nakalimutan na niya ang ibang responsibilidad bilang pangulo ng BUONG PILIPINAS.

      1. Hindi niya ini-implement ang tuwid na daan. Niloloko lang tayo no’n. He’s just persecuting his enemies. Kung tuwid na daan talaga, kahit kasama niya sa Liberal Party at kaibigan paparusahan niya pag nagkasala. Ang nangyari, ginawa lang sacrificial lamb si Ruffy Biazon dahil willing, para lang di na sabihing mga kalaban niya lang ang hinahabol niya. Pero di lahat kaya niyang lokohin.

  3. The dictator BS Aquino describes criticism as negativism. What he did and failed to do is recorded by the Philippine press. I was laughing my head off when they called him “man of steel.” “Plastic man” would be more descriptive of his style of leadership. LOL!

    @Kathniel Sino ba ang inaakala mong godfather ng PDAF/DAP? Di ba si plastic man Aquino? You yellow trolls are also plastic people. TROLL HARDER!!!

      1. Nah, it’s definitely YOUR president.
        FYI, pork barrel tripled under his presidency thus leading to widespread kurakot.

        1. i still haven’t heard of the President’s name in the pork scam yet. but enrile, jinggoy and estrada are most suspected to be part of this.

        2. R U still missing the fact that ALL OF THEM are in on the thievery? U still need it all explained to you? The fact that the ones found guilty of plunder/corruption/crony-ism/election fraud/extortion/Graft are still in ‘elected’ capacities (offices) because the rest of them facilitate the whole charade? This is still a mystery to you after all you have seen and been told? Right here on these pages of GRP, and you still don’t get it?

          My God Mon, Get real? NO, first…get a clue!

          WOW!

  4. Appealing for support from critics? Frankly, that’s a self-contradictory approach. The reason why he has that many critics is he’s obviously doing it wrong. He’d better listen rather than appeal.

    1. he has many critics because of jealousy and he made philippines better. why don’t you just help repacking relief goods for dswd instead of whining?

      1. “he has many critics because of jealousy and he made philippines better.”

        How?? How did he make the philippines better?
        How do you explain the high poverty, high unemployment rate and high prices of commodities then?

        “Why don’t you just help repacking relief goods for dswd instead of whining?”

        This old spiel again?
        You haven’t gotten anything new against us do you?
        Face it, your trolling days are numbered.

      2. No, we won’t package goods and then have your people stamp your President’s or Vice President’s face on it.

      3. Already did. I have exhausted all of the things that I can do for that, but I can only do so much. Am I not allowed to work for my own keep anymore?

        What’s the difference of me and those people in authority? well..they have power, influence, authority, resources and lots more that I as an ordinary citizen don’t have. And they are misrepresenting it, mishandling it and just wanting to be on top of the news.

        I’m no politician and it’s not my call anyway, I voted last elections but all of the people I wanted to represent me lost. Jealousy of what exactly? Are you telling me it’s ok to play the blame game now?

        Made the Philippines better? Then how come it hasn’t really coped up yet? What about next year? Will Metro Manila be underwater then? Every president will always have his or her own critics..for as long as the campaign promises remain undone or broken the term trapo will forever haunt each office.

      4. You’ve got to be kidding me. You must be troll. You have to be because nobody is this stupid. Stop using the “ur just jealous” card. PLEASE. AS IF. We’re not jealous of Noynoy, we see how stupid and incompetent he is.

      5. Bwahahaha, TROLL HARDER. Ayoko ngang tumulong sa DSWD at pineperahan lang nila yung mga relief goods na iyan.

        Siguro hindi mo rin alam iyon ano? Because you’re too busy praising our “beloved” president.

        Alright, how did your life became better when PNoy became president, aber? Give me bullet points, please. I’m serious about it, hindi yung puro drawing lang ang nasa isip mo.

  5. The handling of the Typhoon situation was a seriously flawed effort and showed the utter incapability of the ENTIRE country/government to deal with a disaster. After decades of corruption and squandering millions of U.S.Dollars to those ends who only seek for themselves a posh place to live for themselves and families, what can anyone in the country expect? There are simply too many thieves guarding the treasury and to that end they are not releasing the strangle hold they have on the purse strings of the people’s money. It is simple, even if someone else had the job: Filipino’s would still get the same sardines and circus’s. When to stop beating the dead horse and do something completely different is what the avg. Filipino should be thinking about rather than the same old “Change” that gets trotted out 6 months before every election(?).

    Sadly, if it is not undertaken to do something radically different? The same song will reverberate throughout the archipelago for another 35-50 years, uh huh!

  6. and while I am at it, WTF do people expect from the President anyway? Why is it that all Filipino’s think that one Man is going to change their lot in life? Certainly the idea must be implanted in someone’s brain that getting an education and getting a job and working hard will improve the lot of their family more than electing an official to a government post,no?
    Want something to change?
    I can tell your future, just look at what is in your hand and you will have your answer. The future of the country? it is not in anyone Man’s hands, it is your own.

    1. What’s the difference of me and those people in authority? well..they have power, influence, authority, resources and lots more that I as an ordinary citizen don’t have. And they are misrepresenting it, mishandling it and just wanting to be on top of the news.

      Now in a sense, of course I am the only one who can change my own life. The problem is, some people whether it is direct or indirect, intentional or not may have some effect in your life.

      One example would be going back 4-5 years ago I could not get hired by a company not because I wasn’t skilled enough but because my school was linked to a former president that was an opposition to the current regime.

      Could you believe that bullshit? It wasn’t my fault to begin with, and yet they try to push it on me when I didn’t have anything to do with it. One person did a lot to make my career change its course, even though he/she didn’t really intend it.

      But you know what, yeah you’re right with my own future is at my own hand. Thanks to that, I’ve gone freelance. No more none of that bureaucratic bs in the office. 😀

      1. I agree with you 100%, Sanzo, and I can only sympathize with you with regard to your work or job application experience. Some people can really be ultra-petty. Sign of a small mind, a troubled heart, or a dark spirit? By the way, I also do freelance, home-based work. Can’t stand office politics.

        1. Well, thanks for that.

          Anyway, since I’ve gone freelance my perspective of the world has changed and it wasn’t as rosy as it was when I graduated.

          People can be ultra-petty at times but that’s how the world works. It’s unfair, and it will always be..you’d just have to make it fair to you.

          hmm possibly an evil spirit lol.

          You can smell the foul odor of someone’s breath and you’d know he or she had been kissing too much ass lately in the office, glad I’m out of that cesspool. Whether I meant that literally or not is up to anyone’s interpretation. :))

        2. When I was still teaching history, a student asked me, “But the world will treat you well as long as you do what’s good, right?” My answer: “Sorry to burst your bubble this early, but no, the world doesn’t work that way. It just doesn’t work that way at all. What to do then? Do good for goodness’s sake, not because you think the world will treat you well if you do.” I hope that helped prepare my students for the world they were about to enter without making them lose their idealism. But I guess even we who’ve been out of the school system for sometime now need to remind ourselves of that every so often.

  7. Critics of the government of Mr. Aquino are right in pressuring him. Their messages have to penetrate his Thick Skull.
    Filipinos deserve the best government service, in exchange for their hard earned tax money. If Mr. Aquino would have served well. There is no need to criticize.
    Awarding yourself with , “Man of Steel” Award. Will never change anything. People already know that, when a crisis is there; Mr. Aquino will always go to his Hole; stay there inside his Hole, till the crisis has ended. As soon as the smoke is cleared; he comes out from his Hole, and find someone to blame. What does he think of himself? SUPERMAN?…Man of Steel and Super Vision…

    1. If Mr. Aquino was indeed competent, he wouldn’t rely on idiots like kathniel for his propaganda but since kathniel keeps showing himself here, it just proves how incompetent Mr. Aquino really is.

      Of course I know that you won’t reply kathiel because everything I’ve said is 100% true. If you reply, that means you are just trolling here

  8. While on the subject of poor performance in the Philippines, do not overlook the inferior electric service provided by the Mactan Electric Company (MECO). This company has to be known for the constant power failures they provide. MECO is not and electric distribution company, it is and electric interruption company. MECO makes life on Mactan unfit for human beings.

  9. Man of steel awarded by a group of women journalist. Real men must really be hard to come across these days, especially by these women journalists, they do not even have a clue what a man is.

    1. What’s my mantra? KSP is the root of all evil. You ever heard of them before? Now they are being quoted and probably being asked for interviews. They have been motivated. The motivation of the green variety. Win Win for them. KSP is the root of all evil.

      1. it is the entire government/GOCC situation. Every single election/market/utility in the country is rigged to support the Oligarchy. it is not just one politician or political party. it is such a mess, a corporate kleptocracy that anything less than a complete removal of the entire system is futile and doomed to failure. The ‘massa’ are doomed. Oh yes, its true! from conception till death…to a life-time of poverty… and to bring another person into such a situation in un-conscionable and yet the population is exploding.

        anyone who can get out of the hell-hole country should do so immediately and never return!

        1. What I meant was (sorry for not being clear in the first place) was the organization that called him the Man of Steel. Now everybody knows who they are. Just compromise honesty and give in. Voila PANSIN!!!!

  10. For his mettle daw. What coping he did during the calamity? Uhm…. chew the asses of the local officials and walk-out. Oh, and go back few days later to promise not to leave until improvements were seen, but left anyway upon hearing the DAP decision. And, yeah, keep the death toll down for God-knows-what purpose he has in his empty brain.

    Mettle…. what mettle?

    My IQ is dropping by the second… I am becoming one of them.

    —–Lghtning McQueen

  11. “we can point to so many columnists who have never said anything nice about me”

    “on days that I really could use some good news”

    (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻

  12. “sigh” What an idiot. Really, did he think that being a president would be a cozy sinecure? He better get use to criticisms justified or otherwise.

        1. “Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable.[1] The term also includes criminal damage such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner.”

          Are you saying his face is beautiful and venerable? (really?)

          Guess I should ask permission first. “Hey, balding guy in yellow, yes, you. How do you like a rotten egg on your face?”

          hahah

        2. I guess I’d go for the modern meaning of the word, as you cited (“…including criminal damage such as graffiti and defacement directed towards ANY PROPERTY without permission of the owner”). Defacing any property, beautiful or not, without the permission of the owner….

        3. Eww..his face is beautiful and venerable? …I think I’m gonna puke on my breakfast..>_<

          How I wish I can unread that haha

          Make sure to throw a dozen then. :))

        4. I think the yolk turns green, when it turns, though.

          Somebody really has to do this sort of thing just to get this guy back to reality, including all his loyal supporters.

  13. Boo-hoo-hoo, out president can’t take criticisms.

    Maybe if he stopped blaming other people and started improving his leadership then he wouldn’t be roasted by his critics right now.

    1. His malacanang moronic mooks can’t handle being roasted either, kathniel or should I say Mr. Carandang has yet to reply after getting roasted and BURNED.

      1. I’m expecting his usual spiels to arrive here such as “GDP increased by 7% by PNoy, better living in the Philippines because of PNoy, etc.”

        It’s like listening to a lame beat that’s being played over and over in radio stations catered to Class-D people.

        1. Class-D meaning the uneducated “tambays” who would rather engage in “tong-its” than save some money for a rainy day.

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