The 'Bob Ong Effect'

I have learned from my journalism GE class then in UP that we have something called as the 'CNN effect.' This refers to the impact of that popular 24 hours news channel in decision making of different countries (especially the US) during the final days of the Cold War. Aside from that, the popularity of the 24 hour news channel eventually paved the way for more 24 hours news channels all over the world. (Here in the Philippines, we have the ANC.)

So how is it related to Bob Ong? The oh-so great Filipino author that is now revered by mostly teenage readers.

This is because the country is currently feeling the wave of the 'Bob Ong effect.'

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Ever since I got hold of his first book, I was simply mesmerized on the way he wrote. He spoke directly to the point. He had freely expressed his thoughts, views and feelings without any inhibitions (except that he has yet to reveal his true identity).

From that day on, I instantly became his follower. Which did not just happen to me but to millions of other teenagers out there who do not really read books but because of their 'love' for Bob Ong, they were more than willing to be his 'followers.'

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Aside from making the 'Internet generation' to sit down on a corner and read his books, Bob Ong also opened up lots of opportunities for aspiring and deserving Filipino writers. Like what he said in 'Stainless Longganisa', the book industry is quite skeptical and conservative before when it comes to publishing 'out-of-the-box' books that are 'yet to be tried and tested' for 'commercial viability.'

But he was not discouraged. He had instead seen it as an opportunity. That single bold step he took forever changed the way books are being published here in the Philippines and paved the way for some sort of a 'renaissance' in contemporary Philippine literature.

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The first seeds were planted on the web through his now defunct website Bobong Pinoy. And so, after it had bore fruit on the 'mainstream publishing platform', its effects had went back to its roots: the internet.

The 'internet generation' that had been affected by the 'Bob Ong effect' is now ruling the web by their websites, blogs and profiles that somehow mimicks Bob Ong's way of expressing his thoughts, feelings and views. Oh yes, they are copycats. But mind you, very beautiful copycats. Some of them had even improved Bob Ong's style of delivering direct to the point, satirical and funny lines.

Some of their posts had elicited so much discussion and reactions from its visitors because of its ticklish, controversial and juicy topics. Some of which had even their blogs published into a book that contains some of their best posts - which I'm eying on in the not so distant future.

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But some would say that he was not the first one to do so. That this 'Bob Ong effect' is nothing but the true Filipino 'expressionism' lying under our skins. Yes, but we were too timid to show it off. We are afraid of what other people would think of us. Yet all these years, we were all thinking about the same thing.

Maybe Bob Ong saw this. That's why he took the risk and the rest is history.

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I guess, he would be far from the so-called 'standards' when it comes to being a great literary person. But I think that would be too unfair. He do deserve to be placed in the roster of great Filipino authors like Nick Joaquin, Jose Villa Panganiban and F. Sionil Jose. Maybe even with Francisco Balagtas.

Why?

Simply because Bob Ong made a nation of non-readers into a book loving nation. He had been able to reach out to all strata of our society. He made a CEO and a tinapa vendor laugh and cry over the same lines in his book.

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I believe what makes him different from other authors is that he does not want to be placed in a pedestal. He is very humble and does not take all the credit for what he had done. He also does not want to monopolize his niche but instead encourages more gifted writers to come out in the open and write good books. He may be an 'established name' but he is not afraid that other authors would someday 'get away his crown.'

He may not know it but definitely, the 'Bob Ong effect' is on.

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Photo source here.

'My God Does Not Torture People'

That statement above came from Melissa Roxas, one of the thousands of activists, student leaders, labor leaders and peasants who have experienced the worst kind of abuse that could possibly happen in a supposedly free country like the Philippines.

Well, she's 'lucky' to be alive. Thousands of patriotic people like her had been either silenced forever or abducted to be perpetually tortured. Only a few had been able to escape: Raymond Manalo and Melissa Roxas.

They've told their stories but no one listened. Now, their number has risen to more than a thousand, the highest number of human rights abuses committed under a 'democratically' elected president since the martial rule.

In her press conference, she said that her captors claimed that they are 'instruments of God' trying to bring her back into the fold of the government. Roxas then replied in return: 'my God does not torture people.'

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We should expect more people like her to be abducted, killed or tortured as the 'deadline' for eliminating insurgency draws near. We should also not be surprised if they would target militant groups like Bayan, LFS, etc. because the AFP itself had claimed that these groups are 'front organizations of the CPP-NPA-NDF.' Which according to them, make them 'automatically' to be NPA members as well.

As for me, they are just patriotic men and women, true to the cause of the people and are advancing the common good in any way that they could.

It is no secret that some of their members end up being members of NPA as well. That is their choice. They believe that the armed struggle is the only way in solving the ills of our society. They believe that the armed struggle is the highest act of patriotism to help uplift our country from the way they see it. But not all of them end up that way.

But most of them simply love this country much that they are very much aware of the 'real' situation that is happening in the slums, in the countryside in the mountains. The very situation that our leaders should be able to see but either failed to do so or does not really care about it.

But believe me, no matter how hard the government tries to 'purge' our country from these 'dissidents and rebels', it would only further agitate these people to further advance their cause and make the Filipino people believe that these people that they are trying to kill are the people who are 'on the right side of history.'

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I bet this post would make me land on the AFPs 'watch list.' So if one day I had just suddenly disappeared, you would know where I am. Into the fold of the institution that is supposed to be protecting the people. But with the recent turn of events, it seemed they are much more willing to protect the interests of the few elite.

Nakakalungkot dahil minsan sa buhay ko pinangarap ko maging sundalo. Pero kung ganito lang ang makikita mo na nangyayari, wag na lang, sayang lang ang pagmamahal ko sa ating bayan.

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No offense meant to other soldiers out there who are not like some of those who are being used by the establishment to protect the interests of the few and suppress people who are just voicing out what everyone should know. It is just disheartening to see how they try to cover up the wrongdoings of their 'mistah' and end up doing the same as well.

That's why we have the coups. It is a sign that there are soldiers out there who feel the need for reforms within the military. But again, just like these people, the government does not even listen. Instead, they immediately label them as rebels.

Rebels, like Melissa Roxas and the thousands others who had been killed and silenced, who just had open up their eyes on the 'real realities' that is often downplayed by this government.

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And please, you are not God's chosen warriors that would get these people back to the 'right' path.

At para sa akin, ang mga 'rebelde' na ito ang mga pinili ng Diyos upang palayain ang bayang ito at ibalik ang lahat sa tamang landas.

Miles of Regress

If you have read the major broadsheets last Monday, I'm very much sure that you've come across an ad by our 'dear President Arroyo' that enlists all, if not some, of the benefits that we had gained from all of her trips in the past eight years of presidency. Lately, her foreign trips are being criticized by the opposition because it cost us more than 800 million pesos to fund her trips. Maybe, that's the reason behind the publication of this ad - paid by taxpayer's money.

All in all, the ad contains "14 benefits" that we have gained for the following: job generation, infrastructure development, protecting Filipino concerns, energy cooperation and agricultural development.

At a first glance, you would be somehow quite impressed because our 'dear' president had been able to get this and that. Although for me, ads like this does not impress me anymore - especially if this was paid using our money.

Anyway, the question is: Did we really get something substantial from her trips that had benefited all of us - especially those who need it most?

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Some of the benefits listed are quite specific: $2.3 billion investment and job opportunities from South Korea, $2 billion investment from China, etc. But did those investments have actually flowed into the Philippines? Maybe not.

Let us take a look at 'Chinese investments.'

The President first went to China in 2004. If I remember it right, China had promised her more than $1 billion in investment for our country. But according to my little research, China had never been a 'top source of foreign direct investments (FDI)' for our country considering the number of 'infrastructure projects' that they are supposed to finance. Not even in a single quarter in the succeeding years (2005-2008) that they have been in the top spot. In fact, Japan is consistently our major source of FDI from 2004 till 2008. Taiwan would even sometimes land on the second spot as a top source of FDI for our country. But China, it never even registered a blip on our radar screens.

If you have doubts on my claim well you may check out the facts here at the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) website.

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But what was really quite noticeable about the 'benefits' listed is that some of them are not concrete benefits that would readily benefit us. For example, we have this 'potential agreement' with Russia on energy, defense, etc. By definition, it is just a likely event but there is nothing definite yet and could actually not happen in the future. Another one are the MOUs with Brazil and Bahrain; so now that we have 'understood' each other, what happens next? Do these 'promises, understandings and agreements' materialize for our benefit?

Or our dear President is very busy selling off our country piece by piece. I just hope that it won't be the case.

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It is really disgusting to know that in times like this, wherein the government's budget deficit is estimated to be at record high this year - a whooping 257 billion pesos - this government can still afford to place ads in major broadsheets, TV and radio. Ads worth millions of pesos funded by taxpayers' money that won't even feed a single hungry mouth in the slums.

Ads that tries to makes us look stupid not to know that such claims in their ads are just part of their fantasy.

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What also pisses me off is the fact that this government is trying to look like a slut (I apologize for my term) by begging off for scraps from wealthier nations rather than supporting and developing our own industries. For example, this government would rather have our agricultural sector be developed by Saudi Arabia! What could a country that is almost a hundred percent desert can do to 'develop' our rich agricultural resources? Does this also mean that once they had develop this land, they now own it?

Maybe that's why her morons in Congress are pushing for ChaCha.

Extend her term and sell our country piece by piece and pocket billions of pesos - if not dollars - from it.

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Take a look at the annoying ad below.

Have you noticed how the ad was filled with pictures of our 'dear President' handshaking with the leaders of the countries she had visited? So what is its significance? Maybe it could be much effective tool to deceive us if they had instead placed pictures of the projects that had been ongoing or completed because of her trips.

But maybe, they don't have anything to show because none had really materialized.

They should except that a lot would beat their asses off after the noon of June 30, 2010.

I can't wait.

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Photo Credit: Philippine Information Agency