BACOLOD CITY — There is a famous Chinese saying, “He who rides a tiger is afraid to dismount.” Such happened to people who tried to ride a tiger by pleasing the MILF through crafting the now infamous MOA-AD thing.

But give it to Presidential Assistant Hermogenes Esperon. He was quoted the other day as saying, if the Supreme Court declares the MOA and the delicate issue of ancestral domain as illegal, government will cancel the MOA.

If this happens, expect a war, especially in the Cotabato area exploding, with the death of the son of the MILF commander. This is because government tried to dismount a tiger.

* * *

I like that warning against riding a tiger.

Speaking before the House of Commons on Oct. 15, 1938 or 70 years ago, Winston Churchill said, “Dictators ride to and fro upon tigers which they are afraid to dismount. And the tigers are getting hungry.”

This was part of the speech of Churchill where he denounced Neville Chamberlain for signing the Munich Agreement with Adolf Hitler and boasted to the world, he achieved peace in his time. Appeasement is dangerous!

I am not a war freak. But this would have not happened had Jesus Dureza still been the man in charge. Dureza grew up in Mindanao and understands the Muslims. Esperon is ruled by a military mindset.

When Cotabato Vice Governor Manny Piñol disagreed with him, he threatened that the military would not spend a soldiers’ life to protect Piñol. Piñol countered right away that, his people could stand and fight alone.

That would have been civil war. Esperon turned 180 degrees and ejected by force the MILF camping in some of Cotabato’s barangays.

* * *

I said, I like that warning against riding a tiger, especially when it is getting hungrier.

A story is told of a man who wanted to have a tiger’s pelt. So, one day, he went out to hunt for a tiger.

He saw one and leveled his gun at it. The tiger said, “Wait. I know you need a pelt and I also need my breakfast. Why don’t we sit down and talk?” They did.

In a little while, the tiger had its breakfast and the man inside it having his pelt.

What we need in Mindanao are good, strong leaders. Leaders trusted by their people and would die for them. Piñol is loved by Christians and Muslims alike because he makes the place peaceful.

* * *

The other day I mentioned two former leaders in Cotabato, Gov. Carlos Cajelo and Tacurong Mayor Jose Escribano. They were both strong leaders, military men. Cajelo was former provincial commander and Escribano former Constabulary officer.

Cajelo, from Barotac or Lambunao I now forgot, was always here at the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters with his sugar mill project in Cotabato. Escribano was from Igbaras in Iloilo and his wife is from Himamaylan.

I knew him as one of the brave guerilla officers during the war.

But after the war, he was assigned in Cotabato as a Constabulary.

In my talk with both Cajelo and Escribano they had one idea in common, Muslims need also good and strong leaders. Both were strong.

Escribano was murdered while he was Tacurong Mayor, not by Muslims, but Christian political rivals.

There are Muslim Governors in Mindanao and they did not agree with the issue of ancestral domain, if not provided in the Constitution.

The Sultan Kudarat Governor, a Muslim whose name I forgot, said a big majority of his constituents are Christians. And he has to look after the welfare of all his constituents.

* * *

Many believe the Supreme Court will eventually decide against the MOA-AD as illegal, unconstitutional.

The military must prepare. They brought us into it. They should be the ones to solve the problem. Poor GMA! She will have to bear the defective decisions of her subordinates.

It will be good if the issue will be resolved once and for all. The problem will be the government’s efforts for appeasement again.

As Churchill said, appeasement is most often believed to be weakness.

* * *

Many were happy with the slaughterhouse where the city did not spend money. But some media friends asked, “Was there a bidding? How did A.V.M. Bernardo Engineering win? How was it chosen?”

“Ah,” I said, “Maybe you did not get any advertisement.” The best fellow to direct that question, I said, is its legal officer, Ernie Urbano. A.V.M. Bernardo was the choice of former Mayor Joy Valdez.

I believe this should be cleared before critics come up again with the most often asked question, “How much?”

Leave a Reply