Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES

Boracay — that tiny island at the northern tip of Panay, a destination renowned for its fine white sand beaches, shallow gentle waters, and all-day partying — recently reopened to tourists after being abruptly shut down six months ago to enable it to recover from its shameful deterioration into a “cesspool,” to borrow President Duterte’s … Read more

Delicadeza — the sense of shame or kahihiyan that restrains people in positions of power, trust or authority from doing what is improper — is all but dead in our society. But, far from mourning its passing, the powerful cannot wait to bury it. They seem to draw additional satisfaction from flaunting its absence, as … Read more

Our political institutions are as modern in conception as they could possibly be. They were, after all, copied from the most advanced democratic system of our time — the United States of America. But, like almost all our borrowed institutions, our political system can only perform to the extent permitted by our society’s basic structure. … Read more

In cynical and despairing times such as ours, nothing perhaps lifts the flagging spirit more than to witness an event that expressly celebrates what some people do for others and their communities, quietly, persistently, and, often, in defiance of convention. Brimming with ideas and energy, they have a peculiar need to empty themselves.  They are … Read more

The children of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos—namely, his namesake Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and his eldest daughter Imee Marcos, whose respective political careers have received a special boost under the Duterte presidency—have repeatedly admonished their father’s critics to stop wasting time talking about the Marcos martial law regime. As the nation marked the Aug. … Read more

What makes President Duterte an interesting speaker is that, whatever the occasion, the audience never quite knows what to expect. His habit of discarding prepared speeches has become emblematic of this basic refusal to abide by the conventions of formal speech. Consider his pronouncement last Tuesday, before a gathering of the country’s top business leaders … Read more

(Kahit minsan lang sa isang taon, bilang paggunita sa Buwan ng Wika, ang aking kolum para sa linggong ito ay nasa wikang Filipino.) Bagama’t hindi ikinatuwa ng marami ang promosyonal na video na “pepedederalismo” ni  Communications Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson at ng katuwang niyang si Drew Olivar, talaga namang nakatawag ito ng pansin. Ibang usapin … Read more

In a time long past, the appearance of road checkpoints particularly in the metropolis would instantly elicit a flurry of petitions questioning their constitutionality. Checkpoints strike at the very heart of the Bill of Rights, or Article III of the 1987 Constitution. While the Supreme Court has conceded the legality of checkpoints during abnormal times … Read more

President Duterte’s third State of the Nation Address (Sona) succeeded in making him look and sound presidential. For the second time since his brief inaugural address two years ago, he behaved in accordance with what is expected of someone occupying the nation’s highest office. The special “diva lighting” that must have been used on him … Read more

Presidents of the Republic give countless speeches in the course of their terms. These speeches vary not only in length and style and their audiences, but also in the degree to which they are shared with the larger public. The one thing they have in common is that they all carry the authority of the … Read more