Status Quo by Ronan S. Estoque, MA (September, 2005)

GMA seems to have survived a looming impeachment. The voting for the committee report in the plenary session marked a significant victory for GMA and her allies: the official count is 158-51, with a couple of negligible abstentions.

With the sorry miss of the opposition, Speaker De Venecia is now calling for the country to move forward. After the lengthy debate and process to finally decide whether to impeach or not to impeach- it is now time to move forward and tackle other matters of substance and imperatives. While some "spinmeisters" are saying that the thrashing of the impeachment complaint signals the countdown for the end of GMA administration. Such a contention is again debatable because one's mindset is really influenced by one's leanings. If one favors the impeachment, naturally one would say that now is the time for reckoning, civil disobedience and even outright revolution. However If one is not in favor of the impeachment, one would say that the time for unity, focus and reconciliation.

Depending on perspective of the individual, the status quo however remains. There is still the battle against poverty, ignorance and bigotry waiting to be waged. In a Shakespearian drama, we have all our roles to play. I am just glad that my battlefield is in the arena against ignorance. At least in this particular play- teaching, pedagogy and instruction are all rolled into one so as to slay the dragon of ignorance. The enemy is just right in front of the teacher. It is the cloud of ignorance lurking in the mind of the students and the challenge is how to displace that cloud with the ray of learning.

"Dragons come forth, your slayer awaits..." I'd say. There is no time but the present to be a source of inspiration and a beacon of learning in the four corners of the classroom. In the drama of education, the battle lines are far cleaner and far simpler. I pity the legislators for they know not whom to slay nor to wage battle with. Maybe, their greatest enemies are themselves though I doubt if they have that luxury of enlightenment.

The irony of the comedy that is happening within our midst is that Former President Cory Aquino is linking arms and casting her lot with the opposition who, if I am not mistaken are remnants of the Marcos disciples. This is not comedy my dear Brutus, this is classic tragedy unfolding before our very eyes: Some glutton would even pronounce the brew as distasteful, of course that is just one glutton expressing his cheap two cents worth of opinion...