Waterdipper (2x) by Ronan S. Estoque, MA (March, 2006)

In answer to the vanity articles that have been plaguing the HSSD Newsletter lately, I am writing this piece in honor of Professor Claudio V. Tabotabo.

If one were to yahoo search the word Tabotabo in the Internet, one would find 915 articles that contain the word Tabotabo. If you were specifically searching for Claudio V. Tabotabo in the Internet, one would find 19 entries that are nowhere related to the subject of this article.

At any rate, the potential is there. Years from now, when Mr. Tabotabo is already famous (or infamous) let me be the first to claim that I was the first who wrote about him. A graduate of a perfectly aligned course (i.e AB English and MA English), he is currently in a dilemma whether to proceed with his doctorate pursuit in the University of the Philippines. At the moment, suffice it to say that his love life takes the first priority over his doctorate studies.

Married to the former Librarian of TIP-Manila, we could say that Mr. Tabotabo loves knowledge so much that he married the very embodiment of knowledge in this plane, a librarian. Psychologically, that speaks well of the man. Literally, he is a living testament to the love of wisdom (which in Latin is philosophia).

For Professor Tabotabo, height does not matter - what matter is the thing that is between your ears. His dedication to teaching is beyond reproach as well as his loyalty to his wife. Though the two are not interconnected, his passion is similar to a bull - it only seizes when the objective was gored (learning and loving, that is).

To teach, to love, they are all intertwined. For Professor Tabotabo, both can never be sustained without passion. To the promise and potential that is still to be realized, allow me to say, "the thrill is in the hunt, and not in the kill".


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A couple of weeks ago, a melee in a popular noontime show triggered a stampede causing hundreds of injuries and over 70 deaths. After the shameful incident comes a more shameful tragedy. The mediocre program was bankrolled by ABS-CBN who happens to be one of the most profitable (worth billions of pesos) network to work for in current Philippine media.

Any bumbling lawyer will tell you that whenever an accident happens, actual and punitive damages are due to the victim. Assuming that for every death, ABS-CBN will pay a million pesos (as a payment for actual damages) and a 500 million pesos goes for punitive damages; a total of 570 plus million liability is nothing to a company that is worth over billions of pesos and who at the very moment of the actual incident was even earning millions of pesos in its advertisement endeavors.

People who side with the giant ABS-CBN will say that the tragedy was nobody's fault. That though the incident was tragic, nobody wanted it to happen. And giving them the benefit of the doubt, I happen to concur with the argument. However, there is such a thing as "culpability". And this culpability resulted in deaths and numerous injuries. With so many lawyers out there, an exposure of this kind will certainly trigger a feeding frenzy among the profession that is generally regarded as less forgiving and by nature behaves as a glutton.

A payment of 570 plus million is nothing. The moment the case is filed, I am quite certain that an amicable settlement will be the only objective that the ABS-CBN lawyers will be aiming for.

In this tragedy, someone with money will have to pay, the poor have already paid for this tragedy with their blood, now is the turn of ABS-CBN to part with their money. Maybe, ABS-CBN is just reaping the dividends of making fun (and making money) out of the poor and the unwashed masses.

Secretary of Justice, Raul Gonzales nailed it straight, ABS-CBN is liable to a criminal case of "reckless imprudence leading to multiple homicides and injuries".

Knowing facts and proving it are two different things, but the next logical question ought to be "will ABS-CBN drag and expose its reputation in the bar of public opinion just to save a couple of pesos?"

My dear Brutus, what are you waiting for?!!!