Traversing the Shaded Lights in Philippine Politics and the travail of the 'One Centavo Coin'

"Mambo Mambo Magsaysay"...thus went the chant that shaded my first perception of Philippine politics on March 17, 1957. Observing the tears and the sad faces of adults around, I sensed  a profound grief undeniably brought by the tragic death of President Ramon Magsaysay. Literally transfixed, the hardness of the one centavo bronze coin enclosed within my palm jolted me back to my designated chore: the one centavo coin I had to bring to a store down the bend of the road to buy my mother one bottle of vinegar, 1/4 kilo salt, a sachet of pepper with one bay leaf in it; and my mother admonished me never to forget to ask the store owner for 3 cloves of garlic as 'tawad'. 

GMA's and P Noy's Magics: Trick or Treat?

Okay, I never really liked the idea of Nonoy Aquino running our country but it does not mean I have ever favored former President GMA over him. As a matter of fact, due to unrelenting  frenzy on some despicable issues, I preferred anybody but GMA to run this country: and regretfully, although I had many other choices, that 'anybody' included P Noy, who I accepted as our president the moment he was declared the winner. I therefore pined my hopes and entrusted our fate on his administration; sadly though, the frenzy dramatically escalated into a mania, and I felt like riding a roller coaster or watching somebody play Grand Theft or Illuminati.