Hostage-taking
and finger-pointing
Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications,
Inc. |
NINFA R. LEONARDIA
Editor-in-Chief & President |
CARLA
P. GOMEZ
Editor
GUILLERMO TEJIDA III
Desk Editor
NANETTE L. GUADALQUIVER
Busines Editor
CEDELF P. TUPAS
Sports Editor (On Leave)
RENE GENOVE
Bureau Chief, Dumaguete
MAJA P. DELY
Advertising Coordinator
|
CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA
Administrative Officer |
It's all hindsight now, of course, but now that the suspense is
over, isn't it hilarious the way some of our officials and even
our police are behaving? A do-gooder with apparently a warped idea
of how he could pursue his dream of ensuring education for the children
in his district, thinks up a scheme of taking as hostage the very
children whose future is supposed to be securing.
The man called Armando "Jun" Ducat had been known as a friend of
the poor, and a strong advocate of education for the underprivileged
members of society, especially the children.
That was the reason why he had put up the day care center
in the area called Tondo, known to be the place where many of Manila's
poor families have resided for generations. And, from all accounts
given after Monday's incident, his generosity was being appreciated
by the beneficiaries who could not have afforded to provide such
care and training for their children.
Who knows what must have been in the mind of Jun Ducat when
he planned and executed the hostaging of those 32 little children,
most or all of them of kindergarten age? One can conclude that he
did not mean them harm, since he even made provisions for their
food and entertainment.
The duration of the stand-off was quite long, but thank God,
nothing untoward happened. The children were later released, seeming
none the worse for the experience. And Ducat is being made to account
for his act that had terrified so many parents who could not be
sure of how the drama would turn out.
What seems laughable now is the way officials are blaming
each other for the manner in which the hostage-taking incident was
handled. Now everybody seems to be an expert at it, although they
had all the time - ten hours, no less - to show their expertise
then. Everybody is being blamed, the police, the politicians who
had to get into the act, the crowds that could not be contained,
and even the media covering the incident.
What the ordinary citizen wants to know is only whether such expertise
will be applied in case of a similar event.*
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