Jessica gets
rousing homecoming

Who is haunting Erap? The former president and would-be mayor of Manila reportedly cannot sleep well in his new house because it is haunted. Former President Joseph Estrada, who had an aborted stint in the presidency of the country, had recently bought a house, said to be an ancestral one formerly owned by the Legarda family, at Manga Avenue, Santa Mesa. And he moved into it last week with a lot of fanfare to show everyone, especially those of voting age in that city, that he is already a resident.

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Well, that is a small price to pay if he is intent on snatching the mayor’s post from perennial mayor Alfredo Lim. In fact, the stories about ghosts could even work for him as they will keep him in the minds of news readers and radio listeners. That could even be part of the campaign, you know. Erap is an old hand at that, and he surely knows his onions when it comes to courting the electorate.

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In the meantime, the woman who had managed to also snatch the presidency away from him, is herself having some trouble, but not with ghostly creatures. Former President Gloria Arroyo is reported to have developed some complications that have worsened her neck problems. And we thought she had already gotten over that, because when she celebrated her birthday last month, she was going around greeting guests – and was no longer wearing that ubiquitous neck brace. Now she is said to be sickly again and allegedly needs to be treated abroad. What a slur on our own doctors, who are even said to distinguish themselves in other countries.

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Meanwhile, it was distressing to read the report that Japan’s landmark Mt. Fujiyama, or “Fuji” is in danger of collapsing, because of a faultline discovered beneath it by scientists. Mt. Fuji is as precious to Japan as Mt. Mayon is to the Philippines because both are famous for their unique shape and mystical ways. The scientists who disclosed this say it will be a disaster if a strong quake ever occurs in the area. By the way, I said “mystical” because, like Mayon, Fuji is also quite coy, and sometimes anxious tourists can wait for hours before it will show itself.

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What a tragedy that was for the new Russian aircraft called the Sukhoi superjet that took 45 people for what was supposed to be a demonstration flight to show the new facilities and conveniences of the plane. Unfortunately, the demonstration proved fatal, as the aircraft hit Mt. Salek, a mountain in faraway Indonesia, and all on board perished. Until now searchers are still scouring the mountainsides trying to retrieve the bodies.

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American Idol finalist, Fil-Mex Jessica Sanchez, went home to Chula Vista and got a rousing welcome from the city yesterday. Wire reports said more than 7,000 gathered at the East Lake Football stadium to welcome and cheer for her. Even the mayor, Cheryl Cox, was gushing over the pride of Chula Vista and some of those who were there said that whether she won the contest or not, she would still be their idol. San Diego City even declared May 12 as Jessica’s Day! I’m sure that if Jessica comes to the Philippines and visits her mother’s hometown in Bataan, her welcome will exceed that of San Diego.

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A friend of mine who lives in Los Angeles said that a few days ago she took a taxi with a black driver and they got to talking about the American Idol contest. She thought the driver would root for Joshua Ledet, who is also black, but instead told her he and his folks voted for Jessica. He said Joshua seemed to run out of appropriate songs and didn’t register well. He also told my friend that his mother is a singer and she thinks Jessica will win this time. That takes care of our misgivings that all the black votes might go to Ledet.

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Meanwhile, the West Visayas contingent was “bridesmaid” again in the Palaro that was held in Pangasinan, with the National Region winning the championship – for the TENTH time. I think those who had proposed that the provinces should not be made to compete with the NCR have a point. The NCR schools have talents from all over the country and the best facilities, while those in the provinces have to make do with what they can afford to fund the training and the equipment of their athletes. It is always a one-sided competition and will continue to be so, unless changes are made. Imagine, this is the 10th time running that NCR has captured the crown, I won’t be surprised if the rest are now getting demoralized.*

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