Never in my whole life have I wished for a tragedy—until now. Homes were flooded, lives lost, and families clung to rooftops as waters rose, yet many Cebu officials are literally going outside the country and boarding planes. You know what’s more devastating than a typhoon? Corrupt politicians.
Photos of signed travel authorities surfaced like a slap in the face. Last week, Philstar posted documents on Facebook that show mayors asking permission to leave days before the typhoon struck, and the provincial office signed some of those requests. They literally said, "let's dodge accountability," in the most obvious and disrespectful manner.
The national Department of the Interior is now probing the trips. The Palace and DILG have begun asking why local executives were abroad when evacuees needed boots on the ground. The inquiry is late, but it is happening because netizens and the press would not let the story die.
The governor approved travel authorities. If the governor signed those permits, answerability travels with the signature. You cannot claim “personal reasons” and walk away from duty when calamity hits your people. Approvals are fingerprints that leave a lasting impact and say a lot about that person.
Meanwhile, rescue, aid, and clearing work carried the real cost. People waited for leaders who chose duty over departures. When officials choose flights over flood lines, the poor pay with time, loss, suffering, and grief. They are literally not hiding moral bankruptcy anymore. We can see it in plain sight.
Mock them, shame them, and strip them of the gloss of respectability. Use every photo, every signed paper, every airport stamp to remind voters who fled instead of staying. Corruption and cowardice are happening face-to-face, yet there is still no happening. Hold names up like a testimony. Shove this evidence like a bullet straight to their brain.
The remedy is not revenge. It is through ballots; it is the law; it is constant public pressure. Push for suspension, investigation, and if warranted, removal. Demand officials who choose people and
not passports. Let's demand more because we deserve more than just surviving. It is really exhausting to keep extracting the little resilience we have left, only because we are left with no other choice.
Power must come from us, the citizens, and never the other way around. Remember these departures the next election day. Elect people who will stand in the flood with you, not above it. Vote for officials who are liberal-minded, credible, and most importantly, accountable—because there would be no floods and disasters if we did that in the first place. I don't wish any harm to anyone, but, oh well… have a safe flight, I guess?
