Cebu's unyielding leaders: Governor Gwen and Mayor Edgar

Many human rights advocates and some writers don’t love strong leaders because they are uncompromising disciplinarians, they enforce the law without fear or favor. They are not constrained by those who bash them and malign their names in social media.

History tells us that it is this kind of leader that can save the people from their own recklessness and folly. My little birdie in the palace whispered to me that Manong Rody is pleased with the iron hands of Governor Gwen and Mayor Edgar in enforcing the lockdown and in refusing to yield to the temptations to remain popular and giving in to the endless clamor to bend the rules. We are in a crisis, and this is not the time to be equivocating. The nation needs a strong and determined president like President Duterte, iron-clad governors like Governor Garcia, and decisive mayors like Mayor Edgar.

We need strong and firm leaders to resist the lures of some people who believe they have special privileges to use sarcasm, hyperbole, or jokes to cause undue alarm to the peace-loving citizenry. Both the province and the city of Cebu, as the model LGUs in the country, have shown leadership in law enforcement and the exercise of police power to uphold the greater good for the greater number. Human rights cannot be invoked to defeat general interests and welfare of the whole community. No individual can assert that rights are absolute. These rights are inferior to the need to preserve peace and order. Mayors and governors, even presidents are sworn to uphold the law. And a vain invocation of the human rights of a loquacious one (to use sarcasm) cannot prevail over the need of the silent majority.

Indeed, it takes a strong woman, the iron lady from Bitoon, Dumanjug, to tell the whole Cebu that the law is the law and, as governor, she will make sure that the rules are enforced no matter who gets hurt. Noy Pabling Garcia, the elder statesman, must be proud of his eldest daughter. Not even the other siblings, Winston or PJ, could have shown that swaggering grit and uncompromising bravado. The daughter, Cristina Frasco, the mayor of Liloan has all the makings of another strong Garcia. Mayor Labella also stood equal to the challenge of leadership, and many Cebuanos are seeing the other side of Labella, the one who can use an iron hand. His late father Gene Labella, an excellent writer, would have admired his son as a leader.

In the city, the mayor was reported to have ordered the arrest of a certain lady writer who allegedly published some bloated figures concerning infections in one sitio within his jurisdiction. Then some human rights quarters made a furor on the so-called freedom of the press and things like human rights violation or the supposed gagging of the press. I am not going to follow the popular path and join such a crowd. I think that Mayor Labella needs the support of the people against those who might have impulsively caused undue alarm among the citizenry. Some people portrayed him as softer than both mayors Tom and Mike. But this time, Mayor Edgar has shown that he can be firm when times call for it. And I applaud him for that.

In fact, with strong leaders like President Duterte, Governor Gwen, and Mayor Edgar, there is a better chance to defeat the enemy of the state, the coronavirus. I cannot imagine if this crisis was going to be handled by another president with lesser guts. History tells us that strong leaders are needed in times of crises. For they do not care if they are impeached, ousted, or maligned. All they care is to save the nation and to protect the people.