Robin is comic relief amid harsh times

Senator-judge Robin Padilla provided comic relief Wednesday. Most welcome after NBI Director Melvin Matibag’s boring two-day testimony which disappointed Harry Roque, “Akala ko fireworks, kwitis lang pala.” Recorded for posterity:

Padilla: “Ang nasasakdal po kasi dito ay ibinoto ng 32 million na tao. Sana po, aming mga mahal na kaibigan sa prosecution, ay isipin nating mabuti bago po tayo magbigay ng mga witness na may perjury na kaso. O, nagkaroon po kami ng dahilan na gumawa ng amenda na itong perjury ay amendahan. Pwede po ba ‘yon?”

Congresswoman-Chief Prosecutor Gerville Luistro: “Your Honor, with all due respect, I would like to take exception to the question and manifestation of the Honorable Senator-Judge Robin Padilla. First of all, we were able to verify already that there are no cases pending against the prosecution witnesses [NBI special agent John Mark Calilung, regional director Jeremy Lotoc, Matibag].

“In addition, Your Honor, and only to respond to the concern of the Honorable Senator-Judge Padilla, ang conviction po ay hindi ground for disqualification unless it is final and unless it is punishable by more than one year and that the crime constitutes moral turpitude.”

Padilla: “Alam niyo po, napakaganda po ng inyong sagot. Sana hindi one-sided ang ating prosecution, ano? Kasi, alam niyo, kapag kayo, pag pabor sa inyo, alam niyo…”

Guffaws erupted from the gallery, provoking Padilla to glare and gnash: “Bawal po ang ginagawa nitong nasa harap natin na nagkukume-kumento. Hindi po sila allowed mag-ingay. Korte po ito.”

Truly, unlike the stomach, the brain does not alert you when it’s empty.

Only six million viewers follow livestreams of VP Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial. The rest of the 118 million Filipinos are busy coping with commodity price spikes.

Fuel rates again skyrocketed P11 more per liter Tuesday. As a result, chicken, pork and fish prices rose too. Veggies cost double. Carinderias have upped presyos, if not lessened takals.

Jeepney drivers are striking. Ride-hailing and taxi cabbies are demanding higher booking fees. Electricity and water bills have hit the ceiling.

Overall inflation is nearly seven percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority says. Food inflation alone is 5.4 percent.

Government has increased by P85 the daily wage in Metro Manila. That’s little relief for workers in the big city who can hardly make both ends meet.

Pay hikes are expected soon in other regions. Micro businesses have been exempted from granting it. Meaning, the 3.2 million laborers in micro will have to tighten belts some more. Big enterprises can well afford to pay – but will lay off perceived redundant and recent hires.

Small- and medium-sized enterprises will be hardest hit. Small have 10 to 99 employees, for an industry total of 2.5 million. Medium have 100 to 199, with 500,000 in all. Any more disruptions will force them to close shop.

Government is not expected to think of real solutions other than political ayuda. That means more taxes to be collected, only to be plundered by politicos.

Bongbong Marcos’ admin is merely coasting along. It promised P20-a-kilo rice during the 2022 election campaign. The staple has remained at P50 a kilo. Subsidies to bring it down at Kadiwa stores for indigents are band-aid solutions.

People are grumbling that BBM is not jailing any crony whom he chastised “Mahiya naman kayo!” in July 2025 for flood works plunder. He has even promoted or reassigned Cabinet members implicated in the P1.7-trillion scam.

BBM’s popularity, trust and performance ratings have been dropping. Those of his archenemy VP Sara keep rising. Forty-nine percent will elect her president in 2028, according to Pulse Asia’s latest survey.

Many believe that Sara’s impeachment is due not to accountability, but her breakaway from BBM’s UniTeam admin. For them, whatever bombast BBM will let loose in his State of the Nation Address on Monday will be nothing more than hot air.

Robin Padilla is thus appreciated as much-needed entertainment. No need for trial lawyer Howard Calleja to tell him what everyone else knows:

“One-sided po talaga ang prosecution at defense dahil trabaho nila ipagtanggol ang kani-kanilang panig sa abot-kaya nila. Ang nanumpa po na hindi dapat one-sided ay kayo, Robin Padilla, bilang senator-judge. Dapat po no blind political loyalty, dapat po neutral kayo, at huwag masyadong obvious na may bias at ‘sana hindi one-sided’.”

Action star Padilla is an ex-con. He was sentenced in 1994 to 21 years in prison for illegal possession of firearms. After serving two years and eight months he got presidential pardon. He prides himself with “UP-level education, University of Prison.”

So there.

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