All ears were glued to the radio; all eyes were on television

Wherever I went yesterday, and I visited at least eight places, I found huddles of people listening, riveted, to the five-hour long, 186-page decision of Judge Amelita Tolentino on the "Vizconde Massacre" case.

Television sets were switched on even in executive suites and office waiting rooms, in the malls, in hospitals, in private homes. Those whose work prevented them from watching TV were also listening on their car or transistor radios to the four clerks of court, who had to take turns lest they wilted from heat and exhaustion by spelling each other in the "reading" process.

One of the latter was my driver who, from the depths of his legal expertise, exclaimed after the verdict was promulgated at the end of the long recitation: "Why only one life term for those guys? They should each have been given three life sentences!" I must remind you he was a driver, not a legal beagle.

There will be a torrent of comment today in the media, including all newspapers, on the verdict convicting Hubert Webb and five other young men: Hospicio "Pyke" Fernandez, Antonio "Tony Boy" Lejano, Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez and Peter Estrada of the B.F. Homes "massacre."

Many of the comments will praise the lady judge, others will assail her and accuse her of bias. It's clear that, with the case going to the Supreme Court (even though it was just "decided" by the trial court), the matter is still sub judice. Alas, fewer and fewer media practitioners respect this sub judice rule -- so we might as well brace ourselves for impassioned, even violent comment and "condemnation." Even less so is sub judice upheld by the lawyers, particularly the defense lawyers of the "convicted" accused. As might have been expected, immediately after obtaining their copies of the decision, the lawyers of the accused and sympathizers in media yesterday began attacking Judge Tolentino's ruling and damning it as "unjust, unjustified and biased."

Furiously, the defense lawyers assailed the Judge for making them and the rest of the country (listening on radio and TV) "wait" so long by directing the clerks to read the decision in its entirety, before the verdict and sentence were pronounced.

If you ask me, Judge Tolentino was right to have done so. She must have realized that it was important that the entire country -- by radio and TV -- should learn every pertinent detail of the evidence submitted by the prosecution and defense panels, and finally, the findings and conclusions of Judge Tolentino that supported her verdict of "guilty."

If she had read out only the "dispositive portion" (her verdict), the nation would not have heard her side. Get the picture? We all would have been served the "after-sentencing" and adverse comments of the irate defense lawyers -- that's all we would have heard.

And so, cannily, the Judge made sure every household and office heard, from every available aspect and testimony, how brutally Mrs. Estrellita Vizconde and her two daughters, Carmela and Jennifer, had been savaged and stabbed to death (Carmela raped) -- while Lauro Vizconde, the bereaved husband and father, was working abroad as an overseas worker.

And the people listened avidly, clenching their fists. They never left their radio and television sets.

The Supreme Court, with its 15 Justices, will now review the case and listen to the arguments of the lawyers and the contending parties, to decide whether Judge Tolentino's "guilty" verdict was based on solid and credible evidence, and her legal conclusions tenable -- or not.

We in the media, I submit, have no business "influencing" that verdict. Sometimes, despite our proven fallibility, time and again, we are tempted, sadly, to imagine ourselves as "god."

What's unfortunate, as I've already said, was that it took eight years and a half to reach yesterday's decision. And it's far from over yet. How long will the Supreme Court deliberate? How many -- years?

Justice delayed is justice denied.

The six youths "convicted" have been ordered by the Judge to be transferred from the Parañaque jail to the National Bilibid Prison (Muntinlupa). It must not be forgotten that two more accused, Artemio "Dong" Ventura and Joey Filart, were never found and captured and may have fled the country. In the quest for justice, they must be pursued to the ends of the earth.

Two equally sensational cases decided by the Makati Regional Trial Court and the Pasig RTC have thus far been affirmed by the Supreme Court.

In the meantime, the national penitentiary in Muntinlupa has become a barred "dormitory" for a number of prominent boarders in the past few years. One of the inmates is the son of a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, another an "incumbent" Congressman, while another was a businessman who shot a student over a traffic incident, and still another was a former town mayor who once lorded it over his fiefdom with an iron hand.

In the past, Muntinlupa also "housed" prominent convicts who lucked out. One of them was the son of two prominent Ilocos Sur politicians, the late Rep. Floring Crisologo and ex-Governor Carmeling Crisologo. The son, Vincent "Bing Bong" Crisologo, instead of serving out a long prison term, was granted an absolute pardon by President Ferdinand E. Marcos and thus is now serving as an elective official, a Quezon City councilor.

Another one who was awarded absolute pardon was the convicted son of a city mayor -- who, after his pardon (which wiped out, legally, his disqualification from public office), became a congressman and is now serving his third term.

The President's trip to the United States this April will probably be "upgraded" from an official visit to a formal "state visit." This is why US Ambassador Tom Hubbard is now in Washington, DC, discussing the matter with the White House and the Department of State.

Our envoy to the US, Ambassador Ernesto Maceda, came home to discuss the matter (and other things) and is supposed to fly back to Washington, DC today. He had originally suggested that President Estrada arrive in the American capital during Holy Week, so that no "working days" here would be lost by undertaking the US trip, but the thought intrudes that, while Mahal na Araw or Semana Santa is not observed in the US, where it's "business as usual," the Easter Sunday weekend is a very big holiday. On that weekend, only the Easter Bunny is welcome and the Easter Egg Hunt with parents "supervising" is a must -- so, if he happens to arrive on that "wrong" holiday, Erap would be ignored.

The tentative dates set are either the end of April or the first week of May. (Would you believe? Already, Cabinet undersecretaries and various government officials are lining up to lobby to be "included" in the official party! The Americans are alarmed and have requested Malacañang and the Department of Foreign Affairs to cut the "delegation" to the bone.)

I hope the President puts his foot down this time, and doesn't make this expedition another "African-type big game safari" or some travelling circus.

We're overjoyed that our primo, the former Editor-in-Chief and former President of The STAR, General Ramon Farolan, has been named Customs Commissioner. (I also hope the outgoing Customs chief, Nelson Tan, gets the sort of honorable farewell he deserves, if not another posting).

Mon Farolan, a former Commanding General of the Philippine Air Force and chief of the Philippine Export Processing Zone Authority, is not "new" to the Customs job. He has already been, in the fullness of his exciting career, previously a Commissioner of Customs as well as our Ambassador to Indonesia.

The joke in the STAR newsrooms yesterday was that we ought to organize a "STAR Container Import Corp." so we can also import "dressed chickens," and smuggle in . . . ooops, rice, corn, and sugar. Kidding only. So please don't take umbrage, Messrs. President and Cousin Mon!

What's happening? It's not a Cabinet revamp, a purge, or a shake-up (or shake-down). It's a game of musical chairs.

Former Trade and Industry Secretary Jose "Titoy" Pardo will move sideways from DTI to become Secretary of Finance. (His point man, Dakila Fonacier of the Board of Investment or BOI, is reportedly moving over to become Commissioner of Internal Revenue). In any event, I don't believe Titoy's habits will change. He will continue to be found in Malacañang, tail-gating the President, at all hours.

It seems that it will be status quo, to his vast relief, for Executive Secretary Ronnie Zamora. So many people were after Ronnie's post that when he went to the Stanford University Hospital in Palo Alto, California, for his regular medical check-up, several persons started jockeying for his position, among them a diplomat and another Cabinet member.

What I hear as a result of "The Return of Ronnie" several noses are out of joint. As a matter of fact, Ronnie's brother, business "et cetera" consultant Manny Zamora, remains as usual at the elbow of Erap. Despite the fact that Manny doesn't seem to have an official designation, he's a sort of chief cook and bottle washer -- and there's usually a plate set for him at the Premier House luncheon and merienda table.

The designation of Majority Floor Leader and Capiz Congressman Manuel "Mar" Roxas III as incoming Trade and Industry Secretary, is certainly good news. Although I believe that, under normal circumstances, an elected official (like congressman or senator) should serve out his term and not desert his constituency, these are "critical" times.

Mar used to be a successful businessman before the death of his brother, the late Rep. Gerry "Dinggoy" Rojas Jr., forced him to enter politics in order to uphold the family name. (His late father, Gerry -- the main stalwart of the Liberal Party -- was Senate President, and his grandfather, Don Manuel Acuña Roxas, was the LP founder and first President of the postwar Philippine Republic).

In any event, as DTI chief, Roxas can now go back to his first "love," this time to drum up zeal and innovation in the world of industry, trade, and commerce. As an idealist, Mar, too, must tackle the monumental task of restoring the business community's sagging confidence in the Estrada administration. This is where his mettle will be tested -- for the first time.

Staying a bachelor was difficult enough. Being a Congressman, by contrast, was a breeze. But now, Mar Roxas has his work cut out for him. Let's face it: if he's true to his heritage, he must be ready to slug it out with the greedy buddies, financial-backers, and vested interests whose centurions surround the President (whispering endlessly into his ear, and filching rich contracts). He must ensure, for all comers, a level playing field.

And, for heaven's sake, Mar must prod the President into reaming out the hidebound bureaucracy, kicking out or retiring the misfits and foul balls. We don't need CONCORD, CHA-CHA, or Constitutional change. We need a change in men.