Our government officials have no delicadeza - ROSES AND THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces

From the Gospel of St. Luke, we have this saying, "Much is expected from those to whom much has been given." The French reduced it to two words – noblesse oblige, nobility obligates. It was their way of saying that noble birth and high positions impose the obligation of the highest principles and noble actions. The Spaniards reduced it to one word, delicadeza. The literal English translation is "delicateness," which fails to convey the original Spanish meaning for the English word "delicate" means "a luxurious or fastidious person" and "delicateness" is translated as "precariousness" or "fragility." The closest English word that conveys delicadeza is "scrupulousness," which means "conformity to the highest standards of ethics and excellence." Sad to say that is what almost all our top elective and appointive government officials lack today – delicadeza!

This ethical standard extended to the wives of high officials. Julius Caesar divorced his wife Pompeia. During the divorce hearing, he admitted that he had no first-hand knowledge about her rumored paramour. But he was divorcing her because "the wife of Caesar must not only be chaste, but must appear chaste."

How honest does Ilocos Sur Governor Singson appear after he has alleged that he was a jueteng tong collector for President Estrada? Yet, he is still the governor of Ilocos Sur. If he had any delicadeza, he would resign from the position. Since he has not, he should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law using his own sworn affidavit allegedly exposing President Estrada as the top official behind illegal jueteng in this country. This is a charge that makes President Estrada’s Erap Para Sa Mahirap program a farce. The victims of jueteng are the poor.

As we stated earlier, Gov. Singson should be taken to court. But his charges cannot be ignored. If he has the evidence to substantiate his charges, then the President himself should be investigated and if the evidence warrants then impeachment proceedings are in order. We cannot have a government of thieves. But everything should be done according to law.

The House investigation of Gov. Singson’s allegations against the President turned out to be just like jueteng – a numbers’ game. It was not issues or the evidence that was important. It was superiority in numbers. The hearing was not used to hear Singson’s charges. It was used to silence him. That is the state of the nation.