Sh*t happens in an imperfect world, says Senator Ronald dela Rosa, responding to the outrage fueled by the killing of a three-year-old girl in the course of police operations in Rodriguez, Rizal on Saturday.
Myka Ulpina was hit by a bullet in the neck during a shootout that ensued after a buy-bust operation. Police claim her father, Renato Ulpina, used the child as a human shield.
We can’t truly say we expected the senator to know better. After all, Dela Rosa owes his Senate victory to his prominence—some would argue, notoriety—as chief implementor of the administration’s war on drugs.
As we have said on numerous occasions, nobody questions the need to stamp out this menace. Drugs are creations of the devil. They destroy lives and pull families apart. They make bleak the future of the youth.
Implementing the campaign is another matter altogether, however. The administration has come under fire from many sectors for the police’s lack of restraint in going after pushers.
After three years and thousands of dead, the campaign is as strong as ever.
And now Dela Rosa is senator, swept to power by the popularity of his political patron. He has admitted he has much to learn as a lawmaker—but apparently that does not include learning to speak in ways befitting his office. He could have tried to temper his candor with circumspection. Or, if that were too much to ask, some sensitivity perhaps, if not to the general public, then at least to the grieving family of the child.
Palace Spokesman Salvador Panelo makes the statement rankle just a bit more. In a statement made Friday, Panelo said he was sad at what happened to the child, but what Dela Rosa said was just an expression. "What he meant was accidents do happen,” Panelo said. “Who would want the deaths of minors?"
Nobody, indeed. In fact, there are many other things we want—if this world were only perfect.
In a perfect world, how policies are implemented would be equally important as the rationale behind them.
The rights and lives of citizens—whether they live in gated communities or hovels—matter.
Callous and coarse statements have no place in public discourse. Public officials are judged exactly by what they say and how they say it. No annotations are required for damage control.
In a perfect world, those who mouth off like madmen do not get elected to public office in the first place.