Work out reforms quick, all the way

Like it or not, the self-imposed invisibility of President Aquino (at the height of the dams-cum-floods disaster) will eat into his popularity, which was on the up and up prior to the weekend calamity.
No, there should be no serious dip, thanks to a hasty Palace claim which explained the President had always been on top of the rescue and relief operations from Day One.
For the record, there was no hesitance, no indecisiveness whatsoever on the part of P-Noy to perform his father-of-the-nation duties.
* * *
However, Palace apologists can’t blame those who had readily suspected the President tarried—because P-Noy was afraid to get in the water.
That expression—fear of getting one’s feet wet—inevitably delivered a deeper sting after it was used to describe the President’s alleged tardiness.
“Isn’t this the same inner lameness that had prevented him from going all the way and picking his own lifetime partner?” wondered one avid social critic, who will remain anonymous for the moment.
* * *
Not to make up for lost time, but next heard of, the President was in a hurry to visit calamity areas and work out reforms, albeit a little late.
Turning to the national basketball scene, which was itself visited by a disaster prior to the back-to-back storms, a committed and outstanding citizen, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Manny V. Pangilinan, did not have to be told about the urgent need for his presence at the site of battle in Wuhan, China.
Pangilinan, MVP to adoring sports fans, was there ahead of everybody, not only to be visible and root for the Smart Gilas national basketball team.
MVP was there debating, protesting, burning the lines, in order to assure the national team got a complete competitive lineup.
* * *
It was hard to imagine how Smart Gilas could’ve reached the Fiba-Asia tournament semifinals, a first since 1987, had Pangilinan not fought hard to have at least two Filipino-Americans qualify as bonafide Filipino citizens during the suspense-filled push-and-shove official deliberations.
Unfortunately for MVP, and PH basketball as a whole, the national team crashed and bowed to Jordan, which it had beaten in the classification round, before falling in fragments in the nerve-wracking game against South Korea.
It was a bitter loss, that shameful fold-up against Korea, mentored by the celebrated former national team mainstay Hur Jae, because it cruelly stalled Smart Gilas.
The stunning defeat promptly cut off the last remaining link in the national team’s wild card drive to qualify for next year’s London Olympics.
* * *
MVP gave it his all, he did his smartest best; and it would be a blasphemy to blame the man for the setback.
This could also be said of the imported Serbian coach Rajko Toroman.
He gave it all and did his best.
Unfortunately for Toroman, he fell short and proved not equal to the task in the final reckoning.
There were conflicting reports on whether or not Toroman would be retained or not.
But, reading his body language, Pangilinan appeared more inclined to effect a serious revamp of the team, from the coach down.
* * *
However, there lurks the danger of MVP tarrying in this painful but noble task.
Reason: One self-styled expert has been trying to blind MVP about the harsh realities behind the fall of Smart Gilas in Wuhan.
Pangilinan was being lured into believing the national team performed excellently and was perfectly fit for the task, despite the all-revealing Wuhan tragedy that also caused a national heartache.
It’s like this: MVP had previously fallen prey to a sweet-tongued plagiarist.
It therefore goes without saying Pangilinan is now a lot smarter.
He can’t allow himself to fall into the ploy of this glib bootlicker, who abandoned his land of birth before masquerading as a patriot and honorable journalist.