There Ought to be a Law
THERE was an interesting article in our Metro section last week. That was the one that said movie fans might no longer see Vilma Santos and Lito Lapid on the silver screen. Not unless they want to give up being mayor of Lipa City and governor of Pampanga province, respectively. Apparently, there's a provision in the Local Government Code that says mayors and governors "are prohibited from practicing their profession or engaging in any occupation other than the exercise of their functions as local chief executives." But for this to happen, the group that has raised this issue must first win its case in court. Happily, that group, the Social Justice Society, is composed mostly of lawyers. They have cited Joey Lina as respondent for allowing Santos and Lapid to appear in movies. I'm rooting for them. I've been arguing this for a long time now, and for all categories of public officials. The usual justification for senators in particular -- the Senate now having the dubious distinction of harboring the biggest number of fugitives from the silver screen, the hard court and television -- is that there is no law against it. Well, at the very least, there is no law against people defecating in public too. Or at least there
In the case of public officials who continue to do work in media, it's plain unethical. And I will never tire of saying that the TV networks and radio stations that conspire to make this possible are conspiring against their country. You cannot be judge and defendant at the same time. You cannot be the object of scrutiny and the scrutinizer at the same time. Marquez suggested one other thing, which is that appearing in TV shows allowed him to get additional funds for public service, his official budget not being enough for it. I did not wish to embarrass him by rolling on my sides with laughter.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Santos Lapid, Joey Marquez, Lito Lapid, Government Code, Jovito Salonga, Lipa City, , Justice Society, public officials, Joey Lina, Vilma Santos, principle applies, local government, officials doing, mayor lipa, public official, silver screen, lito lapid, vilma santos,
Approximate Word count = 828
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
