‘What’s going on?’

By Alex P. Vidal

“Never hide things from hardcore thinkers. They get more aggravated, more provoked by confusion than the most painful truths.” – Criss Jami

AS we have been saying over the past few weeks, as long as protagonists in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio continued to swamp the proceeding with legal gobbledygook and parade their prowess in King’s English, the common people would never understand what’s going on.

They won’t even waste valuable time to be glued to the event even if many of them own electronic gadgets and can monitor the trial elsewhere.

Highfalutin English is too painful to the ears of some people busy making both ends meet in the street and public markets.

Trial court-style snafu isn’t always in the menu of utility men and women, vendors, construction and farm workers.

The common tao, the masa is the class D that makes up about 60 percent of the populace, consisting of lower-middle-income workers and average wage earners.

While the impeachment trial debaters tear each other apart “live” on national TV and radio networks, the poor are more worried for their earnings or profit.

Financial security is strongly correlated with nearly every measure of political engagement, including the ongoing impeachment trial.

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Bus, taxi, jeepney, and other kalye or habal habal drivers engaged in pamasada fret about and prioritize their daily net “boundary” (after accounting for the vehicle rent).

These individuals don’t even care if someone will be “convicted” in the precarious and divisive trial.

They care about their children, the food on the table, high gas prices, expensive grocery items, rice, etcetera.

And if somebody has been “convicted” it won’t change the economic life of the hoi polloi.  

Low-income individuals often disengage from politics because the system feels unresponsive to their daily survival struggles.

When working multiple jobs or facing constant financial insecurity, civic participation is often crowded out by the immediate, overwhelming demands of securing basic needs like housing, healthcare, and food.

Many low-income citizens feel that politicians, including VP Sara and President Bongbong Marcos Jr., only represent the wealthy and special interest groups.

This makes many of us fear the prosecutors might not be able to convince the senator-judges to convict the vice president despite her shenanigans while in office because the trial will be decided by politicians, not trial court judges.

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Below is the official statement of the United States regarding China’s actions against Philippine Navy personnel at Second Thomas Shoal I obtained from the Department of State:

The United States condemns China’s dangerous and aggressive actions against Philippine navy personnel at Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea on July 20, 2026, and calls on China to immediately cease its destabilizing conduct.

China’s troubling pattern of provocation against lawful Philippine maritime operations undermines regional peace and stability and directly contradicts China’s repeated commitments to resolve disputes peacefully.

We stand with our Ally, the Philippines, and commend the professionalism and restraint shown by Philippine navy personnel in this incident.

We reaffirm the July 2016 Arbitral Tribunal ruling, which found that China’s expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea have no basis in international law.

That decision is final and legally binding on both China and the Philippines.

We will continue to stand with our Allies and partners in defense of a free and open Indo-Pacific.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor-in-chief of two leading daily newspapers in Iloilo, Philippines. – Ed)