Smart Communications Inc. is not wasting its time.
Just a week or two after its parent’s affiliate secured an option to acquire more shares in the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), Smart is reportedly issuing new phones to Meralco executives, maximizing the synergy between both companies.
“Smart will be issuing us new cellphones,” a source familiar with the matter said.
Smart’s parent, PLDT, together with affiliate Metro Pacific Investments Corp. — which are both headed by Manuel V. Pangilinan — controls roughly 40 percent of Meralco.
“In a week or two, I will be having two mobile phone lines, one Globe [Telecommunications Inc.] and Smart,” the source added, without indicating any details regarding the extent and coverage of the program.
This was neither confirmed nor denied by Smart although an employee who refuses to be identified said that the “[issuance of new phones for Meralco executives] is just a logical step for the company.”
The same logic follows San Miguel Corp.’s (SMC) moves when it acquired control of Petron Corp., the Philippines’ largest refiner.
San Miguel, the country’s largest food company, immediately issued Petron fleet cards to its employees, which has the effect of ending its relationship with Shell, its previous fuel supplier.
In the meantime, Smart’s rival, Globe Telecommunications Inc. is not taking any chances.
It recently sent its former post-paid customers free SIM cards that they can use to talk, call, and text gratis et amore for one whole day.
Of course, the promotion has a caveat: once you use it, you’ll presumably be bound by a contract stipulating a monthly service fee.
No thanks, Globe.
And by the way, how come Globe hasn’t billed me yet for its internet service for two months running? Is it guilty about its poor service? But that of course, is another story altogether.
On November 23, the humor died.
On that day, a day that Filipinos will be unable to live down, fifty-seven people were murdered in broad daylight; their mutilated bodies later buried in mass graves especially excavated for the purpose.
Suddenly, a people not given to remembrance nor reflection fell silent, prompted by cruel circumstance to take stock of their collective life.
Even the cynics were rendered speechless, at least temporarily.
The bloodbath forced those who cared enough about this country to re-examine their lives, their values, their dreams, what it meant to be Filipino, what it meant to be part of the civilized world.
It was — and still is — a task neither easy nor pleasant.
For far too long, we have indulged in the illusion that our political system, however feeble, remains stable enough to merit membership in the world’s democracies.
The Ampatuan atrocity proves that wrong.
The fact that anyone can murder scores of human beings along a national highway in broad daylight shows that Philippine society remains in the grip of the Dark Ages.
For as long as animals in Ampatuan roam free, for as long as anyone — public official or private citizen — remains confident of committing and getting away with such brazen, barbaric acts, this country cannot claim to be a part of modern society.
While the blame should be placed squarely on the shoulders of government officials, a portion can be attributed to ourselves — our parochialism, our selfishness, our indifference.
Every single day, we Filipinos compartmentalize our lives, always ignoring the bigger picture while in pursuit of short-term, ephemeral, and perhaps even insignificant goals.
Motivated only by our petty concerns, the urge to make a living, to beat a deadline, we take short cuts, flout rules, circumvent laws — acts that serve to support the already endemic corruption that has taken over the system.
It’s about time that changed.
Or else the fifty-seven people who died in Ampatuan — and thousands more who perished in similarly brutal tragedies — have, without question, wasted their lives.
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From the Intellectual Property Department. The logo designer accompanying this blog entry will be credited as soon as s/he is identified. To whoever you may be, thanks.
SCORE one for humans. And zero for the bees.
Or whatever insect it was which bit me on my neck Monday morning while I was out for a drive in those tight, two-lane highways in Quezon City where tricycles rule the streets and pedestrians casually walk along areas especially reserved for roadkill.
But then again, it was a good thing that the bee bit me when it did.
After all, this humble, patient, law-abiding motorist was at that time reduced to first gear, moving at the pace of a three-legged turtle. Because when I felt something sharp digging into the left part of my neck, I applied the brakes all of a sudden, putting the car at a full and immediate stop.
Had I been cruising along Commonwealth Avenue — by far, one of the most dangerous thoroughfares in northern Metro Manila — I would have created a vehicle pile-up from Tandang Sora to Fairview, elicited a special traffic alert on the radio, and incurred the perpetual scorn of irate motorists.
But since I was only negotiating a stretch of road filled with so much people it might as well be EDSA during any of the two peaceful revolutions, my sudden stop only caused the the tricycle driver behind me to grunt, curse, and spit (in that order).
Dismissing the thought that Count Dracula was in the back seat, I reached out for my neck, grabbed the creature with my fingers, squeezed it until it was sufficiently incapacitated.
In an unparalled stroke of genius, I threw the irritating insect on the floor, right by where my feet was, giving it another opportunity to have a go at my lower limbs if ever it decides to wake up from its coma.
Fortunately, the insect didn’t bother me any longer.
It either stayed dead, flew out of the window, or still trapped in all the gunk and caked dust collected by the car’s floor mat.
Meanwhile, the tricycle driver behind me revved up his engines, took a quick left, and sped on.
As he overtook me, the driver gave me a look usually reserved for cheapskate passengers and irritating people in general.
Nervous insect in hand, I forced an apologetic smile while pointing to my neck, a gesture which I knew he understood to be the universal sign language for either
a) “my neck hurts,”
b) “I have sore throat,”
c) “I have lost my voice,”
d) “I am thirsty,” or finally,
e) “I have swallowed an insect.”
Moral of the story: have the aircon fixed so that foreign objects — inanimate or otherwise — would be disallowed from entering the car through the open window.
Either that or simply close the windows and endure the heat.
Stupid bees.
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This was written two years ago in a separate blog.
