PERDITION

By Mark Lopez
1 October 2016

It was Benigno Aquino III who prominently brought up the HITLER comparison last May. Which his minions have been playing up until now. He was portrayed to be like Hitler the madman who would order the slaughtering of innocent people.

Yesterday, he took offense to the comparison, and expressed his outrage over such portrayal. What he tried to do is to contrast himself against the portrayal, by stating that he would be happy (he did not pledge as what the Inquirer wrote) to slaughter 3M addicts and criminals.

More importantly, and lost in the Fuehrer furor, is why he said what he said --- He wants to save his country from perdition.

The same perdition that burgeoned with every change of administration, capped by the record breaking doubling in crime rate statistics and drug use from 2010 to 2015.

Recently he intimated to a well known columnist that this country is so wrecked because almost all facet of society has been tainted with drugs -- the poor; the rich; all branches of government; business sectors like transport, manufacturing, travel & tourism; more than 90% of baranggays; showbiz; sports, and most of all, the youth!

It's one thing if drug addiction morphs into depression as what people in advance countries experience. The answer is rehabilitation.

But the reality in our midst is that majority of drug addiction transforms a person from a user to a criminal. It starts with petty thievery, then gradually builds up to bullying and larceny, and concludes with murder or massacre.

Just the other day in Bohol, an elderly man was killed haplessly, his insides gutted out, was flayed and his body parts carved to pieces by a drug addict because he thought the old man was a "supernatural" being.

Last year, in Navotas, a mother hacked her 3 year old daughter seven times in various parts of her frail body because "well, I am an addict" she nonchalantly responded as to why.

In the first half of this year, in Cebu, a 10 year old girl was raped repeatedly, not only by an uncle but also by her grandfather.

All in all, there are about 1,000 victims of crime for every 100,000 people in our country that was recorded last year. In 2012, there were only about 220 crimes per 100k population. Whether there are doctoring or under reporting of stats, it cannot be denied that crime was left unabated, despite all the rhetorics like "lambat sibat" or "MAD" (mamamayan against drugs).

All we were given before were mere lip service, bravado and posturing. Worse, it is now turning out that the supposed leaders in the forefront against drugs and criminality are actually the protectors of the syndicates.

And this is the problem being confronted by this president.

It is actually unfair and uncalled for when the Hitler comparison was spouted by no less than the "bright" ex-president, and played to the hilt by the "decent" crowd.

Because we really didn't suffer a holocaust.

What we got instead was the yellow plague.