Back when this paper was young, we would come out with a spoof section in every anniversary issue — a huge effort to create content patterned after the funny rags of old, where we poked fun at politics and the characters that filled that world.

That lasted for years until our humor dried out. 

Looking back, most people we ended up “featuring” were not so onion-skinned — although ours has always been a libel-conscious landscape. 

Blame it on how ordinary citizens seem to worship politicians, kowtowing to them as if they were superstars.

They are, in truth, public servants. They swear to serve people and country, although what usually happens is that they serve themselves first. And that is precisely why we get endless material for spoofs.

The only one who probably cracked from the pressure of the satire was a former president who allegedly ended up having our offices raided. But that’s neither here nor there. 

What’s tickling many at the moment are the recent face-offs and bump-offs — caricatures of a time we do not care to revisit.

The People’s Initiative, the Con-Ass, and the half-assed remarks traded with a lot of “PI” probably racing in their heads. It’s not so funny if you think about it.

And now the resurgence of a call for a separate Mindanao? The displeasure is coming off in waves. It almost feels like a giant sulk.

Following the controversial PI, the Mindanao secession will also need the gathering of signatures, although such activity has already been tagged as unconstitutional.

Among several lawmakers who outright rejected the call revived by former President Rodrigo Duterte, some are Mindanaoans. They are also against secession, never mind that “there is nothing to secede,” as former Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said, based on the 1987 Constitution.

Again, we have to look at the Mindanao situation and perhaps realize that much has changed in the south of the Philippine islands. It has, primarily, shed its image as a den of rebels. It is gaining traction as a tourism hub.

And those are not the only plus factors about the biggest chunk of land in the PI. It has abundant natural and agricultural resources and a veritable basket of goodies. This region’s wealth seems vast, yet many of its leaders have long complained of neglect.

This was something that came to the fore with the recent comment made by former President Duterte: “Kaya kung ganu’n lang naman kayo diyan sa Luzon, sa Visayas, bahala kayo (So if that’s the way you’re going to be, then that’s up to you).”

The last time a call was made to separate Mindanao was in 1986, an online report says, but the proposed Mindanao Federal Republic did not prosper.

If one were to be a devil’s advocate — or simply sink into disgruntlement as a Filipino — it would be easy to think it would be better to leave, to take oneself away from a useless situation. Giving up is always an option, yes, but let us closely examine our reasons why.

Knowing how the country stands today, with so many challenges we continue to face, is any of this helpful? Do our leaders prefer to fan discontent rather than buckle down to work and ask everyone to do the same?