Flip the coin

Flip the coin | Daily Tribune

An actor once got everyone’s panties in a twist when she was quoted as saying, in a verbal brawl: “I can buy you, your friends and this club!”

She must have been hopping mad at the time, for this actor is generally a wholesome one, so while there were those who applauded the gall, others thought she was too much. Or possibly just drunk.

Many years later, her words pale in comparison to those whose lifestyles are documented by themselves and their posts on social media. They came to be called “nepo babies,” their spending power so immense that the peso itself must have curled up in shame. Daddy, their personal ATM, did not seem to mind at all.

The reality of their excesses came to light not so long ago, and now those who have been linked to the so-called “Floodgate” scandal will face non-bailable holidays in prison. Small comfort for those who lost loved ones, livelihoods and what little faith they had in this government when the recent typhoons came, leaving hopes and dreams in tatters.

And we know this could be just the beginning of a change for the better. Or not.

It all depends on how sincere those tasked with making sure that justice is served are.

Meanwhile, the nepo babies and their ilk are crying into their Hermes collars, unable to flex their trips around the world and their shopping hauls. All the while, the rest of the populace is looking at P59 to one dollar.

We can blame Mercury and the planets all we want, but the fact is the Philippine peso is losing its backbone. Weak, we call the likes of leaders with that bone density.

Yet, notwithstanding leaders who may be accused of having that density, the fact is that the value of the currency moves depending on various factors: supply and demand in the foreign exchange markets, interest rates, inflation and trade balance.

It may sound Greek to most Filipinos who only know that fuel prices have gone up, and that going to the market means coming home with fewer goods for what the same house budget used to buy.

Holiday season? What is that? It is already November and the only red and green you’re seeing is that of fury and envy, for those countries that actually see public services in their daily grind. Yes, nobody feels like Santa is coming.

The Grinch is ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing) with such morbid mirth from seeing the corruption scandal wounding our peso and all those typhoons uncovering the secret flood control deals that yielded nothing much at all for the Filipino populace.

Putting food on the table is the perennial wail of Filipinos who deem themselves poor. And now even loyal taxpayers are doubting themselves. Where is the justice here? Hard as you work, there is no appreciation. When there is grumbling, whether in the stomach or in the mind, any leadership is a failure.

The weakened peso is good for overseas Filipino workers earning dollars, but it has kicked prices up around here.

Corruption has practically held all of us hostage, grabbing everyone by the scruff of the neck and choking the life out of those who were already finding it hard to breathe. It’s time to change things up.