Filipino literary personalities created another poem out of President Rodrigo Duterte‘s rambling during his taped pandemic task force meeting on August 26.
It was similar to previous poems titled “The Kit” and “The Pill” some writers circulated last year.
They also formed this poem-like structure with words and remarks taken from parts of the chief executive’s national addresses.
READ: ‘The Kit’: Duterte’s ramblings at COVID-19 press conference are now creative poems
This time, Duterte made some incoherent and incomplete phrases about him and presidential spokesperson Harry Roque making a visit via a helicopter.
“Iyan ang ano ko, iyan ang—doon ako nag—naano sa… Wala talaga. Except si Roque, nagdala ng hamburger doon. I went there 10 times. The last time nga nabutas ‘yung chopper. And I spent hanggang gabi. Hindi ako pumunta doon—nagpunta ako ng hapon hanggang gabi. Iyan ang ano,” he said.
Screenwriter Jerry Gracio, a three-time Palanca awardee, later shared a poem called “Ang Ano” on Twitter using these words and arranged them in a creative poem structure.
Gracio wrote: “Poetry of incoherence, August 26, 2021.”
Poetry of Incoherence | August 26, 2021: pic.twitter.com/wqPR10r4oZ
— Jerry B. Grácio (@JerryGracio) August 28, 2021
His post had since circulated and re-posted across Facebook and Twitter.
Other users compared in jest that other writers could not compare to Duterte’s own rhetoric.
“Faudet and Lang found dead in the ditch,” one user said.
“Shakespeare became shookspeare,” another user wrote.
Some users expressed a more critical view.
“Yes it’s funny if you read it….but the reality is not funny! This country is being led by someone who’s not making any sense, has no plan, has no direction and has no contingency,” the user wrote.
Defending dolomite
In his speech, Duterte also defended anew his P389-million man-made beach comprising dolomite rocks along Manila Bay against critics.
Duterte described the beach as “beautiful to the eyes.”
“What is beautiful is beautiful, period. Dolomite is beautiful to the eyes, period,” he said.
Duterte then claimed that Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy Cimatu was the only person willing to take on “the problem.”
“Huwag ka nang magtanong kasi hindi naman ninyo kaya kung kayo. You had your chance, actually,” he said.
“For so many years, you had every chance to do it. Was there anybody willing to take the problem by its horns? Si Cimatu lang. Eh ‘di magpasalamat tayo,” he added.
Despite the evidence-backed concerns of experts, the national government proceeded to revive the project last April.
READ: Vaccine over sand: Fresh dose of dolomite in Manila Bay draws renewed criticisms
Photos of large trucks dumping a fresh coat of dolomite rocks along the portion of Roxas Boulevard were reported on social media, prompting renewed calls to put a stop to it.
The white sand beach is part of the DENR’s Manila Bay Rehabilitation Program that started in January 2017.
However, the controversial project had drawn widespread outrage since last year from scientists, members of the political opposition and other experts.
Other Filipinos noted that the government should have allocated the funds for financial aid and securing more COVID-19 vaccine supplies to the public.
