There is something about goodbyes that make people uneasy about them. For those who are precious to us, we hold on to them for as long as we can. To those we can live without, we ask why it's taking so long. Goodbye is certainly on most people's minds as far as Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is concerned. To some, it will be the end of nine years of excess and abuse from which they benefited handsomely. To most, it is long overdue for one whose uncontested claim to success is the lowest rating ever given to a President.
And yet, there are some who are not about to say goodbye to her. They continue to raid the treasury, corrupt the bureaucracy and abuse the citizenry. They act as if they know something that most mortals don't – that she is staying on beyond June 30. Try as they may though, there is an end to everything – good things to them, bad for most of us. Parting with Pres. Arroyo definitely is one goodbye that will be said regardless of one's party color. Of course, it won't mean the end of it in some ways. For one, those who have had a hand in the plunder of public coffers will have a lot to answer for. They will have to face the music whether they like the harmony or not.
During a forum at the De La Salle University Friday, Arroyo's handpicked bet, former Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro had to take a deep breath when he and other presidential candidates were asked whether they would make Arroyo accountable for anything anomalous that happened in her administration. Teodoro, of course, will have to do more than take a deep breath when a new administration takes over. At the risk of getting too far ahead, that administration won't be his as far as the present trends show. Still, that should be an eye-opener to all those similarly situated, all those who have to answer to the people for their conduct during the dark years of the Arroyo administration. US Sen. Richard Lugar is best remembered for the message he gave to then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos at the height of the upheaval that would lead to his fall. “Cut and cut clean,” Lugar told Marcos in clear terms. Unfortunately for many Arroyo fanatics, cutting clean is the farthest thing on their minds. In fact, they continue to hold on to the belief that they can perpetuate themselves in power. Well, they better think again. The sign on the wall is for all to see: gone are the glory days of you-know-who.
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