By: Telly Gonzaga-Ocampo
From Gobbledygook to an Unsolicited Proposal
My mind doesn’t stop working. In my younger days, napuno ko sa dauroy o ada-uroy! Ada-uroy uban-uban, ug daghan ka ra ug uso.
That was the line we threw around back then — half tease, half truth. But that same ada-uroy, that stubborn habit of tagging along and asking questions, brought me to where I am today.
I’m defiant, yes, but not rude. Good manners and right conduct were drilled into me at home, in school, and later in the workplace. I learned early that choice of words and mannerisms matter. They are the quiet architecture of respect.
Which is why I’m still hooked on the impeachment trial. For hours I sit and listen to senator-judges, witnesses, lawyers, and the parade of media analysts. And I keep remembering the late Senator Raul Roco and his perfect word: gobbledygook. Because that’s what so much of it sounds like. Naay mangutana sa witness nga maglibot-libot pag-una sa dili pa muabot sa iyang buot ipasabot. Long, winding preambles that circle and circle until the point disappears. Ta-as kaayo ug pasakalye nga ang resulta gobbledygook. Ha ha ha! I, indeed, miss the clarity of Mr. Roco.
The late Senator Raul Roco, whose word ‘gobbledygook’ still fits the moment.
This is the fourth impeachment in my lifetime. Estrada. GMA. Chief Justice Corona. And now, Vice President Sara. And do you know where we are going to? Ada-uroy! The Senate during Roco’s time was packed with abogado de campanilla — names that carried weight, arguments cut clean. Today, the lawyers on both prosecution and defense are young, matinik na matinik. Sharp, fast, and unafraid.
Hours of testimony, and the search for clarity.
Senate President Chiz Escudero, to me, is a steady presiding officer. Ayaw lang i-apil kadtong iyang pagbalhin sa pikas. The barong Tagalog and Filipiniana dresses in the gallery are glamorous, a reminder that this is still a national ritual. Though I’ll admit, I’m still hoping to see Atty. Lorna Kapunan walk in wearing her Filipiniana.
Here’s to Monday. I’m curious about the second witness. The first, for me, was a catastrophe. And on a personal note: post-audit practice, the way we do it now, does not really guard the government’s money. It counts it after it’s gone.
Atty Lorna Kapunan says what needs to be saisd. She doesn’t around the issue – no filler, no filter!
From the Senate Floor to the Baclayon Public Market
Baclayon’s public market — at the center of a new unsolicited proposal and heritage questions.
The national noise makes me look closer to home. I just learned of a development from our LGU in Baclayon: the repair and redevelopment of our public market through an unsolicited proposal. As someone who advocates for heritage preservation, I’m pausing. Baclayon isn’t just any town. It’s one of the oldest in Bohol, with a church and a history that survived earthquakes and time. Any change to a public space there should be explained, debated, and seen in full daylight.
We don’t have the details yet. And I hope this isn’t just another headline. I hope this doesn’t belong to the same world of gobbledygook — big words, vague promises, and nothing solid underneath. Because if we learned anything from watching trials on TV, it’s this: process matters. Transparency matters. And the people deserve to know, in plain language, what is being proposed, why, and at what cost to our heritage.