'Dear Gloria' Facebook page bids farewell to Arroyo
MANILA, Philippines - It's still one more month before President Arroyo's 9-year term ends, but thousands of Filipinos are already preparing a send-off for her.
A Facebook page called "Dear Gloria (goodbye letters to an outgoing President)" was created a few days ago where members express their farewell messages to President Arroyo, whose term ends on June 30.
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| Thousands of Facebook users post their not-so-good messages to Mrs. Arroyo in the "Dear Gloria" page. |
About one message is added to the page every minute. Comments ranged from the plainly humorous to the more sarcastic ones.
"Goodbye, Gloria. You made me realize that there really is something 'good' with 'goodbye.' Thanks!" said Ie Sindayen.
"Thank you for achieving what good leaders in the past were not able to achieve: unite a divided people in booting out this regime," added Marlon James Sales.
Others were contented with one-liners, with the most popular ones being "good riddance" and "thanks for nothing."
The "Dear Gloria" page was created by Rock Ed Philippines, the same group behind the "Dear Noynoy" Facebook page.
As of 2:39 p.m. on Friday, May 21, the page has 7,426 members.
A different 'goodbye'
The "Dear Gloria" page was intended as a despedida for Mrs. Arroyo as she hands over the presidency to the winner of the May 10 polls. To date, the odds are in favor of Liberal Party standard bearer Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.
But since the Facebook page is not moderated, the so-called "farewell gift" ended up being too nasty and foul on the part of the outgoing president.
A good number of them, for one, wanted Mrs. Arroyo to "rest in peace," "be handed over to God," or "be fetched by the lower-world beings."
Another even asked her to "take out the trash before you go down."
Allegations
So why are thousands of Filipinos channeling their anger to the Philippines' most powerful person, one who should command the respect and support of the people?
| Mrs. Arroyo waves to the crowd before boarding the presidential chopper after her visit in Siargao. Credit: Rey Baniquet/OPS-NIB |
Arroyo's term, which started after Joseph "Erap" Estrada was ousted from the presidency in 2001, was muddled in controversy -- allegations of cheating in the 2004 presidential elections, the NBN-ZTE broadband scandal and the rise of extra-judicial killings in the country, among others.
She has received heavy criticism from people across sectors and classes. Despite 4 impeachment complaints, 3 attempted military takeovers and several rallies, Mrs. Arroyo managed to stay in power up to this day -- she even clinched a congressional seat in her hometown of Pampanga.
Even her new position in Congress didn't sit well with a number of Filipinos. Here are some comments posted in the "Dear Gloria" page:
"Voters of the 2nd district of Pampanga, we the Filipino people will not forget and forgive the treachery you brought into this country by electing Arroyo in Congress!" Rodel Polintan said in Filipino.
"Dear GMA, I pray that you will not corrupt the system as a new congresswoman," added Caroline Peralejo.
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For comments and suggestions, e-mail the author at karen_flores@abs-cbn.com.
