BAGUIO City Mayor Benjamin Magalong's tirade against corruption and the hypocrisy surrounding this seems to have hit hard and it had that effect on me. For whatever reason, my outlook since a teenager has ranged from skepticism to cynicism without losing a sense of outrage, admittedly a strange combination. That is why, back in 1983, when Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. was assassinated, I did not expect the protests to last, yet with nothing to gain and much to lose, joined the protests 40 years ago given my moral outrage. I read Mayor (or does he prefer General, happy to use either) Magalong's complaints and his outrage about corruption and so on. He is far from the first to make a case of anti-corruption, but what is it in his call that surprised me? Is he the last politician in the Philippines with a sense of moral outrage? His tirade came across to me as sincere outrage, as contrasted to the sloganeering that is the wont of most politicians during campaigns, which is then conveniently ignored to various degrees post-election. Just look at the record of most 'reforming' administrations when they exit on no bid contracts, pork barrel, unliquidated advances, and the like. Reality versus campaign. The succeeding administrations usually go on tirades and investigate, yet nothing substantial happens anyway after the initial brouhaha.

The way Mayor Magalong describes it, the ingrained corruption, and his jeremiad against it, has the tone of sincere outrage and moral disgust. Good luck to him and I hope he kindles something substantial. Also, contrasting the proposed reductions (called 'reforms') in military pensions with the lack of similar reforms and sacrifice with pork barrel spending is on point. I remain pessimistic that anything meaningful will come out of this. Why? All the systemic force against it.