The voice against the pork barrel fund of the Congress was lonely and barely audible. That voice was Senator Panfilo Lacson’s. But when the media amplified the voice, among those who cried were House Speaker Gloria Arroyo and Majority Leader Nonoy Andaya. But instead of settling the issue, Andaya kept pounding on Budget Secretary Ben Diokno and involved the Hamors of Sorsogon for allegedly benefitting from the budget insertions.

But why would Andaya keep pounding on Diokno when they could just discuss it in a session and correct things accordingly? In the first place, isn’t it the job of the House of Representatives to study and  pass appropriations bills? So why won’t he just do his job, his mandate, instead of further exposing himself and his colleagues to the practice that twice declared unconstitutionally the Supreme Court?

In Freudan theory, Andaya’s pounding on Diokno and involving as many people as possible is a sign of guilt. To get away with it, he is using “projection” as a defense mechanism. Projection is defined as “a form of defense in which unwanted feelings are displaced onto another person, where they then appear as a threat from the external world.” So he keeps on blaming Diokno and uses the family bond between the latter and Sorsogon Vice Governor Ester Hamor who allegedly benefitted from the P10 billion pork insertion. Diokno and the Vice Governor are in-laws. The problem, Andaya’s actions opened a can of worms exposing the practice of parking pork barrel funds in other districts, and the allocations of other provinces including Albay’s.

Second, Andaya thought he is getting away with his act and at the same time getting the limelight in the media. That, he thinks, is a good publicity for his gubernatorial bid. Good or bad publicity, still, is publicity and Andaya needed this badly to challenge incumbent governor Migz Villafuerte. But will this publicity stunt benefit him or further pull down his political bid?

Because of what Andaya did, a significant portion of the population who travelled to Sorsogon has started to compare the highways of the southernmost province of the Bicol Peninsula and that of Camarines Sur. Unfortunately, many are finding the former better than the Andaya Highway which is always in the state of disrepair. Note that aside from the Andaya Clan monopolizing the power in the First District for decades, Nonoy has been a Budget Secretary, too, like Diokno, an Appropriations Chair of the Lower House, and now a Majority Floor Leader. So, many are asking: Quo vadis, Nonoy?

Third, Diokno has been a part of the Hyatt 10+1, the group of Department Secretaries who resigned during the “Hello, Garci!” scandal. Allegedly, House Speaker Gloria Arroyo still harbors ill feelings to what Diokno did. Andaya thought this was a way to make his Boss GMA get even at Diokno. The problem is, Malacanang is strongly supporting Diokno and even taunted the Majority Floor Leader to lack common sense. This, if analyzed in the Freudan perspective, could be true. He blurred his reasoning on the thought that he can get away with what he and his colleagues has done.

What is happening, though, not only calls for popcorn but also for vigilance. The exposés of Andaya highlights practices that the people should be wary of. In the end, this is a good thing particularly for taxpayers who thought that the Congressmen are just legislating laws but are, in reality, eating their pork barrel funds, too.

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