Ben Contreras  THERE was a time the story made headlines here. But since the man is not from the higher echelons of our society and his case doesn’t belong to the high-profile category, his case is now relegated to the statistics and today, he is still languishing in a jail somewhere far from his home. The circumstances of his arrest, the physical absence of the complainant who is a total stranger, constitute a theory of pure harassment. He was alone in his fight against alleged corruption and anomalies in the Cagayan de Oro Water District perpetuated by the board and a bulk water supplier with little help from concerned citizens and media. It was a lonely fight, so to speak. But he carried on only to be stopped by a trumped-up rape case. Many took advantage of his case, pretending to have sympathy but disappeared when the hot issues cooled down. After that, nothing was heard of him again until Ralph Abragan posted an appeal to the President to review his case. Indeed, where is Emmanuel Mulawan Sr. now? The last time we saw him was when our small group decided to visit him and have lunch with him one Christmas. There is a need to re-investigate his case. He can’t be just detained or put in jail indefinitely and without court action. That is pure injustice. People behind his arrest should be exposed. Our group, like other people, believes he is innocent. He is merely a victim of a power play. I join Ralph in this call for a review. The man may be in poor health or sickly and may have suffered too much already. Thus, I appeal to our President that somebody be designated to look into it as soon as possible. Give Mulawan his freedom and give him back to his family.
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Let me quote Environment Secretary Gina Lopez again: “When one doesn’t have much, one treasures every little bit.” The best people who can best understand poverty is the poor themselves. Kung kapos ka sa pagkain, kahit isang butil ng bigas ay may halaga. Many of us came from poor families, and we cannot forget the lesson taught us by our parents. Huwag mag-aksaya. Eat your rice to the last bit. Today, food is being wasted as if the world is not going hungry. We don’t need to look far. Around us are kids, old folks, handicaps who roam around hungry. So, what’s wrong with Sen. Bam Aquino’s suggestion to give leftovers to those who have nothing to eat? Aquino is not talking of leftovers that are unfit for consumption. He is talking of food that visitors could no longer consume during parties and gatherings. If there would be plenty of extra food, would it not give you happiness to be able to feed the hungry even just for an occasion? Try it and feel like in heaven.