“WHEN a thing is funny, search it carefully for a hidden truth.” ― George Bernard Shaw [1856 - 1950]
A viral resolution, apparently written with the solemnity of a national emergency, has been circulating on social media, proposing that the Davao City council declare comedian Vice Ganda a “persona non grata” for the high crime of making jokes.
The proposed resolution, which reads like a fan letter gone wrong, condemns Vice Ganda for “mocking” former President Rodrigo Duterte and his “jet ski” promise regarding the West Philippine Sea.
It also takes umbrage at the comedian’s “impersonation” and alleged insults to “Diehard Duterte Supporters.”
The document elevates the former president to “our Lord whose service is cherished and revered” and “a symbol of moral salvation,” descriptors that raise questions about the separation of church and state, or at least comedy and state.
The resolution, which also calls for a boycott of brands endorsed by Vice Ganda, was met with a swift and surprisingly witty response from Akbayan Rep. Perci Cendaña.
He defended the comedian, stating that “speaking truth to power is most potent when it makes people laugh” and offered a more fitting title for Vice Ganda: “persona bonggang-bongga.”
In a final, decisive blow to the resolution’s dramatic flair, Davao City acting Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte II issued a statement that effectively declared the entire matter a waste of time.
He stated that the city council has “far more important matters to attend to,” such as “crafting policies and programs that improve the lives of Dabawenyos.”
“Davao City will not be distracted by cheap insults and distasteful jokes made for clout,” Duterte’s statement reads in part.
Duterte II’s statement concluded that the city “will not be distracted by cheap insults and distasteful jokes” and that public figures who “mistake insult for entertainment” reveal more about their own character.
The council, it seems, has decided to let the joke stand, while the resolution itself has become a punchline.
