‘Pakitang’ Pope

WITH the coming of the Pope to the Philippines this week, expect our roads to be clean and beautified, traffic to be disciplined and orderly, our people to be on their best behavior, including politicians who will stop, albeit temporarily, all their shenanigans. Even the government’s investigations of various corrupt activities will be halted so as not to wash our country’s dirty linen in the Pope’s presence. Indeed, expect a temporary cessation of various types of conflicts altogether. Expect the Filipinos’ piety and reverence to be on full display.

I make these predictions in light of what I have observed during the previous pope visits. Indeed, how we honorably conducted ourselves as a nation during previous pope visits made me indulge in a bit of wishful thinking. Why could we not always act like so?