Senator Grace Poe

I woke up and said a prayer of thanks, as always then checked my phone, then browsed Facebook. I chanced upon this piece on Sen. Grace Poe, 'A Foundling Named Grace', by Gigi Grande of ABS-CBN. Now I post this without the benefit of any 'Google' searches, or without the legal background one should have to properly comment on the matter. I post this with what I feel must be, as a human being.

Laws, as I see them, must be understood 'in the spirit in which they are written'. Putting together all of those which are considered and recognized in the crafting of laws: rights, welfare, common good, honor, dignity, respect; the brilliant minds who put these laws on paper had in mind, and this is presumptuous of me, fairness and justice.

The law, supposedly says now, that Sen. Poe is not qualified to run for President of this country because she is not a 'natural-born Filipino'. She was abandoned in a church somewhere in Jaro, was found by a kindhearted woman, and was reared by one, then two, and other families, until she was adopted by FPJ and his wife, Susan. The rest, we all know, is history.

She is a 'foundling', under our laws. And to be able to run for the highest post in this country, it must be proven that she is 'natural-born'. To do that, a search for her biological parents is necessary. She says she started to search for the answers, even before she was thrust into the world of politics. And she will continue to seek the answers, not because she wants to be President. 

I first noticed her during the Senate Hearings in the Mamasapano incident, and found her to be calm, put-together so well, managed the highly emotional exchanges so prudently, respectful but bearing authority. She did not try at all to impress anyone, she just did her job. Perhaps she is that way, really. One can see that she was brought up well by her adoptive parents, exuding the decency from her upbringing unintentionally.

Because she apparently became open to the prospects of running for the highest post in the country, she is now the object of scrutiny. I expected mudslinging, of course. Goodness, some colleagues in even our small organization are able to throw everything at us, the management, not just mud but scum and feces, the rest of the outside world can surely do that to the Senator. 

I feel now that the laws, whichever applies in this instance, are not working the way they should. Really, it was not her fault that her biological parents did not want her. It is not her fault that she was abandoned, bloody and all, in a church. It is not her fault that she was adopted by the country's most popular husband-and-wife. Yet, the laws require that she proves that she is 'natural-born Filipino'. I thought the laws were there for fairness and justice? How can she do that? Maybe someone out there can enlighten me.

In the meantime, I want to weep for the Senator. It is bad enough that the truth is in her face: that she was abandoned by the mother who grew her inside her womb for nine months. That truth hurts enough. Well, that is just me, I am always dramatic. The Senator's life is dramatic, too. But she chooses to not to play the part. She is too decent for that.