BSA, the NAA, and the CPMAL

Just to follow through on my “memo” to President-elect Noynoy last week with regard to his administration’s arts and culture policy, there’s one more concern nagging many people in the sector that he and his advisers should know about. It’s the question of what his attitude will be toward the highly questionable selection by his predecessor of certain personalities close to her as National Artists. Readers will recall that scores of citizens—including a good number of sitting National Artists—rose up in protest against what they saw to be Malacañang’s brazen attempt to bend if not disregard the rules to accord the honor to the Palace’s favorites. The nominees drawing the most fire were film director Carlo J. Caparas, who had not passed the preliminary screening of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), and theater director and advocate Cecile Guidote Alvarez, whose credentials may have been considerable but who also happened to be the top official in charge of the NA selection process as Executive Director of the NCCA. This case is now lodged with the Supreme Court, which issued a “status quo” order last August 25 in response to a petition, effectively freezing the process until it decides the matter once and for all. Thus, in a legal sense, it can be argued that this is not Noynoy’s problem but the Court’s, and that he can afford to sit by and devote his time to other, vastly more pressing, priorities, as he most certainly should. Indeed, that’s what many artists would rather that BSA (as he’ll soon be monogrammed by our initial-happy press) do. Their worry stems from the reported closeness of the NA appointees in question not only to the outgoing administration but—surprise, surprise—to the incoming one as well, or at least to some of the Aquinos. As much as she has endeavored not to be seen as a power broker (or should we now say eminence jaune?) behind her brother, Kris is well known to have been a Caparas favorite in such gory epics as The Myrna Diones Story (Lord Have Mercy), Humanda Ka Mayor (Bahala Na and Diyos), and The Vizconde Massacre (God Help Us)—the “Krisploitation” genre, as my friend Eric Caruncho so aptly put it. I actually like Kris, and have great admiration for her talent at entertaining people, whether by making them laugh, smile, or squirm. But like quite a few others, I can’t help but wonder if her friendship or at least her professional association with “Direk” Carlo will somehow influence Noynoy’s own estimation of Caparas’ artistic achievement (not that he has to do any estimating, per my previous point). For that matter, the Alvarezes—just doing their patriotic duty then—also grew close to the Aquinos in political exile in America. I’m not implying that Carlo and Cecile will actually lobby Noynoy to get their titles—not that he necessarily can or will do anything to grant them. After the vexatiousness of this entire affair, which has torn many old friendships apart, I suspect that they’ve resigned themselves as well to letting the law take its due course in the matter and to move on to more profitable and pacific pursuits. Much less do I expect the new President to do precisely what he stood up against in his campaign—ring up friends on the Court on behalf of some pet cause, which the NA issue isn’t, even. I’m just praying that BSA will act with more prudence and sensitivity than GMA, especially when it comes to matters beyond his immediate ken, and that he’ll go far beyond family and friends to get sound advice on merit-based appointments like the National Artist Awards. I certainly hope that he draws another line between him and his predecessor by desisting from using “presidential prerogative” as a wand for naming unqualified or ineligible supporters to high honors or comfy sinecures. As I said last week, the NAAs are almost trivial compared to blockbuster scandals such as NBN-ZTE and the fertilizer scam, which BSA should get to the bottom of. A proper arts policy will also not be obsessed with awards but with grassroots development. However, how he comports himself in this matter—should he ever be pressed by the media for an opinion, as he has been wont to grant—will tell a lot about his judgment and his character, and just how different he truly is from those who came before him. In any event, it would be great if the President-elect (or the President, in a couple of weeks’ time) can meet sometime soon with representatives from the arts and culture community—including but not limited to his current friends in entertainment—to get a sense of where things stand and what the sector can do to help in nation-building. It wouldn’t be a bad idea, for example, for the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature (CPMAL)—which happen to be marking their 60th anniversary this year—to invite President Aquino to be their guest speaker at the awards ceremony on September 1st, so our writers can hear for themselves what “P-Noy” thinks literature can do to help society, and what the national leadership can do to help literature. His late, beloved mother graced the same event during her Presidency, to warm applause. I know that writers generally don’t take well to listening to politicians—we already do too much of that everyday—but I’m sure they’ll make a happy exception in the case of the new Chief Executive, whose sense of humor and irony will be put to the test. Whether he speaks to us in English or Filipino, or even in everyday Taglish (I can see the schoolmarms smirking), I’m sure we’ll appreciate the self-introduction he’ll be making. In the end, of course, his deeds more than his words will make all the difference, but for that one evening, we’d be glad to savor his language and its meanings. Email me at penmanila@yahoo.com and visit my blog at www.penmanila.net.