Sui Generis Superstar

by Patrick Flores

Was it the water she sold? Or could it have been the sound of the train running on its tracks? Or just the lilt of her voice, singing songs of her hometown and also of ski trails, the warbling of the meadowlark, and moonlight in Vermont? Difficult to imagine that Nora Aunor is already 61; she was all of 11 when she won first prize in a music tilt sponsored by a milk company in Camarines Sur. Still harder to grasp that she has over time chalked up around 181 films, 238 songs, 53 records, and 260 awards. What kind of time and world might have formed Nora? What atmosphere of history did she breathe?

On the centennial of Philippine independence in 1998, the Cultural Center of the Philippines named a hundred artists of the nation, including the likes of the exemplary patriot-painter of the nineteenth century Juan Luna. Quite a formidable league, and Nora was the only actress of film to be part of it, a tribute to how her fine labor has transformed the work of art in the Philippines and how a humbled and inspired nation has returned the gesture.

Surely, the talent is the horizon, creating an extensive landscape of efforts in music, film, television, and theater and excelling in these fields as attested by the countless honors here and elsewhere. An argument can be made that she is sui generis — without precedent, peer, or progeny.  She has been compared with the fabled Italian actress Giulietta Masina; and the equally illustrious French icon Jeanne Moreau, the chair of the Berlinale jury when Himala (1982) competed in 1983, remembered Nora having put up a brave fight against a Soviet actress that year.

The mythology would inflect this artistic potency. In other words, it is not only the rigor of the technique and the lightness of the effect that has made many cherish Nora’s presence in art and social life. It is also the moral tale of journeying from peninsula to city to pursue the promise of her voice and, in the fullness of time, to transcend the adversity that had made her dare to dream in the first place. It is the ballad of the migrant, the amateur, the expectant. It is the source of stigma, sadness, and inevitably, of the sublime. This myth has been lasting, and for her kind in different places, it is so moving.

It is this mythology that has enabled Nora to gather her own mass of faithful, to stir up the occasional hysteria, and to become quite a cognate of cinema as medium: how a wisp of a girl morphs into a startling kind of substance on screen is the very technology of enchantment itself. And the power can only be palpable. At the height of the Martial Law of Marcos, perhaps only Nora’s army, fired up by intense devotion, could have held a candle.

With form and mythology comes change. And Nora changed a lot of prejudices and discriminations, from the concept of a star to the role of a superstar, from the mestiza leading lady to the morena movie queen, from the studio fixture to a risk taker in terms of producing her own films and taking on eccentric characters. Change, too, came by way of the breakdown of the divide between the supposedly bakya (low-class) and the burgis (elite), high art and low art, commercial film and art film. Nora embodied aspects of these tendencies, with no apology nor conceit. She was only 23 when she produced and starred in Tatlong Taong Walang Diyos (1976), and on the first year of the awards of the organization of film critics called the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino, Nora was declared Best Actress. We wonder who owed more to whom, the intelligentsia or the girl from Iriga?

Finally, the persistence, the sheer stamina of Nora to trudge on, with or without a National Artist medallion around her neck, a piece of jewelry that has been unfairly snatched away from her by mere government. The year has yet to end but she has already made six films and some of them have been doing the rounds of international film festivals, making her the busiest star in an industry where its so-called celebrities waste away in the cesspool of entertainment. With the recent grisly death of a transgender Filipino allegedly in the hands of an American soldier, she again comes to mind. As we watch the news unreel, who would not not remember Nora intoning the line before her brother’s coffin in Minsa’y Isang Gamu-Gamo (1976): “My brother is not a pig!”

In the lamentable film Hustisya (2014), Nora plays the role of Biring, a hireling in a syndicate who later takes the helm. In the last scene, a party to celebrate her birthday, the country’s corrupt political class gathers in her parlor. An assistant whispers something in her ear and she laughs nearly wickedly. Nora Aunor has always known the farce of this society and has mastered the madness of her method.

BusinessWorld, 2015

That ‘vangag’ video

Back in July 2024, the first time I saw it on Facebook, I laughed. Siya ba ‘yan? At ganoon ba talaga suminghot ng cocaine? At saan, kailan, na-shoot ang video na ‘yan?

The very same SONA day it was released by U.S.-based DDS vlogger Maharlika on social media, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) pronounced it a “poorly designed deepfake video that can easily be identified using simple tools openly available online.” https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/

The next day in a joint presscon, the NBI and the PNP shared the results of their “video spectral analysis”: the ears of the man in the video [the tragal notch and the antitragus, both on the outer parts of the ear] and those of BBM are different. https://verafiles.org/

Brig. Gen. Ronnie Francis Cariaga, Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) director, said they had the same findings after an artificial intelligence detection tool revealed significant discrepancies in the facial features of Marcos and the person in the video, such as the size of the ears, shape of the eyes and nose and sideburns.

Citing their analysis, Cariaga said the video is fake and was created using artificial intelligence (AI). https://www.philstar.com/

VERA Files Fact Check went for an independent assessment, reached out to AI detection experts of the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) part of the India-based Misinformation Combat Alliance. Three tools — Sensity AI, HIVE, and TrueMedia — found the video to be suspicious, bearing traces of manipulation at multiple points of the video’s run-time. Read ‘Polvoron’ video crumbles, AI experts find traces of facial manipulation.

The DAU also shared analysis from their partner GetReal Labs, which was co-founded by University of California-Berkeley professor Hany Farid and his team specializing in digital forensics and AI detection.

“[T]he human ear is a fairly decent biometric. Because a face-swap deepfake is only eyebrow to chin and ear to ear, the ears can often be used as indication of a fake. Attached is a two-frame animation (1 screenshot from the video, 1 from President Marcos’s recent state of the nation address) in which you can see some differences in the shape of the ear. The structure of the face and the hairline also seem quite different.”

That was in Sept 2024 pa when Vera Files confirmed the PNP and NBI findings. Not that it ever stopped the DDS from screaming “b(v)angag!” at every opportunity, accompanied by calls for BBM to resign or for people power to oust him, like father like son. The most consistent and strident calls coming from the vlogger who released it, and former RRD spokesman now self-exile Harry Roque.

Not that they were ever able to raise the requisite crowds clamoring for the same, but they never dropped the advocacy either. In fact, the DDS patriarch’s surprise rendition to The Hague raised the pitch of the vlogger and the exile to hysterical heights so it did not surprise that the latest TRIcomm hearing on vloggers and fake news saw fit to acknowledge and go public with an affidavit by vlogger Pebbles Talakera that related what she knew of the video “para itama ang mali” — basically that Roque is behind it daw.

Of course Roque has denied it, accusing government of a “political witch hunt” and Pebbles of “fake news.”

Ang totoo: Taong 2022 pa ay usap usapan na sa vlog ni Maharlika ang polvoron video. … Isa lang ang sigurado: Ka-jamming ni Marcos Jr ang kumuha at source ng video, at ang taong ito na malapit kay PBBM ay ibinigay ang video kay Maharlika. https://www.facebook.com/HarryRoque/

Maharlika and Roque insist that the video is authentic, “no evidence of editing,” according daw to forensic experts who prefer to remain unnamed except in a court of law. Maharlika has long been daring the BBM admin to take her to court, charge her with cyberlibel, or something like that, if they’re so sure it’s fake. And many observers even agree, na dapat patulan na, or it might fester, or something like that.

Umm, but that would be, like, sponsoring her debut in mainstream media to which she has been denied entry so far — nauna pa nga si Pebbles. Which is just as well because hindi pang mainstream media ang lenggwahe niya, na nagiging medyo bastos at bulgar lalo na pag may kinakagalitan siya at na-ha-highblood. Wouldn’t it be wiser to keep her in her place?

Of course, it would be a different matter if she were to come back and face the music here. Mainstream media tiyak ang landing niya [bleep bleep]. At kung bitbit niya ang AI forensic experts nila ni Harry, it would be a blast to see them facing off with Vera Files‘ DAU experts.

I’d place my bet on Vera Files. I suspect that Maharlika’s “puting ahas” was pulling her leg, and she fell for it. OR maybe she’s always known that it’s a deepfake but it’s good enough for destab purposes? and for the DDS?

Gary Granada on Duterte & ICC

Speaking as an anarchist, who advocates for a society based on voluntary cooperation, without hierarchical government, Gary Granada, musician, composer, lyricist, teacher, philosopher, and public intellectual, takes the discourse higher, explains why we are all complicit and now paying the price.

Duterte, ICC and Me
(An Anarchist View)

Imagine for a moment that it is the entire Philippine State being indicted before the international community. On what charge? For failure to fulfill its international obligation to uphold the rights of its citizens. Worse, for systematically carrying out the crimes themselves.

Of course you can’t haul an entire state before the international court, so you do the next best thing – you bring the embodiment of that state. That means the Government during the time the violations happened. But you also can’t fit an entire government machinery in a jet plane. So you send the embodiment of that Government – which is the President.

But it’s Duterte’s undoing, why the entire nation-state? Because a State is accountable for acts done by its agents in their official capacity. Which means that if Duterte is convicted, it formalizes for one thing the liability of the Philippine State to pay damages to the families of EJK victims under his watch.

[ They might want to consider suing the government, or legislators might want to draft a bill “moto propio” ]

Are you hallucinating? Not at all, in fact we’ve already done the exact same thing in recent past. Government started paying the human rights victims during Martial Law in 2013, remember? Marcos was long dead by then, no one to jail anymore. In short, just like this time, a lot of murderers got away with murder. But not the entire State. Think of it as a “continuing crime” – thru time. So who paid the price ultimately?

We, us all – pro-Marcos, anti-Marcos, fence sitters, clueless. The fund, the offices, the overhead costs – all Government property and resources. Instead of hospitals, schools, science and technology, irrigation, housing – the money was spent to pay for the crimes perpetrated by the State.

I think it’s a useful narrative to help instruct young Filipinos moving forward – to the end that they better make sure it never happens again, lest pay the price again. Never mind global humiliation.

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Some Discussion References for Students:
https://hrvvmc.gov.ph/irr-ra_10368/
https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/en/customary-ihl/v1/rule149
https://www.britannica.com/…/state-sovereign-political…

Imee loyalists, Imee utang-na-loob

LESLIE BOCOBO. In spite of every disappointing thing Sen. Imee Marcos has said and done to hurt true-blue Marcos loyalists (myself included), I have decided to include her still in my very short list of personal choices for the Senate. … [Beyond “utang na loob”] … Imee will always be a Marcos and, politically speaking, may be the future conduit between her family and the Dutertes. … You are free to castigate me on this, and believe me when I say I am torn … https://www.facebook.com/lesliebocobo/posts/

I imagine that many loyalists also see, and understand, Imee’s defense of former president Rodrigo Duterte as pagtanaw ng utang na loob na hindi matatawaran. After all, Digong did not just happily help along the Marcoses’ relentless campaign to polish up the dictator’s tainted image, even pushed the takedown of ABS-CBN and everything identified with yellow history, he also dared in 2016 to bury the OG Marcos in Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) with full military honors — a favor Imelda had long been seeking from every president since FVR, to no avail.

It was FVR who in 1993 allowed the remains to return home from Hawaii direct to Ilocos Norte for immediate burial with military honors fit for an army major, the highest rank Marcos obtained in WW2 according to US military records. Imelda balked, insisted that as former president and commander-in-chief he deserved a state burial in Manila’s Heroes Cemetery. When FVR stood his ground, Imelda installed the dead one in a glass vault for display in a Batac museum — a tourist attraction — while waiting for more opportune times.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/

She tried again in 1998. Ran for president, then withdrew and endorsed Joseph Estrada, who, upon his election, immediately ordered the burial of Marcos in LNMB. Cement  was already being poured on the foundation of the tomb site weeks before Estrada’s June 30 swearing-in. Pero ipinatigil ni FVR, pangulo pa siya noon, dahil galit na galit ang anti-Marcos groups, war veterans, at Kaliwa. Atras si Imelda. Inamin ni Erap na nagkamali siya, akala niya burying Marcos in the LNMB  would  also bury the “bitter differences” between the pro- and  anti-Marcos. Estrada urged Imelda to bury the remains of her husband in Batac na lang. “End to Marcos’ burial dispute” New Straits Times July 13 1998 

Imelda gave the project a rest during GMA’s time . In PNoy’s time she turned to Congress for help. In  2011, a few days before the 25th EDSA anniversary, Marcos ally Rep. Salvador Escudero authored a resolution calling for the LNMB burial that gathered close to 200 signatures, a clear House majority. In the Senate, Bongbong Marcos released a statement insisting that his father deserved no less than a state burial. http://legacy.senate.gov.ph/press_release/

PNoy asked VP Jejomar Binay to decide the case. After 3 months of research and consultations with civil society groups and other concerned citizens, and taking into account the Escudero resolution and an SWS survey [March 3 – March 7] showing that Filipinos were split right down the middle — 50% in favor, 49% not — and a personal meeting daw with Bongbong and Imee Marcos, Binay came to the conclusion that it was a “partisan” issue and a compromise that might be acceptable to both sides would be to bury Marcos in Ilocos Norte with full military honors.  https://ph.news.yahoo.com/news/binay

But as it turned out, Binay had misread the Marcoses: Imelda was adamant about a state burial in Manila. On the 17th of June 2011, PNoy just said no. “Not during my watch.” https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/

And then came Duterte.

Kampanya pa lang, ipinangako na niya ang LNMB burial for the dictator, about whom he only had good things to say; and the burial would unite the nation daw. It is not clear if it was his way of making ligaw the Marcos loyalist vote or if naligawan na siya ni Imee vis a vis the burial in exchange for the same. But once he had won, Digong was quick to thank her publicly.

“Who supported me in Luzon? … Only Imee Marcos.” https://www.youtube.com/

“Sinong tumulong sa akin? Ilan lang … 4, 5, 6? Wala akong barangay captain. Wala akong congressman. Wala akong pera, si Imee pa nga ang nagbigay, sabi niya inutang daw niya. … Si Imee supported me.” https://www.youtube.com/

On June 30 he took his oath, August 7 he ordered the Marcos burial, August through September eight petitions were filed with the Supreme Court seeking a restraining order. Rallies pro and con, left right and center.

Imee Marcos, daughter of the former dictator and now the governor of Ilocos Norte Province painted Duterte as the natural successor to her father. She also implied that recognizing Marcos as a hero would allow the country to move forward. 

“[The reburial] is an opportunity to erase the hatred, conflicts and discord in our society,” she said at a pro-Marcos rally outside the Supreme Court in October. “The healing presidency of President Duterte will take over and we as one nation will be great again,” CNN reported. https://www.csmonitor.com/

Nov 8 the Supreme Court, voting 9-5-1, dismissed all petitions. Nov 17 Duterte flew to Lima Peru for an APEC summit, Nov 18 the dead one was flown to Manila by Army helicopter and buried in “sneaky” rites, behind shut gates, away from public view. https://www.nationthailand.com/

RACHEL AG REYES. There was a grand hearse. Relatives and guests arrived in a fleet of big cars. The Marcos family was impeccably dressed: Imelda wore a beautiful black terno whose silken folds fluttered elegantly in the breeze. Imee was in immaculate white, and her brother chose a barong his father would have favored. The coffin, draped in the nation’s flag, was carried with great ceremony by military pallbearers and honored with a 21- gun salute. Soldiers in full military regalia dutifully saluted. Priests, just as dutifully, prayed and officiated. There were wreaths and bouquets, one said to be from the President. The ceremony began promptly at noon, as tradition dictated, and ended an hour later. Rows and rows of soldiers and police stood guarding the cemetery’s perimeter and entrances. Clearly,the event was planned and executed with the sort of precision and meticulous coordination that seems so uncharacteristic of us Filipinos. Moreover, somehow, remarkably, it was all accomplished with absolute secrecy. Not a shred of information was leaked. Not a single journalist was alerted. Not a single pesky protester was there to ruin the moment and the photos. The Marcoses even controlled the visuals, selecting only a few images of the event for public consumption. The President was conveniently out of the country. His office claimed ignorance. “We honestly don’t know,” said the doe-eyed spokesperson who stood before an aghast press corps. What an impressive and extraordinary feat.  https://www.manilatimes.net/

That the burial was held in secret tells us that the Marcoses were aware of, even sensitive to, the pulse, the agitation, of the people. In the 2011 SWS survey that asked people if Marcos deserved to be buried in LNMB, of the 50% who approved, only 30% said yes to official honors, 20% said yes to a private burial only — this 20% plus the 49% who said no, not worthy, made for a resounding 69%. https://www.sws.org.ph/

Just the same, post-LNMB saw Imee elected to the Senate in 2018. And then in Nov 2021 — tila nagmamadaling maiakyat si Bongbong sa palasyo — she was able to convince Sara Duterte to UniTeam with BBM because otherwise there was no beating Leni Robredo, and Sara agreed, despite Digong preferring that she run as Senator Bong Go‘s VP.  https://www.philstar.com/headlines/

But as it turned out, outside the kulambo pala si Imee, and the pamamangka sa dalawang partido has proven unsustainable with the impeachment of VP Sara by Congress, the turnover of Digong to ICC, and her lagapak sa surveys.

Bocobo’s reading, that “Imee will always be a Marcos and, politically speaking, may be the future conduit between her family and the Dutertes”, might turn out a pipe dream, unless Imee makes it back to the Senate in May, the Senate acquits VP Sara, and Digong gets to come home alive.