By BEHN FER. HORTALEZA, JR.

AFTER the ‘beheading’ of now plain congressman Joe de Venecia comes the contrition, the pained afterthoughts , the wishful musings of what-should-have been among those who presided over his Caesarian downfall.

One such twilight soul should be Congresswoman Rachel Arenas, a fellow Lakas compatriot of JdV who, according to herself, agonized over her decision to go with those who asked that the Speakership post of the House be declared vacant, in effect asking for the head of Manay Gina’s husband on a bloody platter.

And quite reasonably so. After all, it was Jdv, with the full backing of Lakas chair emeritus Fidel V. Ramos, who got her into Lakas despite a big brouhaha then with so many others vying for the party’s nomination, and helped her win the 3rd district congressional seat in the last elections.

I have wanted to hear the young congresswoman’s deposition on why she voted against JdV as soon as everyone heard the results of the nominal voting and finally she told fellow Pangasinenses over the radio why last week.

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According to the lady, she did consult with FVR before voting on the floor began and that supposedly the Tabako, in all statesmanship, advised her to decide what she felt was best for her and her current position. I am, of course paraphrasing what I simply heard was her answer to media.

In the end, she decided to vote “yes” to Palawan Rep. Abraham Mitra’s motion that practically sounded the death knell for the five-term speaker and her fellow Pangasinense. All along she says she was aware of the “big hurt” she would inflict on JdV and the wife, Manay Gina whom she admits was very close to her.

On one hand, and if it’s any comfort to socialite Baby Arenas’ unica hija, many of those who voted against JdV also say – make that, “claim” – that they went thru the same agony. In the end, they simply drew the knife and plunged it. End of story.

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In the cases of the other Pangasinan congressmen, Celeste of the first district, Cojuangco of the fifth and Estrella III of the sixth, their vote was quite understandable; while they were members of the rainbow coalition drawn up by JdV in the House, they after all, still belonged to a mother party different from Lakas. Celeste was Kampi, Cojuangco was NPC and Estrella III also NPC. (This is not counting the party-list representatives)

Only Arenas and Victor Agbayani of the second district were the Lakas partymates of De Venecia. If there was especially keen interest on Arenas vote therefore, it was because many expected her to at least cast her lot with the embattled Joe, even if it was a lost cause.

And well she should have, considering that the head count of De Venecia’s detractors was well known to have already exceeded the 130-plus needed to oust him even before the voting began. It strains credulity to assume that she had no inkling, or was not told by the main conspirators what the numbers already were. In fact, the former Speaker already knew he would lose.

Even a little “sympathy vote” for a fellow Pangasinense – and benefactor – would have not been minded by the Nograles block, we daresay. In fact, it would have boosted the stature of Rep. Arenas some — even if everyone knows she had been a frequent travel companion on visits abroad of President Arroyo – to see someone so young, so lady-like, so, well, innocent-looking take a good hold of her conscience and stand by her benefactor in the latter’s hour of need.

That, of course, is premised on the assumption Ms. Arenas considers she owed Speaker JdV something for what she has become today. That she voted the way she did shows she apparently feels none of that. Period.

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I greet the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation on its 13th anniversary.

In the region, specifically in its regional base in Dagupan, Philhealth as a health insurance agency covering people from all walks of life has taken great strides and given so many people some measure of confidence when the inevitable sickness or accidents come and they hardly have the means to undergo hospitalization.

Philhealth’s innovative and visionary programs that have fruitfully and productively tapped funds of public officials (congressmen, especially) for the payment of a member’s contributions has even socially tempered the usual (okay, sometimes unfair) impression that much of the legislators’ pork barrel are spent wastefully or only on personally profitable projects.

Frankly, we salute those public officials who have decided to partner with Philhealth for the health insurance of their constituents and spend a portion of their funds for this worthwhile social amelioration pursuit.

We congratulate all Philhealth workers now headed in the region and Pangasinan by Dr. Leo Douglas Cardona, Jr. and even the former regional head, now the agency’s Vice President Ernesto Beltran. Yours is a job well done!

SAID AND DONE: Some telegraphic comments we got on our cellphone about the ongoing Senate probe on telecommunications engineer Jun Lozada”s “abduction” and eventual tell-all testimony: (From a former colleague in the defunct NMPC) “Nahihiya ako n 1 Intsik at di Pinoy ang nagre-risk pra sa bayan natin. At tg-UST pa, di tg U.P.” ;
(From a young housewife in Calasiao)”Sna wag mngyari sa knnumng Pilipino pa ang pngdaanang tension ni Lozada sa kamay ng mga dark agnts of the State. I pray the state witness survive (sic) this event in his life he sms to be a devoted family man)… Colleague Liezl Basa Inigo, one of the few young mediawomen I respect hereabouts, celebrated her birthday last Feb. 9. I hope she has not lost her nerve covering all those town “festivals” after that harrowing experience she had in Villasis with a really brusque man who accosted media men trying to “cover” their event. What happened to the media “protest” over that incident, by the way, Patrima guys?