Christmas croakings

The death of former undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral came as a surprise.

- Joseph T. Gonzales

An apparent jump from the steep roads of Kennon, into a ravine many meters deep. A driver who was instructed to leave the mistress alone while the mistress ruminated on life’s many twists and turns.

A frantic search, and the recovery of a body.

It became instant fodder for chat groups and online posts, netizens expressing shock, in the beginning, and as more details emerged, expressing doubt, opinions, conclusions and, naturally, accusations.

The overriding question became, “Is she really dead”?

With Senator Francis Pangilinan and Congresswoman Leila de Lima leading the pack, the authorities are being urged to do the practical, and ensure that the body which has been presented to the world as that of Cabral, is indeed Cabral’s. Which should be a simple thing, really, except that the immediate family of Cabral is refusing an autopsy.

Oh dear. Here come the conspiracy theories.