Of buffoons and sycophants (2)

Buffoons and sycophants in government feed on each other’s weaknesses and create a synergy like no other. The former sets the tone or the overall atmosphere in a governance unit, and the latter serves as their echo chamber. Their relationship is one defined by symbiotic give and take, with the former giving part of their largesse that is easily accessible to their sycophants, so much so that the latter think they have become the leaders of the government themselves.

Expectedly, sycophant followers just repeat what their buffoon masters tell them, sometimes retelling them to others with additional bluster and hype to make their masters elated that they have created for them a semblance of acceptability—and more importantly, legitimacy. This happens when buffoon leaders fumble on some “directives” they announce to the public—not as executive orders but as barking orders on social media, in capital letters. Remember United States President Donald Trump’s post on Truth Social, when he threatened to “wipe out the Iranian civilization,” cursing the Iranians like they are among the dregs of the Earth?

We saw a similar type of social media post here in the Bangsamoro autonomous region, only it was milder and addressed to the wrong members of the interim Bangsamoro Parliament. Being clueless, buffoon leaders do not know that such orders are part of their mandate as the top leaders of the region. They were shouting their orders to themselves.

False feelings of legitimacy of their leadership make buffoons think they are on the right track in governing their constituents. Later, they become delusional. First, they think of themselves as “rightful” leaders, as the only ones with the moral ascendancy to lead a transition government that will pave the way for a seamless transfer of powers to a regularly elected set of leaders. Then they move on to a higher level of delusional thinking and start manifesting proprietary behavior over their temporal positions. Their cabal of sycophants drum up support for them, telling them they are on the right track in their flawed governance policies, mostly unwritten and only known when some opposing and enlightened members start critiquing such proprietary attitudes.

Remember the story of “The Emperor’s New Clothes”? If you haven’t read this in your childhood years, this is Hans Christian Andersen’s story of an emperor who was always conscious of his wardrobe. He was so vain that he had a suit made for each hour of the day, and always required everyone in his court to tell him he looked good with every new outfit he wore. One day, two rogues came to his kingdom, bragging about weaving a fantastic set of garments that were woven specially for people like the emperor. It was so special, according to the scheming rogues, that only those “deserving” could see the outfit. The emperor was so impressed with this “new and special” suit that he immediately ordered one tailor-made for himself. But the rogues just hoodwinked him into believing in this tall tale about an “invisible, special suit.”

To cut the story short, the emperor “wore” the invisible suit, with only his undergarments visible to all people. Those surrounding him praised him no end for this special suit, although they did not see anything on the emperor except his undergarments. Until one day, some children saw the emperor parading in his kingdom’s streets, laughing at seeing the emperor without clothes on.

This story tells us exactly how buffoon leaders and their sycophant followers behave. The latter are willing to believe that lies can be marketed as the truth if believed by those who surround buffoon leaders. Then, when reality strikes, it would be too late to do damage control.

Again, the US government’s war on Iran is another example. When Trump decided to bomb Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, against the advice of his more enlightened and experienced military and security advisers, he let loose a catastrophic move that led him into a trap, one that he cannot get out of; if he does, it would be disastrous for the US’ claim of being a superpower. If he continues, it will result in a cataclysmic financial meltdown for the US government, and probably for all countries in the world tied at the hip of the US petrodollar system, including the Philippines.

Amid a massive public outcry, Trump’s sycophants—his echo chamber—are all desperately invoking a divine rationalization for their actions, on the delusional premise that Trump is like Jesus Christ, in their efforts to eliminate the “evil” in the world—the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

In our regional version, both buffoons and sycophants are vociferously drum-beating the principle of “moral governance” to underpin whatever they do, even if it contradicts the essence of this principle.

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