MALACAÑANG’S STATEMENT ON KOBE BRYANT’S DEATH

Critique Paper

Days after the tragic deaths of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, Gianna Bryant, and
seven others who were involved on a helicopter accident that occurred in California last
January 26, 2020, the Malacañang issued a statement condoling the families for their
loss and honouring the legacy of the late NBA star. This came as a surprise to the
Filipinos with the statement’s grammatical errors and low level of urgency. The
statement was issued along the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic.
The Malacañang’s intentions were positive. However, many criticized the
statement’s exaggeration and others even stablished some revisions. Considering the
magnitude of threat that the rising pandemic offered, some suggest that the Philippine
government should direct its focus more in constructing strategic defence plans.
The statement issued was clear and understandable. However, it violated some
subject-verb agreement rules. One of which is the usage of the term “death” rather than
“deaths”. Since it was indicated that there was more than one death involved, it requires
plurality with the term “death”. Moreover, when stating a proper noun like “Kobe Bryant”
and replacing it with a subject pronoun to avoid redundancy, one must consider the
consistency specifically the gender factor. So, when we state a male proper noun, we
should also use a male subject pronoun. Sadly, it was a clear error in the statement
which was noticed by many.
The Malacañang was trying to construct an artistic and heartfelt description in
honour of the late Kobe Bryant. However, it was viewed as an exaggeration rather than
a detailed description. Die-hard fans would definitely disagree with it. Some found the
statement to be puzzling and funny because the words used in constructing the
sentence were deemed to be unfit for the description. On the brighter side, others
perceived the sentence to be accurate for the description as it provided a strong
emphasis on the basketball style of Kobe.
Furthermore, the last part of the statement failed to differentiate subject pronoun
or object pronoun as it used the pronoun “who” rather than “whom”. Grammarly Blog
points out that “who” is a subject pronoun and “whom” is an object pronoun. The usage
of either who or whom depends on how the pronoun is used as a subject or object of
the verb or preposition. In the case of the Malacañang’s statement, the pronoun was
used as an object of the verb which is why the pronoun “whom” was the best pronoun
that should have been used.
We all make mistakes and that is a fact. The Malacañang’s situation was just a
matter of high hopes crushed down. Considering the Philippine government’s strong
capabilities, Filipinos expect a better performance and result. Common mistakes are out
of the equation. That is why when Filipinos heard the said statement, they were
frustrated on the low standards in establishing what should have been a well-organized
and proper output.
Moreover, even before the issuance of the statement, the Malacañang was
already being showered with negative feedbacks on its faulty response to the rising
pandemic. Filipinos were threatened with the massive damages brought by the COVID-
19 pandemic on the countries who failed to establish a defence plan against it. They
were observant to the response that will be taken by the government and with the
issuance of a not-so-urgent statement, it added to the frustrations of the Filipinos.
Nonetheless, pointing out grammatical errors is not a bad thing but shaming the
writers is not appropriate. It takes courage to accept corrections from other people.
Mistakes are part in the process learning. No one progresses without encountering
mistakes. The best that we can do is to reflect and learn from our mistakes and continue
to progress in the art of literature.

Reference:
Madarang, C. January 28 2020. With copy errors and all, Malacañang issues statement on
Kobe Bryant’s death. Interaksyon. July 28, 2020 URL:
https://www.interaksyon.com/sports/2020/01/28/160888/malacanang-statement-
kobe-bryant-death/
Pronoun. Grammarly. Retrieved on July 28, 2020 URL:
https://www.grammarly.com/blog/pronouns/
Parts of the Sentence - Compound Sentences. Daily Grammars. July 28, 2020 URL:
http://www.dailygrammar.com/Lesson-249-Compound-Sentences.htm

What are the Rules of the subject-verb agreement? Grammar. Your Dictionary. July 28,
2020 URL: https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/sentences/20-rules-of-subject-verb-
agreement.html