We want to help, in our small way, President Noynoy Aquino by giving in to his request that the media report good news. But we decided to not stop at good and offer excellent news, instead.

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously and with finality to distribute Hacienda Luisita to 5,000 farmer-beneficiaries. The good news doesn't stop there: the high court also decreed that the government should pay the Cojuangco family that controls the "untouchable" estate for P173 million, according to the farmers' estimates, based on valuation of the property in 1989.

Now, isn't that great news for the tens of thousands of people living on the estate owned by the President's family who should have gotten the land decades ago, had it not been for the legal and political machinations of the owners of the planation through the years? And think of all the money that the government would have lost if the court had agreed with the President's family that the hacienda was worth nearly P10 billion.

But the current administration, which failed to protect the Cojuangco family after previous governments had so successfully protected the land from state's agrarian reform program, was not exactly ecstatic about all this. Palace spokesman Abigail Valte (who strangely still has a job after her very public immolation by her own boss) could only say that Malacanang will react to the decision after it officially receives a copy – and then, only the Department of Agrarian Reform and the Office of the Solicitor General will be qualified to make the appropriate replies.

Now, is that any way to receive good news that must have tens of thousands of people living on the Cojuangco sugar plantation in Tarlac jumping for joy? Can this administration, which has always claimed to be fighting for "inclusive growth" that is skewed towards the poor, not partake of the happiness that the P10-a-day plantation workers must now be feeling?

As of yesterday, only DAR has made a pronouncement on the ruling, saying that the farmers may receive titles to the land they've been tilling for generations in about six to 12 months. The rest of the government – especially Malacanang Palace, from which all the other state agencies take their lead, if they don't want to end up denied and overruled like Valte – is deathly silent about the matter.

But Aquino must define "good news" differently, just like he has his own interpretation of phrases like "rule of law," "economic growth" and "working hard." Good news, to this administration, apparently is what makes Aquino look good; if it benefits the poor but makes Aquino look like he didn't protect his family's interests and the interests of the oligarchs everywhere who consider him one of their own, it's very bad news.

If the good news comes not from Malacanang itself but from its hated agencies like the Supreme Court, which the palace is so desperately trying to make the tribunal act according to the President's will, then that's worse than just bad news. It's bad news of the worst kind, because now impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona and the other members of the judiciary get to look like heroes to the people, after everything Aquino has done make them look like thieves.

In the future, perhaps people will remember that Aquino took the decision of the Supreme Court on Hacienda Luisita very badly and make the logical conclusion that this President doesn't really care if justice triumphs and the rights of the poor are upheld. And when most Filipinos begin to realize that they've been hoodwinked and start doing something about it, that will truly be the best news we've heard in years.

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The other bit of good news that's probably really bad for Aquino is the same Supreme Court issuing a temporary restraining order on the bid of the Commission on Elections to purchase the controversial precinct count optical machines used in the 2010 elections for P1.8 billion. The high court ruling came shortly after the main critic on the purchase and use of Smartmatic's PCOS machines within Comelec – Augusto Lagman – was not reappointed by Aquino to the post of commissioner.

Earlier reports said that the refusal of Aquino to reappoint Lagman, the only person ever appointed to Comelec with a background in information technology, may have something to do with the refusal of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile to confirm him. Enrile's opposition to Lagman's appointment supposedly stems from the latter's participation in Namfrel, the citizens' election watchdog group, way back in 1987.

That's hardly believable, because Enrile won in that Senate election along with former President Joseph Estrada; only Enrile and Estrada won against the candidates of then President Cory Aquino.

More likely, Lagman was not reappointed because he didn't agree to the purchase of the PCOS machines and their deployment once again next year, despite the many and lingering accusations of fraud in their previous use. Comelec, undoubtedly with the approval of Malacanang, apparently wanted the PCOS machines used again in 2013, to "help" its candidates win.

That's all the good news we have for now. We'll be happy to provide more good news as they come in – even if it's the sort of good news that doesn't really make Aquino happy.*