 |
 |
| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Junta? Maybe. Erap? No By Antonio C. Abaya Written June 07, 2005 For the Manila Standard Today, June 09 issue We were told to expect an expose on tape regarding cheating in the May 2004 elections. We were told that this would be the signal for a People Power action to commence that would ultimately force President Arroyo to step down from power. We were told that once the Arroyo Government was forced out of power, a five-person revolutionary junta or council would take over the governing of the country. The entire Cabinet would be replaced with men and women with no connections or loyalties to the present or previous governments. We were told the present Congress would be abolished, which many Filipinos would certainly welcome. The present Supreme Court would be disbanded, which again many Filipinos would also welcome. So would be other constitutional bodies such as the Comelec and the PCGG. We were told that during the first few weeks or months, travel out of the country would be restricted as perceived crooks and criminals must be prevented from leaving so that they could be rounded up and prosecuted. We were told that media would be �encouraged� to print and broadcast more �good news� and less �bad news.� Absolute freedom of the press, as we have known it, would be a thing of the past. We were told that within at most three years, the revolutionary council would self-terminate as new elections are held to elect a new Congress and a new Constitution is drafted, making a switch to a parliamentary and federal form of government, with a unicameral legislature. As no names were mentioned in the email that I received about two weeks ago, obviously from a fictitious or anonymous source, I had no way of evaluating the credibility, feasibility and acceptability of these supposedly revolutionary changes. Well, the taped revelations about cheating in the May 2004 elections did come out two days ago. They supposedly were wire-tapped phone conversations between President Arroyo and apparently Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano discussing the election results in certain places in Mindanao.(But without any overt instructions to cheat.) Malacanang�s Ignacio Bunye claims that the taped revelations were merely segments of actual phone conversations that had been edited and spliced together to make President Arroyo and a certain Gary look conspiratorial. And to prove its point, Malacanang replayed on TV the entire conversations, apparently as recorded and archived by its own staff. (Like the taped conversations in the Oval Office of the White House that helped force Richard M. Nixon to resign from the presidency?) The immediate question in everyone�s mind was, �Who has been eavesdropping on President Arroyo�s telephone conversations?� And, within hours, even before anyone could come up with a short list of possible eavesdroppers, along came an actual admission from one Allan Paguia, identified as a former lawyer of President Joseph Estrada, that he was the one who had actually edited and spliced the tapes and released them as CDs to the media and the public. (My dirty mind tells me that this quick and unsolicited admission of authorship is suspicious. What he has admitted doing is a felony and could be grounds for his disbarment, aside from a few years� vacation in prison. What was his expected reward for doing it and for admitting so fast that he had done it?) At this point, it is not clear if this was a case of wiretapping of landlines or of eavesdropping on cellphone conversations by electronic methods. If the latter, then Malacanang (and other sensitive government agencies and offices) have a bigger problem than they think. The technology for eavesdropping on cellphone conversations is highly developed. There are sophisticated electronic equipment that can pull electronic transmissions from the air, between cells or between cells and cellphones or between cells and satellites, for filtering, analysis and recording. This was how American military spooks were able to locate and pinpoint top Al Qaida militants in Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who were then picked up or shot dead by forces on the ground. That is why Osama bin Laden and his no. 2, Ayman al-Zwahiri, never use cellphones. This was also how Israeli agents on the ground pinpointed the exact locations of Hamas and other Palestinian activists and then fed their coordinates to hovering helicopters, which then eliminated them with smart missiles as they ate lunch or drove in a car. The Americans here certainly have the capability of eavesdropping on President Arroyo�s cellphone or landline conversations and recording whatever incriminating statements they can find for future use, when she is no longer useful to them. And she, apparently, is no longer useful to them. The Heritage Foundation, one of the three think tanks that service the neo-conservative government of George W. Bush � the others are the Hudson Institute and the American Enterprise Institute � has judged her �the weakest leader in the region,� has criticized her for pulling out the tiny Filipino contingent in Iraq, and has accused her �playing footsie with the Chinese.� It was the US government that leaked to Philippine media the news about Maj. Gen. Carlos F. Garcia�s two sons being arrested at San Francisco International Airport for trying to smuggle in $100,000 in cash in December 2003, after the AFP and Malacanang failed to act on the case. And it was the US ambassador who publicly suggested that the Arroyo Government use continuous trial to hear high-profile corruption cases, such as that of Gen. Garcia, a suggestion that has been pointedly ignored. But it is not just the Americans who have the means (and the motivation) to eavesdrop on President Arroyo�s conversations. When he was chief of the PNP�s anti-organized crime unit, then Gen. (now Senator) Panfilo Lacson acquired sophisticated electronic gear that could monitor as many as 500 cellphone conversations at the same time. I recall that Lacson was actually charged with violations of the anti-wiretapping law, but nothing seems to have come out of those charges. I also recall that when he was eased out of the PNP after the downfall of Erap in January 2001, there were concerns that the newly arrived electronic equipment had not yet been returned to the PNP headquarters. Perhaps the senator can enlighten us on this. Whether he got the original material from the Americans or from Sen. Lacson or from another source, Allan Paguia�s motivation for editing and splicing the tape and for distributing the resultant CD was clear when he was interviewed, along with Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez and Rep. Butch Pichay, by Pia Hontiveros on �Strictly Politics� last Tuesday, June 07. And that motivation is to right the wrong that he feels has been done on his former (and probably still current) client Joseph Estrada who, he stated on TV, was unjustly removed from office without having been convicted of anything. Paguia wants to return the favor to Gloria, and he is ready to face the consequences of his actions. Those who are wondering what to make of the present on-the-brink situation should now conclude that all this is being done to restore Estrada to the presidency. The military elements who will supply the armed component will be the same folks who gave us Oakwood in 2003, taking orders, as usual, from the same tireless and tiresome Kuya. The creatures from the blue lagoon that Boy and Ronald gathered in 2003 will mass again in 2005, with the same slogans and streamers that they were not able to adequately unfurl two years ago. The same trapos and dynasts who salivated in 2003 at the prospect of being back in power are now drooling all over place. Archbishop Oscar Cruz and the other bishops who are so glib and garrulous about all those jueteng payola will soon discover that all their sanctimonious efforts will have been for nothing else except to restore to power the Master of the Jueteng Universe himself. And we in the middle class, who despise both Gloria and Erap with equal intensity, who yearn for an authentic revolutionary government to save our country for our children and our grandchildren, can only keep on wondering what we have done to deserve these cretins in our neighborhood. Paraphrasing Churchill, we lament with inconsolable sadness that �Never in the annals of the world have so many been screwed so often by so few.� Reactions to [email protected] or fax 824-7642. Other articles in www.tapatt.org. |
| OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to �Junta? Maybe. Erap? No� Dear Mr. Abaya, Has anyone ever questioned the correctness of defining EDSA 1 and 2 as people power". EDSA 1 was started not by the people but by Enrile and Ramos. In fact the people only followed and obeyed the calls from these two and Cardinal Sin. No wonder "people power" fizzled out as soon as the trapos came crawling out of the woodwork. No wonder the system is as corrupt as it has been before and after EDSA. The so-called EDSA that ousted Erap was a joke. In both EDSAs, the people were used merely as cannon fodder or pawns that can be dispensed with and exploited brutally and shamelessly after all the sound and the fury. Whether a junta or a civilian takes over Malaca�an if and when MGArroyo is ousted "a la EDSA" is not the question. Ousting GMArroyo will cut off only the head of a totally corrupt system while leaving in place the powerholders who would fall over themselves jockeying for the highest positions. The question is whether the junta or the civilian replacement will have the sense and the guts to oust all the corrupt officials and politicians from the VP down to the ranks of the civil service. No ifs and buts about it: Arroyo must go. The question is what would replace the corrupt eco-political system that produces the likes of Arroyo? Rosalinda Olsen, [email protected] Norway, June 09, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Thanks, Mr. Abaya. I'm already getting your column through my other email address so you may discontinue using this one. As an engineer-economist, I feel a sense of frustration that while other countries are moving ahead to develop their technological capabilities--using many of our own people--here all our time is being spent on jueteng, political matters, and the like. Hay... Cora Claudio, [email protected] June 09, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww To Mr. Abaya The audio-tape indicating Gloria stole the presidency is the Philippine version of the US Watergate that forced President Nixon to resign It is certain to be her Waterloo. Honesty is still the best policy. It is better to lose an election with honor than to win without honor. In late 70's or early 80's, an Australian Federal Oppostion Leader was intercepted/monitored using a cellphone telling silly things about a politician. He was ousted and never regained his previous political position and place. Using a cellphone is the easiest way to intercept/monitor conversations. Indeed, you are what you do. My question is who is the Philippine "Deep Thorat?" My answer is like the American Deep Throat, he must be a government official who does not like what GMA is doing, and that is, encouraging Filipinos to live like hell in their own country. Oscar R. Landicho, [email protected] Sydney, Australia, June 09, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, It's me, Butch Zialcita. Since I don't subscribe to Manila Standard, I have not been reading your articles. This morning, by chance, I had a copy of MS in front of me. So I got to read your article. The scenario is once again frightening. As I see it, the problem is more than corruption. There is corruption in governments all over the world, e.g. Japan and the US. One difference is that there is a PLAN or a STRATEGY that is broadcast so that people have a sense of where their society is heading. For all the criticism made about Bush being a dummie, he was able to debate with Kerry on basic issues over TV. So, there is a sense that American society is going somewhere. Here, our presidents -- Cory, Estrada, GMA -- do not present a plan or a strategy to the public. As a result discussion often centers on personality and the inevitable issue of corruption. There is no public discussion conducted by the presidency concerning poverty, alternative fuels, globalization, the rise of China and India. None. The result is a sense of drift. Why is this the case? Because many of us suffer from an excess of narrow pragmatism. The larger issues are skirted as too theoretical and abstract. So, GMA presents a list of 10 (or 12?) doables during her term rather than present to us an overarching PLAN that she has for addressing our many problems. Who can get excited over those 10 doables? Few can. Moreover, she makes no effort to communicate with the people as THE PUBLIC ASSEMBLED BEFORE RADIO AND TV. She likes to talk to small groups, but that is not enough. She is the president. Erap, of course, enjoyed talking to the masa. And the masa loved him for it. Not her. Now wonder, there is alienation. She has this image of arrogance and coldness, of the cocksure colegiala. Roosevelt, Churchill, De Gaulle were able to mobilize their people during crises worse than what we are undergoing. How? By speaking to them directly over radio. This she seems intent on avoiding. She is ever the bureaucrat. She cannot command loyalty this way. Once again, I find myself praying. Butch Zialcita, [email protected] June 09, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww "But it is not just the Americans who have the means (and the motivation) to eavesdrop on President Arroyo�s conversations. When he was chief of the PNP�s anti-organized crime unit, then Gen. (now Senator) Panfilo Lacson acquired sophisticated electronic gear that could monitor as many as 500 cellphone conversations at the same time. I recall that Lacson was actually charged with violations of the anti-wiretapping law, but nothing seems to have come out of those charges. I also recall that when he was eased out of the PNP after the downfall of Erap in January 2001, there were concerns that the newly arrived electronic equipment had not yet been returned to the PNP headquarters. Perhaps the senator can enlighten us on this." Please check your sources from previous newspaper releases in 2001 and 2002. Chief Superintendent Berroya presented a certain Dean Ablan, an alleged equipment and arms dealer in the AFP and PNP with a GSM interception machine "recovered" and supposed to have been bought by PAOCTF or the PNP. Where's the machine now? Was that ever bought or delivered to PAOCTF or the PNP in the first place? Those machines are now in the hands of the destabilized government of GMA. So those cellular intercepted conversation and taped conversation were done by GMA�s people. How it made its way to the hands of Bunye/Malacanang, to the opposition or whoever is no longer the question. The substance and contents of the conversation is all that matters right now. Military Junta? No. GMA and Noli should resign as they benefited in a cheated election. Snap election. Yes. Erap, GMA and Noli should be barred from running in the Snap election. It is the only acceptable democratic solution. Bruce Carolina, [email protected] June 09, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww It is as clear as daylight. Those taped conversations raised many more questions, and many fell for the trap. But the most sickening thought is that, if the government cannot protect itself, who can we expect to protect us? If said expose is just a ploy to cover-up the anak ng jueteng issue, then it just backfired and stirred up another hornet's nest. However, I don't think the moronic nincompoop clowns around Malacanang are that stupid. If it did came from the opposition, then there is indeed another more potent power behind them, and it projects a more disturbing scenario (return to another puppet government). If it came from another source (CIA) that have that sophisticated gadgetry, then it proves we have always been pawns and puppets. Regardless of whatever or whoever circulated the taped chikahan, we are still in the eagle's claw. You are right in pointing out that another EDSA will do no good because the very same freaks of nature will sit on the throne. We will just be in a yo-yo situation. The only way out is indeed to have new leaders instead of recycled beanbags, leaders who have no affiliation, loyalty or connection with previous clowns. Martinez Felipe Rommel, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww You can say that again, and again, and again. Arnel Serrano, [email protected] California, June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Thank you for the info, Sir. God bless. Chris, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww I personally think that the senate and all other government officials should just focus on what's best for our country, not to think of there personal need and glorification, Philippines is a very poor country it is sad why can't they all unite and do something for the country rather than destroying each other, we should learn to love & help each other. If they will try to unite I think Philippines will recover and poverty will gradually ease. Mr Balimbing himself Mr Pimintel from the senate government should be the one who step out because he never helps. He always gives bad comment. Why can�t he look at himself , One time he hate Estrada's administration then when arroyo's government take over he went to Estrada's party same as Loren Legarda .this is only my personal opinion I just hate to see our country go down the drain. Let's all wake up and try to help each other for the good of all our countrymen. Nora Valenzuela, [email protected] Australia, June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Last night, I saw your TV interview by Ces Drilon. She is about the worst interviewer one could get to interview a writer like you. For one, Ms. Drilon kept on interrupting you with asinine questions. She did not allow you to finish your answer before she intruded with more non-sensical question. She did you no justice at all! Carlos Esteban, Jr., [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww I have so many things to add but your column today made my day...How I wish I could write a very brilliant piece like this...Para kang si Lolo ko kung mag-analyze!!! Bravo, Mang Tony!!! Ernesto A. Pilapil, Jr., [email protected] Jintu Designs, June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony I agree with most of the things you said, not just on the last interview but in your columns and comments you sent to some of us. Please keep on sharing us your insights. We need more people like you. Best regards Florangel Rosario-Braid, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, I miss your excitement! But then, WE now have Howard Dean telling it "like it is." I must confess this is a whopper! Honesty it most certainly contains, and it does make me realize that despite the corruption contaminating politics and the curdled cream in the coffee, there IS democracy out there on those islands. And that is something to be thankful for. I support the clarion call to a new period of clean government and dedicated, honest statesmen who will finally put the country first. It is analogous to what has been happening here in the U.S. these last few years --- where our nation is now so divided, where the distracted, sleeping masses simply accept, where Congress is filled with people more intent on their power and their egos and least of all on building a great republic. Keep fighting for the better world. (But, I do confess, it's getting harder to avoid becoming a complete cynic!) Alan Klaum, [email protected] San Francisco, CA, June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww "Don�t believe all that you were told." There is nobody, or group, who is powerful enough to get into power by overthrowing the government by illegal means, who will have the resolve to do the things you are saying "you were told", or gain that power without needing to distribute "thank you" favors later. Peter Capotosto, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Oh, NO ! ! ! .... let us pray.... Tom and Ruth de Guzman, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony - unfortunately for us Filipinos, just like Teddyman or even Frank Chaves, you do not have the kind of followings of Kuya. I love your quotation of Churchill.."Never in the annals of the world have so many been screwed so often by so few." (Actually, it was a paraphrase, not a quote. Tony) We thought we had an intelligent President in GMA. Unfortunately she just does not have the leadership. She screams, tantrums, scolds in public, but people just take it as mere tantrums of a small kid wanting to show his independence. Seriously speaking, I hope I am wrong, but I see very dark clouds gathering in the horizon and a forthcoming strong typhoon. The gathering of frustrated well meaning middle class and masses of hopeless poor Filipinos, who all agree that any drastic political action cannot make them any poorer. Rogelio Singson, [email protected] June 10, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww . Mr. Abaya, What a dreadful scenario that you envision here on the possibility of a come back of the hooligan Asiong Salonga wresting the throne from miss "1 million no less" lady by the stinking Pasig river. We can speculate on the what if 's and stand by the sidelines and watch in horror what maybe the most crucial moment of our pathetic history of bungling "geniuses" task to mismanaged our government. We worry too much over speculation and rumors that we as a people seem to neglect that we need to take a stand against those who bring this nation in the muck, further numbing us like voodoo, confused as ever, drowning in the pool of lies upon lies thrown in every direction. Separating fact from fiction can be likened to treasure hunting in the most unlikely place of the Payatas mountains of stinking garbage in the belief that Yamashita's loot was there for the taking. While the tapes do not contain outright orders to cheat, criminals out to do no good don 't need specific or elaborate instructions to commit one because they know better not to incriminate themselves further as long as they "understood" what needs to be done. Rampant cheating is the norm in our electoral system and the tapes further validated and bolstered the perception of people that indeed the "1 million no less" lady is a morally bankrupt cheat and she should just RESIGN and spare the country of the instability that she and her administration is responsible for and not the "destabilization" of the fraternity of geriatric generals that they want us to believe. Ren Arrieta, [email protected] California, June 11, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Thank you for your sincerely patriotic articles. We are indeed in dying condition that needs immediate resuscitation. I don�t care whether its a junta, anything or anyone as long they can revive our country. Mabuhay ka. Ben Entico, [email protected] June 16, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww ALL RIGHT, MA�AM? There was a cadet in the Philippine Military Academy. One of his unforgettable moments was when he faced the Battalion Board. He was asked by the Head of the Board �Did you haze Cadet M-----------?� �Yes, sir!� was his short but firm reply. He had no other thoughts as to an alternative response. He did it and he had to tell the truth. By the Academy�s Honor Code, a cadet does not lie, cheat, steal nor tolerate those who do. He never thought of keeping quiet and silent or even think of letting the Board prove it. He knows what will happen next, and he accepted it. He was discharged from the Academy and had to �take life.� That was so many years ago. Since then, he has not changed his way of doing things, and although he had many difficulties, he tried to keep the values and discipline he learned from the Academy. Life in the Academy revolved around strict adherence to the Honor Code. A cadet must not only know the code but to practice and make it a way of life. It is this training that brings out the best in the cadets to become successful officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Then, and up to now, the Honor Code is still clear in his mind: 1. A cadet does not lie. In his dealing with others, a cadet tells the truth, regardless of the consequences. He does not quibble. He does not make evasive statements. 2. A cadet does not cheat. A cadet does not defraud others nor does he take undue advantage of them. 3. A cadet does not steal. A cadet does not take any personal property of another without the latter�s consent. He does not keep for himself anything that he finds which does not belong to him. 4. A cadet does not tolerate any violation of the Code. A cadet is bound to report any breach of the Code that comes to his attention. He does not countenance by inaction honor violations; if he does, he becomes party to such a violation and he himself is as guilty as the violator. These values and discipline have given him happiness in his life, many successes and limited failures throughout. One of the best things that happened to him later was when his classmates who graduated from the Academy adopted him as one of their own, with the approval of the Board of the PMA Alumni Association. On many occasions, he joined his classmates and other PMA classes in the Long Gray Line during alumni parades. Today, he sees his President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines facing her �own Battalion Board,� the citizens of the Republic of the Philippines. They are asking �Are you the lady on the tape?� No answer. Only silence. And that question has been asked for more than a week, repeatedly. He would not think of this situation as a problem if she was a civilian through and through. But she was adopted as a member of the PMA Class of 1978. Although she had not been a cadet in the Academy, her being a member of a PMA Class brings a responsibility and corresponding accountability to her, the Class and the Association to observe and uphold the values and discipline of the entire membership. One of the key PMA traditions applicable in this case is the challenge that should be posed to her: �All right, Ma�am?� There were several cases of cadets, some of them already graduating, who were challenged after coming from trips outside the Academy. They answered �Yes� even though they know they violated the rules applicable outside the Academy. They were found out and they were discharged, sometimes days before graduation. Now, she must be challenged, not just by her Class of 1978 but the PMA Alumni Association itself. �All right, Ma�am?� For a President must preserve the integrity of the highest position in the land. She should tell the truth. Yes or No. No quibbling, no evading. No silence. Only the truth. She must be responsible for her action as a true President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. Otherwise, the least that the PMA Alumni Association can do is to remove her name from the rolls of the Association. (The Association has investigated, and is still investigating, graduate alumni for acts of graft and corruption, and had dropped those found guilty from the rolls.) At best, the Association can do what a Battalion Board is supposed to do. * * * * * IF YOU ARE A CAVALIER AND YOU CARE, PLEASE PASS ON TO THE REST OF THE CAVALIERS. IF YOU ARE A TRUE PINOY, THEN PLEASE PASS ON TO AS MANY AS YOUR FRIENDS. Jose Del Pilar, [email protected] June 16, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Through a friend, I read your article dated June 7 concerning many issues about our country. I agree with many of them but I offer a different approach which is written in the attachment. Hope we can find a solution to the nagging problems of our country. Jesse D. Alto, [email protected] June 20, 2005 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |