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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Neither Trapo nor Communist By Antonio C. Abaya Written Dec. 28, 2004 For the Manila Standard December 30 issue No other government in the post-EDSA years has been the subject of as many rumors of alleged coups as the Arroyo Government has been. The developments in the last few weeks have only served to underline this apparent vulnerability. In its day, the Aquino Government faced destabilization from two major potential power-grabbers: the military rightists who had rented out their idealism to trapo politicians, who apparently felt that a woman president was a pushover for macho men like them; and the communist movement which was supremely confident that they were going to attain �strategic stalemate� with the Philippine military by 1992, preparatory to a power grab a few years later. Installed essentially by the middle class through the People Power uprising of February 1986, the Aquino Government gradually lost that support when it became apparent that President Aquino was not going to make much headway against the traditional problems of Philippine society: poverty and corruption. In the end, President Aquino was saved, not by the middle class which had been her original support base, but by the Americans who were concerned primarily with the retention of their military bases here. The Americans were confident that by saving her political skin in 1989, they would get Mrs. Aquino to reciprocate and do all she could to save their bases for them in 1991. Alas, that was not to be. By that time 1991 came, President Aquino had lost much of her political clout with the middle class and could not prevail against the new nationalism promoted by, ironically, the communist movement which, in the meantime, lost much of its steam with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. It was a classic lose-lose scenario: the Americans lost their bases, President Aquino lost the middle class, the communists lost their strategic stalemate, the middle class lost much of their hope in the ability of the rotten political system to regenerate itself. In 2005, are we heading towards another lose-lose endgame? Originally installed in Malacanang by another People Power uprising of 2001, President Arroyo has also lost her standing � not very high, to begin with - among the middle class because of her poor track record in effective governance, because of abominable political choices in many of her appointments, because of profligate sovereign borrowings that have brought the economy to the brink, because of the unabated rise in the cost of living, because of wide perception that she cheated her way in 2004 to another six years in power. And despite those flattering photos with the gracious and gallant George W, she has actually alienated the neocons � who monopolize the US� defense and foreign policies � when she unilaterally withdrew the Philippines� (miniscule) contingent from the Coalition of the Willing in Iraq, and when she signed an agreement with China for joint exploration for oil in the disputed Spratlys. My sense is that the American neocons are actively looking for a replacement and have actually met with at least two possibilities in the last two months. Finally, one cannot underestimate the effect that the escalating cost of living has had and will continue to have on the poorest of the poor. I have been doing the weekly shopping for groceries for my family for the past 18 months and I often wonder how the masa can keep up with the price increases of practically everything. It is in this context that the recent rumors about destabilization, about forcing the overthrow of the incumbent government and the setting up of a junta, must be taken, This is truly the winter of our discontent. It should not surprise anyone, least of all the present occupants of Malacanang, that various groups of people, independently of each other, are meeting and discussing how and where they can express their anger and frustration at the inability of the rotten political system to regenerate itself. It should not surprise anyone, least of all President Arroyo, that various groups of decent citizens are actively looking for a leader whom they can believe in, because they have long ago stopped believing in her and the morally bankrupt political system that she represents. And it should not surprise anyone that if and when such a leader is found or emerges, he or she will become the center of gravity of the protest movement. And if and when that protest movement attains critical mass, it will demand a snap election as the democratic way to resolve a political impasse. And if denied, then it will find some other way to articulate its demand. Much has been made by Malacanang of the fact that the burial of FPJ proceeded peacefully and did not result in disorder or in an anarchic march to Mendiola to demand the overthrow of President Arroyo. The communist organization Bayan did announce that it would join the funeral march for FPJ but would leave the main group somewhere along the way to the cemetery and march towards another destination. Where exactly, they did not say. But the fact that they did not wind up in Mendiola showed that they did not have enough warm bodies with which to confront the troops massed at all points around the palace.. For their part, the trapos of the political opposition could not prevail, as they no doubt tried to, on the grieving widow, Susan Roces, to turn the funeral march into a political rally. Ms. Roces has correctly distanced herself from the trapos who wanted to use her, as they had tried to use her late husband, for their own selfish interests. To preserve its purity of heart and nobility of purpose, the new citizens� protest movement, if it emerges, must be distinct from and independent of both the trapos and the communists, the two centers of dissent in this country who, unfortunately, enjoy a near monopoly of media telecast time and editorial space. Media must realize that neither the trapos nor the communists have a monopoly of grace or wisdom, that neither the trapos nor the communists can be part of the solution since they are actually part of the problem, and that is about time that media gave greater attention to the non-trapo and non-communist voices of dissent because it may be in this sector that the salvation of this country will be found. **** Reactions to [email protected] or fax 824-7642. Other articles in www.tapatt.org. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to �Neither Trapo nor Communist� Dear Sir Abaya, This item of yours is about the ultimate of what needs to happen. Arroyo must go - "cut clean" as Marcos was told before. He didn't heed it. I see no need for a takeover like the Aquino and the Arroyo installations - they were all illegal takeovers. The Arroyo takeover is partially covered by a Constitutional provision under Article II, Sec. 1 ( I am not sure because I don't have the 1987 Constitution in front of me - stating that "The Philippines is a democratic and republican state" - what a double standard!!!! Those who read this must know what a "democratic" state can do and what a "republican state" can do. Putting the two together, they are in stark contrast. The democratic state is a "mobocracy" - the rule of the mob as in Edsa I and II. The "republican state" is a representative form of government and governed by the Consitution with limits to what the government leaders can do and not do. Here, we have a double standard, conflicting theories of style of government. I am so confused. I can only think, there is no government of the Philippines. Now, we wonder about what Government is doing - the Hacienda Luisita Massacre, the AFP scandals particularly General Garcia case and others, the tragedies in Aurora and Quezon, the slaying of journalists, now the Asian Tsunami. Everything Arroyo does along with her appointed cohorts, is a farce, a fake, a mockery of what Government is all about. No one believes her, she had lost support, her ratings are beyond below tolerable and acceptable level, the corruption in government is unprecedented, she is a disgrace. God forbids, what is going to happen next? I am so unhappy just reading all about her - her incompetence, her lack of leadership, her lack of command responsibility as President of the Philippines, her lack of solutions to alleviate poverty and to provide jobs, her unfulfilled promises, her impertinent statements and pledges, her promises which she cannot fulfill, please God help and please hurry! The Filipinos are dying slowly from want of food and employment, from sickness and disease. Hell, what is Arroyo doing for them? I would welcome anything, any solution so long as she quits being President. God, please, not Noli de Castro!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! in place of Arroyo ! // Elsa Bayani, [email protected] January 04, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Was Honasan and his group included in what you call "military rightists"? My impression was that Honasan was not among "the military rightists who had rented out their idealism to trapo politicians, who apparently felt that a woman president was a pushover for macho men like them". The original RAM might have supported Cory Aquino, would even have been willing "to die for her", if the trapo politicians did not crawl out of the woodwork as soon as the Marcoses were out of the way. The 1986 EDSA was a phenomenon, one that the Filipinos could be proud of but, like the 1896 Katipunan uprising, EDSA 1 was an incomplete revolution. Both were staged by the masa and both were stolen by their "betters". I remember watching "people power" on TV and wondered if the people would finally be empowered. When the old politicians and/or their "heirs" began appearing on TV, I knew it would be the same circus all over again. Ninez Cacho-Olivares claims that it was "Omerta" that was behind the so-caled EDSA 2 that resulted in the ouster of Estrada and who rejected Roco in favor of Gloria Macapagal. Media is also part of the problem in the same way as the trapo, the communists, and the church hierarchy--they have too little faith in the masa, if at all. Just like everybody else, Media is forever "waiting for Godot" and, as you know, Godot is not masa. Translate "Godot" as the superman hero who will lead the dissent and be a miracle-working president. The Pinoy's tragedy is he has yet to learn "Do not look for miracles; You are the miracle". Rosalinda N. Olsen, [email protected] Norway, January 04, 2005 MY REPLY. Honasan and his RAM Boys were �military rightists who had rented out their idealism to the trapos.� As they themselves admitted in their post-EDSA reminiscences, their plan was to install Juan Ponce Enrile as head of junta, who would then be elected President in a free election six months later.. Sorry to disappoint you, but EDSA 1 was a middle class uprising, not a masa revolt. Just look at the leaders it brought to the fore: Cory Aquino, Doy Laurel, Juan Ponce Enrile, Fidel Ramos, Gringo Honasan, Jimmy Ongpin, Joker Arroyo, etc. They were icons of the middle class. The masa�s Erap Estrada, FPJ, Noli de Castro, etc did not play any part in EDSA 1. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, Excellent article. The problem is to find the leader. Mano Alcuaz, [email protected] January 04, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Your latest column, "Neither Trapo nor Communist" reflects my own observations about the current political climate. Just how many times in the last three months have you heard somebody say that GMA would not finish her term? Discretion prevents me from naming these people and I don't believe they are plotting to overthrow the government as much as they are articulating their frustrations over this "morally bankrupt" political system and those who represent it. If so many people have lost hope that any meaningful change can happen under this government/system then the questions now are how can we bring about that change and who can do it? As you say neither the trapos nor the communists can present a credible alternative. Personally, I think many people looking for solutions are barking up the wrong tree. A real political revolution will not take place until we have a cultural renewal and until the different sectors of our society begin to show that they can trust each other. Francis Fukuyama explained this so well in his book "Trust", which I think can point the way to fixing what is wrong with our leaders, our system, and our country. As for your suggestion that media give more airtime to voices of dissent outside of the trapos and the leftists, I'm all for that. Do you have any suggestions? Ricky Carandang, [email protected] ABS-CBN, January 04, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww We�re all waiting for the knight in shining armor. And according to the Bureau of Census, he/she ain�t born yet (and the only one got assassinated at the tarmac). Ate/Mama/Lola Glo (or whatever Mrs. Pidal�s real status is) must thank her lucky stars for her luck (and we can only curse our misfortune). She won�t last another second if that knight were there. Vicente C. de Jesus, [email protected] January 05, 2005 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Dear Tony, We are happy that you are likewise concerned with the current threat to our freedoms, as we do. Your columns, that have been coming in regularly are very much welcomed by our group. In February 2005, if God would grant, we will have our own pro-democracy tabloid, to be circulated mainly in the Visayas and Mindanao, and some in the national capital region. If its okay for you, we will publish your columns in our newspaper (tabloid), on a regular basis. I believe, by doing so, we would be joining hands in protecting our country and people through a peaceful education and awareness program against the communists in this country. We are laboring on this cause because we have taken upon ourselves to do our share for the protection of our freedoms and democratic institutions, despite the shortcomings that we have seen and felt. Mabuhay ang Bayang Pilipinas! Robert Salonga, [email protected] National Media Officer Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD) January 13, 2005 MY REPLY. You may reprint some of my columns in your publication. However, you may not change a word or sentence without my knowledge and approval. And you must give due acknowledgement to the original source: Manila Standard or Philippines Free Press. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |