Move On?

"Move on," goes an advice - solicited or not - we hear from people. At times, it sounds sensible, but there are occasions when it is downright rubbish. Take for example the recent pronouncement of Imee Marcos during a press conference, on those who keep on criticizing her family: "The millennials have moved on, and I think people at my age should also move on as well".

It seems easy for the late dictator's eldest daughter to say such things. Imagine being ensconced in Malacanan for two decades, not worrying what to eat or what to wear or where to study. Imagine enjoying political clout in the Kabataang Barangay, all because her father has seized control of everyone and everything in the land. Imagine having a good life while the populace suffer and shoulder her family's (and cronies') excesses. 

Imee's remarks are callous, dismissive, and irresponsible.

Their ouster and exile in Hawaii in 1986 should have been a wake up call for them to make amends. Their return to the Philippines in the early 90s (followed by that of Ferdinand Marcos' remains) showed the opposite. They came back as though they did not commit anything wrong. Gradually, they have returned to power with Imelda, Imee, and Bongbong having their version of rigodon de honor in select government positions in Ilocos Norte. (Bongbong is currently contesting Leni Robredo's election as Vice-President.)Their strong grip to power and court rulings in their favor - including the burial of the former strongman at the Libingan ng mga Bayani - would not be possible without the blessings of the current dispensation. 

Unless justice is rendered to the many Filipinos who suffered in the hands of the Marcos dictatorship (some of which have never been found up to this day), unless all that the Marcoses stole from the nation's coffers are recovered, unless Marcos' Presidential Decree No. 1177 (a.k.a. Automatic Appropriation Law) is repealed, unless the Marcoses get out of their ivory tower and do concrete actions to repair the damage they have caused, the Philippines will never move on.

As St John XXIII once said "Justice comes before charity."

The Buck Stops Here

The late US president Harry S Truman used to keep a sign with this phrase while holding office at the White House. For him, it served as a constant reminder that as president he has to make the decisions and accept full responsibility for those decisions.

Since that day of infamy when the Philippine Supreme Court (SC) allowed the burial of Ferdinand Marcos' remains at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB), mass protests, commentaries, statements, etc have been made denouncing the decision and vilifying the 9 associate justices who were in favour of such burial, the heirs of the former dictator for their deviousness in having the remains buried secretly at the LNMB, and Ferdinand Marcos himself for his 20-year rule of oppression and plunder.

There have been some commentators who were quick to point out that the blame for such an unthinkable burial shouldn't be put on the SC nor the Marcoses. The blame or the buck stops at President Rodrigo Duterte.  I totally agree. For wasn't Duterte the one who promised during the presidential campaign to have Marcos' remains interred at the LNMB? And when he won the elections, didn't he give orders to his subordinates to implement his promise? By the looks of it, the SC, Marcos Family, AFP, PNP, etc just took the cue from the President!

I think protests actions should not only highlight that the late strongman is not a hero. Protests should not only underscore the SC's failure to look beyond the letter of the law. Protests should not only bring to the fore the Marcoses' notoriety for using subterfuge on many, many occasions (when they were still in power and now that they feel entitled to such power, thanks to the President). 

The protests that are being organised across the country and beyond should also condemn Duterte's callousness for letting Marcos be buried in a cemetery reserved for heroes and for dismissing the atrocities of the Marcos dictatorship as though they were kuwentong kutsero. 

Had Duterte steered clear of the Marcoses, had he been more aware and sensitive of the plight of the Martial Law victims, had he acted more as a statesman rather than a politician our country would not be in this mess! I find it strange that Duterte seemed to have forgotten that his late mother fought against the dictatorship. And that his rise to power began when Cory Aquino appointed him OIC Vice Mayor of Davao.

Duterte should be called to task for showing his real colour: a tuta (lapdog) of the Marcoses.

Now that's one sign we should see unfurled during these mass protests!

***

It's the start of the Advent season this Sunday! Let this season be a moment for us to rethink of our past, of our values, of all our gains and losses. Let Advent be an opportunity for us to realize where we are going to. Is it back to the manger of Bethlehem or nowhere? Let this holy season be a time for us to rediscover that only in Jesus could we find the light which will defeat in the darkness our country is in. From November 29 to December 7, let us say at least a decade of the Rosary, asking Mary Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception (our country's patroness) to lead us to Jesus, to yearn for the Promised Messiah: O come, O come Emmanuel and ransom captive Orient's Pearl!

A Thief

The Year of Mercy will be formally closed on Sunday November 20, the feast of Christ the King.  Looking back, this holy year was an opportune time to rediscover God's mercy and make it felt especially by everyone, especially those in need. It is unfortunate though that in the Philippines, this holy year closes with a low note, thanks (or no thanks) to the infamous ruling of the Supreme Court (SC) allowing the remains of dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr to be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB).

By looking more at the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the same, the 9 associate justices have washed their hands from any responsibility to clarify and put to rest such an issue. By looking more at the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the law, our magistrates have shown the typical forgetfulness of Filipinos on the sins of their oppressors. By looking more at the letter rather than the spirit of the law, the Court has lost the opportunity to administer what is too obvious: justice for the Martial Law victims, justice for the whole Philippines.

I don't know where these justices were while Marcos and his minions pillaged the country left and right and trampled the rights of its people with impunity. Have our justices become subservient to the Palace the way the Legislative branch has done? One thing is for sure: allowing Marcos to be buried at the LNMB won't bring any closure, healing, or unity.

Just a few hours ago, we've seen video footage and photos of Marcos' remains secretly being buried at the LNMB. Without waiting for the petitioners to challenge the SC's decision, the Marcoses have pushed through with the burial. Why in secret? (And please, Malacanan, don't give us that flimsy excuse that you are not aware of the interment!) Did Marcos die of cholera or any infectious disease?  Is there a war that the body needs to be buried hastily? What's there to hide? I suddenly remembered what my mother used to say; that no matter how deep you bury a jar of bagoong (anchovy sauce), it will still smell! No matter how the Marcoses hide their sins, the people will still smell the stench of their deeds. So be vigilant, people!

And why only family and few supporters in attendance? Shouldn't the country celebrate a hero's burial? For that's what the Court ruling tells us. At any rate, the burial just reveals who he really is: a thief.

I note that the Gospel for the 20th is about a thief who, in his final hours, repented and humbly asked Jesus to remember him when the Lord comes into His kingdom. So much different to the thief whose remains are now interred at the LNMB: unrepentant, arrogant, and pathetic.

Starting Off on the Wrong Foot

The only time I voted for a president and vice president in the Philippines was in 1998.  By the next presidential election in 2004, I was already in the UK. A few years later, I have become a British citizen.  In spite of my inability to vote, I have my own choice from among the presidential candidates.  If I were to cast my vote in the recent election, I would end up undecided until the last minute. At this point, whoever my last minute choice is would be irrelevant. Rodrigo Duterte is the president in waiting. Leni Robredo, thank goodness, is the vice president in waiting!

 

During the presidential debates, candidates were asked if they would allow Ferdinand Marcos to be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Only one said no - Mar Roxas. I felt uneasy with the response of his contenders such as Duterte and Binay. And I imagined them being true to their promise once they get elected. Duterte has announced his intention to do so which caused some quarters to be up in arms such as the victims and survivors of Martial Law.

Six years ago, I expressed concerns because President Noynoy Aquino was reportedly considering a proposal to have the late dictator interred at the Libingan.  With a new regime in the horizon, these concerns have lurked anew.

When Cory was president she didn't allow her predecessor's remains to be buried in Philippine soil. When Fidel Ramos was elected, he allowed the remains to be flown home, but on several conditions which, Imelda and her children have not yet fulfilled. According to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the conditions are:  "that the body would be given the honors of a junior officer, that it would be buried immediately, and that the burial place would be in Marcos’ home province of Ilocos Norte."

If the Marcoses have not been fair with the conditions set by a president (during that time) and a relative at that, why should they have the gall of insisting for a hero's burial for the deceased strongman? Many years ago, I was in Sarrat, Ilocos Norte (Marcos' birthplace) and had a chat with Manong Conrado, the katiwala in our family home there who has passed away a few years back. Asked where he would prefer the Apo to be buried, he quipped, "Dito na lang (sa Sarrat). Maalagaan pa namin yung libingan niya."

Why and how the Marcoses have thrived and behaved all these years post-EDSA Uno, is due to our short memory as a people. And now the president in waiting seems hell bent to honor a former president-turned-dictator/human rights violator/plunderer with a hero's burial, dismissing concerns from Marcos' victims as purely for monetary gain. (Wasn't this the same argument Bongbong Marcos once said regarding the victims of his father's dictatorial rule? Imagine if this guy was elected vice president!)  This is beyond me. At a time when we should be full of hope for our country because of a new leader, I fear that the new dispensation is starting off on the wrong foot.

Let's be vigilant, mga kababayan! There is an online petition urging Duterte to abandon his plan (https://www.change.org/p/rodrigo-duterte-no-to-burying-marcos-in-heroes-cemetery). Please sign it!

No to FM Burial at the Libingan!



 

Nipping Evil at its Bud

Just a few days after the Holy Father's visit in the Philippines, when the country felt blessed with mercy and compassion, the Supreme Court has surprisingly extended these theological attributes to Joseph Estrada, deposed Philippine president and incumbent mayor of Manila. The High Court, voting 11-3, dismissed the disqualification case against him.  Supreme Court Spokesman Theodore Te says: "The majority characterized the pardon extended by Mrs. Arroyo to Mr. Estrada (in 2007) as absolute, thereby restoring Mr. Estrada's qualifications to stand as candidate in the last Mayoralty elections".

Voting for the dismissal were Justices Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, Presbitero Velasco Jr., Arturo Brion, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Mariano Del Castillo, Martin Villarama Jr. , Jose Perez, Jose Mendoza, Bienvenido Reyes, and Estela Perlas-Bernabe. With the exception of Reyes and Perlas-Bernabe, the others are Arroyo appointees.  It seems to me that the first nine justices have remembered their patron, with help of the other two Aquino appointees.  One cannot fail to surmise that this court acted as an Arroyo court!

Voting against the dismissal were Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Justices Antonio Carpio, and Marvic Mario Victor Leonen.  Carpio is the lone Arroyo appointee among the three.

I have been vocal against Estrada's candidacy for mayor of the city of my birth way back in 2013 due to the plunder case of which he was found guilty of by the Sandiganbayan (anti-graft court). Apart from this case, I didn't buy the idea that Erap would just run for a term before retiring (Is there a retirement age in politics? Come on! Imelda Marcos who's older than Estrada is still in public office).

It is unfortunate that Arroyo has granted presidential pardon to a mandarambong (Tagalog for plunderer) not so much for the good of the country, but more for her political agenda. And because Erap had done these sins with impunity (highlighted word borrowed from the the late Msgr. Nico Bautista who once told me how Estrada behaved as a public servant) and never showed any remorse, the pardon became a ticket for him to run for the presidency in 2010 and then the mayoralty in 2013. With the disqualification case being dismissed, this kapalmuks (thick faced) action star-turned-politician is ready for a come-back to Malacañan (God, forbid it!).

I hope that Alicia Vidal and former Mayor Alfredo Lim, the case's petitioner and intervenor respectively, would file a motion for reconsideration. 

Meanwhile, days before this infamous court decision was made, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago filed Senate Bill 2568 that seeks perpetual disqualification for a public servant convicted of plunder, even if pardoned by the president. Plunder, as defined by Republic Act 7080 as the accumulation of ill-gotten wealth through a combination or series of overt criminal acts in the aggregate amount of P50 million by a public official. According to the feisty solon, the theft of such amount is "is unforgivably criminal, and no person who is capable of such act has a place in public office”.

According to the editorial of the Philippine Daily Inquirer: "Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago’s bill seeking the perpetual disqualification from public office of a government official convicted of plunder—even if pardoned by the president—is a timely corrective to the looming threat posed by Estrada running again for the presidency in a never-ending effort to vindicate his name. The bill deserves wide public support and should be passed by Congress, if it knows any better. A crime is a crime—more so if it’s as heinous as plunder. Popularity does not expunge it; otherwise, we can dispense with the justice system altogether and look to the horde, like the old Romans did, for a thumbs up or a thumbs down on a person’s guilt" (http://opinion.inquirer.net/82095/miriams-measure)

I commend Miriam for filing this bill. In spite of her lung cancer, she continues to serve the people by passing bills such as this. If P-Noy is dead serious in driving the final nail on corruption's coffin, he should mark this bill as urgent. Should the bill finally becomes a law, that would be a sound legacy he could leave his countrymen.

St. Thomas Aquinas, whose feast is celebrated as of this writing, once said "To bear with patience wrongs done to oneself is a mark of perfection, but to bear with patience wrongs done to someone else is a mark of imperfection and even of actual sin".  Filipinos are know to be matiisin (forebearance) to the point that we are being robbed in broad daylight. If we condone the likes of Erap and Arroyo (Politicians scratch each others back!) it won't only be ourselves bearing the brunt of their wickedness.Our children and our children's children would surely suffer, the way they are/will be liable to pay the country's debt servicing thanks to Ferdinand Marcos (and his successors). Enough is enough!

Domesticated Truth

Being a Martial Law baby, everything that I could see on TV, read on the newspapers, or hear from the radio were good - the economy was doing well, there was peace and order, everyone  seemed happy. Ferdinand Marcos was our champion. He was the country's savior.

That mindset was shattered that fateful 21st day of August 1983.  It was a Sunday and as I watching TV, there was this scene of a lifeless man clad in white on the tarmac of what was then the Manila International Airport.  I heard from the newscaster that the man was assassinated (that word was new to me then!).   Who was this man I slowly found out as the days went by.

Angelicum School (now College), where my brother, cousins, and I were studying at that time suddenly became encircled by a rosary of people making their way to neighboring Sto. Domingo Church where this man's remains lied in state.

I read in the papers that he was Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr, a senator of the Philippines until Martial Law abolished Congress, gagged media, and trampled on human rights.  But what made my eyes really open were accounts I heard from Manong Teddyboy, my first cousin who was older than me. 

Manong Teddyboy, being the eldest among the magpipinsan, would discuss with us (while riding our grandparents' Ford Fiera to and from school) who Ninoy was and his struggles. If I remember it correctly, my cousin didn't mince words to say that the dictator was the one responsible for Ninoy's assassination.  At first, I was shocked. Could Marcos, the country's champion, do it?  

In spite of that shock, I gradually started to look at our country with a different pair of eyes.  The truth that was domesticated by the dictatorship, the kind of truth that is in favor of Marcos' Bagong Lipunan has been replaced by the real truth embodied Ninoy's bloodied corpse. Doña Aurora Aquino, Ninoy's mother, when asked why she didn't have the remains cleansed and dressed up, said she wanted people to see what Ninoy's adversaries did to him.

Distressing as it may be to the beholder, people viewing Ninoy took away with them a true sense of the nation's situation, a nation that was in tatters not the one that Imelda tried to portray via her fine terno, jewelry, and signature umbrella.  That fateful day in August 30 years ago sparked the need for change. It took three more years for that to happen when Marcos fled and Cory assumed the presidency.

Through Ninoy's death, democracy was restored. And so, since 1986 we have been enjoying freedom of the press, check and balance of the three branches of government, our right to elect, etc.  It is annoying to hear people say "Walang nangyayaring ganyan noong panahon ni Marcos" (Nothing of that sort happened during Marcos' time.). Well, our media was gagged during his time and so only the domesticated truths are known. To say that nothing vile happened during the dictatorship is 100% non-sense!

We complain about the corruption and callousness of our leaders, the PDAF scam, etc.  Who said that the truth will all be pleasant and favorable?  Even Jesus told His disciples that the road to salvation isn't easy.  Didn't John the Baptist forewarn his audience that the Promised Messiah will baptize them with the Holy Spirit and fire (ouch!)?

Let's face it. Democracy has its defects. It may not cure graft and corruption. Investigations may go on ad nauseam.  The truth it promotes or aspires to uphold may be ugly, painful, or divisive.  Still, it is the truth. Live with it!