Andrea Rosal's rights are being violated by a paranoid military

I don't see the logic of the Armed Forces of the Philippines asking the court to prevent Andrea Rosal from seeing and burying her dead. Rosal is grieving. Rosal just lost her child. Even in other countries which claim to be democratic, they allow their prisoners to practice their cultural practices. Burying one's dead is part of one's culture, and according to the Constitution, that is an inalienable right that must be respected by everyone.

In Andrea's case, that is not acceptable, according to the court which is supposed to uphold rights and laws.

Government fears that Andrea might escape when it allows her to be with her dead daughter. What kind of excuse is that? Is Government or the AFP willing to swap its humanity with stupidity? I mean, the problem is simply providing sufficient security cover while Andrea is out of jail or out of the hospital. Is the AFP saying that it does not trust its troops enough to secure a woman like Andrea? Is our AFP so weak?

The AFP says Andrea is a security threat. Okey, granted. So, does it follow that we likewise violate her humanity? That our military is now entitled or empowered to deprive her of all of her, including expressing her grief? Is our military so cruel that it cannot grant the request of a mother who just lost her child? Is our military so cruel that it surpasses the cruelty of the Romans who even granted Mary, the mother of Christ, the time to grieve before the battered and dead body of her savior son?

Andrea's case is a pure and classic case of human rights violation. From the very minute she was arrested up to the time that she bore her daughter and lost her, up to this very minute which she spends inside a cramped cell, this State has consistently violated her.

What is her sin? Her "sin", if we can call it that, is she is the daughter of a former spokesperson of the New People's Army. The military believes that she heads the Southern Luzon NPA. So, does it follow that the AFP has now the right to violate her inalienable rights?

The AFP is acting like a maton, a sadistic big-bellied monster ready to pounce on its enemies, eat them, and deprive them even of their soul. Wrong.

The Charter says the AFP is the "sole protector of the people". How will the AFP be a protector or "guardian" of the people when it now acts as if it is the torturer and deprives the people their rights when arrested?

I dein say that this AFP is acting like that because Ka Roger is no longer with us. If Ka Roger is still alive, takot lang ng AFP.

Sirs, where are the good men?

The corrupt

The joke that went the rounds again this week is this...from the Philippine Military Academy to the Philippine Millionaire's Army. What had happened to our cavaliers?


Former Chief of Staff Angelo Reyes is set to be investigated further on allegations of former Colonel Rabusa that he received 50 million pesos from the AFP boy's club shortly after his retirement. Rabusa said, this is already a "tradition" in the AFP--that monies from major service units are re-aligned and amassed into what Senate president Juan Ponce-Enrile said was the AFP's "slush fund"and given to high-ranking military officers. 


The "slush fund", which amounts to 40 million every month, is sourced through different means. The fund is supposed to fund the Chief of Staff's activities, pay off media and several people and given to the C-S (Chief of Staff) after his retirement. 


Several sources say, the AFP as an institution is so corrupt that it is now the main stumbling block to progress of the Filipino People. I believe them.


Soldiers have lost hope that the institution will ever be changed. The oft-repeated line right now is "don't grumble now. wait for your turn."


It seems that all institutions of governance have turned from bad to worst. Graft and corruption have seeped into all levers of governance. And why is this so?


Is it because of low pay? Is it because soldiers and high-ranking officers receive no benefits? I doubt it. 


I think one of the reasons is the lack of sustaining indoctrination among the soldiers. Soldiers have to be properly indoctrinated.


They have to be asked why they want to be soldiers. Many of them would definitely answer that the reason is poverty--they want to escape the vicious claws of poverty that afflicted them and their families, and the only means is to go to the PMA and study.


Okey, that's fine, but there's something terribly wrong with this. They see the AFP, the establishment, as an economic body, not a service unit of the government.


Soldiers become soldiers not to become rich or wealthy, but to be defenders of the people. Soldiers want to become soldiers because they have this desire to serve the People. 


I think this all started when Ferdinand Marcos, transformed the AFP into his personal army. Cronyism replaced professionalism. High-ranking military officials were given perks, treated like petty millionaires and petty kings, and pampered by the dictator. For over fifteen years, this became institutionalized. 


Yet, look at the flipside, we were given twenty five years to reform the AFP and this was the slogan of the Reform the Armed Forces of the Philippines who became RAM before---reform. What had happened?

Reformers all...but where are those reforms?

RAM founder Senator Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan even became a legislator--and was given the powers to reform the very institution he so fought for all his life. Honasan became a legend within the change agents in the AFP, but what happened? 


Several laws and life-altering orders were made specifically to change the very organization, but the culture of impunity and the values remained the same. The soldier remained committed to a desire to live a life of plenty out of the dire poverty of the people.


Honasan's classmate, Major General Carlos Garcia (member of PMA Class 1971) is now even tagged as the main or chief promoter of graft and corruption. 

Where are these good men in the background?

Deep-seated are the problems of the institution and it even worsened after the dictatorship. What needs to be done?


Where are the good men who defended the country with their selfless love? 


Where are the good men who became soldiers out of their patriotism?


Where are the good men who would risk their lives for the people and expect nothing in return? Are these men relegated to the barracks?


Some would say---we produce good cavaliers but the corrupt system made them lose their focus.


Crap.


The soldier has the responsibility of correcting the wrongs of the system. The soldier has the right to change the system. If that very system is the institution they belong to, these soldiers, true soldiers of the Filipino People, have every right in them to unite and storm the barracks with their righteous cries.


Like any other institution, the Armed Forces of the Philippines needs a shot in the arm. The AFP needs drastic reforms, particularly in values. 


What the Filipino People need are people who would sacrifice their lives out of love of country, not of money.


What the Filipino People need are soldiers who would stay true to what they promised to live by---COURAGE, INTEGRITY AND LOYALTY. Where's patriotism, sir?


Is it courage to strike a deal and amass monies from the public coffers and have the courage not to talk about it?


Is it integrity to abide by the rules and traditions that mold evil men than good men?


Is it loyalty to the powers-that-be that live off from the monies of an ever-suffering people? Let me publish here what Jose M. Crisol, a PMA'er from Class 42 wrote and published in the PMA website.

Courage ! Integrity ! Loyalty !

By JOSE M. CRISOL, PMA '42

There are three words that are deeply entrenched in a cadet's heart, three words that he zealously guards against defilement and pollution.

These three are: COURAGE, INTEGRITY, and LOYALTY. They are not cold and meaningless abstractions. They are not merely words. They are beacon lights that illumine the way as the cadet journeys toward the goal of his ambitions.

They form the vertices of the triangle that bind the limits of the sphere of his conduct. This triumvirate of manly virtues is the basic pillar of a cadet's character.

A failing or a weakening of one eventuates in the collapse of the moral make-up of a cadet. Each in conjunction with the other two acts as a moral fortress to safeguard the cadet against the onslaughts of the vicious and corruptive influences of the world.

Bayanihan

IMagine Filipino soldiers wearing traditional barung saya, with a guitar in tow, serenading the poorest folks in Bicol. Imagine them carrying a traditional nipa hut on their shoulders while the rest of them help the poorest of the poor in their field work.


No, no, no, this is not a dream. This basically sums up the new anti-insurgency strategy of the AFP which they call "Bayanihan."


From "Bantay Laya" which is militarist in approach, the new approach is a sing and dance routine called "bayanihan" or civil-military work. Engagement is thru civil works not thru an armed encounter. Meaning, the new definition of an "encounter" really is "engagement."


What would be the effects of this new strategy? Well.


First, this will re-model or re-imagine the image of the Filipino soldier in the countryside. This strategy is more of an image-building one, than anything. 


What the AFP wants is supplant or represent the national government in insurgency infested areas. If we are to look in the map, insurgency breeds in largely poverty stricken areas, and these areas are mainly away from the centre of power. IN our system, the farther you are from the center, the lesser you reap the economic benefits of whatever growth the government gets. 


Insurgency hotspots highlight the inability of government to extend its power over these territories. The lesser government presence is in those areas, the higher the possibility of rebel control. When people feel neglected, they then turn to alternatives. The supplantation of government therefore completes itself when the entire area gives the revolutionaries the power to administer their daily affairs.


Now, it would take some years for the AFP to fully change their image, from an oppressor to a friendly. It would also take some years for the people to turn from frightened and oppressed masses to a cooperative one simply because of years' of barbarity some AFP units did in certain areas of the country.


It would, therefore, not be as easy as the State envisions this to be, simply because Filipinos have long memories especially those living in agrarian areas. 


Second, a more engaging role for the AFP means lesser fights and encounters and more negotiations than actual engagement. This would mean, lesser allocation for bullets and guns and more allocation for civil works, especially road works. This is a good strategy because even if this strategy fails to quell the decades-old rebellion in the countrysides, in the long run, this benefits the entire polity. 


However, I feel extremely optimistic if the AFP applies this strategy in Mindanao. For one, the Bangsamoros only desire is peace. If the AFP manages to dismantle their Tadtads and other para-military units in the area and replace them with civil-military teams, this would probably lessen the incidence first, of criminality and second, of insurgency. If the AFP manages to position itself as a harbinger of peace instead of death, then, the organisation may be able to solve the peace and order problem in Mindanao, quicker and faster than what other generations of AFP generals failed to accomplish. 


This happens on the ground, what about at the top? If the AFP thinks that centralised authority will be completely crippled when individual units "cooperate" with them thru "Bayanihan", that is a long shot. First, the centralised authority is completely ideological and political. It would take a long convincing for old revolutionaries to consider peace than revolutionary work. 


By the way, that image of a soldier carrying a nipa hut on their shoulders should probably raise alarm bells, if implemented in the countrysides. Why? Because people might suspect that they are being hamletted to some area away from their actual homes. Joke.


It would be nice if we see a coalition government spring from this new administration. That is the political solution to this decades-old insurgency---giving power to those whose lives have been dedicated to the advancement of the people's cause. 

The True Faces of Dissent today

FV is back. Let me repost what I wrote there some minutes ago.

A shadowy group, which named itself S4, (which sounds like that famous all-male Taiwanese rock band some years back), is now a subject of intense discussion among coffee shop habitues for some time now. The group, described as an organization composed of former Arroyo associates and anti-Arroyo personalities, says that what we have right now is a digital presidency. The group believes that the previous election was rigged and that the true expression of the Filipino’s voice was suppressed during that democratic exercise. Hence, it wants the Armed Forces of the Philippines to intervene and protect the welfare of the Filipino People.

The group posted their views in a full-page ad recently.

Malacanang just brushed it off, saying that the AFP is solidly behind the new administration. Other legislative allies of the present dispensation also came out from the woodwork and denounced the group.

The reason why I am writing about the group right now is simple–where did the idea of using the word sovereignty came about? I mean, sovereignty for me is a heavy word with a heavier meaning that losing it in an election seems more than an illusion rather than fact.

Sovereignty means losing the legal authority to govern a state. You either lose it through invasion or through subversion. Is the group saying that we lost our sovereignty when the wrong guy was elected into office?

What we lost is not sovereignty since we, the Filipino People, the true sovereign, still reigns supreme. If at all we lost something last 2010 elections, is initiative.

Initiative in the sense that our Constitution gave us the democratic way out of a hopeless governance, and only to end up catering to a more hopeless dispensation. We lost the chance to really elect a government that is as serious as the Masses in seeing real change happen in these lands.

I heard Linda Montayre, the convenor of the group in an interview over RMN yesterday that the reason why they are slowly re-appearing in the public sphere is simply their desire to really see real change happen in our country. The question is–under whose idea or ideological platform?

Is the group an expert in what the Masses think and want? What is the Filipino dream, do they know?

Montayre claims that the new administration is the same one with a more refreshing face. That a few days before the elections, both the old regime and the incoming one met in one meeting and decided to once again team up for the sake of bourgeois democracy. In Montayre’s mind, the elites won that elections, not the masses.

If at all there was a conspiracy to maintain the old order between Aquino and Arroyo, this is expected since they belong to the same deceitful group that bartered the true spirit of EDSA. Their forebears were the traitors of the First National Revolution who killed the embers of the Katipunan and want nothing more than elite-led democracy to rule these lands. They again re-appeared in History when they snatched the initiative towards radical change in 1986.

The masses are intelligent. They know and feel that nothing has changed. In fact, the steady stream of Filipinos leaving our shores is proof positive that the Masses expect nothing to change. That the straight road that Noynoy spoke of, is nothing but an illusion, a masterstroke, to deceive those among us who still cling to that hope of change.

Now the only question that remains–is this the only reason why a group such as S4 would spend a quarter of a million pesos for an ad just to say that we live in a digital democracy ruled by a digital president with digital cabinet men? Is there something new to what they are telling us?

None.

The same faces of dissent that have hugged our newspapers and our airtimes for decades are the same ones that continue to shout and tell the world of how damned we are. Yes, we know we are damned, yet no one seems interested anymore in going to the streets to do something about it. No one has the strength to even pick a stone and throw to the new Judases sitting in Malacanang. We only have our pens and our laptops to say that we are disgusted by the way the administration has paved the roads, purportedly straight, but in fact, crooked and as twisted as a Rubick’s cube.

And the reason is simple—those who shout hell were formerly its occupants. Where are the true angels that will rouse the Patriots from their stupor and thereafter, smash the Establishment with their righteous might? Where are the true Patriots who committed their lives to the Cause of True Democracy? Are they so star-struck and so misty eyed by the illusory words of the Inaugural that they already forgot the ideals they so promised to pursue under the banner of the Bagong Katipunan?

If at all, we need change, we need it to re-define the Filipino Soul, then later, societal change.

Plot to derail May 10, 2010 elections bared!

An alleged plot to justify the non-holding of the elections is in the offing, says a highly reliable source.

According to the source, Comelec will push thru with the elections on Monday, May 10, 2010 BUT will declare a STOPPAGE of the voting a few hours AFTER the opening of the precincts. The poll body, according to a Comelec official who regularly briefs Malacanang officials, will use the CFC glitch issue to justify it.

That will be the cue for elements of the AFP NCR Command to immediately secure all vital installations in anticipation of a declaration of a State of Emergency and/or Martial Law to be issued by an official of Malacanang. The State of Emergency will force a 15-day extension of the elections, justifying lawless violence, terrorism and failure of the holding of the elections. Or worst, a declaration of a hold-over government to be headed by the Executive Secretary.

Congress will be asked to hold an emergency session and make the declaration official. The AFP C-S will support the holdover government being "constitutional".

Monday's deployment of troops in the Metro and the nightly rounds being undertaken by motorcycle riding heavily-armed NCR troops are just "intramurals" meant to neutralize any opposition to the plan. More deployments are being undertaken as I write this, very near vital installations and media outlets. By Friday of this week, these deployments would have been completed.

There are two VERY CRITICAL DAYS that the Filipino People must consider--FIRST, tomorrow, May 7, the last working day prior to May 10. Comelec and Smartmatic-TIM promised that they would already finish re-installing the compact flash cards. They, however, failed to assure us when will they TEST the new CFCs. According to the source, the new CFCs CONTAIN VIRTUALLY THE SAME PROGRAMMED INSTRUCTIONS, as contained in the so-called DEFECTIVE CFCs. These so-called "defective CFCs" with "wrongful instructions" account for just 30% of all CFCs.

Why is it that it is very important to replace these CFCs?

First the CFCs installed in 30% of the PCOS machines ARE PROGRAMMED TO COUNT VOTES IN FAVOR OF LAKAS-KAMPI STANDARD BEARER GILBERT GIBO TEODORO.

How did these election saboteurs made this electronic Garci possible? By colluding with some unscrupulous officials of the National Printing Office who printed about 30% of official ballots configured to steal the votes of other candidates to favor Gibo. (Comelec admitted that they printed 30 million official ballots without the requisite UV security feature)

Since the UV scanner security feature was turned off in the PCOS machines, owing to the printing of ballots without the requisite UV ink used, these ballots were the ones given to the precincts in Batangas and several Metro cities. It was never meant to be discovered. These ballots were supplied to at least 15,000 PCOS machines.

Smartmatic, according to some sources, did not know this. However, a young IT analyst working for a big MNC and hired to consult with several politicians and their election lawyers reportedly discovered a "neat way" to "cheat" the elections.

In a meeting held in a Chinese restaurant in Makati, the IT analyst last December 17, 2009 reportedly told several election lawyers that the best way to instruct the machines to favor their candidates is by configuring the ballot. Since the instructions to read are based on "line reading", the machine can be programmed to read votes of several candidates and "render" it as the votes of another. The analyst is now based in Hongkong.

Why were these machines configured in favor of Teodoro?

Teodoro, as some analysts say is the most favored candidate not just by the Arroyo mafia but by the military. If he wins and trounces survey leader Noynoy Aquino, operators will just make the justification that he won thru: 1. Youth vote (this is being exploited through ads and press releases) 2. Military vote (owing to his former position as Defense secretary) and 3. Religious vote (Quiboloy).

It is highly possible that Teodoro does not know this. And probably, he is now being used by a group of clerico-fascists to justify a failure of the elections, without him knowing it. 

I call upon all New Patriots of the New Generation to rise up and defend our people and our democracy from this nefarious plot!

I call upon all democratic forces to join hands and resist the possible Fascist rule!

I call upon all nationalist and democratic forces to unite behind all other groups to fight these dark forces that are now moving closer to their strategic objective of justifying an extension of Arroyo's administration!

RESIST THE DARKNESS! LIGHT YOUR TORCHES!
SPREAD THE LIGHT! AND PRAY FOR GOD TO PROTECT US.

The New Pinoy Soldier

There is no doubt about it---the Filipino soldier is a professional one. Despite the numerous scandals within the military establishment, and these are very serious ones linked to fund misuse and lack of uniforms and resources, the soldier remains loyal to the Constitution and the Filipino People.

The question that always come to mind is this--will the Filipino soldier still remain loyal to the chain of command despite very clear signs that the very authority that he is expected to follow is the very same one sabotaging the very democracy he is supposed to protect?

The loyalty of the Filipino soldier rest on the true power of this Nation--the Filipino People. This rings loud and clear in the Constitution, the truest expression of the People's Will. When civilian authority bamboozle this revered document, mock it and destroy it just to suit personal whims and political caprices, will the soldier be a gentleman and fight those who mock, destroy and despise the very Constitution that he has sworn to protect?

Yes. The Pinoy soldier is bound by his obedience to institutions, not personages. He is duty-bound to protect the institutions of democracy, not those who run it.

The Pinoy soldier is responsible for the protection of the pillars of democracy by which everything stands firm. The Pinoy soldier is a creature of democracy, the very reason he exists is simply to protect the institutions of governance from being destroyed by those elected or appointed as custodians of public service.

When civilian elites fight among themselves, the Pinoy soldier is expected to stay by the Constitution and the institutions it has created. When the very same Constitution is being slowly corrupted by those responsible for its custody, the Pinoy soldier is responsible for keeping the peace.

When democracy is threatened by the intense in-fighting between and among civilian elites, the Pinoy soldier is expected to preserve democracy by governing the institutions by which democracy stands firm.

Villar intends to spend 15 billion pesos for guns and bullets

For offending the military top brass when he led Nacionalista party candidates in a virtual campaign sortie inside Camp Aguinaldo, presidential bet Senator Manny Villar promises to give 15 billion pesos to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) should he win in this year's elections.

So, there. This early, Villar is starting to politicize members of the country's armed forces, dangling them a meaty 15 billion pesos, just to win this elections.

And who will be the next sector to be courted and promised billions by the wealthiest presidential candidate in Philippine history?

Will it be the urban poor? I hope so.

We have 25 million urban poor families, whose needs are ASAP, more than the military who needs more arms and ammunition. Which sector will Villar prioritize when he becomes president? Seems that this early, Villar's priorities are as warped as his television commercials.

Will it be the farmers and the fishermen who are now being affected by global warming and inadequate government support? I hope so.

More than guns and bullets that Villar wants to give the military, that 15 billion pesos carrot which he dangled before the top brass should have been promised to the rural sector which is now suffering from extreme poverty? Fifteen billion pesos-es are more than enough to modernize our agricultural sector and enable us to leap to the 21st century.

Will it be the workers who continue to suffer from low wages and oppressive situations? I darn hope he will.

Fifteen billion pesos are more than enough to create more jobs for the jobless, stable wages for the employed and spur growth to less urban or less developed areas.

This is the first time that Manny Villar cited a figure to give a certain sector if he wins the elections. And evidently, Villar was forced to do so.

Will the urban poor, the farmers and the fishermen do something very drastic before Villar ultimately give or promise to give them a certain amount like what he did with the military?

I hope it will not amount to that.

The Neo-Red Menace Campaign of the AFP

Is there a silent Commie persecution going on right now? It seems like it. So, if you're a Communist sympathizer or you're just a plain and simple admirer of Karl Marx or Vladimir Lenin or someone heard you speak of the analects of Mao Tse Tung, you better watch your back. For there could be an agent behind your back, ready to pounce on you.

Are we back in the Cold war era where the mere mention of Socialism or Communism is a crime? Are we really back in that age when someone shouts "imperialism!" or " Mabuhay CPP-NPA-NDF!", he'll be hauled to jail immediately?

Blame General Dominquez book, " The Trinity of War" which is on its third edition. This almost Nazi-like book is to be blamed for the renewed paranoia of the military against anything red. This book spells out the new doctrine of the Armed Forces of the Philippines when treating Communism or its branches. The book actually encourages the destruction of legal and legitimate organizations which at least believes in the National Democratic agenda of the CPP-NPA-NDF, albeit, not openly declared. 

For all I know, the Anti-Subversion Law has been effectively repealed. Communism was considered de-criminalized in 1994, and whoever believes in Communism has the right to freely expressed it, however others hate it. Believing in something is an inherent and inviolable right. And being a Communist is one of them.

When a State authorizes the use of military or State power against those who merely believe in an ideology, it acts as a dictator or an authoritarian. And when a government transforms itself into a dictatorial or an authoritarian regime, it is the right of Peoples to militate against it. This is even recognized by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the People.



As far as I know, even if you're a card-carrying member of the Communist Party of the Philippines, you'll not be arrested because it is not a crime anymore to be a member of the CPP-NPA-NDF or any other political party. 

It is a crime however, if you're a combatant or an armed member of the New People's Army. That's another story. 


Bearing arms against the government and declaring that you believe in the protracted people's war and you live in the mountains and subsist only with potatoes or camotes, of course, that will clearly put your life at extreme risk. There are two (2) things you must know: believing in something and acting on it.


If you believe in something and acted based on it, meaning, you actually rebelled, got your firearm and declared rebellion against the State, you are now, a declared enemy of the State. The State has the right to exercise its right for self-preservation. The State will kill you. The State has the right to arrest you, detain you and present you in court with charges of rebellion. If the civilian courts deemed you guilty, then, be ready to face the consequences of your actions.


Yet, if you just espouse Communism and you just propagandize, then, that is a right enshrined in the Constitution and you will not be arrested. 


In the case of the Morong 43, their arrests shows you the effects of a misunderstanding or a mis-appreciation or worst, a mis-interpretation of current reality. If you're a health worker and you believe in the National Democratic ideal, you are okey provided you don't mingle with the Communist rebels. If you don't live with the rebels, and just help the poor folks, then, you are not a combatant; hence, safe from prosecution.


Our soldiers should know the distinction. It should be very clear with them. 


Otherwise, people might suspect that, in their desperation to defeat their enemy, they'll commit the same mistakes as what they did during the Marcos years.

Paranoid AFP 2nd Division must free Morong 43 Now!

They are supposed to be the protectors of the Filipino People. Yet, the way the 2nd Infantry Division of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) acted in response to the order of the Courts for them to release the Morong 43 shows a clear contempt to the rule of Law and of the Constitution which the AFP has sworn to defend and protect. As what former Defense chief Gilbert Teodoro said, the AFP's failure to produce the Morong 43 is "inexcusable."

What are they trying to prove?

The behavior exhibited by the 2nd Division is mutinous to say the least. They have been given an order by a highly competent civilian authority and further given orders from the AFP Chief of Staff himself, General Victor Ibrado to "respect the authority of the court". Why is there a failure to obey the order of the C-S himself?

Is the 2nd Division higher than the Chief of Staff? Is this division of the Army directly contravening the very authority of the Highest Officer of the organization? And is the Army saying or telling us that the C-S is just a lame duck officer, just waiting for his replacement?

The overzealousness of the 2nd division to "produce results" in the promise to "eradicate the CPP-NPA terror organization in 2010" shows you how they will even resort to violating human rights just to bolster their record in the anti-insurgency department. The AFP just gave itself a task, a task which is quite impossible to achieve, yet given after being forced by the Arroyo administration, and that promise is, the total diminution of the CPP-NPA-NDF by year's end.

That's why the officers on the ground are getting extremely paranoid, arresting even health workers in Morong Rizal. These health workers, government employees at that, were attending a seminar when they were arrested. The 2nd division said these workers were Communist sympathizers. 

Whether or not these arrested health workers do sympathize with the Communist ideology, fact is, these arresting officers do not have the right to arrest them.

Firstly, attending a supposed "CPP-NPA_NDF" seminar is NOT A CRIME. It is everybody's right to believe in something, and Communism has been de-criminalized. That is presuming that these health workers did attend such a seminar. Reports say, these workers were conducting a health-related seminar.

Secondly, even if, granting they are sympathizers, this is an inviolable human right. As I said, the 1987 Constitution respects the rights of the individual to free expression. Like how AFP members have the right to join organizations such as the Guardians, Masons and the YOU, these health workers have rights too. 

Thirdly, the AFP only has the right to arrest these workers if they saw them brandishing weapons and declaring or publicly announcing rebellion against the State. Facts are, these health workers did not do anything rebellious nor seditious. They were just doing their jobs when they were arrested by the AFP soldiers.

The means does not justify the ends. And in all likelihood, even the determination of the "ends", there was confusion on the part of the soldiers. And really, I don't blame them.

Imagine being given an "impossible order" to wipe out the Communists before the end of this year? Who will not be crazy enough to arrest everybody just to say that they did, indeed, eradicated the Reds in Rizal?

 

De-fanging Mrs. Arroyo And the Issue of Succession

Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is being de-fanged. There are two critical issues which confronts Mrs. Arroyo---a suitable replacement for the soon-to-be retiring Supreme Court Chief Justice and of course, the post of the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Two critical posts, too little time yet too destabilizing to say the least.

If you look at it, these symbols of democracy are now being put to the supreme test. We speak of Justice here and of the symbol of State Power, two pillars which democracy rests.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno will be retiring five days after the May 10, 2010 elections. The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has started the process of selection. However, there are two (2) opposing views, which all rest on just one (1) proposition---whether or not to allow Mrs. Arroyo to exercise her executive prerogative on the choice of Puno's replacement.

All four presidentiables---Noynoy Aquino, Gilbert "Gibo" Teodoro, Manny Villar and Richard Gordon--all opposed the proposition of the president exercising her powers on this one. All these fine gentlemen know that this will surely destabilize the current political situation.

As we speak, people from all persuasions are convincing the Chief Executive to desist from appointing a new Chief of Staff. Two months from now, AFP Chief of Staff General Victor Ibrado will be retiring and this brings to light certain accusations that Mrs. Arroyo's favorite lapdog, AFP vice chief General Bangit is being groomed to replace Ibrado.

These issues actually rest on just two choices for Mrs. Arroyo. The first choice is will she act like she's still in power by forcing these issues and showing the Filipino People that she's still a force to contend with? Or really accept the fact that she's now a lame duck president and everyone is just waiting for her to retire?

If Mrs. Arroyo exercises her powers and makes a wrong decision, meaning, force the issue of naming an interim Chief Justice and appoint her man to the top AFP post, this will send a wrong signal to all political forces and even foreign observers whom I just happen to know and met several occasions in the past---that Mrs. Arroyo intends to still play politics and flex her muscles inspite of the lack of adequate force and power.

This will surely re-activate all forces who suspect Mrs. Arroyo's real intentions of not really and seriously making herself scarce and inevitably, destabilize the entire political situation.

Seriously, Mrs. Arroyo's time as a serious political player has all but lapsed. Time has caught up with her.

If Mrs. Arroyo makes a wrong move, she will weaken not just the Institutions of Justice and of State Power but of the Office of the President itself. She has mocked these institutions for nine years and definitely, with the elections just four months away, people will not allow her to continue her ways.

If she commits a wrong move, Gloria will not be able to recover and it will even justify an extra-constitutional move against her, since she still poses a direct threat to the very institutions of Philippine democracy.

More than this though, this highlights the grave problem of succession.

Unlike other countries, we do not have a very clear policy on succession. This grey area in our Constitution creates a self-destabilizing situation.

EXCLUSIVE: ANDAL AMPATUAN JR TO BE ARRESTED AND TAKEN TO CAMP CRAME

A police source, who requested anonymity, says that one of the possible scenarios being considered right now is for Datu Unday mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr., son of Maguindanao governor Andal Ampatuan to be arrested inside the compound and to be sent immediately to Camp Crame.

Andal Jr. is to be immediately sent to Camp Crame for processing. This is one of the points negotiated between the Ampatuans and Jesus Dureza, presidential envoy.

Dureza is expected to take the 40 year old Andal Ampatuan Jr, into custody. Dureza is now in Maguindanao. (One source says one of the relatives of Andal Ampatuan thinks of holding Dureza hostage, which I think is unthinkable.)

Both the palace and the Ampatuans agreed that the younger Andal be subjected to investigation. No police or NBI agent was sent to the Ampatuans to serve the warrant of arrest.

Meanwhile, AFP spokesperson Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the military has taken over the Maguindanao capitol. Several towns in Maguindanao have also been subjected to military control.

Civilian cafgus or militias within the area have been disarmed.

Police have recovered 57 bodies, mostly mangled beyond recognition, in the shallow grave.

Wag the dog and Hello Garci 2

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Pope Benedict Condemns Cotabato Blast

Five people died while 35 others were wounded in a morning bomb blast in Cotabato City. Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo was about to read his homily when the bomb exploded. The explosive device was placed in an eatery near the Cotabato Immaculate Concepcion church.

The Southern Command was quick to blame the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), saying that a special operations groups were the ones responsible for the blast. Malacanang also was quick to draw the gun, blaming "destabilizers" for the blast. However, the MILF denied any involvement in the blast, saying that the act was "un-Islamic" and contrary to the teachings of Prophet Muhammad. The MILF called for an independent probe into the incident.

Pope Benedict the 16th and the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) were one in condemning the explosion. The Pope said this is not the way to resolve conflicts, while the CBCP hinted that this could be part of an on-going effort to destabilize the country. Remember that a few days ago, a bomb exploded before the Office of the Ombusman while bombs were allegedly found at the Department of Agriculture and a condominium in Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City.

The explosion came shortly after an announcement was made that the government and the MILF peace panels are expected to go back to the negotiating table this month. Was this part of a plan to derail peace efforts in Mindanao?

Some people however surmise that this could be part of the so-called Oplan August Moon, a secret campaign to create justifying circumstances for the declaration of martial rule. Prior to this, a bomb exploded at the Office of the Ombusman in Quezon City, while bombs were found at the Department of Agriculture and a condominium along Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City.

Oplan August Moon is supposed to lay down the groundwork for more oppressive state actions against the government's detractors, particularly those who oppose the plan of Mrs. Arroyo's allies to convene Congress into a Constituent Assembly. Others, however, said that the Oplan actually targets AFP Chief of Staff General Victor Ibrado. It is no secret that Ibrado's class (PMA Class 1976) is now engaged in a power struggle with Mrs. Arroyo's favorite class (PMA Class 1978). Though Defense secretary Gilbert Teodoro was quick to squelch this, news of inter-class squabblings are getting louder. A source within the AFP says that classmates of Ibrado and PMA Class 1978 member Army Chief Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit were the ones jockeying for power inside the AFP. The power struggle is reportedly unknown to both officers.

Historically, blasts and bomb threats always precede destab efforts before. With a few weeks left before the SONA, many people fear that more such incidents will happen to create a chilling effect on those who oppose charter change. Yesterday, the military announced that it is preparing for possible unrests and destab threats as the SONA nears. The possibility is high since last June, Executive secretary Eduardo Ermita warned cha-cha protesters that Mrs. Arroyo will not hesitate to use her "emergency powers" in case violence breaks out when Congress convenes itself into a Constituent Assembly after July 27.

Dangerous Times Ahead

There are three things which we need to watch in the coming days and weeks. First, last ditch attempts at charter change. Second, possible administration measures to justify extra constitutional means to perpetuate the status quo and third, eventual outbreak of dissent due to public frustration of a non-election scenario.

This administration should not risk a no election scenario. For the past weeks, there is a noticeable increase of prep activity for the elections. Through this ingenious events, it successfully prepared the public to expect an elections to happen in May 10, 2010. People are desirous already of change next year and to frustrate them would definitely mean big trouble. As I wrote in previous entries, wide-spread aggression is possible if this government frustrates the people's desire for change.

Two signs that lead people to surmise a no-election scenario: one, the failed bidding of the automation of the elections at COMELEC and the charter change deliberations next Tuesday.

Though there may have been legitimate reasons, one fact remains that the bidding failed. COMELEC has until May 30 to come up with a new set of bidders and a new bidding process. They can't allow the previous bidders to re-bid. That's a no-no. If they do that, the entire process will be perceived as tainted and it would definitely affect the entire conduct of the coming elections.

It's already May 14 and is 16 days enough to re-do the bidding? COMELEC should speed it up otherwise, public support for a constitutional means for change would surely crumble and justify an extra-constitutional way out of the Arroyo mess.

While prospects of automation hangs in the balance, Arroyo supporters at the House are expediting charter change. So, both--the COMELEC bidding and charter change--are heading towards one deadly deadline.

If charter change succeeds, they'll be elections anyway, albeit, not presidential, but parliamentary. Yet, if automation fails, and it's back to manual counting, the entire integrity of the whole electoral process is definitely suspect and renders the entire constitutional process void ab initio.

That justifies a term extension that would probably be backed up by a pro-Arroyo military. National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales already suggested this some months ago.

Now, is this is a possibility? Yes. Remember that come 2010, class 1978 will be the dominant player in both the AFP and the PNP. With a pro-Arroyo class as the ascendant class, the possibility of either Martial rule or a term extension is there.

Yano retires to become Ambassador

Why the sudden haste for AFP Chief of Staff Alex Yano to abandon the AFP Top post on May 1? Yano is retiring one month early to give way to new AFP Chief of Staff Ibrado. As I said in my previous post, Ibrado is just a bogey to allow Mrs. Arroyo's hatchet man, Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit to assume the top command in the May 2010. Ibrado will also retire one month early, on February 2010 to allow Bangit to assume full control of the military during the 2010 elections.

Why Bangit as AFP Chief of Staff in 2010? Two reasons: First, to take an active part in the administration victory in 2010 and two, to assume top command in the event of a declaration of a State of Emergency or worst, martial rule should a failure of elections happen.

Bangit is this administration's final option for a term extension.

As we speak, Yano is preparing for his "graceful" exit from the military to an ambassadorial post in Brunei Darussalam. Yano will be joining the growing ranks of ex-military men in the bureaucracy.

Defense secretary Gilbert Teodoro said that Yano will be a fitting member of the diplomatic corps and will serve as a crucial cog of the government panel in negotiations with Brunei Darussalam.

What Teodoro is NOT saying is this---Yano opted to retire early to save face. After Teodoro's announcement of Ibrado's appointment, Yano became a "lame duck". Projects and plans are not submitted to Yano's office anymore. Poor Yano. The professional soldier has been politicized.

Coup-Me and Nograles use of back door tactics

While most of us huddle in our tambayans, speculating on what really happened to Trina Etong, a group of politicians are busy trying to invent ways on how to circumvent the Constitution and for what? Speaker Prospero Nograles' group is trying to "test the waters" so to speak so that his proposal to allow foreign ownership of Philippine lands pass Congressional scrutiny. Nograles wants to include a proviso in his proposal by delimiting the coverage of the change in the charter "by just this one---change in the economic provisions". And he wants his theory tested by allowing his detractors to file a Constitutional question before the Supreme Court, confident that, in the end, it would be the "kampihan" (camaraderie) that would prevail instead of plain and simple, katarungan (justice).

It is an elementary principle in Constitutional Law that any change in the charter shall only be done in either a Constitutional convention or a Constituent Assembly. Changes cannot be piecemeal and deemed enacted by legislative or executive fiat. It must undergo a process whereby all members of Congress (both the Senate and the Lower House, voting separately) are involved. As contemplated by the Constitutionalists, the House will gather its votes and decide, while at the same time, the Senate votes as a collegial body. If the measure passes in the House but is rejected by the Senate, then, it not deemed enacted. Rather, it would be brought back to the House and the same procedure happens again.

It would be easier if Congress allows a Constitutional Convention, which, by the lack of time, is impossible to happen if the desire is simply to extend the term of Mrs. Arroyo.

Nograles just wants to use the back door in order to complete his mission for the Arroyos. He knows that his neck is on the line on this one and he does'nt want to disappoint his benefactor, Mike and his son, Mikey Arroyo. It's quite obvious though that he'll fail since majority of the LAKAS-CMD and some members of the KAMPI disagree with efforts to amend the charter at this time. In fact, LAKAS-CMD spokesman Juan Miguel Zubiri and even Presidential Political Adviser Gabriel Claudio have been telling Nograles and his cohorts to abandon charter change and concentrate on fortifying the administration block to prevent an expected Opposition win in 2010.

With so little time left, Nograles has no other option but to force the issue down our very throats. He'll proceed by testing the waters and armed with 187 votes, he'll try to ram his ridiculous suggestion and then, throw the ball to the Supreme Court. That's a shrewed way of telling Malacanang that he's like Pontius Pilate, washing his filthy hands and distancing himself from the unpopular decision.

And Nograles and his ilk might simply succeed in their tug of war. Otherwise, if all stops are lifted, Arroyo's devilish clan, especially those hawks in the palace, might simply proceed with their Plan B, which is subject the entire country under martial law thru a "God Save the Dirty Queen."

A "God Save the Queen" scenario is not entirely far-fetched given that Mrs. Arroyo already got the complete loyalty of the AFP generals and even the police. The fact that PMA Class 1978, the class who gave Mrs. Arroyo her honorary class membership has now ascended the highest echelons of power and is poised to dominate both the AFP and the PNP this year and the next shows opportunity. This opportunity is not to be wasted by Mrs. Arroyo, no, because what's involved here is basically either a life of continuous glory or a fate worst than death.

The only way for Mrs. Arroyo to lose that opportunity is by being deprived of that opportunity. Obviously, the ascendancy of this class should be deterred, prevented and/or hindered at all costs by the New Patriots of the New Generation. Mrs. Arroyo and her ilk should be stopped at all costs; otherwise, the Nation faces the prospect of another ten years under the ignominious rule of the devil enfant.

Dark clouds loom at the OIC meet in Philippines

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Scenario of Martial Rule in Philippines

Let's presume that Oppositionist Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay is right by his postulations that this government will declare a State of Emergency in Mindanao which will eventually lead to martial rule. And let's presume that, indeed, Arroyo succeeds in making this happen. So, what now?

Obviously, it would exacerbate the Mindanao situation and lead to a long, drawn-out guerilla war. A guerilla war might take a longer time to quell unlike conventional warfare where regular forces are involved and positions are solid and identifiable. In a guerilla war, rebels have the advantage of terrain and opportunity. They are in strategic advantage because they can strike anywhere at anytime. Military forces will just spend time and precious funds chasing shadows while rebel forces plan debilitating strikes to marginalize and isolate their enemy from supply lines and other sources of support. 

While this is happening, anti-war forces within the capital in collusion with anti-Gloria forces will step up their propaganda attacks. This will weaken the Arroyo regime and worsen its already bad international image. The situation will come to a decisive point when news of casualties and human refugees flood the airwaves. The state will harden its position, leading to more totalitarian and repressive actions against its citizens. 

As this situation worsens, demoralization will affect the AFP organization. Tactical and strategic losses in the battlefield of war will definitely swell the ranks of demoralized troops. This will lead to pockets of dissent within the organization which will eventually weaken it, thus affecting the tenor and direction of the war against the Bangsamoro rebels.

Net--if the Mindanao situation turns nasty and forces government to assume drastic measures such as martial rule or a state of emergency--this would only worsen the situation in Mindanao. Probably, that would benefit Arroyo whose lust to extend her power remains. Yet, on the overall, war will definitely affect everybody and will further exacerbate the already hopeless economic and political situation we are in. 

Will we allow Arroyo to do this to us--lead us to further perdition?