Live another day

The House Committee on Justice chaired by Cong. Matias Defensor has just decided to discuss the merits of the Motion to Intervene by a group of citizen journalists led by Inquirer columnist and friend Manolo Quezon. The MOI is the first time that citizen journalists have shown that they are also a force to reckon with. They set up a blogsite of their own (it's called "Oust the Imp" at http://ousttheimp.wordpress.com/ and "Suya Ka na Ba?" at http://suyakana.blogspot.com/) just for the impeachment updates. This is a welcome development since it is time for these Congressmen to know that citizens of note are taking a great interest in the politics of this country.

I was invited to participate in this undertaking and I knowingly registered by support. Despite my present status, I believe that it is to the best interest of the entire Filipino blogosphere that I take part in this. Though I'm somewhat financially depressed at this point, I deemed it wise to sacrifice my personal interests and put the country's welfare first. I have a sick baby to take care of today, but I decided to make a definite stand and continue meeting people of different walks of life and make them aware that this is the time for action, not of retrospection.

I texted Inquirer.net reporter Lira Fernandez that we, in the blogsphere are watching very carefully the deliberations on this impeachment complaint. Though many say that it's a lost cause, nonetheless, I feel and told my media friends (Anthony Taberna of DZMM and Weng Salvacion of DZBB) that the Committee should do its ministerial duty to receive, review and pass the MOI and the main impeachment complaint and let Congressmen debate on the substance of the complaint. Yes, it is a number's game and obviously, Gloria enjoys the tyranny of numbers. Nonetheless, what I want is for people to hear the crimes committed by Gloria and her ilk and let the People decide what course of action to take in the future.

I remember my friend Brian Q telling me that it's very hard to fight these traditional and entrenched powers in our society. They have been ruling this small and impoverished state for so long and it's foolhardy for anyone with the purest intention of reform to presume that a flash revolt would just suddenly change all of these things. Our societal problems have deep roots and uprooting them would take a very long time to do. Having said that, awareness is one step towards the right direction and being a pragmatist, I told myself that this MOI and impeachment are two steps toward that direction.

Congress should be made aware that we will not tolerate them railroading this thing. And I mean, we will NOT allow that. Congress should recognize that hundreds if not thousands of people are watching their every move. There are so many groups that I know would burst asunder and would abandon all legal hopes should Malacanang and their factotums in Congress make a fool of Joey de Venecia's main impeachment complaint and our Motion for Intervention.

Let Congress allow Joey de Venecia, the complainants and the Intervenors to say their piece before the Filipino People. Let Congress give Joey, Manolo and all the rest of those who want Gloria be made accountable of these high crimes their moment to present their case before this august chamber. It would be better if the Committee even pass the buck of responsibility to the assembly since, Gloria enjoys a sizeable number of supporters anyway and like the palace and the Speaker Nograles says, the impeachment will not even reach second reading because it does'nt enjoy the numbers.

I was also texting Manolo and we both agree that the minority congressmen did their constituencies proud today (special mention goes to Gen San beauty Darlene Antonino-Custodio and Cagayan de Oro Congressman Guingona and BAYAN Muna Representative Teddy Casino). They fought for the inclusion of the MOI, which is uncanny since some of them disputed its inclusion at the onset due to party stands.

I have many classmates and students in Congress who would probably change their stand if I decide to approach them, among them, Henry Teves and Cong. Tupas. Laguna rep. Dan Fernandez is also a good prospect though he's an avowed administration ally and also Cong. Jon Villanueva. I have a handful of other Congressmen whom we can probably approach and explain why we intend to impeach Gloria.

I had a meeting with some friends who recommended that I do an entirely "out of the box" thing to highlight the struggle. Well, my friends, I would like to do just that but I don't want to be like that noble friend of mine who went to that airport tower and was shot and killed without achieving anything. Revolutions are not brash affairs.

Yes, this struggle is, I think, doomed to fail, if Nograles and Dureza are to be believed. Nonetheless, as one anecdote says, one door closes, another one opens. Impeachment is a very political act. It will not solve the very core problems of this country of ours. However, with its death rise hopes that other options is better and more potent that mere pen and paper.

There are other options other than impeachment. That's why I put a time counter in my site now. There's a New Kind of Revolution that would shake the very foundations of this decrepit society. And it will happen very, very soon. Check my clock.

Oust the Imp(ostor) and Suya Ka Na Ba?

I stumbled upon two very new and interesting sites. One of them "Oust the Imp" (http://ousttheimp.wordpress.com/) is very entertaining. It's political alright but the way the writer treats her material is great. The other one is http://suyakana.blogspot.com. Talks about why some bloggers filed that intervention to the main impeachment complaint of Joey de Venecia.

If you want to know the real score behind Manolo etal visit to Congress today, check out those two sites and you'll know why. Maybe most of them felt "suya"? They're not happy with the way things are going so they are feeling suya and want the "imp" (impostor and I think it's Gloria) out.

There are so many interesting things going on right now. Truly, I don't know where to start. Let me compose my thoughts for a while and digest what Marocharim is saying in his blog (http://www.marocharim. com/).

In the next few days, I will be writing serious stuff here. Bear with me. I need to expose the excesses of this regime. That is my mission as a blogger--to expose the Truth and let it hang dry.

Why we can't move forward with Gloria at the helm

Democracy, that invention of the Greeks, remains an illusion in this great country of ours. The reason is more historic than anything. Our brains are not wired to accept the Western model of democracy. In fact, we Filipinos have a warped sense of democracy. We are confused of what it really means. It's really not our fault since, if you read our history, we were forced to accept this Western version of democracy as our own. Filipinos, prior to the colonization of these islands, had their own governance paradigms, except that a foreign bacteria with a cross in it killed that indigenous concept.

Take for example, our concept of "constitutionalism" and "democracy". Many of us equate these terms as synonymous to each other. For many, an action is democratic when it works within constitutional frameworks. Say, if we want to oust an illegitimate president, we should first file an impeachment. That's democracy.

How about ousting a president through the exercise of the people's rights? Say, a revolution? Or say, a coup d'etat? For us, that's not democratic since it does'nt operate within the constitution. But, are these actions not democratic at all?

How about that phrase " the AFP is the sole protector of the people"? That's in the Constitution, yes? If the AFP exercises its mandate in the Constitution and protects the people against a government that harms and injures them, and take, say, a militant action and forced a government into exile, this will be constitutional, yes? And it would be democratic, yes?

For many, that's not democratic. Why? Because that paradigm postulates on violence. Ah, so, for an action to be democratic, it must both be constitutional and non-violent.

What if the government itself creates and fosters an atmosphere of violence that interferes with our exercise of our inherent democratic rights, would it not be democratic if we oust that government through People power? That's not democratic, some would argue, because the only constitutional way to do that is thru elections or impeachment. Form a political party. Support partylist groups (as if they have a stronger and louder voice than the trapos). Move on. We can't do anything. It is not democratic to exercise our inherent rights to free ourselves from a tyrannical regime, since the sole way of doing that involves a little violence. And if an action is violent, that is not democratic.

How about an independence campaign or an anti-dictatorship campaign, would that be democratic? Surely, that is. Even if it involves violence? Yep, it is. One may do that because that's a movement against an anti-democratic or pseudo-democratic government. So, if I move against Gloria now, the same way I did against Marcos, would that be democratic, given that I see Gloria as the head of a pseudo-democratic regime, like Macoy. Nope, many, like ex-COMELEC chair Christian Monsod, would argue. You can't. Why? Because that's anti-democracy.

So, what do I do now? Wait for the heavens to fall to me and my family. Do nothing. Write in the blogosphere. Rant everywhere. Have sex. Chant if you may. Work. Have faith in partylist groups. Run in the elections. Pray. Go to sunken garden. Beautify your Facebook. Make friends in Friendster. Plurk thousands. Sulk. Wait. While my country burns and thieves go amuck, I'll wait for 2010. Move on. You can't do anything.