Here’s something we didn’t get to hear about: in Playing the new Great Game in Asia and beyond, Brahma Chellaney, a professor of strategic studies in New Delhi, says,
A nifty new enterprise to discuss security dangers in the Asia-Pacific and evolve a coordinated approach – the Quadrilateral Initiative - has kicked off with an unpublicized first meeting. U.S., Japanese, Indian and Australian officials, at the rank of assistant secretary of state, quietly met recently on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) gathering in Manila…
…Today, major powers don’t wish to make a similar mistake over China’s rapid rise. Given the new fluidity, all important players, including China, are maneuvering for strategic advantage through new equations and initiatives. Just as China, for the first time since the Ming Dynasty, is pursuing security interests and seeking allies far from its shores, other powers are working to build new equations and partnerships….
The “quad” is just one of several initiatives currently being developed in the Asia-Pacific. Yet its preliminary first meeting was not made known for fear of raising China’s hackles…
…just because Washington, New Delhi, Canberra and Tokyo are coming together to build a four-way arrangement based on shared values and interests doesn’t mean that they intend to jointly countervail China. Such a mechanism, at best, can give the four countries extra leverage with Beijing as part of a common desire to ensure that the fast-rising Chinese power does not slide into arrogance. The fact is that for each quad member, a stable, mutually beneficial relationship with Beijing is critical to national interest.
Relevant articles on China: China’s House Cleaning is Just Skin Deep and Karl Marx is back, and punting on Chinese stocks, which presents a cautionary note on the booming Chinese stock market:
What’s so amazing about the surge in the benchmark CSI 300 Index is that everyone knows it’s a bubble and regardless, fresh money flows into shares. China’s companies may lack transparency, but its investors sure don’t. Quite transparently, they’re rolling the dice in the world’s hottest casino.
Just as a 9.2-percent plunge on February 27 was seen as a buying opportunity, Monday’s 7.7-percent drop merely brought new demand into the market. It’s a bubble, and legions of Chinese workers opening investment accounts don’t care…
…There can be little doubt China’s government, armed with $1.2 trillion of currency reserves, will step in to stabilize the market if it really crashes. Hong Kong did it in the late 1990s with few lasting side effects. And Japan rarely shies away from financial socialism when the Nikkei 225 Stock Average plunges.
Expect similar steps in China. For now, new investors hoping to strike it rich are propping up stocks like some huge, multimillion-person pyramid scheme. Such manias work out for those who get in early. It’s those who join late that often experience big losses. And make no mistake – this will end badly for many.
Now how do you think the Philippines is prepared (or not) to take this emerging bloc into consideration? Specially with our government’s cozying up to China?
Two articles in Foreign Affairs: A New Deal for Globalization and How Biofuels Could Starve the Poor.
Here at home: Filipinos are more optimistic about their quality of life. Even as hope springs eternal, Exports rise 8.1% in first 4 mos. to $16.3B but Export growth slowed to 5% in April-NSO. However, Philippine jobless rate as of April 7.4% vs 8.2% a yr-ago (and I suppose no one cares how employment’s defined). And by the way: Moody’s sez, RP debt ratios still too high.
Trillanes proclaimed; he says he will inquire into political murders. Blogger Willie Galang is unimpressed. Trillanes should perhaps take a look at how Indonesian Shootings Could Force Military Reform.
A meeting of the President’s Kampi was supposed to take place in the Palace today. Agenda? Supposedly oath-taking by new members. Probably more, behind the scenes. Meanwhile, cabinet intramurals go public: Claudio, Puno et al. on way out a cabinet deep throat says. Meanwhile, confusion reigns among cabinet members as to whether they’re supposed to resign or not -some fear even courtesy resignations might make the market jittery.
From the point of view of Amando Doronila, a cabinet revamp could be an encouraging sign:
…the President has, without having to say it, heeded the unmistakable mandate resoundingly expressed by the election results for the Senate, more than the results for the House of Representatives and local posts. The mandate is that: It’s time for change, not only of the entire Cabinet, but more so of policies, involving national security, human rights abuses and financial and economic matters — the key areas on which the administration was pilloried during the last election.
The total revamp signals a rare dawning of humility, of bowing to the sovereign will by an administration whose stock in trade during the past six years has been arrogance and pushing to the limits the arbitrary use of power. It also tacitly recognized that the midterm elections were a referendum on the Arroyo administration.
He says the whole thing could turn the tables on the opposition:
Such sensitivity to pubic opinion and electoral mandate is surely bound to be appreciated by the public. It can be interpreted as an honest effort at political reconciliation and opens the shutters for a fresh blast of the winds of policy revision.
The revamp is a political masterstroke in timing. It didn’t wait for the proclamation by the Commission on Elections on the final election results. It thus stole the thunder from the proclamation. It handed the President the opportunity to regain the initiative and the key to convert an electoral disaster into an advantage. It came at a time when the economy, acting independently of political uncertainty and turmoil, was showing signs of an economic turnaround.
The Inquirer editorial says it all depends on who ends up in or out. This news item has more significance than meets the eye: Palace lawyer revives call for PCGG abolition.
In the blogosphere, Uniffors reminds us why it’s a good thing there’s now a canonical age for retirement for prelates (the Cardinal Archbishop of Manila reaches his this year).
Philippine Commentary looks at the Estrada trial and the former president’s fall from power, and asks: what matters more, to be right, or to be fair?
Village Idiot Savant tries to come to grips with Rizal.
Ang Kape ni Lattex looks into an emerging dynamic in call centers: Filipinas getting all flirty with their foreign bosses.
And because it’s the weekend: watch Triumph the Insult Comic Dog at the Tony Awards!
Technorati Tags: elections, military, philippines, politics, president, Washington DC
As to DJB’s philosopgical question – “what matters more, to be right, or to be fair?” I would like to add – “Can you be fair without being right?”
Prediction: Erap will be convicted, then pardoned whether he likes it or not, in order to save the Supreme Court the supreme embarrassment of having to actually review the case and unavoidably their own actions, especially Davide.
At that point, the interesting question will be: can a convicted plunderer, whose verdict and sentence are not yet final and executory have to accept a pardon which would necessitate an admission of guilt? I don’t think so because that would be a violation of his rights in Court.
Having come this far, and turned down all offers to escape all punishment, I doubt very much that Erap would accept such pardon and guilty judgment of history.
Even Erap you see, really does understand that in the long run it is really the Supreme Court that has a BIG problem, not him.
Their official line is that Erap resigned and willingly gave up his immunity just four days after his allies in the Senate had assured him of a sure acquittal in the Impeachment Trial with that Second Envelope Vote. Why would he resign when he knew he had the numbers for acquittal?
It just won’t make sense to the vast audience of History!
They will judge our choice: to be right or to be fair??
MLQ, you need to warn people ahead of time. I saw that last video the other night, man oh man, it’s amazing what late night can get away with. 🙂
Even if the Sopranos weren’t on, The Tony Award ratings would still have been way low.
Doronila: The revamp is a political masterstroke in timing.
The way I see it, the revamp is a couple of years too late. Maybe he’s caught in a time-warp.
Update: No Failure of Election, instead Comelec has declared a Field Trip.
I wrote about this earlier, but the basic gist of it is that there is no Failure of Election.
However Comelec refuses to set aside the Maguindanao Votes.
But because local officials could not come to Comelec, and that it may be expensive for Comelec to fly 66 local officials into Manila, Comelec including Abalos will fly to Maguindanao, to collect documents that may be used for a re-canvass..
My argument, and I have a lot, is that apparently Comelec could afford a costly Special Elections, but could not afford 66 plane tickets?? This is the last ditch effort of Abalos… It doesn’t make sense, but hey.. who said Abalos had to make sense.
Abalos: Yehey, Field Trip! I get window seat!
The other question I have, and this may be important, what documents will they find?? If Bedol took the municipal documents and statement of votes, what other document are there left??
The only logical conclusion I can make is that they are trying to buy some time.
What revamp? Ano yan parang make-over ni Ai-Ai de las Alas?
On the Trillanes proclamation: Gloria has only herself to blame and her own DoJ to thank!
Actually, Gloria’s and Esperon’s perfidy did them in. It is very ironic that it was Gloria’s legal department headed by the frighteningly idiotic Raul Gonzales who truly gave Trillanes his chance to become Senator.
Lemme explain:
During the negotiations (of which Max Soliven was a member of the negotiating panel) for the surrender of the rebel soldiers under Trillanes, it was agreed that as part of the surrender terms and SANCTIONNED, APPROVED BY MALACANANG, the MAGDALO group would be charged under the Articles of War, i.e., eventually to be tried in a Court Martial, and not by civilian courts.
Matter of fact, Malacanang’s official conduit, former General Cimatu had received word from Malacanang to agree to the demands of Magadalo to be charged under Articles of War ONLY and relayed offical government acceptance to the Magdalos, again, that they would be dealt with under the Articles of War. Max Soliven wrote about this at length in several of his columns!
General Efren Abu who took the soldiers in after the surrender at Oakwood knew this. (That’s why I was surprised that when he became the Chief of Staff, he didn’t honour the agreement made by the government but instead allowed the DoJ to meddle, i.e., charged the Magdalo group in civilian courts.)
Max Soliven even called this government “traydor†in some of his write-ups because of how the agreed terms of surrender were simply waylaid if you remember; he went on and on about what had agreed upon even as the DoJ was hauling the Magdalo group from one civilian court to the other and was vehemently opposed to breaking what had been agreed upon.
Now, had Gloria’s perfidy not gotten the better of her, she would have honoured what government had agreed upon on the terms of surrender and would have allowed military (Articles of War) to prevail; Magdalo would have faced a Court Martial and am pretty sure, given the the black and white circumstances of military violations committed at the time in Oakwood, Magdalo group would have been convicted in quicker fashion.
But because our civilian justice system is so slow and backed by the horrendous incompetence of Gonzales (fortunately to the extraordinary advantage of Trillanes), see where it got Gloria and her government? Trillanes, after 4 years – the trial not being over, hadn’t gotten a conviction, hence Trillanes has no “criminal record†to speak of and could run for public office!
Funny isn’t it that Gloria herself cut her own nose to spite herself with her fiddling about – her lack of honour, her utter perfidy, her own idiotic greed, malvision, eventually did her in!
And somehow, Idiotic Gonzales is to be given half of the credit for his imbecilic, idioitc, stupid handling of the case! Hahhahahah!
(Hahahahah! That’s why I said in other posts, Trillanes victory was a 3 or 4 slaps on Gloria and her government!)
DJB,
Correct me if I’m wrong, but is it true that you helped bring Erap down? If so, how?
Realist,
Among other things, in 2000 I was sued for libel along with the PDI’s publisher and editor for a front page piece attacking Erap’s Millennium Bug Project. (Suit was summarily dismissed on a technicality!) He was bad news as President, as everyone knows. So, like most decent folks around here, I really wanted Erap impeached, tried, convicted and properly removed from office. But a “cruel fate” was in store for the Filipino people: he would’ve been acquitted at that trial, had it proceeded to conclusion. By Jan. 16 Erap, Davide, GMA, Joker and the Senate already knew this. Some could not accept it and by aborting the trial and swearing in GMA, the Chief Justice pulled off the greatest instance of the “Disappearing Man Trick” made famous in the movie The Prestige. In our version, the President appears magically in front of Mama Mary on Edsa as he disappears from Malacanang, slinking away like a crocodile down the river, going back home.
But by pulling off this trick, Davide et al condemned us to a crueller fate: they made Erap even more ineradicable from the scene. He’s more powerful now I would say than when he left, when fusillades of criticism and exposes paralyzed him into goodness.
Now he can rightfully claim to be the Victim of injustice by being denied Due Process, which he was!
Decent folks are bound by a dilemma. To restore the Rule of Law, he must be acquitted. On a Technicality. (It’s called the Constitution!)
I am not trying to save Erap by arguing he was innocent. I am trying to save the Constitution by arguing the Chief Justice was guilty of coup d’etat in January 2001 instead of presiding over the impeachment trial, just because he thought he knew how it would end.
Davide is the greatest villain in Philippine judicial history, for at least in the case of the Marcos Court, it was the Executive that seized state power. Here it was the so called Weakest Branch that accomplished REGIME CHANGE. Davide is an Assassin of the Constitution in judge’s clothing.
I think we could’ve survived 3 more years of him, even if he’d been acquitted. Instead, he is as trusted as Cory Aquino and owns more Senators than her.
This is the hell his road of good intentions led us too, while he heads off to a nice retirement of cocktail parties with UN types in New York. Just in time for Opera season too…
Agree with Dean on all points!
I agree. Smart people think alike, tito deej. 😉
DJB,
Regarding #3 in your blog wherein:
-(3) On January 16, 2001 a vote was taken by the Senator Judges on a matter known as the Second Envelope. Whatever the merits, if any, of that decision, it was perfectly in compliance with the Rules of the Senate Impeachment Trial. But it clearly demonstrated that indeed there was not then two thirds of the Senate likely to convict the accused. Indeed, the events of that Tuesday “PROVED” that the accused actually “HAD” more than enough votes to win acquittal. THAT was the real message of the Second Envelope Vote.-
(Emphasis by quotation marks are mine)
You imply that the Impeachment trial was far from over yet you imply that the accused already HAD more than enough votes to win acquittal.
If that should be the case; how fair was it going to be?
Should you conclude that it was “not fair”; disregrading which side was going to be favored, would it be “fair” to proceed with something that is “not fair”?
If the Impeachment Trial was unfair, the defense was definitely not enjoying the upperhand. At that juncture, the prosecution was already presenting pieces of evidence that were not supportive of any accusation in the charge sheet hence the need for those cursed envelope. The amazing thing was that those who were not respectful of the Constitutional Rights of the accused were the ones who walked out. PALAYAIN NA ANG PANGULONG ESTRADA!
Justice League:
I suppose one could have foretold acquittal even before the Impeachment Trial started. Erap ALWAYS had the numbers in the Senate for acquittal.
Indeed, I have claimed to MLQ3 in private conversations that the Erap Impeachment Trial set up a kind of unwritten law: the Lower House will never again impeach a sitting President unless there is some breath of a chance of conviction in the Upper House (a principle of realpolitik). It’s suicide for them otherwise.
So when the Opposition including Davide realized by Jan. 16 that Erap’s allies would not let them get away with trying Erap for charges immaterial and irrelevant to the trial, they made a desperation move: walk out and abort the trial.
Of course it was both right and fair that the trial continue and be properly concluded. Not doing that has led directly to this “illegitimacy swamp” which people don’t seem to realize applies equally to GMA as to us.
This is part of the meaning of Blind Justice, that every man be given due process, whatever the result. Just because Civil Society did not like the likely result, they have let Davide and GMA throw the Baby out with the Bath Water because they THOUGHT that Baby was Erap. They were wrong. It was the Rule of Law and the Constitution itself they threw out!
Davide was a barrio athlete of a chief justice. Curse him!
I am not trying to save Erap by arguing he was innocent. I am trying to save the Constitution by arguing the Chief Justice was guilty of coup d’etat in January 2001 instead of presiding over the impeachment trial, just because he thought he knew how it would end.””
agree dean, googleplex to the max.
justice,
an impeachment trial, POLITICAL as it is, to me, is not really gonna be fair. i knew that with the lopsided votes on his side, erap was going to be acquitted. but give it to the man: he was willing to face the trial! which you can’t say the same thing for the gnome.
further, did it help that serge apostol, with his slapstick lawyering, was there in the prosecuting team blabbering nonsense?
djb, I think Edsa 2 was a bloodless revolution that succeeded, regardless of legality and constitutionality, because of a nation that realized its folly in electing a president that didn’t measure up to its standards of competence, morality, honesty and upright behavior. of course, erap was elected with no significant intellectual, and moral false pretenses. what you see was what you get. but it was a gargantuan mistake and something had to be done to “correct” the situation and stop the hemorrhage.
regardless of politics, the business community, clergy, media, academe, civilian professionals and, eventually, the military coalesced to put an end to the country’s downhill slide before it was too late.
in all fairness to cj davide, he was, along with his colleagues in the judiciary, the most visible catalyst that gave effect to the need and demand of a nation in despair.
maybe, the country would have survived unscathed had erap remained in office till his legal term ended. then again, what do you think?
Manila Bay Watch:
If Manong Max is still alive, it would be very interesting to read his item on Trillanes’ proclamation.
Erap was a bad president but he was elected by the people. I agree that we could have survived his presidency as we are surviving Gloria’s right now even until 2010.
Erap’s trial has ended and we’re just waiting for the verdict. Whatever it is going to be, let it have closure (although I have doubts it’s going to had) Let Gloria’s trial come too with the same expectations: guilty or not, just do it and we move on.
Bencard,
Suppose Erap had been acquitted? Knowing him, he would then have straightened out (a little!) and actually become a half-way decent President (ok ok one tenth decent). He certainly wouldn’t have carried on as he did before he was impeached! But the 2001 elections would’ve become a referendum on him. Maybe a Hanging Senate would’ve replaced the Craven Eleven. Then he could’ve been impeached again. Given the rabid nature of the anti-Erap opposition that could certainly have happened. By 2004, GMA would’ve blossomed into a kind of Joan d’Arc of our generation and would’ve swept triumphantly into Malacanang with a posse (instead of sneaking in on Garci’s donkey).
She came to the job too early by about three years. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. If I were a Time Traveler I would return to steal Davide’s Bible from his bedstand and put a copy of the Constitution there instead! (I wouldn’t strangle him…)
In all fairness to Davide his colleagues legitimized his putschist coup d’etat?
A nation in despair under Erap? Look ye now, Bencard, all around you. Do you see hope in Davide’s Inferno?
Erap’s lawyers are right. It was a “mobocracy” that got rid of him.
What of course is troubling, is that there is still a willingness to do it AGAIN. These are long-time supporters of Edsa Dos or People Power, led by the Militant Left (which got left out of the spoils in 2001), and those whose entire culture IS the Protest Culture: the Liberal Left.
I was optimistic about the cabinet revamp, and JDV saying he was abandoning cha-cha.
but then I noticed at the back page of the business section in today’s PDI that she is pushing for that SIM card registration nonsense again. for every step forward a step back
ha! so many gay jokes… it’s too bad minsan na lang nila nilalaas si triumph at si masturbating bear.
========
hindi ko makita ang comment na pi-nost ko kahapon, so reposting…
I agree. great minds think alike. 😉
http://www.politicaljunkie.blogspot.com/2006/02/how-arroyo-can-heal-wounds-of-edsa-dos.html
http://www.politicaljunkie.blogspot.com/2007/02/erap-will-be-free-after-2007-elections.html
DJB,
Well you can state that Erap ALWAYS had the numbers in the Senate for acquittal. But isn’t your contention that the second envelope vote actually “proved” that he had those numbers?
You believe it is right and fair that the trial continue and be properly concluded even though you believe it is not right that he be acquitted in a trial that was already stacked in his favor making it unfair. Ok, I can understand that.
You believe that good intentions do not excuse a wrongful action while you believe in Blind Justice whether the kind of “justice” that will be delivered is right or wrong. Ok, I can understand that too.
But should the Mobocracy stormed Malacanang back then and resulted to countless deaths, surely the military that no longer supported ex-Pres. Estrada (I seem to remember seeing one of those rebel Tora Tora’s make what appear to be a dive bombing run on Malacanang during Former Pres. Aquino’s term) would have acted that could have resulted in Ex-Pres. Estrada’s death. A lot of turmoil would have followed. What copy then of the Constitution will you be saving and bringing back with you in your Time Travel?
Ine,
You claimed “lopsided votes”. Such implies that a “vote” has already been conducted.
So when did you know that Erap was going to be acquitted? After the second envelope vote perhaps?
And your contention that “he was willing to face the trial” greatly depends on your definition of what “willing” means.
Well I’m not impressed by Serge Apostol’s blabber but neither am I impressed with Estolito Mendoza eating “tea” either.
DJB: “Suppose Erap had been acquitted? Knowing him, he would then have straightened out (a little!) and actually become a half-way decent President (ok ok one tenth decent). He certainly wouldn’t have carried on as he did before he was impeached! But the 2001 elections would’ve become a referendum on him. Maybe a Hanging Senate would’ve replaced the Craven Eleven. Then he could’ve been impeached again. Given the rabid nature of the anti-Erap opposition that could certainly have happened. By 2004, GMA would’ve blossomed into a kind of Joan d’Arc of our generation and would’ve swept triumphantly into Malacanang with a posse (instead of sneaking in on Garci’s donkey).”
if there was no edsa dos, and erap survived impeachment the first time, there was a good chance he won’t survive it again after the 2001 midterms. If he managed to survive till 2004, the last remaining years of his presidency would look like george w. bush’s.
as for GMA being our “joan of arc” savior… heh. she’s the least liked among the opposition candidates back in 2001. she was late to join the bandwagon.
by 2004, there’d be plenty of anti-erap candidates who probably would be more viable, charismatic and credible prez candidates than GMA. maraming sasali, open race ang 2004 (katulad ng 2008 US Presidential elections). If she ran with other anti-erap candidates, she’d be the “JDV of the 2004 elections”, looked at with suspicion edsa dos faithfuls.
Camry,
Indeed, would be interesting.
‘Manong’ Max had been very upbeat on the issue of the government treachery vis a vis the Magdalo rebels until a few months before he died.
I’m quite sure he would have been happy in a way – he would’ve seen the logic of the Trillanes win 1) that because Trillanes court cases were getting nowhere (not because there were no bases for his conviction or acquittal), he was right to take his fight to the political arena 2) a stinging slap against this government (and against DoJ) that broke its word, 3) he would see it as a possible sword of Damocles on the heads of the AFP leadership after all the Trillanes revolt was all about the corruption in the military.
I’m positive Max would’ve liked the fact that Trillanes won – this in spite of his having been been against what the Magdalos had done at Oakwood.
justice league
just to set record straight: the Air Force to which those planes ‘belong’ had no intention of committing a coup d’état against Erap and so there’s little chance that Erap would have been killed by a PAF aircraft ‘diving’ into Malacanang.
Up to the last hour prior to Gloria’s handshake with Angie Reyes, LtGeneral Benjie Defensor was arguing with Angie Reyes saying that if propelling Gloria to the presidency through the help of the military, they (AFP generals) might as well set up an interim govt and call for snap elections.
The aircraft that was flying, hovering over Edsa 2 during the assembly of the putchists there WAS NOT to protect Gloria and her fellow putschists but Col Yap who was flying that aircraft was waiting for Benjie Defensor’s signal to bomb Camp Aguinaldo if things didn’t work out between Benjie and Reyes.
Defensor was the only general that tried to oppose the coup d’état against Erap but he failed – his military component was the tiniest and the least militarily equipped to battle against the combined PNP and AFP INSURGENTS.
Manila BW,
Well actually I was relating about what I saw during one of the attempted coups during former Pres. Aquino’s term but your story is quite interesting.
Your story about at least one AFP general advocating other generals to set up an “interim government” places more of an issue on what Constitution would have survived EDSA 2.
You’re claiming Defensor tried to oppose the coup but the “interim government” was his idea. Interesting again.
So is your contention that if the crowd/mob had indeed been slaughtered in Malacanang; the rest of the AFP who no longer supported Estrada would have done nothing? If that is your contention; then that would be quite interesting too.
Justice League,
Too many ifs in your contention. Difficult to speculate today.
“If that is your contention; then that would be quite interesting too.” Your contention JL, not mine!
What I said earlier on was to correct your would-be misapprehension or your would-be speculation, “what appear to be a dive bombing run on Malacanang during Former Pres. Aquino’s term) would have acted that could have resulted in Ex-Pres. Estrada’s death.” with what is on record, i.e., prior to, during and after the handshake between Gloria and Angie in the wee hours of the morning on 20 Jan 2001 (when the two sealed their pact to commit a coup d’état that’s incidentally been downgraded to a mutiny), there was no risk from the Air Force sending a plane to kill Erap because then CGPAF didn’t want it; that same CGPAF tried to dissuade the rest of the AFP insurgents headed by Angie from committing what would effectively have been a bloodless coup d’état but a coup d’état nevertheless and when he realized he was going to lose the battle with CSAFP Angie Reyes, he proposed as a last resort aimed at thwarting Angie’s insurgency plan a snap election, understandably with an interim government to supervise the snap elections (pitting Erap against Gloria). Then CGPAF wanted to prevent the incoming clique of insurgents, i.e., Gloria, ex DND Chief/General Rene de Villa and ex USND LtGeneral Edong Ermita, etc. from completely shitting on the Constitution.
I was simply providing you with these elements to show you there could not have been a risk that a PAF aircraft would dive and kill Erap at the time.
Manila BW,
That is why I am asking you if that is your contention.
Very well, what would have happened then if the Malacanang of Erap was stormed by a crowd/mob in the same way a mob/crowd tried to storm the Malacanang of Gloria back in May of 2001? But do remember that Gloria had the support of the military and the PNP while the same cannot be said about Erap.
What I however tried to tell you with what I saw, was that putschists tried to attack Malacanang itself during Aquino’s time. They just did it by plane at that particular time.
(I didn’t even know a military plane was circling EDSA at that time during EDSA 2.)
Any reason why the EDSA 2 “putschists” should behave differently albeit not exactly with planes when the “coup” would already have been bloody?
For this “interim government” with a snap election (pitting Erap against Gloria, I wonder if Erap would be running for re-election then); where exactly did Defensor get this in our Constitution?
Who decides how long “interim” is? The AFP generals?
(Sorry but the if’s can’t be helped.)
Eexpcrt form Razil’s “Rgein of Gered†–
The scik man siad nnitohg, so Parde Fornltnieo, dpeley thhuguotfl, murmeurd: “Whree are the yuoth who wlil ccaesrotne tiher gdelon hrous, tiehr illniosus, and thier esutsnhaim to the wrflaee of thier nviate lnad? Wrhee are the ytuoh who wlil gnuseleory puor out tiehr boold to wsah aawy so mcuh smahe, so mcuh cmrie, so mcuh ainotimoabn? Prue and spotesls msut the viticm be taht the scfacriie may be aebacptcle! Wehre are you, yutoh, who wlil edmoby in yeeosulrvs the viogr of lfie taht has lfet our venis, the purtiy of iaeds taht has been ctteanaoinmd in our bianrs, the frie of etinuhassm taht has been qehencud in our htraes? We awiat you, O ytouh! Cmoe, for we aawit you!â€Â
—–
Yes, we awiat ytuoh…
and wihle we’re at it…let’s mvoe Rzial Day on Jnue 19…
Jsut lkie waht Skye Gaicra siad:
“Wehn we are in our rghit mndis we cealrebte btraydhis, not dteah dyas. Lkie Decbmeer 25, the btrih of Jsues Crihst. We wnat to esexrps our joy oevr the brith of geart men lkie Queozn, Msasaagyy and oreths who cnbtriuoetd to the tsak of naiotn biunlidg. I porospe taht we ceacnl Demcbeer 30 as a pibluc halodiy and dclaere Jnue 19, the brdathiy of Dr. Razil, the nitaanol hlodiay. Usnles we get sisafctiaotn in rbrnimmeeeg wehn and how our graet men wree kliled.â€Â
Trillanes et al could be the youth we are waiting for? We await…
Cancel December 30 as holiday…anyway, it was already shamed by the one who lied, cheated, stole, and did a cover-up!
” A nation in despair under Erap? Look ye now, Bencard, all around you. Do you see hope in Davide’s Inferno?
i do, djb, and what do i see. a country on an upward move with practically all economic indicators on an upward swing. Investments(both foreign and domestic), foreign exchange, stock prices, exports, employment, real estate development,construction, infrastructures, foreign debt payments, are all up while foreign borrowing is down. it still has a lot of problems but it definitely is not the inferno that we knew under Cory and Erap. are those not enough to make us hope for the future?
of course, you see what you want to see, but against real facts, you can’t argue.
justice league,
Remember that impeachment is both a legal as well as a political proceeding. What you want is a guarantee of the result you agree with. That is neither fair nor just.
The Second Envelope Vote only proved Erap had the numbers to us. But he always knew it even before he was impeached. Maybe that is why he didn’t really mind being impeached.
BTW folks, don’t know if I mentioned it but the expression is inspired by the Motto of the Kangaroo Court of Australia:
Why be fair when you can be right?
Trillanes may be a damaging disappointment that the Philippines really does not need. But he is declared a “duly-elected”… and we await.
DJB,
Care to clarify “What you want is a guarantee of the result you agree with.”?
I have re-read my posts here and I have not the faintest idea where that should be coming from.
What should have been my guarantee anyway of what to me was supposed to be an agreeable result?
BTW, I had a very very loooooong discussion here about impeachment awhile back with another member all the way to the dead threads. Your kind of input right now sure would have been handy back then.
Bencard,
Haha. I love all those optimistic good things and already appreciated them when you were still “in despair” during Erap’s time. But they are associated with people LEAVING the country and cannot be attributed to the overthrow of Erap or the ascension of GMA. I celebrate them too. But the economic upliftment we observe is directly the doing of OFWs, the concrete benefit of globalization. It was going on even under Erap and before. (And to the utter consternation the other day of MLQ3, Ricky Carandang and Clarita Carlos, it seems Filipinos mainly put their faith and hope in America–which is the true competition any Philippine Government and the Liberal Establishment itself faces.)
Those are the facts as you point out, but the argument is non sequitur because “Davide’s Inferno” is the legal and moral dilemma represented by the Erap Case, not society at large. I’m not like some. I don’t blame or praise Presidents for things of which they are like King Canute and the Sea.
But I ask you: how optimistic are you that Justice will be done in Erap’s lifetime, and what’s the scenario? Does he serve life in Muntinglupa with Daniel Smith?
The penalty for plunder in excess of ten billion pesos is death!!!
Bcaays,
Ncie ncie tcuoh.
Tughoh I hvae a polebrm wtih aobut a cluope of wodrs.
But terhe mhigt be an iusse on Hloy Week.
I agree with Jon Mariano in earlier comment:
“Erap’s trial has ended and we’re just waiting for the verdict. Whatever it is going to be, let it have closure (although I have doubts it’s going to had) Let Gloria’s trial come too with the same expectations: guilty or not, just do it and we move on.”
Baycas,
It’s down to one but I give up.
What is the word of “ccaesrotne”?
hooray for thriump the insult dog!!!
“I am trying to save the Constitution by arguing the Chief Justice was guilty of coup d’etat in January 2001 instead of presiding over the impeachment trial, just because he thought he knew how it would end.”
-If you are really a follower of the Constitution and the rule of law, how could you say that CJ Davide was guilty of coup d’etat when the all the elements of the crime as defined in the Revised Penal Code are not even present based on the “facts” you have just presented? Unless you are using the term coup d’etat in a philosophical or generic sense, it seems out of place to accuse the former Chief Justice of a crime even the prosecutors of Trillanes are having a hard time to prove.
“Davide is the greatest villain in Philippine judicial history, for at least in the case of the Marcos Court, it was the Executive that seized state power. Here it was the so called Weakest Branch that accomplished REGIME CHANGE. Davide is an Assassin of the Constitution in judge’s clothing.”
-You are putting all the blame on the man when he had no control of everything that happened after the aborted impeachment trial. True, he could have ordered the resumption of the hearings and/or could have cited Joker Arroyo et. al in contempt for refusing to cooperate but that alone does not make Davide the villain you think he is. The sudden turn of events outside the Senate halls (the thousands of people that have gathered in Edsa, the AFP’s withdrawal of support, etc.) may have affected his decision in not immediately convening the impeachment court. To have done so would have been an exercise in futility.
Imagine a scenario of an impeachment court oblivious to the political realities outside its four walls. The result could have been bloody as the EDSA 2 forces (both overt and covert) were already poised to physically evict Erap from Malacañang. Between a constitutional crisis (or moral dilemma as you claim it is) and a political crisis of bloody proportions, i’d choose to avoid the latter.
An impeachment court is not like an ordinary trial court where a judge has everything at his disposal. In impeachment, public opinion and political realities matter unlike in the trial of ordinary crimes where a magistrate is expected to exhibit the “cold neutrality of an impartial judge”.
“So when the Opposition including Davide realized by Jan. 16 that Erap’s allies would not let them get away with trying Erap for charges immaterial and irrelevant to the trial, they made a desperation move: walk out and abort the trial.”
–The above are not facts.
First, such a statement implies that CJ Davide was already in cahoots with the opposition even before January 16. I followed the impeachment trial on TV as much as I could and in all fairness to Davide and as far as I’m concerned, he never exibited any bias for or against the protagonists.
Second, the author’s claim that the “new” charges were not part of the impeachment complaint and therefore immaterial and irrelevant was merely the theory of the defense led by Mendoza et. al. The other side of the coin was of course the theory of the prosecution that the said charges were part and parcel of the complaint.
We must present our opinions as opinions and not present them as if they are the real facts.
“This is part of the meaning of Blind Justice, that every man be given due process, whatever the result. xxxx”
-True. But when “due process” is being as a means to conceal Erap’s betrayal of the people’s trust, then due process becomes a meaningless rhetoric.
Yes, we must follow the Constitution and the impeachment rules for that matter. The law, however, does not dwell on the letter that killeth but on the spirit that giveth life. It must be applied with REASON. And as far as the prosecutors were concerned, continuing with the impeachment the verdict of which was already a foregone conclusion (the way the voting on the 2nd envelope came out) was not the due process envisioned by the Constitution. Due process applies not only to the womanizer, the gambler and the corrupt. It applies to the accuser as well.
CORRECTION: True. But when “due process†is being USED as a means to conceal Erap’s betrayal of the people’s trust, then due process becomes a meaningless rhetoric.
CORRECTION: Due process applies not only to the womanizer, the gambler and the corrupt. It applies to HIS ACCUSERS as well.
My apologies for the clerical errors. Typing at a fast pace also has its disadvantages.
Justice League, i think it’s ‘consecrate’.
Cvj,
Yup, you’re likely right. Thanks.