gut feel by: Leny Manalo That’s how democracy works, remember? Why complain that impeachment cases are being filed against the President? The Supreme Court just provided the perfect probable cause – violation of the Constitution in implementing the Disbursement Acceleration Program. No amount of justification for doing it in good faith can change that unless the Supreme Court reverses its own ruling. The Palace has announced it intends to file a motion of reconsideration before the Supreme Court. Despite this, the administration-dominated House of Representatives will not be able to just ignore an expected consolidated impeachment case without going through the necessary motion of determining its sufficiency in form and content. After the fastest draw on impeachment, lawyer Oliver Lozano, and a hurting former Iloilo Representative, Augusto Syjuco, the militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan reportedly will file a third impeachment complaint against the President. Party-list group Bayan Muna said it will endorse the complaint. Call them leftist or even communist front but Bayan Muna seems to be the one that can trigger impeachment movement now in Congress no matter how much foot-dragging and diversionary tactics will be employed by allies of the President. Outside Congress more and more are supporting the impeachment move though mostly coming from the militant sectors, like the UP faculty and some religious groups, at the moment. A recent published survey showing the President and both houses of Congress sliding down the public satisfaction rating could influence more support for the impeachment move. The coming SONA will be the day when the President is expected to deliver his omnibus reply while the nation listens. Former Senator Joker Arroyo, a staunch supporter of the President’s parents has already advised the country’s chief executive to tackle the issue of DAP in his SONA this month. Recently, Palace propagandists have been disseminating a very long list of programs and projects that the administration is supposedly carrying out with a rhetorical question of whether we would have them if President Benigno Aquino was booted out of office. When I saw the promised “Green City” in Clark in the list the message sounded more like, “If you remove me, you won’t have this.” But that is the same thing people were told when former President Erap and former President GMA were being impeached. That is a natural defense of the accused incumbent. Erap reached the trial stage but was ousted by a rebellion, or “people power” if you wish, after the dramatic walkout triggered by the unopened envelope that turned out to be a dud. The impeachment case against GMA was defeated on the House floor. Erap was eventually convicted of plunder and was jailed. Erap now sits as the Mayor of Manila after being pardoned by his presidential successor, GMA, who remains in hospital detention for an ongoing plunder case while still the Pampanga second district representative though ordered suspended by the Sandiganbayan. From these alone one can see that the people are already so used to the filing of impeachment after impeachment against presidents in this country that things normal can remain normal despite them. Perception ratings of the country might be affected but only temporarily. The more important practice of freedom and democracy will make the country more stable and progressive in the long run. This is precisely what the President’s parents stood for. That’s what they told us. The impeachment filed against him, no matter who initiated it and supported it, is a democratic act not an act of rebellion for the powers that be to quell. The coming SONA will be a defining moment for the President. Like most, I will wait for that for my final judgment as a citizen of this country, something that will not depend on the outcome of the impeachment case.
Posted on: Thu, 10 Jul 2014 03:12:09 +0000
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