Quo Vadis Filipinas

Allow me to thank you first of all for the invitation to speak before you today. For sure, my personal preference these days has been to avoid too much public exposure and to enjoy the serenity of private life. However, I cannot possibly decline the call of Rotarians, especially the members of the Manila Rotary Club, the first rotary club in the country and in Asia.

But more than that, today the country is beset with events that require our watchful attention. These events portend unhappily unimaginable possibilities for us.

To begin with, we cannot ignore the growing revolutionary ferment in the country. The political uproar and backlash generated by the issue of the hated purchased power adjustment (PPA) is now like a raging tidal wave rushing to shore to ravage the land. For the PPA affects everybody that uses electricity -- the poor, the middle class, and the rich.

Households, business establishments, industries, hospitals, schools, and even churches all have to pay the PPA. No one is immune. It hurts the pockets of everyone, except the affluent. And it robs the less financially capable among us of the necessities of life.

Equally pressing are problems that have remained unsolved. And these problems continue to add to the instability of our society. For example, the communist insurgency has not abated. Instead, it has become stronger and more threatening to the country.

The peace negotiation in the Netherlands between the Arroyo administration and the CPP-NPA-NDF has bogged down. No tangible result has yet been produced to assure us of a lasting peace.

Meanwhile, the military and the police are preoccupied and pinned down in Mindanao. This has given the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People's Army, and the National Democratic Front the valuable time and opportunity and complete freedom to intensify their political and military recruitment and expansion in the countryside and to freely collect revolutionary taxes to strengthen their financial resources.

From a force level of about six thousand after the Edsa revolution of 1986, the New People's Army today has attained between twenty to twenty-five thousand in military strength. This consists of regular combatants and farmers by day but warriors by night.

Metro-Manila is virtually surrounded. Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Bulacan, and Bataan are infested provinces.

And the Arroyo administration seems oblivious or too over-stretched to mind or to do something about the communist insurgency.

In Mindanao, the unsettled and festering conflict with the MNLF and the MILF lingers on, like a persistent toothache. And it threatens to escalate the level of violence there. And this is in spite of the virtual and abject surrender of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to the Moslem rebels in her clandestine agreements of appeasement with the MILF.

The Abu Sayyaf disaster has remained a source of international shame and disgrace for the country and embarrassment for the United States. And this is true in spite of the celebrated presence of American troops to quell it.

Furthermore, the Abu Sayyaf tragedy is getting more demanding because of the restrained impatience of Washington officialdom over the ineptness of the Arroyo administration to finish off the miniscule ragtag coterie of Abu Sayyaf renegades in Basilan. And this is true even in the face of the disputed "success" over the recent unconfirmed killing of Abu Sabaya, the most notorious and visible persona of the Abu Sayyaf band.

Truly, it is a source of justifiable amazement why the Abu Sayyaf "gang" has remained for us a national headache all these years in spite of the employment of so much military assets and resources and in spite of the presence of a large contingent of American soldiery in the country in the guise of Balikatan exercises under the aegis of the Visiting Forces Agreement.

The recent death and injury of the hostages during a military operation that was supposedly launched to save them further aggravated our national humiliation. Instead of a successful recovery of the ill-fated captives, the rescue operation turned into a complete fiasco. The result was the death of Martin Burnham and Filipina nurse Ediborah Yap and the injury of Gracia Burnham.

If we turn to law and order in the country, we are immediately dismayed and confronted with a grave sense of alarm. For, indeed, the level of serious crimes has become a curse for our people. Our streets and homes are no longer safe. Especially in the urban centers, people are exposed to risks not dissimilar to the legendary wild, Wild West. Their lives and limbs and property are helplessly and dangerously exposed daily to the base designs of predatory criminal elements.

Men and women -- young or old -- whether mere bystanders or intended victims, are wantonly maimed or killed in cold blood without pity like ordinary beasts. They would be riddled with bullets either from direct intentional fire or from crossfire in our streets without warning. Often, they would be seized blatantly in person by marauding bands for ransom. Or armed men would forcibly take their vehicles, savings, and valuables away from them. And these would happen openly even in broad daylight and even in the presence of witnesses and the police.

Never before were criminals in our country as bold and as brazen as they are now. Neither were crimes such as kidnappings, carnappings, holdups, robberies, murders, rapes, and sale of dangerous drugs, to mention a few, as rampant as they are today.

What kind of a society do we have? What government manages the affairs of the people? What quality of leaders have we installed to rule the nation? We spend billions and billions of tax money to keep a police organization, and yet it cannot secure the lives, the limbs, the property, and the homes of our citizens.

What angers many even more is the not unjustified perception that our policemen are incapable and not dependable enough to help the citizenry. And this cynicism against the police is worsened because of an equally popular belief that some perpetrators of crimes are policemen themselves.

People even believe that the involvement of our law enforcers in illicit activities is the main cause for many unsolved crimes. Do you remember the Nida Blanca case? Until now it has remained unsolved.

All of these perceptions and beliefs may not really be true. They may even be unfair. But the perceptions and the beliefs exist and persist to taunt and hound the police organization.

This dwindling confidence in the police was further reinforced because of the recent killing of four-year old Dexter Balala in Pasay City. He was shot and killed not with a premeditated assassin's bullets but with bullets from the guns of the police.

Adding fuel to the already volatile, anarchic and revolutionary condition of our society is the widening gap between the poor who are many and the rich who are few.

A vast number of our common people are impatient and angry. They demand radical and fundamental changes in our political, economic, and social structures. They feel betrayed and abandoned. To them government is no more than a necessary evil. No longer are they satisfied with rhetorical promises of a better life from their leaders and government. They insist on positive actions and concrete results. Palliative solutions are no longer enough and acceptable to them. They want to have and they look for innovative, imaginative, and resolute leadership and governance.

Ayaw na nila na sabihin sa kanila na "may gloria ang bukas mo." Ang bukas ay mahabang panahon sa kanila. Ang ibig nila ay ngayon na! Hindi na nila maantay yuong gloria na darating pa sa kinabukasan sapagkat gutom na sila at hirap na sila. Kaya kung may tulong ay ngayon na. Kung antayin pa ang kinabukasan, marahil sila na ang tutulong sa kanilang sarili.

For, the common people are certainly the ones most affected by the spreading and deepening mass poverty. They groan under the heavy weight of daily living. Legions are without jobs and sources of income. Countless suffers from malnutrition for lack of enough food, while others die of disease, especially the young, for lack of necessary medicine and medical attention.

Many of them languish in jail because of lack of means to release themselves out on bail or to hire the services of competent lawyers to protect their rights. These are the classic models of the maxim, "Justice delayed is justice denied."

For survival, they employ themselves as scavengers in some fetid and stinking garbage dumps. Others engage in the oldest profession and sell their bodies for measly sums. Many become denizens of the streets. They sleep under makeshift shanties and under overpasses and bridges. They beg for alms under the sweltering heat of the sun or the soaking torrent of the rain. The daring and bolder ones become petty thieves, kidnappers, carnappers, robbers, holduppers, and pushers of illegal drugs, if not users themselves.

Hunger, disease, and lawlessness hound them. They fear not only for themselves, but also, and especially, for the well being, safety, and future of their children.

And so, today we see them again marching in droves in our streets shouting angrily and protesting loudly against the uneven handed justice in our society, the violation of their human rights, and the high cost of necessities like shelter, clothing, electricity, water, fuel, food, medicine, and education.

Unless selfless and enlightened leaders of this country summon their political will and act soon to satisfy the yearning of the common people for a just and humane society and for a better life, I am afraid, necessity and their degrading plight will push them to the brink. They will probably take the law into their own hands to liberate themselves from their poverty and redress the criminal neglect of government to provide for their needs or to mitigate, at least, their distressed and squalid condition.

What I have just said is neither a mere speculation nor a product of a fertile but whimsical mind. I dare say that there is reason to be apprehensive, to be vigilant in fact. For in a span of less than fifteen years from February 1986, this country was already convulsed by three dangerous political upheavals.

Although the upheavals have not resulted in any serious social pain to the nation and have caused very minimal destruction and bloodshed, two nonetheless brought about the forcible removal of incumbent presidents from their seat of power.

The military, in two of those three political convulsions, was drawn into and made to participate in purely partisan political activities. And in both cases, the military decided the outcome in utter disregard of the Constitution. This is what alarms many in the country today.

The lawfully established procedure to remove a president of the Republic was wantonly set aside. Political and military pressure, planned and executed in a clandestine and conspiratorial fashion, was unabashedly used, instead, because it was thought to be much faster, more practical, and far more effective than impeachment to achieve the desired premeditated end.

The involvement of the military, in the case of Edsa Dos, was not done by rebellious enlisted men or by disgruntled junior or middle level officers. It was the play of few top generals in the active service, which were in command of the military organization.

These top generals were led by the Chief of Staff, the highest military commander in the chain of command below the President and the chief and direct adviser to the President on security and military matters.

The Chief of Staff, the number one soldier and the overall commander of the entire military organization of the Republic has the constitutional duty and responsibility to protect the presidency and the seat of state and political power of the nation, if need be with his own life, against any threat from any predatory force or violence.

But, the Chief of Staff was the first to turn his back on his Commander-in-Chief. With an uncharacteristic alacrity, which was unusual for a well-trained and hardened soldier and one instilled in discipline, he cut the chain of command by simply withdrawing, in so many words, his obligation of loyalty and obedience to the duly constituted authority, the president elected by the sovereign people. That was how facile, how swift, how efficient, and how effective the operation was.

There was something definitely wrong in the conduct of the Chief of Staff as a soldier that would call for an adverse description, which I would not wish to make plain at this time. Let History judge him!

What emerges from all these are not the solid and confident image of a secure and stable society. What we see, instead, is a society hemmed by expanding revolutionary forces on one side and by our own military force led by no less ambitious military leaders on the other side.

This observation gains special credence when viewed against the backdrop of the new role of the military as the "protector of the people and the State."

It is apparent that two formidable social forces loom today as real dangers to our society. First are the active revolutionary groups, which are now gaining grounds all over the land. And second is the military, our own legitimate institution and instrument against unlawful violence, which has become a major political player because of Edsa Uno and Edsa Dos. The implication of this twin scenario is an ugly one for our freedom and democracy.

To avoid this potential national tragedy, we must deal decisively with our national problems wisely, boldly, firmly, resolutely, and without delay. We can no longer temporize. We do not have the luxury of time. Let not personal interest or ambition, be it economic or political, stand in the way, or friendship or relation become an obstacle.

We must address our national problems with total dedication and commitment and without passion except only our love of country, our eagerness to promote the common good, and our desire to serve the well being of the people.

We must disregard all personalities and interests that hinder our earnest quest for remedies that will relieve our nation of a spreading backwardness and a deepening decay. We must bear in mind that what is at stake are the freedom and the democratic way of life of our children and loved ones. Unfortunately for us, our political leaders thus far have not produced meaningful reforms to satisfy the common people. The Arroyo administration appears unsure. I suspect that its lack of confidence arises from its awareness that its right to govern the nation has not really come from the common consent of the governed.

Moreover, to this day, as far as I know, the Arroyo administration has not produced for the nation any concrete program and strategy to address our national ills. But more than that, from its collective behavior, one cannot draw a degree of confidence that the Arroyo administration has acquired a full grasp and a tight rein over the entire condition of the country.

What we see instead is an administration that lacks the political guts and backbone to disregard certain special interest groups. The Arroyo administration does not seem to have the will and determination to displease certain sectors of the military and the police, or some segments of the Catholic Church and other Christian groups, or the Makati Business Club and the so-called Civil Society. These were its active, indispensable, and valuable cohorts in taking political power in the country.

Another factor that impedes a sound and effective management of the country is the "magnificent" obsession of President Arroyo --magnificent for her but not for the nation -- to win the election of 2004. Almost all her activities and decisions are designed towards a single purpose: to win votes and not lose them for her election in 2004. The common good is sacrificed before the altar of extravagant ambition to get elected as president. As I see it, President Arroyo is determined to hold on to political power no matter what it will cost the nation.

This obsessive desire to remain in power beyond its present term renders the Arroyo administration in disarray. This disarray, this failure of the officialdom to put its act in order, is the daily fare of national and provincial print and broadcast media. Every local corporate boardroom and every chamber of commerce in the country and elsewhere are aware of it.

In the international arena, The CNN, The BBC, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Time Magazine, Newsweek, and other foreign dailies, weeklies, broadcast media, major economic think-tanks, and political analysts in the world are well aware about it. This is truly disconcerting to potential foreign investors.

Government leaders very frequently make contradictory statements and actions on a given issue. For example, President Arroyo on a particular day makes a policy statement only to be denied or contradicted by subalterns the next day. A decision or pronouncement of a Cabinet member on a matter within his official competence gets disregarded, contradicted, or even disavowed publicly by the President to the utter discomfiture and dismay of the rebuked and embarrassed underling.

But the most damning indication of confusion, uncertainty, and mistrust in the Arroyo administration is the propensity of the President to offer, either publicly or secretly, government positions, whether of cabinet rank or not, without so much of a hint or a modicum of courtesy to the present occupant.

This is done only to lapdogs, to lackeys, and to errand boys, not to respectable and honorable functionaries of government. This practice weakens, rather than strengthens, the confidence of the general public in the officialdom of the land. Who would seriously dare or care to deal or transact official business, except perhaps one who is out to make a fast buck, with a government which has no constancy in its decisions and in its officialdom?

Surely, all this is confusing to the public, especially to our foreign audience. It produces a chilling impression that the Arroyo administration lacks cohesion, unity, deliberateness, confidence and conviction in handling sensitive national problems.

It also means that there is no able and steady hand holding the center of political power. In our system of government, the center of political power is the presidency. The president, in a manner of speaking, is the captain, the pilot, the driver, and the musical director of the entire government, all rolled into one.

The person at the helm of the country must have the adroitness, the necessary skill to supervise and control the bureaucracy, the military, and the police. Otherwise, the government would be compared to an orchestra without a conductor, or a ship without a pilot.

Unless the president possesses the deft, the executive acumen, and political skill, command, and control to hold the center of power, the system will falter and disarrange. Anarchy in government will supervene. The system of check and balance will be out of kilter. The various departments will go their separate and merry ways. And even society itself will be contaminated. It will lose its cohesion and unity; it will become divided and fragmented. This is what appears to be happening in the country today.

And so, I humbly urge the administration leaders to govern the country well. They should concentrate their attention and energy to the grave social problems of the nation. They should not waste their time and energy on selfish personal political interest, let alone on their desire to win in 2004.

To President Arroyo, I make this earnest plea: Please show by concrete and bold decisions that you really care for the common people of this country and that you are really attending to their needs. Stop making promises about things that you know you cannot deliver or fulfill. Be transparent in your dealings, in your actions, and in your decisions. Never withhold the truth from the public. Nor engage in the politics of vindictiveness. And do not persecute your perceived political adversaries.

Those are my humble unsolicited suggestions that should take care of 2004, especially if you govern wisely, justly, and resolutely. A ruler, to be revered and respected, rather than to be derided and despised, must always put the interest of the people and the nation over and above any other interest.

Appearing in soapy infomercial as "Ina ng Bayan;" or singing duets with spent vocalists, bold stars, or self-seeking generals; or white water rafting, shooting the rapids, scuba diving, surfing, holding hands, no matter how romantic, with the First Gentleman along the beach, or climbing Mount Pinatubo; or planting rice, eating with your hands with pauperized voters, wearing slippers made in Liliw, Laguna, even if it becomes you; and visiting the sick, the injured, and the dead, all for photo opportunities and in aid of election, will not assure your success in the next election.

Pardon me for saying this. Those are cheap traditional political gimmicks, abhorred by your civil society friends and proper only for "tradpols" that your supporters despise.

The people are not that naive anymore not to see the real purpose behind those antics. Only real and solid accomplishments for the common good and for the general welfare of the people, especially for the poor, will spell victory for you.

Undoubtedly, the internal pressures and stresses in the country today have grown formidable. The grumbling and the groan of the people are getting louder and louder. Yet, the time left for us to do something positive and effective about them is becoming limited, and the resources needed to bring about meaningful and tangible results are not adequate enough.

Meanwhile, our leaders are quarreling among themselves. They cannot seem to put their act together. Others are travelling abroad unperturbed by the escalating and depressing events in the country. Worse, the one at the helm is obsessed with 2004 and is, in fact, already on the campaign trail in the guise of promoting all sorts of government programs. Even a public latrine - pardon me for mentioning this - now merits a billboard that proclaims it as a worthy priority project of the administration.

With all of this, necessarily, the nagging and urgent question that calls for an answer is Quo Vadis Filipinas?

Whatever the answer is, our society is undeniably besieged with a serious problem that threatens its stability. This problem will not go away. It will remain to hound and challenge us.

Therefore, while there is still time, let us gather the boldness, the daring, and the strength to confront the problem with wise policies and effective programs. Let us not be a Nero who played the fiddle while his city of Rome burned. Let us stop fiddling with the interest of the people who are seething with anger, lest this nation be gutted by a dangerous social blaze.

While peaceful and legal methods are as yet adequate and available, let us listen and pay attention to the clamor of the people, exert our labor, and use our time and energy to avert and spare our country from a perilous and unpredictable future.

Let us not allow selfish personal interest to divert us or to lead us astray from the compelling task at hand.

Thank you very much.

Speech of Hon. Juan Ponce Enrile before the Rotary Club of Manila, Thursday, 27 June 2002, at the Champagne Room of the Manila Hotel.