The immorality of coalition at this time - FROM A DISTANCE by Carmen N. Pedrosa

Coalition government at this time ignores a basic principle. On the surface the Tatad proposal seems good. How can you fault what the good senator has described as the ‘least painful way out of the crisis’. It purports to be friendly and a peaceful solution to the current political and economic crisis rocking the country. But it ignores a basic principle. That principle is about the rule of law and how we dispense justice without fear or favor even if it involves the chief of state. Or more so because it involves the chief of state. Governor Luis Chavit Singson, a Palace insider has accused the President of receiving money from jueteng and the tobacco tax subsidy. These are impeachable acts. A group of citizens and three congressmen, Rep. Heherson Alvarez, Rep. Ernesto Herrera and Rep. Michael Defensor have filed a bill of particulars on the impeachment case. At the same time a Senate hearing purportedly in aid of legislation is taking place. The impeachment case and the Senate hearing have outraged Filipinos and they have responded to the call of citizens’ duty by rallies and street protests. Filipino are determined to get to the bottom of Singson’s allegations. There is a loss of confidence all around on the Estrada government that threatens the economy. With the peso rate falling dramatically, Erap could calm the storm by resigning but he refuses. Instead he fights back with an incendiary call to pit the poor against the rich as his final solution.

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The Tatad solution asks us to make way for Erap’s intransigence. In the face of this Catch22 situation, here comes Senator Tatad proposing a coalition that completely ignores the heart of the problem. To Tatad’s mind, if Erap is the problem and he does not want the resign, we should make way for his intransigence and offer him a coalition instead so we can all have peace. To Tatad’s logic we, all of us, should forget what Governor Singson has exposed. We, all of us, should also forget that we ever heard of the BW scandal. The findings of the PCIJ of unexplained wealth with Erap, his family and mistreses living in scandalous grand style, must be ignored. It does not matter if Erap violated the Constitution by holding back pertinent information in his statement on assets and liabilities. All these are to be swept away by Tatad’s magic coalition. The premise of this proposal is that the whole episode on Erap’s corruption and incompetence is a matter for politicians. Let the opposition participate in Erap’s government. Give everyone a goodie, one for GMA, one for FVR, one for Cory and of course, two for Erap. In Tatad’s brand of a solution, the country will quiet down with an arrangement. Mag-areguluhan na lang. But that is precisely what is wrong with this country. Politicians have become so arrogant, they forget that they occupy their positions in trust. Consequently when the people as sovereign citizens demand accountability, as what is happening these days, it is seen as an upheaval that must be avoided at all cost.

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Coalition government can be good at another time and under different circumstances. This does not mean coalition government is something we should never consider. On the contrary, if I remember right, in 1998 at the start of Erap’s government the opposition or at least FVR and Joe de V, did offer some kind of coalition government that would ensure the continuity of economic policies of the previous administration. A coalition government then might have made the difference. But this was rejected by Erap who then proceeded to demolish reforms sought by previous governments. One reform that immediately comes to mind is the effort to create a level playing field in business. It became obvious that as far as Erap was concerned, he had no time for such democratic niceties. He was too impatient to favor relatives, friends and allies. Thus did we see the return of cronyism that had been the downfall of Marcos.

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Where is Ed Bentain, the man who risked his life to prove that Erap gambles his nights away in the casino? If Senator Tatad and his ilk are alarmed by the angry response of Filipinos to Singson’s exposé, there are others who think it should have come earlier. This column has said again and again that all the danger signals of the kind of presidency we will have under Erap were obvious during the election campaign. Isn’t it ironic that the centerpiece of that election campaign was a security video tape showing Erap and Atong Ang gambling the night away at the casino. We have come full circle from the day that tape was shown to Filipinos to forewarn them on a president addicted to gambling. But many were not listening. And please do not blame the masa. We must break that myth once and for all. Erap for president had supporters from all classes. We could have saved at least one life had we paid more attention then. Even more tragic than the political mess we find ourselves in, is the fact that to this day, the video operator, Ed Bentain remains missing and as far as I know nobody really knows or cares what happened to him. Given this background, how could anyone suggest that coalition government can solve the crisis of leadership in Malacañang?

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Brief notes: From Miguel Andres Mercado of QC: While every Filipino of the right age, healthy state of mind, and proper qualifications is free to run for public office, I think that celebrities — actors and actresses would be more useful to the public by reforming and overhauling their own field. Showbiz needs to be transformed, and its people reformed, in order to transmit the right values and needed virtues in Philippine society. The poor taste and very low ethical content of a number of shows and movies we see on screen bespeak of a decadent industry needing"health maintenance."Politics is for those who are ready to genuinely serve and sacrifice themselves for the "common good of the common tao". May voters be wise enough to discern candidates with good character . . . . From a regular writer who uses what I suspect is nom de plume, Gregorio del Pilar, he says he and others are not keen on snap elections saying it is just Enrile’s pitch for the presidency. "With his cunning and superior intellectual/legal ability, he proposes to Estrada that snap elections be called. The Zamora brothers are co-conspirators. They have much to lose or gain especially in the exploration rights and mining game. All concede that Erap could win in a three-cornered fight. That is why these readers caution against any proposal for such a snap election. We must not be distracted from the cause by what Estrada, Enrile, and the Zamora brothers have planned and intend to push. The chosen option is still people power in street action rallies and demonstration. They suggest a speakers’ bureau to carry the truth and the more sordid details to the people. We must remain single-minded in purpose and behavior and force Erap to resign. The PNP under Ping Lacson is starting to show the cracks with the possibility that Erap will soon be ousted. Many officers in uniform from both the PNP and the AFP are saying no one outside of the PAOCTF will follow extraordinary orders from Ping. A plan to use the PNP and the AFP in a state of emergency scenario is not being met with enthusiasm by a corps of officers who have more integrity than the leaders they follow. The danger is more the reverse. Any civil disturbance will allow a window of opportuntiy for a military take-over. There truly is a host of possible directions which the present crisis can go. It can be fun and celebratory as in EDSA ’86, or bloody as in Tiannemen Square. But whatever ts emerges to be, Estrada is history, a blast of foul-smelling air soon to be blown by winds of change. . . . Others have written to ask why the economic managers of Erap’s cabinet have not joined in. Are they blind? What happened to our cabinet members? Are they a bunch of cowards and at the same time "deadma" to what is happening to this country? . . . . Sixty percent of letters I got from E-mail came from abroad. Congratulations, that shows the popularity of the STAR website. Readers say that it was through this that they have kept in touch with developments . . . . Conrad G. Javier MD from Cleveland Ohio writes: I knew it was just a matter of time after President Estrada unceremoniously fired Prof. Laquian early in the year that all the President’s dirty linens will gradually come out and these will bring him to his final disgraceful downfall. He has been adequately forewarned so many times. My question also is (as you insinuated) — how come it took so long for righteous people to act and it even took a very disgruntled close ally of his to throw the final incendiary bomb to galvanize the entire population . . . . He adds, Basing on your write-up, I suspect all "political patriots" will now come forward to be counted now that every congressman and senator is under a microscopic scrutiny of the UP and many other students’ group . . . . Fernando Soltero sent an article from Transparency International on the virtues for public life: selflessness, integrity,objectivity, accountability, honesty and leadership . . . . Roger Palacio, a lawyer in Ontario, Canada says although he has lived abroad for many years now, he feels compelled to add his voice, do something for his country. Despite the cynical†saying that a people†deserves the government it elects, I do not believe that the Philippines deserves to retain a charlatan and his cohorts of clowns masquerading as a government, even a minute more. True, the character who finally did him in, admittedly crawled out from the same cesspool and his words have to be carefully evaluated. But considering all the circumstances, (yes the ledger, the telephone tapes, the corroborative reaction of two senators and an ex palace official, etc.) the balance of probabilities provides his words with a ring of credibility that cannot be ignored or summarily dismissed. I find your column interesting. I agree with your thesis and those of others, that amongst all the scenarios, the best for the country is for Erap to leave office in a manner that would not wrench the country apart. But as you pointed out achieving this requires that people around him, who still retain some vestige of respect for the public interest, do what is good for Erap and the country — convince him that the script is ending and it is time for them to pack up and leave the stage because the moviehouse is burning and the people are booing and demanding their money back.

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