Peace on Earth, or the Earth in pieces?

Certainly, there’s no peace here on the political scene. ‘Twas practically "the night before Christmas", yet there’s too much angry stirring, from both cat and mouse, and noisy politicians.

Fortunately, the general public, disgusted with all those stupid goings-on and verbal exchanges of abuse, seems to be ignoring them all. They’re in the malls, in the tiangges, and in the streets.

Merry Christmas!

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We’re glad, at last, to see a uniformed police presence in the shopping emporia and in the streets. I commented on this to President GMA at the 50th anniversary dinner of the National Press Club at the Holiday Inn, and she said that we could expect more security to be fielded in the days to come.

"Our young policemen," she volunteered, "are now being culled from the ranks of college graduates." I notice, on the other hand, that even our most smartly-uniformed cops have their caps off. Remember the first rule of military and police department? An officer or soldier without his cap or helmet off is "out of uniform."

True, this is a hot country. But in the old days, when it was equally hot, our policemen walked the beat, in even the most sundrenched and steamy weather, wearing their caps or even heavier solar helmets, which used to be called sebastropols. What I told Police Director-General Hermogenes Ebdane, Jr., the PNP chief, a few days ago, remains my firm conviction. There’s a deplorable tendency on the part of policemen to go about in civilian clothes – t-shirts or sports shirts, with their weapons concealed (but what about the bulge?).

What so many cops swaggering around in civvies, how can the people tell who are policemen and who are the bad guys? When they spot unidentified, armed men in the neighborhood, the first impulse on the part of our citizens is to panic. At least the sight of a uniform projects the impression that the person approaching is a cop.

Why are policemen skittish about donning uniform – even many PNP chief superintendents or generals are amiss? Are they ashamed of the uniform? Are they afraid to wear the uniform? Or are they up to something which would shame the uniform?

This is why I’m happy that I’ve observed a more widespread presence of uniformed policemen over the past two days. This is surely a deterrent to crime.

One caveat, though. Last Tuesday, the Glorietta mall and its environs were teeming with uniformed cops. Yesterday, there were uniformed policemen in the same area all right, but it appears that they disappeared – all of them – between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Why? Did they take a three-hour lunch break? This spotlights the problem in law enforcement. It’s uneven. Now you see ‘em, now you don’t.

The crooks and terrorists might be able to sneak in between the cracks – such as, for instance, timing their attacks to take advantage of those long police "coffee breaks".

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It’s not over yet. But the "celebrity" Manila Congressman, Mark Jimenez, was escorted to the United States Embassy yesterday morning by Speaker Jose de Venecia, his faithful friend, House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales III (Mandaluyong), and his legal counsel. He met with Embassy Legal Attaché Jim Nixon (in truth, the resident agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation) and US Embassy Public Affairs Counsellor Ronald Post, as well as with Acting Justice Secretary Merceditas Gutierrez.

The US Embassy is being circumspect about describing the nature of M.J.’s "visit", but it’s clear they want to get him on a plane soonest and off to the US. I can’t write everything I know in this matter, but after the so-called meeting, MJ went home to his mansion on Intsia road, Forbes Park, to await the next move.

It’s understood that the Americans will go "by the book" and await the decision of the Regional Trial Court of Manila. But it’s almost a done deal – although MJ is as slippery as a greased pole, it must be noted – that he’ll shortly, unless something weird or "miraculous" occurs, be extradited to the US.

Part of the unexpressed deal, perhaps, is that Mark J. will be able to spend Christmas and the rest of the holidays with his family until the zero hour. In any event, where would he feel safer? In a Philippine jail, or a US jail?

Remember, Nani’s Rangers, a.k.a. the National Bureau of Investigation, are lurking all over the neighborhood. The rumor was that M.J. might have preferred "bunking out" in the US Embassy compound, but that’s just a rumor.

I got a call from Jim Nixon yesterday. He didn’t want to discuss anything about yesterday’s Embassy encounter ("Kindly refer to Karen Kelley’s press statement, Max," he cautiously said). Nixon wanted to correct the item in this corner that he didn’t take Jimenez’s "call" when the latter tried to contact him a few days ago.

"I took the call," he tersely clarified. But just as surely as the G-men got John Dillinger during Edgar J. Hoover’s time, they’re determined to get M.J. – but not as violently. "We’ve been after him for four years," Nixon confirmed.

Will they be sending a special aircraft to pick him up — or will M.J. and the US Marshal riding shot-gun on him have to hitch a ride on a bomber bound for Baghdad? Or, possibly, they’ll buy them tickets on a commercial flight? Remember, someone remarked yesterday: M.J. travels only "first class".

As a matter of fact, he even wanted to "travel" to the US Embassy yesterday by helicopter.

At 11 p.m. Tuesday night, he rang up a prominent executive he knew and asked to borrow his helicopter. Would you believe? The businessman pointed out the risks involved in such a maneuver. Thinking the US Embassy is under attack, he warned, they might send up a missile to blow M.J. and his chopper out of the sky. Or by "mistake". I suspect the executive was worried about his helicopter.

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If you're curious about how the story is playing abroad, here’s what appeared yesterday on page 2 of the Financial Times, one of the two leading international business dailies.

The headline read: "Manila Politician Faces Extradition to US after Ruling."

The report – datelined Manila – stated that "The Philippine Supreme Court yesterday cancelled the bail of Mark Jimenez, an influential Manila politician and a fugitive from US justice, paving the way for the arrest and possible extradition of the richest member of the Philippine congress.

"Mr. Jimenez, who built a fortune selling computer parts to Latin America and the Caribbean from his base in Florida, is wanted by the US government for illegal contributions to former president Bill Clinton and other Democratic party politicians. He was indicted by a Southern District of Florida Court in April 1999 on 47 counts of conspiracy, mail fraud, tax evasion, false statements and the making and concealing of illegal conduit campaign contributions. Mr. Jimenez denied committing the offenses, which allegedly occurred between September 1994 and March 1998.

"Before his indictment, Mr. Jimenez came home to the Philippines and became one of former President Joseph Estrada’s closest associates in 1998. The former leader praised him as a ‘corporate genius’ for brokering a string of takeover deals, including First Pacific of Hong Kong’s acquisition of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, the country’s biggest telecommunications company.

"The US formally demanded his extradition in July 1999 but it was only in May 2001 that Philippine government lawyers asked authority from a local court to bring him to America. While battling extradition, Mr. Jimenez successfully ran for Congress in Manila and convinced the court to allow him to post bail.

"Yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling cancelled Mr. Jimenez’s bail. ‘No man is above the law,’ said Ismael Khan, the court’s spokesman, adding that the ruling aimed to prevent turning the Philippines into a haven for fugitives."

There are you. That’s how it’s being reported in the international press.