Only a tremor can make her hide under the table

I had been a veteran, of sorts, in many coup attempts and other destabilization plots against sitting Presidents at Malacañang Palace, that is, covering these as a reporter. I have personally witnessed first hand such coup attempts that I have covered at the Palace from 1986 until I was promoted as news editor in February 2005. But these military-led power grab attempts and coup plots, except one, all ended in dramatic failures. Some of these failed putsches even had tragic and bloody results. 

So yesterday’s latest puny attempt to force the ouster of incumbent President Arroyo was the fourth one, if I’m not mistaken, since she took office at the end of this one successful civilian-military power grab now known as EDSA-2 in January 2001. The first and most bloody ouster attempt made against Mrs. Arroyo was during the May 1, 2001 or EDSA-3 when loyal supporters of ousted President Joseph Estrada stormed the Palace. This was also the most serious ouster attempt against her led by most rabidly loyal Estrada civilian supporters who were repulsed by hale of bullets. 

The second power grab attempt was yet another civilian-military conspiracy cooked up by the so-called “Magdalo” officers led by former Navy Senior Grade, now Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and supposedly aided by several personalities like Senator Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan, including former Estrada officials, and even certain family members of the deposed President. The mutineers took over the Oakwood Condotel in Makati City in July 2003. It was here where our late publisher Max Soliven figured as one of the negotiators designated by the President to talk with the Magdalo mutineers to peacefully return to their barracks, and their leaders and followers agreed to go through court martial proceedings for staging their mutiny.

The third one, which was memorable to me, was in February 2006 when I did not find it festive to celebrate my birthday during that day. It was the stand-off at the Marines Headquarters in Fort Bonifacio in Makati City where Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, Marines Col. Ariel Querubin and several other Marine officers were implicated in yet another alleged mutiny against their incumbent Commander-in-Chief.

This fourth attempt to oust Mrs. Arroyo yesterday was again carried out by Trillanes and several of his fellow “Magdalo” mutiny officers who walked out of the Makati Regional Trial Court and marched all the way to the Manila Peninsula in Ayala Avenue where they staged their short-lived siege. Trillanes and some of his co-accused in the rebellion case are the same leaders of the first Magdalo-led mutiny who took over the Oakwood Hotel.

It was the testimony of Gen. Lim as witness for the defense panel for Trillanes yesterday at the sala of Makati RTC judge Oscar Pimentel when the Magdalo officers again decided to dramatically express their pent-up disappointments over their trial before the civilian court. Lim was testifying to the claims of the accused that they’re being made to go through civilian court for rebellion charges was not part of the agreement they forged with the Arroyo-designated negotiators led by our late publisher. In fact, the court had summoned any of our editors to testify also on this defense claim. But how could any of us STAR editors testify when none of us was even present there except Mr. Soliven himself.

Digressing a bit, we joined the family, relatives, and friends led by his widow Ambassador Preciosa Soliven in a memorial mass celebrated on Nov. 24 on his first death anniversary held at the Santuario de San Jose in East Greenhills, San Juan City. We could not help but become a little bit superstitious when we noticed four big butterflies hovering the altar during the mass. Then one of the butterflies, with black and yellow-colored wings, flew low and went past each and every row as if it was checking our attendance. We associated the four butterflies to the four late founders of The Philippine STAR —  Betty Go-Belmonte, Art Borjal, Louie Beltran and Mr. Soliven.

Perhaps, if Mr. Soliven was still alive today, I’m sure he would have testified in court for the defense of Trillanes and his fellow “Magdalo” officers. But this latest antic of Trillanes, who is already an elected Senator, would surely earn tongue-lashing from him. If there is any redeeming value in his caper yesterday, it was the fact there was no bloodshed after he and his group again peacefully gave themselves up.

In all of these four coup attempts against her, President Arroyo stood her ground unflinching against any violent attempts to unseat her. She has mastered the strategy in the use of superior force to face and deal with power-grab plotters. In the same way she handled the EDSA-3 siege, the President imposed yesterday curfew hours, clamped down on media, purportedly as post-operation measures to keep peace and order. Yet, her officials claimed yesterday there is no need to call for any emergency power to quell possible new public disturbances in the aftermath of this latest caper by Trillanes and his Magdalo group.

But last Tuesday, the Chief Executive did allow her bravery in facing adversaries to give in to her natural survival instinct to stay alive. While conducting a meeting with the National Disaster Coordinating Council at the Palace, she found the better virtue to hide under the table when a magnitude 6 earthquake shook Metro Manila and other parts of the country. 

There was nothing wrong nor funny about the President’s hiding under the table during the tremor. I was rather flabbergasted at the kind of press briefing deputy presidential spokesman and Office of Civil Defense executive director, Anthony Golez gave to Palace reporters after last Tuesday’s earthquake incident involving President Arroyo and her Cabinet. Golez deliberately omitted this very important detail even if this had nothing to do with national security matters. Paranoia is an infectious disease that afflicts everybody at the Palace.