Loss of total credibility

FRONTLINE

Ninez Cacho-Olivares

10/21/2007

Shortly after the news of the Makati City bomb blast broke, speculation was rife that the bomb attack was the work of Gloria Arroyo and her military, meant as it was to divert attention from the burning issues of massive corruption in her government, highlighted by the grossly overpriced ZTE-National Broadband Network deal and the cash bribes given to congressmen and local executives during a meeting in Malacañang last Oct. 1.

More speculations rose, such as the bombing being a prelude to her declaring martial rule or its euphemistic emergency rule, following her loss of control over the House leadership and a serious crack in her political coalition, plus the loss of control of her loyal generals over their officers and men, not to mention the serious restiveness ongoing among the military troops.

Calls have been made by various sectors for an independent probe, not just of the bribery but also of the bomb blast at the Glorietta.

For some sectors, in the matter of the massive cash bribe-giving that clearly points to Gloria as the benefactress of largess, having this probed by her anti-graft commission which is directly under her is unacceptable, knowing that this would, like the investigations of the past, end up in a whitewash.

Not even a probe by the Ombudsman’s Office is acceptable. The call of the moment is for the creation of an independent body to investigate this.

Just what do all the speculations boil down to?

Clearly, it is the complete loss of Gloria and her regime’s crediblity, along with the total loss of credibility of government agencies such as the Ombudsman’s Office, to mention just one.

Malacañang aides went on TV on the day of the Makati bomb blast, appealing to the public not to inject politics into this tragedy while Gloria came out in a taped message again trying to act tough and warning anyone and everyone against exploiting the deadly blast for political gain.

“I warn those who seek to exploit this incident to destabilize our government for their selfish political motives” and then came the usual spiel of “during these trying times, we call on the people to pray for peace and unity.”

Just who does she think she is scaring when she airs warnings against groups that she claims are out to destabilize her, especially when almost everybody tends to believe that it was she and her military that are behind the bomb blast in Makati, but one that boomeranged on them?

She is to impose emergency rule when she has no control over Congress and even the Armed Forces of the Philippines?

Besides, it has been proved last February 2006 that the Filipino people aren’t scared of emergency rule, as they fought her on her Presidential Proclamation 1017, and won.

The military, despite its leaders’ denials, can hardly be controlled these days by its leaders, because there is no longer any respect held by the officers and men for their leaders, knowing they are as corrupt as their Commander-in-Chief and like the congressmen and local executives, the generals, too, get their share of the cash bribes.

Who is she fooling when she warns against destabilization when a huge majority of the Filipino people want her out of Malacañang, with over 70 percent believing her to be thoroughly corrupt and making money while she is in power and position?

Then there was the National Security adviser, also going on television, appealing to the people not to inject politics into the Makati bomb blast, claiming that it is wrong to simply lay the blame on anyone when the evidence has not as yet been found.

That’s really rich, coming from Bert Gonzales, who is known to even invent intelligence reports on perceived political foes and quickly charges them for some crime or other against national security.

Both asked for unity and a stop to politics, yet they know that this is a useless call, given the fact that there is no way for Gloria to get the people united behind her and her regime, precisely because the people see her as a certified liar, cheat and thief, who, if allowed to stay on in Malacañang, will destroy completely the moral fabric of society through her corrupting ways.

She has, after all, succeeded in corrupting the officials in virtually every government agency, including the judiciary, where judges and justices rule, not on the basis of the law, or the merits of the case, but along political lines.

And she has even succeeded in corrupting some bishops.

Who else is left to corrupt, when she is done with the nation?

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