Beware the fury of a patient man. - John Dryden
Like it or not, folks, the Philippine niche of the blogosphere has yet to be taken seriously by the mainstream. Survey data shows that the content well-read Filipino blogs and websites provide lean towards the 3G: games, guff, and girls.
(Okay, I made that up -- but it does sound plausible, doesn't it? After all, if one enters a hole-in-the-wall internet shop at some random barangay, the vast majority of users are playing DoTA or RF Online or something, or watching One Piece or some other anime on YouTube, or checking out some random pretty face on Friendster or Multiply.)
That said, November 13, 2008 marked what I believe to be a turning point in the political niche of the Philippine blogosphere and in the lives of Filipino bloggers at large. A group of bloggers (and a number of concerned citizens as well) brought their warrior wits out of cyberspace and took their advocacies IRL, filing a motion for intervention for the prosecution to include the failed GRP-MILF MOA-AD on the BJE.
Ladies and gents, the jester-in-exile doffs the floppy hat with deep respect and gratitude to these bloggers. The roll of honor, friends:
Folks, proof positive they are that there are still good men and women in Las Islas Filipinas.
Kudos.
I'd like to share some of these bloggers' posts on the subject. Let me begin with Mindablogger and wondergirl Ria, who wrote of her thoughts in Seizing the Day:
What we are about to embark on might not amount to anything fruitful, but we hope it does. And despite the risks and complications, we will do what we have to do, because it has to be done. It might lead to nothing, but that is a risk we should take, because there is that chance that what is true, right, and just will prevail. That despite the complications and risks, our action will yield something good for the country.
Four days later, Ria shared a powerful online speech, a challenge entitled It Had To Be Done:
I am not against my Muslim brothers or against them getting the peace and justice they deserve. Rather, I believe that the BJE - MOA is an unconstitutional document and act, that is a betrayal of the trust of the Filipino people, and run contrary to the welfare and development of this country and its people. Moreover, I believe that it is a betrayal to our Muslim brothers who have been made to believe that the BJE - MOA was created to benefit them.
I signed the intervention because moments like this, when we are called to stand up and fight, do something concrete and tangible for this country, are few and far in between. And in this crazy country where politicians shift sides every so often, and issues are blurred by personalities and “politics,” it is hard to have something you truly believe in and worth fighting for. For me, as (I think) with the others who signed, this is one issue I can easily stand up and fight for.
And if I did let the moment pass by, without grabbing the chance to be more than just a “critic” or a “hater,” I would have never forgiven myself. Because I know, I believe in this cause, I know what is true, right, and just. This is one moment when the line between right and wrong is not blurred. This issomething I am passionate about, not only because I am a Mindanaoan, but more importantly, I am a Filipino.
There was a point when I was hesitant and apprehensive, unsure of what I was a about to do, worried of the consequences and risks, but I realized it had to be done.
And now I issue this challenge to our congressmen, our representatives who were elected to represent the Filipinos and their aspirations and ideals, whose salaries are paid for by the taxes of hardworking Filipinos, are you willing and strong enough to do WHAT HAS TO BE DONE? Are you with us in fighting for what is true, right, and just? Or will you let the moment pass you by because of your political aspirations and lack of conviction?
That same day, Arbet made clear to the world the reason behind his stand, in Why I signed the complaint-in-intervention:
I just saw a crime committed right before my eyes. And I did nothing.
Right now, we are seeing crimes upon crimes being committed, and what do we do? We do nothing. We proceed as if nothing is happening. We instead bury ourselves into work, without realizing that our hard work will be useless if the quality of life is deteriorating due to corruption and greed.
At the same time, we feel so helpless because we don’t know what we can do to change things. Sometimes we want to act, but what is one when the others choose to live as if there are no others? What is one against the crush of apathy and corruption?
Well, it takes one to make things happen.
Because if we keep on thinking “Why move? Others won’t, so it would be just useless,” nothing would get done. We will just keep on yakking and chatting and gossiping; while we keep on the chattering, nothing gets done, corruption continues unabated, and laws are violated as if laws do not exist. Words are useless if not matched with decisive action.
I think that even Arbet and Ria will agree with me that possibly the most powerful words smithed for this issue were those of the young wunderkind Marocharim. His November 12 post, Fist in the Air in the Land of Hypocrisy, said in no uncertain terms:
I was one of the bloggers who signed that document, along with Arbet Bernardo, Ria Jose, and Richard Rivera. Many have already said that we “made history” today in what the Secretary-General of the House of Representatives calls an “unprecedented” move - that ordinary citizens like ourselves filed an intervention - yet I do not call it that. I was just doing what any free-thinking Filipino will do. I was just doing things out of principle. I signed that document because of my convictions, not for money, not for ambition. I’m just a twenty-something who makes an honest living.
I signed that document because I believe that it is right, and I believe that it is time. Revolution? To some, yes, but to me, it was a simple matter of doing the right thing.
It’s not easy to stand up for what you believe in. Sure, it’s easy to blog about your political beliefs, but it’s not easy to stand by them when the time calls for it. After all, people will just accuse you of being “used by power-grabbers.” People will call you names, people will look down on your convictions, perhaps even spit on it. Or mock it. Or tell you to shut up, because you can’t do anything about it.
I believe that when the President recklessly compromised the security and sovereign integrity of this nation through the BJE MOA-AD, she violated the very spirit and soul of our nation’s unity. The law - and the spirit of this nation’s unity - doesn’t say that we should let the President’s transgressions pass. The irresponsibility of the BJE MOA-AD is not only to be found in its insincerity, but in its ill motive and lack of concern for the people of Mindanao.
The question is not who we will replace the President with, but to find the President guilty or not guilty of the charges pressed against her. Not the least of which is the charge that she deceived the public - and compromised the integrity and sovereignty of the Philippines - through the BJE MOA-AD. If she is, I believe that she should face the fair and just consequences of her actions. I believe that justice is not about personalities, but about doing the right thing.
Those are the things I believe. I believe in doing the right thing. I may not do it all the time, but when I signed that document - even with painful hands - I knew I did the right thing. If I didn’t, what would be my excuse? It’s not because I’m a hero or because I’m a martyr, but because I am a Filipino.
In my eyes, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo compromised - no, threatened - the survival of my country.
Had you been there, you would have felt the same thing, perhaps even made up an excuse to chicken out and forsake your responsibility to this nation. I know: I was that close to doing it. What motivated me was not a sense of blow-hard patriotism, but a sense of obligation. People lived and died that this country remain whole, united, strong, and be held under one flag. What, I ask, prevents me from doing the same thing? What’s my excuse? What makes me think for one second that only heroes and patriots, or politicians with official ambitions, have the right to speak out against the injustices and excesses of the regime?
Now, I think it’s time for our honorable Members of the House to do the right thing. It is not right to wait for the President to finish her term; what is right is whether she has two years left or two days left, she should be held accountable. The Members of the House should know that justice is not about numbers or pluralities, but about morals and sensibilities. It is about fairness, justice, and freedom: words and perspectives that Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo no longer represents, at least in my eyes.
The Members of the House should know that while history will forget that a Marck Rimorin has signed that document with a clear conscience and my integrity intact, the Arbet Bernardo’s, the Ria Jose’s, and the Richard Rivera’s of the Philippines will not forget what the President has done. I certainly wouldn’t; I won’t regret a moment I raised my fist in the air in a land of hypocrisy.
Marocharim's November 13 post Catharsis of a Nervous Wreck was to me proof that Ambrose Redmoon is right, and that courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear:
Yes, I’ve been shaky today. I think it’s because I signed a document that I wholeheartedly believe in; I believe that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should be answerable to the public because of the dire consequences and compromises of the BJE-MOA-AD. The full weight of impeaching the President is somewhere on my shoulders right now.
Yeah, I think that every now and then, it’s OK to be afraid. It’s OK to be a bit nervous every now and then. Not because we fear what we suppose, but because we simply do not know what this Government will resort to when at least one person dissents and says this screwing has to stop. I know; I’m one of those people. The here-and-the-now is that I know that I’m not ashamed of what I did, but I am afraid of what will happen to me when worse comes to worst.
I guess I’m a nervous wreck because signing a document became as meaningful for me personally as well as politically. It gave me the knowledge that no matter what you stand for, there are at least five people behind you who will back you up. At the same time, no matter what someone stands for, there are at least five people you’ll back up any day. Not just five, perhaps a dozen, a hundred, or thousands. Maybe even one in two Filipinos will step up and say, “Hey! Enough is enough!”
Gentlemen and gallant lady, I salute you.
Folks, do take the time to visit their posts. Show them your support; leave comments, write posts and link to them. Show them that Ria, Arbet, and Marck are not alone in this fight.
They have dared. Let us dare with them.
Here's a copy of the motion for intervention (hat tip to MLQ3:
(If you can't read the document above, there's a copy on suyakana.blogspot.com.)
The Warrior Lawyer makes it clear that he believes that the motion should be allowed:
From a quick reading of the document, the plea to intervene is grounded on principles of accountability of public officers and the constitutional right of the complainants-petitioners to petition the government, through their duly authorized representatives, for redress of grievances. On this ground alone it should be allowed.
Complainants likewise have a legal interest in the impeachment issue. As citizens, they have a vested right to ensure, by whatever lawful means, that the laws of the land are upheld and violators held accountable.
Neither will it delay the consideration of the original grounds for impeachment or impair the impeachment complaint itself since, as emphasized in the pleading, no referral to the proper committee has yet been done.
Personally, I see no legal, procedural or equitable grounds to dismiss the intervention outright.
He also points out, and I agree, that the matter will be the members of the House of Representatives to decide... and this is a different game altogether.
Speaking of games in the House of Reprehensibles (as well as in other chambers in government), there are quite a number that I think should be top of mind as a play in one will affect the others. Consider:
- The Jocjoc-joke Bolante fertilizer fund scam hearings in the Senate
- The Jocjoc-joke Bolante fertilizer fund scam hearings in the House
- The Euro generals scam hearings in the Senate
- The impeachment complaint deliberations in the House
- The impeachment complaint motion for intervention to involve the unconstitutional MOA-AD
- The Con-Ass proposal about to take off out of committee (part of the administration's renewed charter change drive)
- The administration filing a motion for reconsideration on the Supreme Court's decision on North Cotabato vs. Republic, as argued by Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera
- The retirement of a number of Supreme Court justices that will apparently change the majority composition of the High Court
- The floating around of Devanadera as a Supreme Court justice candidate
It's almost like the butterfly effect at work here, with an act in any one of these storms changing the landscape of the others. Let's talk about how the game might work:
How to Butcher the Republic- An SC magistrate retires
- Agnes Devanadera is appointed by GMA
- North Cotabato vs. Republic is reversed and the MOA-AD declared constitutional
- Motion for intervention on impeachment complaint declared moot and academic
- MILF effectively given free rein over Mindanao; the troops in Mindanao left to rot
- Impeachment complaint found insufficient in substance
- Con-Ass proposal now out of committee and presented to Senate for deliberation
- SC asked to rule on "voting separately vs. voting jointly" Cha-Cha issue
- Arroyo-packed court does a Javellana vs. Executive Secretary and rules in favor of administration allies, instruction House and Senate to vote jointly, successfully emasculating the Senate
- Con-Ass convened, plebiscite set
- Elections in 2010, but not presidential (transition government is touted as a means of ensuring success of charter changes)
- COMELEC declares a resounding "Yes" vote, despite widespread reports of Marcosian Garcikinetics
- GMA becomes Dear Leader, and the sycophants in the House join the queen's royal court; everyone opposed gets emasculated or dead
Dire? Well, yeah. As that sweetie Rom thinks I am, I'm pretty much a doomsayer.
Nonetheless, what are the things that can throw a monkey wrench into these dastardly plans, assuming they exist?
I would suppose that the most unassailable way to destroy the plan is to ensure that the new Supreme Court appointees include truly independent and principled magistrates -- of which Agnes Devanadera must not be a part of.
Tough luck, though; final approval of the appointees is by the Queen Herself, so it just might not happen.
Perhaps the strategic thinkers among the boots on the ground understand that if the administration gets its way, all the blood their comrades have spilled in Mindanao will be for naught, after Mindanao is effectively ceded to the terrorists... and after that, will there be more land given to other killers and arsonists?
It may be a dangerous option for the boots to exercise, but it's perhaps why there are constant random company-level drills and alerts designed by AFP GHQ to make sure that the riflemen won't start anything.
Hmmmmm. I wonder who are those thinking in these same terms?
Whether or not things will get as dire, I know there's something that can be done. There is no lack of people to take a stand for the right thing. In the blogosphere, there's Ria, Arbet, Marck, Jeremy, Edwin, and Manolo.
They have shown us the way. It's for us to choose to take it.
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2 comments:
Thank you so much for this one! *hugs*
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