joke time

ANOTHER tape???!

First there were the 'Gloria tapes', now we have the 'X-tapes'? Governor Chavit Singson's new expose, however, looked like a ploy to distract the people from the controversy now hounding President Arroyo. Those tapes allegedly contain conversations between former President Joseph Estrada and a retired chief of staff of the Armed Forces, where they discussed the 2004 elections. However, in the last part of the tapes they start talking about destabilizing the government and assassinating key political figures. This is where the problem starts. Governor Singson claims that his tapes were part of the 'mother of all tapes' held by Samuel Ong, yet the destabilization plot could not have been planned when the elections had not even been concluded yet. Another problem with the 'X-tapes' is that even though the first parts seem authentic, the last part seems fabricated since the conversation suddenly clears up, like it was recorded at a studio. The so-called voice of former president Estrada also sounds like it was spliced from recordings of his voice. There is no consistency in the conversation, it sounded like it was cut and pasted. In a story posted at the PCIJ's blog site, it is said that the makers of the tapes "could have done a better job by getting professional advice from one of the music pirates at Makati Cinema Square..." What a joke.

Sentiments of the "Filipino people"

In interviews and talk shows we hear the opposition say that "according to the surveys the majority of Filipinos don't trust President Arroyo". What a joke. 'Majority of Filipinos'? Maybe a majority of Metro Manila residents. The recent survey that the opposition proudly announced to the country was only taken here in Metro Manila. No survey was taken in Baguio. No respondents from Cebu. None from Iloilo. Zero from Zamboanga. Manila is not the Philippines, the Philippines is not Manila. So before we all go jumping to the conclusion that the entire nation distrusts President Arroyo, maybe we should find out first where our information comes from.

Supreme sacrifice

A lot of groups are now calling on President Arroyo to resign because of the wiretapping and jueteng controversies. Her former allies, most notably former President Corazon Aquino and Senate President Franklin Drilon, and her former economic team, have asked her to make the 'supreme sacrifice' for the good of the nation. Have they lost their minds? If President Arroyo resigns, who will take her place?

Former President Joseph Estrada? Sure, we booted him out in EDSA 2 for corruption and now we restore him to power?

Actress Susan Roces? Wow. We would finally and truly become a 'showbiz republic'. Who's going to be the Vice President? Willie Revillame?

A military junta? Say goodbye to our (pretend) democracy!

What the opposition and the people calling for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's resignation seem to not understand (or choose to ignore) is that there is virtually no one who can step up and replace President Arroyo. Take her out of play and you will get a power vacuum wherein everyone would try and grab the power and position vacated by President Arroyo. The opposition may be united now, but wait 'til that time comes and you would see them crumble into squabbling factions vying for the highest position in the land. And keep in mind that President Arroyo has not even been proven guilty of the accusations leveled at her. Should we have her resign on the basis of unauthenticated wiretapped conversations that came from former Senator Kit Tatad? What a joke. We should follow the due process of law if we really want a change of leadership. That's why we have that piece of paper called the Constitution. We must not repeat the same mistake we made in 2001. EDSA 2 was a very big mistake. We were all swept by events, and in the process we showed our political immaturity. If this happens again, what would happen in the future? When we tire of our leaders would we just go out in the streets and shout at the top of our lungs? That is not democracy. That is anarchy. Mob rule. We would be forever gripped by anarchy, for this mindset will be inherited by future generations who see that they only need to swarm en masse into the streets to remove a president that they don't agree with or a government that imposed a 1 peso increase in text messaging costs. We now stand at a crossroads in our history. We have to make a choice. Let as make the rational choice, and not push for President Arroyo's immediate resignation. Let us make the intelligent choice, and not repeat the mistakes of the past. Let us think of the future, and show that we have indeed grown up as a nation, and follow the due process of the law.