"A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely… For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation… A murderer is less to fear. The traitor is the plague." - Marcus Tullius Cicero, statesman, philosopher.
Senator Antonio Trillanes IV issued a statement frontally accusing Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of selling out the country to foreign interests in the ZTE bribe for Spratly rights of China. Vietnam is also involved in the Spratly's issue, though not in ZTE. As Senator Trillanes charged, Arroyo has ceded exploitation rights to the area rich in oil and gas resources, in exchange for a package of $ 1-billion loan for various milking cow projects of the Arroyo regime; including the ZTE, CyberEd, the South Rail and last but not the least, the North Rail project where former Speaker Jose de Venecia was also embroiled in a controversy for. It seems that treason permeates so many sides to the controversies.
Cicero's reflection over two thousand years ago also describes the situation of the Philippines today. We are indebted to Senator Trillanes for bringing up this aspect of the ZTE deal and Arroyo's actuations in exchange for dollars from China. Corruption from the Latin corruptus which literally means "to destroy" is only in regard to dishonesty or breach of trust in public officers. Treason, in a Republic and for officers sworn to defend the Republic, is the highest form of corruption for it destroys the sovereign will and weal. Treason is a plague that permeates the whole of the Philippine ruling class, government bureaucracy, business and professional leadership.
Corruption merits the death penalty of reclusion perpetua only in amounts over fifty-million pesos, according to the Philippine's anti-plunder law. Treason is universally penalized with the heaviest punishment. Our dilemma is, if all traitors in Philippine government leadership, i.e. the ruling political and economic class, the various religious leadership of various denominations and sects, leaders of "civil society" – if all are put on trial few would be left running society after the executions. There is a pressing need to mold and training nationalistic professionals to govern when the national revolution comes.
Today, success in politics, government and big business and finance in the Philippines often require the enterprising individual to accept some degree of treason to the welfare of the nation. Legislators pass the globalization laws that surrender economic sovereignty; professionals and academics work for foreign consultancies that undermine economic nationalism, journalists take funds from foreign NGOs to subvert a genuinely elected government like Estrada's administration; businessmen connive with international financial institutions and foreign companies to take advantage of "sovereign guarantees" to swindle the country in power, water, road building and other projects.
Aspirants to the Philippine leadership must genuflect before the bastions of U.S. policy guardians, i.e. Ninoy had his virtuoso performance at the Asia Society to launch his comeback, Joe de Venecia is with the Heritage Foundation, even Nur Misuari the Council of Foreign Relations. These foundations vet Philippine leaders for their support to positions in Philippine politics. Many Philippine coup plotters first knock on the U.S. State Department to divine the inclinations of officials there. In Cory Aquino case, her survival in the 1989 coup needed FVR to call Colin Powell who, as head of the U.S. Joint Chief of Staff, sent out F-14 "persuasion flights" from Clark to stop Honasan.
Many professionals rise on credential from collaboration with foreign political-corporate mafias. Of the finance secretaries we can identify Jose Cuisia becoming Philam chief, controlled by the American International Group, after a pro-financial liberalization stint in Finance; Bobby Ocampo crashed the Peso in the Asian Financial Crisis but gets to head AIM which has the global corporations as it major patrons; former NEDA chief Romulo Neri was with the AGILE group which subverted the Philippine Congress inserting pro-free trade and globalization laws, legitimizing the destruction of Filipino industries.
Intellectuals, professionals and leaders who stood by their loyalty to the Republic are ostracized from power – from Mabini to Luis Taruc, from Recto to Diokno. Those who begin to stands up for the country start having troubles. Like Marcos pushing ahead with "rental" instead of accepting "aid" for Subic and Clark, and in pushing the Eleven Industrial Project. President Estrada demolished the MILF Buldon headquarters over objections of President Clinton who in a personal note carried by then Secretary of State William Cohen wanted it halted. Estrada opposed issuing "sovereign guarantee" to BOT projects – pretty soon he was deposed.
Vic Agustin in his Inquirer column in the Inquirer recently wrote that it was Victor Corpus, suspected U.S. agent of influence, who prodded Jun Lozada to expose the ZTE deal for "regime change". Lozada's exposé brought a chorus of indignation from different voices singing different interests – the trapos,for money; the U.S., to limit Chinese economic incursions; ordinary suffering citizens oblivious to the more complex interests involved. They just happen to converging with the nationalist interest now to remove a corrupt and treasonous political ruler patriots have fought the past seven years. But when Gloria is removed already, will the country already be free of the decay and suffering?
Senator Trillanes did the country a signal service in charging Gloria Arroyo with treason in the ZTE and other deals. Treason – the plague in this country that brought the cancer of U.S. sponsored globalization, the flood of Chinese onions and sell off of Spratly, sovereignty guarantees to BOT projects that drain consumer pockets, the invasion of Hollywood and American Idol into our media that eat away the character and identity of this nation. Treason is really the central issue. The only inoculation against the treason plague is love of country – i.e. Nationalism, born of an understanding of its indispensability in the survival, welfare and prosperity of citizens of this Republic.
Nationalism binds a people and empowers them to great feats. Nationalism is only taught by example, by evident sacrifice for the vision of a common good - by leadership. Senator Trillanes and the Bagong Katipuneros has been unfailing in setting the example of genuine love of country and, hence, abhorrence in action of corruption and treason. Let them lead the way. "Walang tutulong sa Pilipino kundi kapwa Pilipino" as Estrada says – but nationalist Pilipino, to be sure. (Tune to "Kape't Kamulatan, Kabansa" 8:30 to 9am, Monday to Friday on 1098AM) ###
No comments:
Post a Comment