Dictatorship sans martial law

PerryScope
By Perry Diaz

Dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos

On September 21, 1972, then President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared a craftily designed – nay, conjured — martial law; thus began an authoritarian regime that lasted 14 years until it ended in an attempted coup d’etat that morphed into a successful “people power” revolution.

Another coup d’etat that was promoted as a “people power” revolution ousted then President Joseph “Erap” Estrada in 2001, which brought his vice president, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, to power. For the next nine years, Gloria ruled with a tight grip on the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The only body that she couldn’t control was the Senate.

Man of destiny

Cory Aquino and son Noynoy

Then came Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, a lackluster senator, who suddenly found himself in the limelight upon the death of his mother Cory Aquino — the wife of the martyr Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. — who was catapulted to the presidency in the aftermath of the EDSA people power revolution in 1986. The only son of Ninoy and Cory, Noynoy was bandied about as a “man of destiny.” Regrettably, while Cory remained “iconic” until her death on August 1, 2009, democracy never took hold after the ouster of the dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos. EDSA was nothing more than a transitory event that bridged the oligarchic rule of Marcos to the oligarchic rule of Cory. But, curiously, one had to look up the “social registry” of the country’s elite to realize that while the president was replaced, the same people played the field, plundering the treasury – or whatever was left of it — with gusto.

And now, 27 years after that momentous passage from an authoritarian regime to a democratic regime, things didn’t change much. As a wise man once said,“The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Indeed, the Philippine economic landscape changed and pronouncements of growth abound. The ruling elite is celebrating; the Philippines is no longer the “Sick Man of Asia,” they say. While that might be true from their lofty standpoint, it is not what the suffering people — masang tao — feel. And underneath all that hyperbole about an “emerging Asian tiger,” the people remain in a perpetual state of bondage.

Scandals galore

And it is in this context that the administration of P-Noy — short for “President Noy” — as Aquino wants to be called, is going through a conglomeration of scandals and anomalies involving lawmakers, Cabinet officials, members of the Judiciary, military officers, local government officials, scam operators, and non-government organizations (NGOs). Never in the history of the nation had so many people been caught in a web of corruption that was spun to snare billions of pesos from pork barrel allocations.

With the Supreme Court’s issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) stopping further disbursement of pork barrel funds, known officially as Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), the Aquino administration continues to use the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP), which was created without any congressional authorization.

Former Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson

In a speech before the Philippine Constitution Association on October 24, 2013, former Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said: “Recently, a newly minted program named Disbursement Acceleration Program or DAP, which the DBM [Department of Budget and Management] claims to be in existence since 2011, surprised everyone, including myself and all the senators and congressmen, both active and retired.

“Further, DBM has claimed that the P50 million to P100 million in additional pork barrel allocations to most senators after the conviction of the former chief justice in May 2012 came from DAP, funded by savings in 2011, or what is termed in the GAA as Unused Appropriations amounting to P238.8B. When we speak of Unused Appropriations, it consists of two items, namely (a) Unreleased Appropriations (P79.6B) and (b) Unobligated Allotments (P159.2B).”

P700-billion piggy bank

Lacson also disclosed that P-Noy had P700 billion at his disposal in 2012, which was the same year when Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona was impeached and found guilty of culpable violation of the Constitution.

P-Noy insisted that the DAP is not pork barrel and claimed it as his “economic stimulus package,” which he created to increase government spending; thus, stimulating growth.

In all appearances, the DAP is an illegal extension of PDAF used to funnel “savings” from budget items and released to lawmakers as extra pork. But since DAP doesn’t exist in the eyes of Congress, DAP evades congressional scrutiny. Yet, the recipients of DAP funds are members of Congress themselves!

It is interesting to note that the Supreme Court had refused to issue a TRO against the DAP, an action – or inaction – that “pork watchers” criticized. If PDAF were bad enough to warrant a TRO, why didn’t the high court issue a TRO against the DAP, which is far worse than the PDAF?

One of the “pork watchers,” seasoned columnist Emil Jurado, made an observation, which he shared in his column, “Is the President virtual dictator?”He wrote: “With the House of Representatives ruled by the administration majority under Speaker Sonny Belmonte, and Senate President Frank Drilon acting like an extension of Malacañang protecting the President from allegations of abuse and misuse of public funds, with the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, and with most junior anti-graft court Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang as Presiding Justice of Sandiganbayan, the President now appears to rule over the three branches of government.”

Dictatorial powers

With the Senate, House of Representatives, Supreme Court, and Sandiganbayan clearly under his control, P-Noy exercises dictatorial powers no President in Philippine history had attained before. Indeed, P-Noy achieved what Marcos didn’t; that is, dictatorship sans martial law.

As a matter of record, P-Noy has a free hand in redirecting his discretionary funds – amounting to more than 50% of the national budget to projects and programs of his choice without authorization from Congress. In effect, P-Noy has created a humongous piggy bank that he can use any which way he wants. He is like a spoiled brat who always gets what he wants. And poor mother Filipinas, she couldn’t do anything to stop him from squandering public funds.

The generals

Other sources of P-Noy’s discretionary fund are the Malampaya Fund, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), and other state funds. Recently, retired Brig. Gen. Rosalino Alquiza, former President of the Association of Generals and Flag Officers (AGFO) said that there is a consensus among members of the military that all government accounts should be deposited in the National Treasury and subjected to the budgetary process.

Officials of the Philippine Military Academy Alumni Association (PMAAA) also weighed in on the pork barrel scandal. The association’s chairman, retired Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Reyes said that members of the PMAAA share the sentiment of Alquiza.

However, P-Noy was unruffled by the retired generals’ call for him to give up his pork. And by the looks of it, surrender is not in his vocabulary. But with the retired military officers encroaching into his turf, P-Noy might just draw the gun on them… with the aid of his loyal Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin who many believe has the respect of active generals.

At the end of the day, while P-Noy may now be enjoying dictatorship sans martial law, a martial law sans dictatorship might be in the works at the barracks. Heaven forbid!

(PerryDiaz@gmail.com)