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One
of the reasons why the antiadministration forces have
not been persistent to push for President Gloria
Arroyo’s immediate ouster is the possibility of a Noli
de Castro takeover. The constitutional-succession
mechanism is not that palatable to their political
senses.
The
Vice President is not perceived in the best of light; he
is a future fumbling idiot, whose administration could
be an international laughingstock, a showcase of
incompetence and corruption. In brief, nobody wants the
specter of jumping out of the frying pan only to go to
the proverbial fire.
Several political models and formulas have been advanced
as options. Some seem acceptable; most are not. The
scenario of an outright military power grab and a
subsequent military rule is well discussed, but it does
not enjoy support.
A
civilian-military junta has mixed reactions, mostly
negative. A purely civilian junta of unelected
personalities is scorned. Still, the political
preference is toward the constitutional and morally
acceptable option.
Lately, the political alternative, advanced by the
religious-led Kilusang Makabayang Ekonomiya (KME), a
nongovernment organization that espouses economic
nationalism, seems to have been noticed and discussed,
too.
The
KME formula calls for the outright resignation or ouster
of the incumbent president and the ascendancy into power
not by the No. 2 (VP de Castro), No. 3 (Senate President
Manny Villar Jr.) or No. 4 (Speaker Prospero Nograles),
but by the No. 5 (Chief Justice Reynato Puno) in the
succession order. Puno will not function as chief
executive to serve the incumbent President’s unexpired
term. He will assume the post in a caretaker capacity
for one year, after which new elections will be called.
As
the caretaker president, Puno’s job is to initiate and
complete three major political changes, which constitute
a reformist agenda: first, the outright collapse of the
currently tainted Commission on Elections (Comelec)
(under the leadership of Benjamin Abalos, Comelec is
perceived to have done the cheating, not the candidates)
and the reinstitution of a new election watchdog that
will be mandated to hold peaceful, honest and clean
elections; second, the drafting of a new constitution
that will highlight the shift from a presidential to a
parliamentary form of government; and the holding of new
elections under the new charter.
The
KME believes it takes only a year to complete them. Puno
is disqualified to run under the new charter, but he
will preside over the completion of the reformist
agenda.
For
sure, de Castro, Villar and Nograles will not agree to
this scenario. As professional politicians, they are all
very protective of their political careers; they even
believe they are all God’s gift to this ever-suffering,
wretched nation.
But
they have to be prevailed upon and told politely that
not one of them should take Puno’s job because it is
only for a year and that the real game is the new
elections under the new charter. Hence, they can all
participate in the new polls along with other contenders
like former Presidents Joseph Estrada and Fidel Ramos
and former Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr.
Puno’s ascendancy as the caretaker president has
constitutional basis because the next three political
leaders in the succession line will have to give way to
him out of their sense of patriotism. As suggested by
the KME, only the drafting of a new charter is
extraconstitutional, but this is something defensible
because of the current situation, where the moral
compass has been lost due to charges of large-scale
corruption. The political exigencies will dictate how
the Puno caretaker government will do its job.
Puno
is the natural choice to assume the caretaker post
because of his moral standing. As the chief magistrate,
Puno personifies judicial activism, as he has led the
Supreme Court to the crafting of the writ of amparo and
writ of habeas data to stop those extrajudicial killings
and disappearances to which the current administration
is helpless to stop. Moreover, Puno has no known
political agenda but to bring order to this nation that
has long been beset by incessant political bickering
among the various political families and factions.
Incidentally, Puno and Pampanga Gov. Edgardo Panlilio
are believed to be the new subjects of demolition jobs
after de Venecia’s downfall. The two personalities have
to be demolished politically since they have redefined
the current situation. Panlilio now personifies
faith-based politics, which is believed to be the wave
of the future. Puno is the personification of judicial
activism Philippine-style, which can be compared with
the same activism of the United States Earl Warren Court
in the 1960s. The Warren Court had rendered
earth-shaking decisions that virtually reshaped racial
relations and gave rise to civil rights in the United
States.
As
the chief magistrate, Puno could be the stumbling block
to a Palace-sponsored Charter change that will enable
the incumbent President to prolong her grip to political
power. How the Palace attack dogs would pursue this
nefarious agenda is not exactly clear, but given the
exceptional way they have been demolishing their
political opponents (they have no moral compunction to
use money and power), they have the inordinate ability
to bring them down to their knees.
Panlilio, on the other hand, is being pilloried by the
Pharisees of Pampanga, as he is now being subjected to a
recall process. Ironically, the ones initiating this
political move are the same professional politicians who
are identified with jueteng and quarry money in the
province. This is certainly a country that has gone
mad.
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