Candidate must destroy GMA to boost himself?

PETTY, POPULIST: The title “Le coeur d’un homme, le cerveau d’un cochon” of the CTalk column yesterday of Cito Beltran may have sounded Greek (it was French) to some readers, but I do agree with him when he said:

“This article… is not about pigs but about presidential candidates who recently declared in unison that they would all go after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

“This was a complete disappointment for me because many people were beginning to believe that this year’s candidates for president were more forward-thinking and all about business. Their chorus of hate and retribution however was like a prophesy of further conflict and disunity.

“It’s bad enough that the Presidential candidates are only beginning to talk about their plans this late and not really in concrete terms of programs and platforms. But when they manifest their petty, populist oath of vengeance, we suddenly realize that the candidates bring nothing new to the table.”

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DIGRESSION: Many of us have gotten tired, some fed up, with the antic of almost all presidential candidates of hitting President Arroyo, who is not even running for reelection, in the mistaken notion they can build up their image by destroying her.

The misdirected fire wastes valuable time and effort that should be devoted to outlining their platforms of government and how they plan to retrieve this nation from the quicksand of bad politics.

Explaining one’s program of government to some 90 million Filipinos is a full-time campaign. That a candidate is obsessed with hitting somebody who is not even running for president means, to me, that he has not yet organized his thoughts and priorities.

Candidates still have plenty to say about themselves and maybe about the programs of their rivals, yet they prefer to digress and perorate instead of alleged crimes of a non-reelectionist president!

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POLITICS OF HATE: It is sad that puffed-up men presuming to aspire for the loftiest office in the land brag to the youths eagerly awaiting their words of hope and wisdom that they — if elected president — would go hammer and tongs after Gloria Arroyo.

Why should we elect men obsessed with perpetuating a cycle of revenge, revulsion and retribution? Where would politics of hatred leave us? How would this help bind the wounds of this bleeding nation?

There is a time for the criminal prosecution of anybody. For the President, who enjoys immunity, the time is after she leaves office. At this point, there is no reason for candidates to froth in the mouth threatening to press her prosecution.

In a small dinner days ago, the President was asked how she felt about being the target of endless attacks. I was surprised when she calmly said that she could not complain because she took on the job, and all its consequences, when she ran for office in 2004.

It was different in 2001, she said, because she just assumed the presidency then in obedience to the succession proviso of the Constitution.

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LEGACY: With the serene manner she bared her thoughts, I got the impression she was resigned to all the mud and brickbat being hurled her way. It reminded me of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th US President (1861-65), who said:

“If I care to listen to every criticism, let alone act on them, then this shop may as well be closed for all other businesses. I have learned to do my best, and if the end result is good then I do not care for any criticism, but if the end result is not good, then even the praise of ten angels would not make the difference.”

In the media, Malacañang has been telling the people of her more significant achievements in office. These are facts and figures, not praise releases or hosannas of her fans and followers.

Given the obstructionism and the blind rage of her political foes and those whose minds have been poisoned, it is a miracle she has been able to achieve so much.

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WHICH PATH?: On her possibly appointing the replacement of Chief Justice Reynato Puno when he retires on May 17, there would not be this virulent reaction to the supposed plan were not Gloria Macapagal Arroyo the appointing power.

That is how far, deep and personal the bad faith has seeped.

Section 15, Article VII, in the Constitution says: “Two months immediately before the next presidential elections and up to the end of his term, a President … shall not make appointments,…”

But Section 4. (1), Article VIII, says: “The Supreme Court shall be composed of a Chief Justice and 14 Associate Justices…. Any vacancy shall be filled within 90 days from the occurrence thereof.”

Which section will President Arroyo follow?

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HIGHER LAW: We cannot second-guess the President on this issue. But a hint of her direction may be gleaned from her spokesman Gary Olivar who said in so many words that she was ready to face the legal consequences of whatever path she would take.

“At that point when the President will make a decision,” Olivar said. “She would always keep in mind what is right and what is best for our nation. So in case there will be lawsuits, or her ratings go down, she would set them aside because her primordial concern is her duty as provided in the Constitution.”

If after May 17 a situation developed requiring that a Chief Justice sat at the helm of the High Court or preside over the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, would such critical circumstance force the hand of Gloria Arroyo, who at that time would still be the President, invoking the higher law of public interest and national survival? –Federico D. Pascual Jr. (The Philippine Star)