Many were surprised by President Aquino’s 12-minute speech on prime nationwide television on the evening of October 30. It was a response to a question that was not even asked—“Are you a thief?” According to surveys, his trust rating as a person is holding on. So why dwell on the subject?
At a time when the nation is on its knees, bent down by a series of devastating typhoons that have ravaged the country’s granaries and impoverished thousands of farmers, and by a deadly earthquake that wreaked incalculable destruction in Bohol and Cebu provinces, his was a superfluous speech.
What needs to be answered is: “Where are the funds?” We ask this because we need them now. But it need not be the President who should do the bean count here. Even in medieval times, the king would only go to the frontline only when his equal would do as well to raise his sword of challenge. In the hierarchy of warriors, the generals take the first blows and the highest of them all comes last—to die or be the hero.
The President’s men, if they are worth what the state pays them, should have the courage to come forward and account for, to the last centavo, the billions of pesos that disappeared or passed through their hands. They should not hide behind the political armor of the President and hope that the blanket of safety would satisfy the public’s curiosity.
In a republican system, government is not a one-man establishment. It has institutions through which the president can implement his program of government and exercise ethical leadership. The state allows him to crack the whip, when this is needed, but with fairness and due process. Those whom he entrusted with the money but advised him wrongly must acknowledge their mistake and make amends or be punished. Shielding them with executive privilege akin to Executive Order 464 of the past administration would amount to recidivism and retrogression.
Only half-way to 2016, there is no need for the President to face the firing-squad. There will always be the opposition and this is healthy in a democracy. But he should not allow his enemies to direct the course of battle or shift the situs of combat. Otherwise, he could be decapitated prematurely.
His remaining term should focus on addressing the urgent issues facing the nation today: jobs (not doles), food and health security, education, home and pubic safety, and rational infrastructure development and rehabilitation in both urban and rural areas.
These challenges require tremendous state funding. That is why the “bosses” are looking for the money. And P-Noy’s job is to find it and make sure it goes where it rightly should.
—EVA M. INCIONG,
BF Homes, Quezon City