Poverty, injustice abject fruits of betrayal

Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the mother of all “palusot,” must have had a good rest in the recent past days. During the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona, she was able to escape the glare of the public spotlight.

But now that Corona is out of the Supreme Court, the Aquino administration must make a determined action to make Arroyo accountable. After all, one of the biggest obstacles that it saw in its crusade against government corruption has been removed.

The impeachment trial should not be seen as an issue about President Aquino using his formidable power against Corona. Neither should it be seen as a show of support for the President.

Corona’s removal from the Supreme Court should benefit the Filipino people, first and foremost. It should not be used as a “smokescreen” for the failure of President Aquino and the rest of our politicians in power to effectively address the economic woes besetting our country.

After all, the Filipino people deserve justice, whoever the occupant of Malacañang is.

When elections are tainted with cheating and fraud, the people are dishonored. Whenever our nation’s resources are looted, the people are denied basic social services such as health, housing, education; and there is an act of betrayal. Not a few meters away from the building where the impeachment trial was held are faces of real hunger and homelessness.

The demolition of shanties and homes so common during the Arroyo presidency is as ordinary under the present watch. The number of street families in Manila is visibly increasing.

Life for millions of Filipinos is obviously not getting any better. The gap between the rich and the poor—the rich represented by the Coronas, the Arroyos, the Aquinos, the wealthy politicians and their business partners and friends; and the poor found among the millions of homeless, jobless and landless Filipinos—doubtless, continues to grow wider.

Although the President boasts that the conviction of the Chief Justice has rid government of one powerful and corrupt official, Corona’s removal from office can only have some significance when the previous president shall have been made accountable too for her abuses and violations of law. After all, it is the majority of the hungry (who are becoming hungrier with every passing day), the “boss” of the current regime, who suffered most from Arroyo’s  transgressions.

If Arroyo gets lucky and escapes accountability, the Aquino administration should be made liable to the people.

—NORMA DOLLAGA,

Kapatirang Simbahan Para sa Bayan,

(Kasimbayan),  [email protected]