Monday, August 13, 2007 Arinday: Asian drama: then and now (3) By G.H. Arinday, Jr. Sunfare
IN THE recently-conducted 40th Asean Ministerial Meetings (AMM) in Manila that ended last August 3, the 14th Asean Regional Forum (ARF) called for a “phased and calibrated withdrawal of foreign forces in Iraq” but such proposal was pooh-poohed by the United States “as a dangerous move”.
Insofar as the Asean security measures and economic cooperation, one could not make head or tails of what the regional groups wanted to say with firmness. In brief, every country member of the ASEAN is left to its own devices.
Considering that our own firm adherence to domestic principles, it would be better to stay under the status quo.
But there is the urgent need of strengthening our own security updating the weaponry of our armed forces and the further updating of our intelligence capabilities.
We are not even up to the minimum level of intelligence cunningness with the world’s best spy agencies like those of Israel’s Mossad, of France’s Surete, United Kingdom’s Scotland Yard, and of course the US’ CIA.
In the current stiff competitiveness among the world’s power like the US, Russia, the nuclear-powered emerging countries like Pakistan, India, and Iran, our smallness as a country in the Pacific regional strategy, there is an urgent need that our internal defenses must be strengthened considering that our southern frontiers have already been made not only a haven by the Muslim jihadists but a beachhead to create a “crescent” base for
Southeast Asia Islamic State.
There are still pestering problems arising from agrarian conflicts as pointed out by Gunnar Myrdal, which must be vigorously addressed as the stepping stone to the industrial stage to cope with the rapid growth of our population.
However, the greatest stumbling block to achieve the national badge of patriotism is the crude and corrupt political practices of our leaders, whose thirst for power appears to be unquenchable. Everybody wants to rule.
Even the problems of the last midterm elections with their dirt still unwashed, the newly-elected senators are now engrossed in shameless and callous partisan activities for the 2010 presidential elections. Of course, these are exciting staple fares for the print and broadcast media industry.
Except for some few national leaders, the majority of those elected are not concerned of the socio-political problems besetting several parts of the country where guerilla war has displaced large number of the populace notably in Mindanao.
The death toll of the civilians and the police-military personnel in safeguarding and defending societal order is apparently not a fact in the minds of the majority of the elected public officials. This is the tragedy of our time.
There are only just few among our elected officials who are sincerely concerned of our economic problems and are finding means to further the acceleration of modest gains and yet they do not get any media mileage.
On the other hand, most are poised to derail the economic plans in order to discredit the Arroyo administration if not to bring to its early demise. It is very astonishing that our leaders especially in the Senate are more concerned of publicity and like half-starved canines they criminally engage themselves in the farming out of several senate committees, each one eager to have a bigger bite on the bones.
Political “mongrel” as they are called by Sen. Panfilo Lacson who is of different breed of a political canine who is capable of becoming a Belgian Malanois, these politicians are fond of barking and barking without biting.
And who are the “askals” or street dogs among them? It is a pity that the Senate today seems to be inhabited by dogs.
Symbolically, this is the moral situation in the realm of officialdom known as the Senate. But on the other side of this dark political scene erects the stage of the Asean drama which has had showcased the multi-faceted agonies of the Asians in general, notwithstanding the merry faces of those who stand along the streets of history as they witness the unfolding of events, both detrimental and beneficial to every nation.
Filipinos are resilient, as it has been proclaimed by many artists and poets. Our race is unique in the sense, we have had withstood every political storm that had befallen us. And how long can we endure?(To be continued)
