Saturday, October 20, 2007 Editorial: Another explosion
JUST when everyone thought things couldn't be anymore tense in the country's political landscape, out of nowhere an explosion occurred in a major mall in Manila killing at least eight people and wounding 70 other persons as of Friday.
While police authorities said it's too early to point to terrorism as the cause, the initial findings showed that there was no electrical overload or leaking gasoline that could have caused the explosion.
Which drew in eyebrows from some opposition quarters and the militant groups who now accuse the Palace of staging this explosion as a form of prelude to "martial law." The events of the past few weeks may bear them out.
Consider that for one, the standoff between President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. continue to boil over, helped in no small way by opposition critics who see in this the potential platform to oust the President before her term expires.
While the political opposition would likely pursue the legal route, there are of course leftist militants who would exploit this situation as well as the latest explosion to sow dissension among the Filipinos.
Caught between the Arroyo administration which wants to keep its grip on power and the opposition who wants to assume power on the one side and the military adventurers who feel the civilian government has lost its credibility and the communists who are again salivating at the thought of civil war with which to facilitate their rise to power on the other side are the hapless Filipino people.
Though as of Friday, the likelihood of Martial Law has yet to be made official the Palace is denying these charges and is moving to investigate the incident. If things don't get any worse as of this writing, the most that can be expected is placing Manila under emergency status.
The last time the country experienced a major terrorist attack in Manila was back in early 2000, when a train got blown up by Abu Sayaff elements.
For now, the terrorist attack along with the ongoing political crisis may have set back the country's investment climate by a year or two with Cagayan de Oro recently hosting an Oro Best Exposition featuring some of the city's top firms along with 15 American business firms.
Certainly the officials of the city and province will have their say on this incident and the main thing for now is to remain calm and let the authorities do their work.
