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Tuesday, January 21, 2003
Aportadera: Search for a young president
By Atty. Billy Aportadera
COMMENTARY
FORMER President Fidel Ramos echoed the words of nationalist and human rights lawyer Jose W. Diokno when he said that we should look for a young president for 2004.
When I returned to the Philippines after my LLM studies in Columbia University in New York, the whole country was still euphoric over the peaceful Edsa I revolt that forced President Ferdinand Marcos to leave Malacañang. The Freedom Government was then busy setting itself up.
My first schedule, upon my arrival in the country, was to visit my boss, Senator Jose W. Diokno. He was then already ill. I was privileged to be alone with him in his bedroom. We talked about the difficult legal struggles we had to undergo during martial law. We talked about the sacrifices made by human rights lawyers, especially those who were jailed and those who were gunned down.
Then our conversation shifted to the present. Senator Diokno said their time was past. But some of his colleagues seemed not to realize this. For Senator Diokno, their role under the present dispensation was to open doors for the next generation. For him, their role was not to lead but to guide, advise and act as mentors for the new and upcoming leaders. He shared with me this concern seventeen years ago.
The pronouncement of former President Ramos that we should look for a young president for the year 2004 bespeaks a statesman. He had been president and can still be president. But he opted otherwise.
Personal political ambition is no longer in his vocabulary. For him, their time is past. It is time for young leaders to emerge from the shadows of the “senior” leaders and govern our country. For him, their role is to help look for and to develop these young Filipinos to be ready to govern. If his colleagues would join him in his quest to search for new and young leaders, our country might be energized to move forward.
Governing the country is generational. The torch of leadership is passed on from one generation to another. But this could be derailed.
Take the case of the “extended” generals during the martial law period. The extension of their tour of duty prevented the colonels from becoming generals during their time.
A good number of them were forced to retire because there was no room for them at the top. This situation triggered agitation among the young colonels. This contributed to the downfall of President Marcos.
After Edsa I, it took time for the Freedom Government to correct the situation and put back the system of retiring military officers when their tour of duty ends, and promoting the officers next in rank.
There is no forced retirement for political leaders. But they should know when to step aside in favor of the young leaders of our country. They should learn to be statesmen. The longer they stay in the political scene, the harder for the young leaders to take their place in the political arena of government and in the bureaucracy. There is danger of creating a vacuum of national leaders.
We have a young president in President Arroyo. She showed her seniors what patriotism means. She declared that in the interest and welfare of the country, she was not running for president in 2004.
After her presidency and scanning the political landscape, do we have enough young leaders who are qualified and who have national constituency to govern?
(Atty. Billy Aportadera writes for Sun.Star Davao.)
(January 21, 2003 issue)
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