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Thursday, March 04, 2004
Wenceslao: Frustration, pain, rage
By Bong Wenceslao
I haven’t felt anything like this in a while. But when I heard the report that Judge Generosa Labra granted bail to Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association (PBMA) divine master Ruben Ecleo Jr., it came surging in, like a flood. I was frustrated. I felt pain. Most of all, there was rage--one made more telling by the feeling of helplessness.
I know that all those who have been following this case from the beginning will feel the same way. For Chrissakes the man is accused of a heinous crime—murdering his wife, Alona Bacolod Ecleo. Not only that, he fought it out with the police before he was arrested. Worse, because of the case, members of the Bacolod family were massacred.
Labra cited Ecleo’s “serious ailments and a worsening health condition” as grounds for granting him bail. In propping up her intentions, she cited the case of the late senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, who was granted bail by then president Ferdinand Marcos. She also argued that Ecleo would not flee because he is PBMA’s divine master.
Okay, Ecleo is sick. The doctors say so. But why grant him bail when he can very well get treatment in a hospital even without it? And what if Ecleo gets well later on? If the PBMA “god” gets well, Labra’s main argument for granting him bail will no longer have any leg to stand on. Will she then cancel the bail? And what if he flees?
I have another beef with the decision. To compare Ecleo’s case with that of the Ninoy is an insult to those who fought the Marcos dictatorship. Ninoy was jailed for trumped-up charges. Meaning, he shouldn’t have stayed in jail even for one second. And he was not a suspect in the killing of his wife.
Then there’s the reasoning that since Ecleo is head of the PBMA, he wouldn’t flee. Oh-oh. Ecleo actually can—and then claim his spirit is still in the country, after all he is supposed to be “divine.” Another thing. What if he by any chance gets convicted? Will we see a repeat of that bloody clash in Dinagat when the police arrested him?
Or do we really have short memories? Since the start, questionable acts have cropped up in every turn. There was the attempt to scuttle the issuance of an arrest warrant, the clash in Dinagat, the massacre of the Bacolods, the antics of jail guards, the appearance of a “witness” who claimed Alona was killed by his brother, etc.
Perhaps this is one of the reasons for the anger: that the maneuvering has finally succeeded. In this, the justice system will once again suffer a blow. Even now, there are rumors about big payoffs. Then there are those who are linking the granting of the bail to the Ecleos being supporters of presidential candidate Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Those are unsubstantiated and therefore unfair, of course. But these are inevitable reactions to the decision, and to the frustration, pain and anger being felt by many. I mean, one cannot blame them for losing faith. After all, supply of that faith has never been enough as far as our justice system is concerned.
P.S. Here’s a view from a Text Reax contributor who wants to be anonymous: “I think the real reason why Sen. Aquilino Pimentel bandied around a military list of destabilizers that had Cardinal Vidal’s name is to drive a wedge between the Cebuanos and the government. Note that President Arroyo enjoys an edge over Fernando Poe Jr. in the Visayas-Mindanao area.”
(e-mail: khanwens@yahoo.com; text: 0927-4912362)
(March 4, 2004 issue)
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