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Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Malilong: Reaping what she sowed
By Frank Malilong
The Other Side
It was brief but it was, to borrow a lawyer's favorite expression, sufficient in form and substance. I would have been happier if President Arroyo had spoken more lengthily about her vision and values but I understand why she had not.
Under the circumstances when her tenure is facing a serious challenge, it would have been quite presumptuous of her to present a detailed road map.
Mrs. Arroyo expectedly did not make any reference to the "Hello Garci" tape in her report to the nation. I do not think she will ever discuss the affair publicly again. She had already apologized to the people for her "lapse in judgment" and that is what the people will ever get from her insofar as the wiretapping scandal is concerned. She might be compelled to talk about it during her impeachment trial, assuming that she will be tried at all and that she will testify in her behalf.
Speaking of impeachment, I cannot understand why the opposition should complain that Malacañang is putting up every legal roadblock to prevent the impeachment complaint from reaching first base. The President is entitled to her own defense and it doesn't take genius to see that she will never roll over and let her accusers run roughshod over her without a fight.
The impeachment process may have the semblance of judicial proceedings but in fact, it is not in a strict sense. It is more political than anything else and, as in any political exercise, is actually a game of numbers. Nowhere is this more pronounced than at the initial stage when the accusers need a specific number of congressmen to send the complaint to the Senate for trial without passing through the plenary.
The magic number, we are told, is 79. Yesterday's papers said there have so far been 40 endorsers only, among them our own Rep. Clavel Asas-Martinez. A congressman friend says the number is attainable although a lot would depend on where public opinion blows and how Malacañang and House Speaker Joe de Venecia can effectively shepherd their remaining coalition allies.
The Liberal Party is lost to the other side but the Nationalist People's Coalition and the Nacionalista Party have, by and large, been steadfast, said my source.
The moment one of them keels over, GMA's impeachment by the House is a done deal, he said.
As for Clavel, her loss is indeed a cause for regret, as her Cebu City colleague, Tony Cuenco, put it. She and husband Junnie are close to San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora, one of the pro-impeachment leaders in the House, but it must have taken a lot of soul-searching before they decided to switch sides.
The Martinezes were close to Mrs. Arroyo who supported Junnie's bid for the governorship of Cebu in 2004. The trouble was that she supported his main rivals, too, including Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, whose proclamation the Martinezes vehemently protested. One can therefore say that in a way their defection is a case of the President reaping what she has sown.
(fmmalilong@gothong.com.ph)
(July 27, 2005 issue)
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