Thursday, June 14, 2007 Speak out: May 14 elections By Percival de la Torre
THE result of the recently concluded elections shows that opposition senators have been given a mandate to provide the needed check and balance against misuse of presidential authority.
In my book, the result is 12-0 in favor of the opposition, assuming that Antonio Trillanes and Koko Pimentel will be declared winners.
This is so because Edgardo Angara actually belongs to an opposition party while Joker Arroyo is a critic of the administration on controversial issues.
Francis Pangilinan was included in the Genuine Opposition’s line up but at the last minute decided to campaign on his own.
Gringo Honasan was reportedly eyed to replace Pangilinan but, for reasons known only to the selection committee, the plan did not push through.
In the House of Representatives, administration lawmakers and their allies are still in the majority, which again shows that Filipinos have short memory that politicians took advantage of.
Sometime December 2006, administration lawmakers instigated an unsuccessful attempt to dismember Congress by passing a resolution convening themselves into a constituent assembly without the participation of senators in order to set up an interim parliament.
That voters forgot this deplorable act was mainly because of the administration making best use of its machinery and logistical advantages to ensure an overwhelming majority in the House and discourage the filing impeachment complaints against the President.
But although the political picture remains the same as in 2006, the number of senators who are anti-administration has increased considerably.
Henceforth, President Arroyo needs to truly reach out to her political adversary not only in words but in deeds given that the opposition senators have the number to play ball with her and undermine the administration’s legislative agenda.
For a start, she should reorganize the Cabinet by appointing individuals of known competence, reliability, and sincerity from both sides of the political fence thus paving the groundwork for a bi-partisan approach in solving the problems of poverty and corruption.
She should see to it that the pork barrel of lawmakers are released on a first in first out basis and not due to political affiliation, as alleged, since these funds, if used for the common good, could transform every nook and cranny in the country into vibrant communities.
To heed the reported public clamor, she should ask the chairman and six commissioners of the Commission on Elections to tender their courtesy resignation to pave the way for the appointment of a new set of commissioners whose main task would be the computerization of the 2010 election.
