In the Presence of Vultures

Yesterday at about 9:00 am, marked a day that journalists the world over will never forget. An estimated 34 journalists died in the first incident of election related violence in Maguindanao in the Southern island of the Philippines. Allegedly perpetrated by the ruling clan, a convoy of journalists and family members of a rival clan were stopped on their way to file the certificate of candidacy by a force of paramilitary. They were brought to a hill and were summarily executed.

The ruling clan, the Ampatuan is closely connected to Pres. Gloria Arroyo. The Ampatuan clan was responsible for delivering votes for Arroyo in the presidential elections of 2004 and for the senatorial bets of her party in 2007. The Philippines ranks 2nd to Iraq as the most dangerous place for journalist considering the rising list of media practioners killed in the line of duty. The savagery of what happened yesterday was never seen in any part of the world.

Journalists live a life with one foot in the grave. The difference we have with Iraq is that the Philippines is not at war. The victims were not in a war zone, they were to report on a election related event. What infuriates me is how the government is addressing this. Instead of using the full force of the law, they treat the perpetrators as if they were heads of state. Law should be appleid equally regardless of political affiliation.

Clearly the journalists will once again be deprived of justice. You see, in the Philippines, journalists are considered pests as they expose the crimes of our officials. From harassment to outright assassination, every trick has been used to silence these people. I suppose these are the dangers the media has to face in a country like the Philippines. Fortunately, despite all the hazards of the trade, people still enter the field to keep us all informed.

I hope that justice will be served not only for the journalists in my country but to journalists all over the world.

In a country where poverty and hunger is prevalent, the president and her party was seen on two different occasions exhibiting how callous they can be. While the world’s most power nation’s president is seen munching on hotdogs and burgers, the Philippine president wined and dined with the finest foods and wines money can buy. As her spokespersons try to justify such insulting events, one wonders how many times during her more than 70 trips abroad has these things happened.

Our government auditors have reported that Gloria Arroyo had in fact overspent. In her eight agonizing (for the Filipinos) years as our sitting president, she had actually not delivered anything for the people. After every trip she made, she would report the investments are coming and yet multi-national companies have in fact been leaving the country. She’s supposed to step down in 2010 so it seems that she’s treating herself and her allies to wonderful trips abroad at the expense of the taxpayers money.

Never have I seen such extravagance since the time of Imelda Marcos. From the way Arroyo spends, looks like she is bent on draining the country’s coffersThe outrage is spreading and Filipino workers abroad are now reporting how lavish a lifestyle our jet-setting president has during her foreign trips. In country where more than 40 percent go hungry everyday, these news is a slap on our faces.

Her predecessors took only a handful of delegates during their foreign trips, but with Arroyo, it’s a horde. And that includes spouses and even children of her most rabid allies. Wel at least more and more cynics and skeptics are now more aware of how evil this administration is. I hope that the US and the rest of the world will be prudent in giving aid and support to the Philippines while Arroyo is in power. A bigger portionof these end up in the pockets of this gang of thieves.

Twenty-three years ago, the Filipinos kicked out a conjugal dictatorship. Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda were forced to flee Manila after a bloodless revolution that toppled the couple’s ruthless and corrupt rule. Now the Philippines is facign not just a conjugal dictatorship but it includes the entire family.

Rocked by corruptions and human rights violations, Gloria Arroyo and her family are trying to cement their hold on power. Arroyo is now the second longest sitting president since Marcos. From 2001 to present, she and her family had been implicated in corruption and kickback scandals. To prevent her removal demcratically or otherwise, she had been draining the country’s coffers to bribe legislators and security forces. Hundreds of political killings enforced disappearances has been recorded with the UNHRC confirming it. Media personnel, members of the judiciary have not been spared so she and cohorts can prevent the truth from coming out.

Her eldest son, a congressman has been tagged by witnesses to an illegal numbers game operation that extends to the the entire country. Her husband has been implicated in taking kickbacks amounting to several hundreds of millions of dollar.  Another son and her brother-in-law has also been implicated in illegal gambling operations.

In fact, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank had exposed  corruption that end at the doorstep of the palace. Because of her appointive powers, she had gained control over every public office of the land. Those legislators in the opposition are deprived of their development faunds which has led to poverty and lack of progress in their districts. Now even the presidential elections of scheduled on 2010 hangs in the balance as her allies in the legislative are poised to amend the constitution to perpetuate themselves to power.

The Philippines has become the Zimbabwe of Asia. Our justice system has been mocked and her allies implicated in corruptions remain free. Even those imprisoned had been given executive clemency. Corruption here has been institutionalized. Thanks to her leadership by example, Gloria Arroyo has run the country to the ground. Investors shy away not because of our contitutional safeguards but because of the corruption in our bureaucracy.

Their cronies are having a field day. Every form of tax is being imposed to cover the losses incurred because of corruption. When public funds end up in their pockets, social service suffers. This the reality of life every Filipino must face. Unless we find a way to kick this corrupt family out, my country will never have a future.

Watching history in the making  as Pres. Barack Obama takes his oath of office left me inspired and so full of hope. I’m not an American but I can feel how proud Americans must be. With Pres. Obama’s election, America has been freed from the shackles of discrimination. Once again, the United  States of America proved to the international community why the US is the leader of the world.

His speech was awe-inspiring and anyone who heard it will be left with so much hope. My country, the Philippines has experienced and is experiencing oppression. We kicked out a dictator 22 years ago only to put into office another oppressor who has been sitting in office for the last 8 years.

What gave me hope is when Pres. Obama said, “To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit, to the silencing of dissent, you are on the wrong side of history.” These words struck deep and touched me. Our current illegal sitting president stole the presidency twice. First was when she hoodwinked civil society into kicking a president out of office, and the second was when she rigged the presidential election of 2004. George Bush cuddled her because she supported Bush’s war on terror.

She is now trying to perpetuate herself into eternal reign by trying to change our system of government from presidential to parliamentary. Her term is set to end in June of 2010 and she had been pushing for charter change to legitimize her hold on power.

Her administration has been rocked by scandal after scandal. Every indignation by the people was met with force. During her term, killings and enforced disappearances has been continuously rising. Journalists, judges, student activists and members of the opposition has been either harassed or killed. Whistle blowers were slapped with spurious charges while her allies who stole the people’s money remain to be free. Her son’s are both congressmen and have been controlling  congress through bribery.

Pres. Obama started out as a lowly community organizer. Community organizers in my country who educate the people of their rights are branded enemies of the state. With Pres. Obama’s election and with the words he uttered during his speech, I am hoping that US policy with regards to my country will finally change. The UN special rapporteur found Gloria Arroyo’s administration guilty of human rights violations. I hope that Pres. Obama will be instrumental in helping my people be freed from her oppression. Not by force but making it difficult for her to further suppress and oppress my people.

My country the Philippines has had its share of female presidents. In just two decades of our new found democracy, weve had two already. The first was Corazon Cojuangco Aquino and the present, Gloria Macapagal Arroy. Both maybe women but worlds apart. Aquino was a plain housewife and Arroyo a seasoned politician.

Aquino came to power to our first People Power Revolt. In 1983, her exiled husband and former senator, Benigno Aquino was brutally gunned down on the tarmac of our international airport. Then dictator, Ferdinand Marcos announced a snap election. Knowing very well that he has total control and with the opposition leaderless with the senator’s death, Marcos was confident he will be “elected” as president. With Benigno’s death, the splintered opposition nominated Benigno’s widow, Corazon. It was clear from the onset that there will be massive cheating to get Marcos elected. When tabulators walked out of the central counting center to show their disgust over the cheating, the start of the end for Marcos’s reign began.

Corazon though coming from a family of politicians never entered politics. She had no creditials to show. All she had was to realize the dreams her martyred husband dreamt of. She was well loved by the people but military adventurists with the aid of displaced politicians tried to unseat her several times. Through all this, she was able to keep herself as a model of public service. Remember, she was a palin houswife. She remains to be loved and revered by the Filipinos.

In stark contrast, Gloria Arroyo rose from the ranks. A daughter of a former president, Diosdado Macapagal, she became a senator and a vice president finally grabbing power through a bogus revolution. But she was not yet through, the ambitious Arroyo ran for president in 2004 and won in a highly suspicious manner. To this day, she reign with an iron hand, whisking her opponents and holding power through political bribery. Her term is to end in 2010 but being greedy, she is now spearheading a constitutional shift that could give her perpetual power.

With the U.S. elections just over the horizon, the Republicans has exposed their ace in the person of Sarah Palin. Within a heartbeat away from the presidency, I just wonder how she will run the country should she ascend to the presidency. As I’ve mentioned above, with or without experience, anybody is qualified to be president. The only that matters is what principles they have and the attitude they possess. At the end of the day, it is the voter who will decide. The Filipinos put their trust in Corazon Aquino and in more ways than one, she did not disappoint us. The same cannot be said of Gloria Arroyo, she has driven the country in the quagmire of despair.

Gender should never be an issue, it’s what’s in the heart of the candidate presented to you. Begging you to elect them into office. Experience is also not an issue, what matters is will they represent the people. I just hope that come November, Americans will vote wisely without prejudice to race, religion, gender or experience. Just keep in mind that vultures prey on the weak and exploit the wounded.

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