I did not see the so-called State of the Nation Address of Gloria Arroyo. My time was better spent on reading, and besides, bloggers would surely pounce on it. An excellent representative is, as always, MLQ3, in a post here and here. The second post links to other blog entries, so you might want to check it out.

I’d rather post here a SONA that a certain someone might have delivered if he was President (heaven forbid!):

Mr. Vice President, Mr. Senate President, Mr. Speaker of the House, Mr. Chief Justice, members of Congress, Excellencies of the Diplomatic Corp, honored guests:

I will not express my thanks to anybody since I believe all of you are part of the problem of this nation. But I’d rather concentrate on has-beens who are just making noises.

This nation does not want to hear from destabilizers. The people are tired of your shenanigans, and the silent majority will rather move on and work towards progress. You are just noisy has-beens, and this nation will be greatly relieved if you are silenced. Therefore, I am directing the Armed Forces and the Philippine National Police to investigate, prosecute, and jail destabilizers and enemies of the country. For this purpose, I am allocating two billion pesos.

I also call on Congress to pass a bill that will waive the Bill of Rights, specifically those that apply on arrests, so that these destabilizers and noisemakers can be brought to justice. But since the Senate will rather impede progress, I’d rather issue an executive order for this purpose.

I am issuing this warning to the enemies of the State: I will not hesitate in using the full force of the law to crush you. You have long been destabilizing my government, and it is time to end your reign of terror. The silent majority is already exasperated and will only be glad to get rid of you.

I am putting into high priority the change in the form of government, so that the obstructionist Senate will be forever eradicated. This will also empower the true representatives of the people, which are derogatively designated as members of the Lower House. I commend the House for its efficiency in passing laws. The House has passed a total of 100 bills out of 1000000 bills filed, and I congratulate the House leadership for expediting the passage of crucial bills, such as the increase in taxes to fund pork barrel allocations and renaming streets, schools, and airports using names of my family members.

I am also allowing an increase in pork barrel allocations. This is to make the representatives of the people happy. If they are happy, then the people that they represent are happy, too. I will never impede the happiness of the people, who have suffered for a long time from elitists and the so-called civil society.

This government will no longer pursue the automation of our election system, for two reasons. First, there is no allocation for it, since the obstructionist Senate had derailed the budget that this government had submitted. Second, there is nothing wrong with the system, since I won the elections fair and square. The system works, and thus no change is needed.

We are on the fast track to progress, destabilizers notwithstanding. This is all because of the steadfastness of this government, and the apathy of the people. Now, I will outline the steps that this government will take to continue our path towards progress.

For a long time, Imperial Manila have the hegemony over the affairs of the State. It is time for this hegemony to end. I am therefore dividing the country into five fiefdoms, each having more powers and free from the control of Imperial Manila. I will remain as President, and the heads of these fiefdoms will report and will be responsible to me directly.

Also, this government will concentrate on fund-generating projects, such as building bridges that lead to nowhere, roads that are overpriced, fertilizer to highly-urbanized cities, and other such activities.

I will ask Congress to increase the RVAT from 12% to 15%. Together with congressmen, we have planned a lot of projects, and these will need funds. The increase in RVAT will be enough to cover for all the projects. I ask the Filipino to sacrifice once more for the greater good. Afterall, the people will benefit in the long term.

I will not tackle issues regarding education and health, since there are no fundamental problems in these areas.

I have brought home the displace OFWs from Lebanon. But don’t worry, the unemployment rate will not increase, since these OFWs don’t fall on the definition of unemployment. Besides, there are jobs awaiting for them at Libya, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea. The Departments of Labor and Foreign Affairs will see to it that the unemployment rate stays that way.

We will continue to develop our primary export – our citizens as cheap labor. I am ordering the concerned agencies to research on the labor needs of foreign countries, and train our citizens so that we can export them to these countries. I am proud of our OFWs, those who work as caregivers, domestic helpers, and the like.

I am also directing CHED and TESDA to phase out non-performing courses such as liberal arts and law, and instead compel schools to offer in-demand courses, specially those that will cater to call centers and business process outsourcing companies. These companies generate most jobs. We need to fill in these vacancies. We need to be competitive. I want this country to be known as the support capital of the world.

And to my political enemies: pick the fight, and Manny Pacquiao is game to face all of you. But why waste time? I know you cannot afford Manny’s prize purse, so forget it. Why not join me instead? I promise you that your districts/constituencies will benefit.

I have defeated my enemies, which are the enemies of this country. We are now a nation that is prosperous and united. Thank you.

The Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines, damaged as it was in history, is one of the institutional casualties of Gloria Arroyo’s War To Keep Herself in Power. The Fortress by the Pasig has done well, using classic tactics to damage whatever reputation is left out of the Church.

The relationship between Arroyo and the Church started amiable enough. One of the pillars of EDSA 2 and she the recipient of that premeditated and premature action (legally), the crack began showing in the tumultous year that is 2004. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines at that time concluded that the elections were clean and peaceful, contrary to the popular belief. By being implicitly complicit with Arroyo, the Church’s reputation has somehow been tarnished.

The impeachment fiasco of 2005 showed no improvement on the outlook of the Church. While the CBCP called for a search for the truth, many felt that the pastoral statement issued back then fell short of what it was expected to say. Then there was a change in leadership of CBCP. The outgoing president of that group was seen to be an Arroyo apologist, and there was hope that the new president would be a better replacement. Also in this year, Arroyo and the Church were drifting away from each other.

This year, which is fast becoming a repeat of last year, the Fortress has utilized a two-prong approach on how to neutralize the Church’s influence on the public. Basically, the Fortress’ aim is to further reduce the public’s trust on the Church as an institution. The attacks are either subtle or brazen, or both.

First, it courted the support of the bishops by doling out cash and other help in the runup to the CBCP plenary this month. Many bishops came out in the open, decried the obvious bribery ploy, and condemned such a foul attempt. Many bishops also saw nothing wrong with the doleouts. Thus, the plenary was divided on how to come up with a pastoral statement. The idea of a consensus, to me, is more of a compromise than a true consensus. And we will probably never know the effect of the doleouts in the voting at the CBCP plenary. You know what happened next.

Second, those who refused the doleouts and seen as against Arroyo are painted as destabilizers. The instruments of these attacks – the NBI, Raul Gonzalez, Lawrence San Juan, disgruntled jueteng witnesses – claim that several bishops are in cahoots with destabilizers. While most of the bishops deny the accusations, the damage has been done.

The disunity of the princes of the Church reflects the division of our society, and the evolution of our social norms and values. And the net effect of the two-prong approach is the tarnishing of the reputation of the Church as an institution. The Fortress has shown that if it cannot coopt an institution, it will rather reduce it to disrespute. It has coopted the Congress, the Comelec, the military, the civil society. And while it has coopted some members of the CBCP, it cannot stifle the opposition. Thus the attack on the reputation of the Church as a whole.

Joc-joc Bolante was arrested in LA. When he asked the Fortress by the Pasig to help him with the bail bond, the Fortress refused. Uh oh.

Talk of the town is the newest pastoral statement of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. Most of the documents were expected, but what had sent people speculating and gesticulating is the part on the impeachment. The controversial part is this:

We are undoubtedly for the search for truth. (But) we are not inclined at the present moment to favor the impeachment process as the means for establishing the truth. For unless the process and its rules as well as the mindsets of all participating parties, pro and con, are guided by no other motive than genuine concern for the common good, impeachment will once again serve as an unproductive political exercise, dismaying every citizen, and deepening the citizen’s negative perception of politicians, left, right and center. (as quoted from PCIJ blog)

This has been misread, and the CBCP had to do a press conference just to clarify the message. So almost all news bannered “CBCP not supporting impeachment”.

I have only two comments on this matter. One, the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines, as represented by the CBCP, is a skeptical Church, untrusting the political institutions that could have brought about the truth behind the uncertainties of our times. It is somehow a representation of how the majority (how big is this majority I do not know) views our political institutions, which is also expounded by One Voice. But the wording of its statement, instead of clarifying has instead left a lot of people in confusion. Many thought that the bishops were trying to please everybody, but ended up pushing nothing on the table. Its members were even accused of being bought off by the Fortress by the Pasig.

So to clarify: the Church is not inclined to support the impeachment given the same circumstances that had brought the impeachment to the garbage bin last year still exists; thus the truth will never come out in such an activity.

Which leads me to my second comment: the statement is a BIG implied insult against the House of Representatives and the Congress as a whole. For if it was a credible and trustworthy body, the Church would have not said it that way. But it is there, represented by the clause “For unless the process and its rules as well as the mindsets of all participating parties, pro and con, are guided by no other motive than genuine concern for the common good“. Very, very clear. Very, very clever.

In a previous post, I had speculated that the current impeachment will end up like last year, and pragmatically called for anti-Arroyo groups to campaign for an impeachment Congress in the elections next year. Nothing will come up with the current Congress, and it seems that the CBCP shares this view.

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I failed to see Manolo Quezon’s The Explainer. I was watching the reformatted ANC yesterday, and I was wondering about that show. When I arrived at the office, I found out through a blog post about the show. And the fact that the Dean was a guest, I was very disappointed. And since I slept here in the office today, I failed to see the replay.

MLQ3 presented the links to the materials shown in the show in a blog post, and I think it was a very good play on convergence between a TV show and a blog. In a reply to a comment, he expressed reservations about the legal exposure of ABS-CBN about The Explainer blog. I think what he means is that what information can he post on the blog that will not conflict with ABS-CBN’s copyright. But I think what he did with that blog post is the right thing to do: post the links to the materials used, and let the user read them as they please.

The timing could have been better. ABS-CBN unfurled its early-late night newscast, Bandila, by headlining the video that shows Gen. Danilo Lim of the Scout Rangers announcing his withdrawal of support, calling Gloria Arroyo as a “bogus president”. I find it suspicious that the video was aired on the maiden broadcast of a newscast, when it could have been aired on the flagship TV Patrol World. And yesterday afternoon, I saw the big three of ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs with some people from Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility on ANC. They were essentially defending thd broadcast of the said video.

That video is a Pandora’s boxful of questions. The great DJB asked a few questions: is the Philippine military full of Angelo Reyes wannabees? And, is ABS-CBN News being used by the Fortress by the Pasig for propaganda purposes?

Again, who leaked the video and the supposed to be a report on the investigation of Lim et al? And why only now? Why not during the so-called February 2006 emergency?

If it is the Fortress who released these smoking guns via persons unknown, why? A smokescreen, perhaps, to bury the impeachment with another issue for the people to gnaw upon. It is a known tactic employed by the Fortress. And the fact that the Fortress is now crowing that the video justifies the issuance of the ill-fated Proclamation 1017, this gives credence to the speculation that the Fortress is behind this.

The AFP is definitely not the one who released these. At the end of the day, the AFP is the biggest loser here. As MLQ3 deftly says, there’s no win-win for the armed forces here. Especially for Gen. Generoso Senga.

What if the person who leaked this is a rogue Fortress or AFP insider? A Filipino Deep Throat, perhaps??

If ABS-CBN has this video all along, and other stations not having their own copies, does that mean that perhaps it was part of the so-called conspiracy to oust Gloria Arroyo? This is implausible, but very possible.

There is this line, said by Mel Gibson in the movie The Patriot, that resonates to today’s events, specially Arroyo’s: “I have long feared, that my sins would come to haunt and visit me, and this is more than I could bear”.