EVENTS from December 6 to this writing on December 9 have begun to look like history itself is making the nation a new offer wrapped in another chaotic political spectacle. Opportunity lurks to set a whole new series of events in motion on a whole new set of premises.
The provocation for this fresh spectacle was the latest congressional shenanigan tagged with the embarrassingly accurate abbreviation “Con-Ass” for constituent assembly, completing an irreverent trio with “Con-Con” for constitutional convention and “Cha-Cha” for charter change.
Note an immediate result of that fevered fast break in the postponement of Philippine hosting of the ASEAN summit. It isn’t just the approach of a new typhoon in the Central Visayas. A more telling reason is that Mrs. Arroyo’s government does not have enough security forces for both an alleged terrorist threat at the summit in Cebu and the major political fire it has itself lit with Con-Ass in Manila.
When the majority party moved in the dead of night on Dec.6 to change Congress’s own rules in a resolution to unilaterally convene itself into a Con-Ass, Camarines Sur’s Rep. Luis Villafuerte defied both age and the law of gravity in defense of that sneak move against the protest of oppositionist congressmen half his age.
Three days later, he would not admit to the media in a press conference in Makati that Con-Ass proponents are in effect backtracking from their arrogant move because an angry nation, now back to bristling protest mode, is inundating them in protest. Speaker de Venecia had just said so himself, when he announced an “invitation” to the Senate to join them in a constitutional convention if they didn’t want a Con-Ass.
Such is our political culture; such is the TV medium relaying another overheated political moment. Not only did the flamboyant Leftist Renato Constantino, Jr. create a media-genic ruckus by shouting “Serial rapists!” at de Venecia and company before the press con had even started. (For a reason yet unknown, the Inquirer business columnist Vic Agustin also threw a glass of water at Constantino off camera. We wonder what loose cannon RC fired at him.)
Meanwhile party stalwarts could not help giving a glimpse of Lakas knees buckling at an impending mass protest “prayer rally” denouncing the “scandalous immorality” of ramming the Con-Ass through. With the phrase “tipping point” suddenly back in circulation, Reps. Gilbert Teodoro of Tarlac and Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon stepped up to elucidate de Venecia’s announcement in their best ruling-class tones.
The Cojuangco clan’s Teodoro said that having tried People’s Initiative and Con-Ass the ruling party is now “shifting public pressure” to the Senate – daring it to prove that it’s not against charter change, as though it were the most urgent thing for the country and not them. For his part, the Bukidnon elite’s Zubiri relayed a second unctuous message: Con-Ass proponents “are not evil people” and are giving way to public sentiment so that “everyone can have a merry Christmas.”
Whether Dec.9 was an attempt to save face and/or preparation to fight for Cha-Cha another day, words have already been out shouted by action behind the scenes. With the prospect of the CBCP, El Shaddai, and Jesus is Lord joining forces for a massive show of force at the Luneta (the Iglesia ni Kristo may swell the crowd, I’m told), the latest word is that certain VIPs are doing much more than a transparent attempt to put the Senate on the spot.
That prayer rally at the Luneta will not take place on Dec.15, as originally announced. It’s had to be postponed to Sunday, Dec.17. A Pagcor rally, of all things, will be using the Quirino Grandstand on the 15th instead, whether as last-minute firefighting by Mrs. Arroyo’s party remains to be verified.
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So how in the world do we rescue good out of this chaos?
Consider the basic elements of the moment. Mrs. Arroyo’s coalition has just overplayed its hand by a mile and wound up with huge egg on its face. Righteous indignation is firing up Filipino polities again. Turned off by the mixed picture presented by the opposition, the nation was already settling into discontented quiescence when a live telecast of Lakas-CMD’s latest shenanigan lit the fire all over again.
What’s to stop academe, youth groups and the rich spectrum of Philippine civil society from getting together now with the protesting religious blocs and taking the bull by the horns, both here and in Diaspora, for a real People’s Initiative? If it sees the need, such a movement could focus on and study the 1987 Constitution itself and come up with its own suggested amendments in global consultation, relayed back and forth by the media. Freeing ourselves from over dependence on lawyers could be the beginning of truly winning back the Philippines from its woefully selfish politicians.
More than ever, the medium is the message. Mr. Marcos was forced to call a snap election by a television interview with Ted Koppel. Together, nascent computer technology and the media turned the computer technicians’ walkout from the snap election count into the beginning of EDSA I. The Estrada presidency began in movie mythmaking and a joke book. Media investigation of Erap’s “housing program” for his mistresses was the beginning of the end for his government. The end itself was in turn delivered by a live telecast of his trial and the cell phone brigades that led to EDSA II.
Cyber tech delivered the “Hello Garci” scandal to Mrs. Arroyo’s doorstep two years ago in May. Financed by public treasure, she has withstood its tectonics thus far, but to everything there is a season. Our country’s regressive, lawyer-dominated narrative of nation-building has reached new depths in the present Congress. Meanwhile our needs are growing and spreading worldwide by leaps and bounds.
Something’s gotta give. Alienated from our own government, what’s stopping Filipinos from taking hold again with People Power updated? Experience, too, is a cutting edge.
Respond to: slmayuga@yahoo.com
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Previous columns: Sister Cities by the Bay – 12/03/06 Old and new memories – 11/26/06 Shadowing the light – 11/19/06 Mothering Congress – 11/12/06 It’s the Paradigm, Folks – 11/04/06
