The way Philippine society is responding to the political crisis unfolding today is not too different from the campaign months leading to the 2010 presidential elections. Despite mounting evidence that the administration of President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III is moving heaven and earth to go into damage control over the fire they started around allegations of pork barrel thievery in Congress, it seems the Yellow mob remain beholden to the hollow pedigree of the Aquinos and Cojuangcos.
Similarly, even back during the earliest days of the last presidential campaign, BS Aquino and his campaign team had already exhibited an astounding dishonesty too blatant for smart people to ignore but, unfortunately, too subtle for the sensibilities of ordinary Filipinos to look past. From an empty but song-and-dance-filled campaign rhetoric that effectively shrouded a lack of any substantial platform underwriting his bid for the presidency, to a shameless use of Goebbelian mass persuasion techniques to appeal to the taste for melodrama of the typical Filipino mind, as well as a penchant for liberally drawing from the political capital of his parents’ pedigrees, BS Aquino did it all. He was the “Reluctant” One and, thus supposedly lacking a traditional politician’s agenda. He was the “Prayerful” One and, as such, infallible to the Filipino eye. The presidency was seen by many as his birthright on account of the notion that his father Ninoy was the president Filipinos never had and his mother the president every Filipino prayed for.
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The Aquino administration’s talent for teflon politics is as potent as ever. Perhaps, it is because there are many business interests at stake. For his bid for the presidency, there was the reportedly insolvent Hacienda Luisita Inc (HLI) estate and, presumably, its vast network of crony creditors who are loath to write off what could be billions of pesos of HLI debt from their balance sheets. Indeed, as we speculated a while back, an HLI collapse could potentially drag down many businesses and possibly cause a mini economic collapse — which is probably why the business community, led by the pompously-named Makati Business Club rallied behind the Reluctant One’s campaign.
Now as BS Aquino takes efforts to sweep the pork barrel scam swirling around alleged ringleader Janet Lim Napoles under the rug, the Philippine business community seems to be noticeably cooperative as well — no longer stepping up to the plate as stalwart of “social justice” within the circles of the Philippines’ so-called “civil society”. Just like HLI, the pork barrel gravy pot is likely to be already a key component of this year’s financial forecasts in many Philippine businesses. As such, there just has to be some form of pork barrel in the Philippine Government. Businesses need it. Social parasites sit around with their mouths agape at the heavens chirping for it. Politicians’ mistresses salivate over it.
The Philippines simply won’t be the Philippines without the pork barrel. Indeed, if there is one sentence that could summarise Philippine history, it would be this:
A fool and his gold are soon parted.
For what other people supposedly “blessed” with an abundance of natural resources, a treasure trove of physical, cultural, and social infrastructure left by its former colonial masters, and, more recently, a “freedom” that was “won” in what was once a globally-admired non-violent “revolution” would remain so wretchedly poor nonetheless? Who else but the Filipino people.
Perhaps it is simply Filipinos’ lot in life to be stolen from. The world, after all, wouldn’t have any thieves if there was nobody to steal from. Filipinos seem to have a talent for filling that role in the scheme of things. They’ve had their natural resources, chiseled away from under their feet as they danced the years away in their colourful fiestas and paid their taxes to kleptocrats they themselves elected to office with glee.
By all accounts, even as the obvious outrage of vast and profound thievery unfold before their eyes on national television and even as evidence of how no less than President BS Aquino himself dangled pork before these thieves to achieve the goals leading to the securing of the family jewels of his larger clan, Filipinos remain a picture of tragic gullibility. Just like many other instances of obvious mass deceit perpetrated by duly-elected officials, this is but the most recent case that goes to further proving that Filipinos deserve their government.
benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.
As usual Benign0. You are just pointing to what is there. This is not fiction. Yet doorknobs will accuse you and the website of being negative and/or propped up by GMA. In the words of Billy Joel “you know when the truth is told, you can get what you want or you can just get old.”
I find though that the sorts of concepts I try to bring across in this article are too complicated for most people to grasp. Well, for that matter, that’s also what I say there — that sometimes the fundamental truth is staring us in the face, and many of us choose to ignore it simply because we cannot reconcile that truth with a baseless but ingrained belief that the Aquinos stand for everything that is good.
I agree with Gogs, BengnO. You said it well and straight to the point. BS betrayal of a trusting and hopeful public is tough to watch.
As this scandal unfolds, more questions are raised about the scope of the conspiracy.
Why does COA need 3 years to audit 3 years of PDAF releases and liquidation? What happened to monthly, quarterly or annual closing statements like banks or businesses do it? Are they cover for the crime?
Is it true that Government Agencies were taking a 3% stake in some projects? How was this accounted for? Did it not show up in the COA Audit? or was this “Off the Books?
Is it possible that some fund provided an extra P 50 million per Senator during the Corona Impeachment like Estrada claims? Even if there was no Quid pro Quo, It looks bad but SMELLS WORSE!!!!
BeningO, thank you for asking publicly what I have always wondered. Does the absence of outrage over PDAF mean that Big Business is complicit?? I have noticed that electricity rate increases get rubber stamp approval, and Meralco even expenses taxes and “entertainment”, but A P10 increase in minimum wage is a 2 year struggle.
I mean no disrespect to the people, but it seems that their entire legislative body is engaged in mental masturbation while the Executive and Big Business collaborate on the much bigger crimes.
Thanks guys. Also true enough, as revelations of how certain senators received more than their usual share of pork following the “conviction” of Corona, so too do the excuses and rationalisations flow. Recent is Drilon’s reported admission that he got P100m out of that trial.
It’s sad, isn’t it? I used to think that the worst chapter in our national life was the Marcos years; I now think it’s the time we’re in now. Under Marcos, the people were cowed into submission; now, the people willingly submit and even embrace our phony president, thanks to traditional and social media and the faulty logic and decaying values of our people. You’re right, benign0 — we deserve our government, but if I may add, we don’t deserve democracy. I now believe that the best form of government for us is an authoritarian one, with a benevolent head. We’re a wounded race and a failed state.
You’re exactly right. Compared to the Marcos years, Filipinos today are free, well- (if not over-) informed, and live in a comparatively safer environment for self-expression. So, in that sense, the ethical impoverishment that afflict Filipinos today is a far bigger tragedy than their impoverishment in the 1970’s.
But could it be that many have seen the light but don’t know what to do? Go to the streets again and topple a democratically elected president, only to see him replaced by another one of his kind? What can we do, benign0? Please tell me as I die inside with every day that passes with nothing happening.
You say you ‘Die inside every day that passes with nothing happening’? Well that is a good start, believe it or not. Now all you need is about another 1 Million people who are willing to die to effect the change necessary.
PLEASE,Tell me I don’t have to spell out the rest, OR do I?
We saw it coming… The mostly black propaganda, blame games, scapegoating and manipulated surveys. It is sad that the yellows and their followers continue to follow the bandwagon of BS Aquino. His 1.4 Trillion Pesos funds still exists. The optimist in me says… You can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Wake up Philippines!
I sometimes think that the 15 million Filipinos who voted for Aquino naively thinking that he’s the cure for all the Philippines’ ills are just too proud to admit now that they were wrong after all so they’re just deceiving themselves into thinking that all’s well with him and the country. Pride, as Shakespeare illustrated in his works, is the perfect condition for hubris.
I used that in my recent analysis on Noytards. Pride is exactly it. Of course some other people could not understand my reference to Wallace in Pulp Fiction.
anyone who is proud of the accomplishments of the present Filipino admin.(or any other Filipino admin. in the last 60 years!) is either profiting mightily from it, or is very very delusional. The country is a mess, the people are starving and the price of everything is sky-rocketing. How can this all be OK?
Hubris ante nemesis.
Yes, thanks, Aegis-Judex. I hope that’s what really happens. Justice has to prevail.
The Filipino does not deserve its gov’t., I just do not believe that! No way do the poverty stricken Masses deserve the scumbags they are powerless to be rid of. The Oligarchy and its crony Kleptocracy are simply to big for the Filipino massa to overcome, unless they kill it, and that could be suicidal and would require massive co-operation of the massa, which is doubtfully achievable. The institutions that are supposed to protect the massa from these scumbags has been perverted to do the exact opposite which is to protect the Oligarch and the Kleptocracy. Only a complete obliterating of the Oligarchy and , more importantly, the crony Kleptocracy set-up to protect the Oligarchs can possibly change the life of the Filipino massa. It is only their fault for having this situation if they are guilty of obeying the laws they thought protected them, but sadly do not.
The author cites Dr.Joseph Goebels incorrectly. The Third Reich in no way resembles the Filippine Oligarchy. The Third Reichs set-up and purpose were for one main purpose. A Riech-State that would liberate the German people from the shackles imposed by the International Jew and his banking system in which the German people would all partake and enjoy ruling the rest of the world in. The formulations used and propaganda employed by Dr.Goebels and Co. are not really comparable to what is happening in the Fail-ippines at this time, nor are the aims of the Filippine gov’t. the extermination of any single group of people by deliberately lethal means. Fascist Germany in the 1930’s, and the propaganda used to propel it, resembles todays’ Fail-ippines very little. If anything today’s Fail-ippines resembles the post WW1 German state propped up by the treaty of Versailles. Slave wages, corrupt banking and political system, poverty stricken economy/populace ruled by an Oligarchy supported by a Crony-kleptocracy.
As I have commented earlier, Aquino cannot scrap the Pork Barrel. He got richer from it. and, he uses it as a political tool.