Guilty as charged?

I am still trying to understand the statement of Finance Secretary Sonny Dominguez not to accept the EU’s offer of a grant of about $280 million because it would involve a review of our adherence to the rule of law.  According to Sec Sonny, because of that, the specific EU grant is considered interference in our internal affairs.

Come on Sec. Sonny… Aren’t we supposed to be adhering to the rule of law anyway? That’s what the Constitution is all about.

When President Duterte took his oath of office, he swore to uphold the Constitution. That means he must ensure our government operates on the basis of the rule of law… our law, mind you, not the EU’s.

We have also signed international covenants like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and I presume that having ratified such covenants, they are as good as being incorporated as part of the laws of the land.

We made a declaration as a people that we believe all human beings have certain inalienable rights – right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Are we now saying we no longer subscribe to these universal standards?

When our government rejected the EU aid offer because it requires a review of our adherence to the rule of law, we are saying – guilty as charged…

 Unfortunately, rule of law to President Duterte is synonymous to respect for human rights which he doesn’t subscribe to. Even then, he cannot by himself take the Filipino nation out of the family of nations that’s governed by civilized norms of behavior.

We agree we have a serious drug problem that requires drastic solutions. But Mr. Duterte cannot try to do what he did in Davao on a national scale and not expect a sharp backlash.

EJK in Davao may be accepted by a smaller population that’s easier to control. But on a nationwide scale, it is unacceptable. That’s why the strategy caught worldwide attention and condemnation.

In any case, the strategy is unsustainable. It is not possible for any leader to kill every drug pusher, drug addict and drug lord.

What makes the task really impossible is that the PNP is tainted. It was Mr. Duterte who said that too. And the leadership of the PNP seems not up to the task of cleansing the ranks to regain credibility.

A president with a singular focus on killing everyone associated with drugs, proven or otherwise, will eventually cause problems in other areas of national importance.

The virtual admission that we can’t survive scrutiny of our adherence to the rule of law puts our economy at risk. Investors will have second thoughts.  Adherence to the rule of law is topmost in an investor’s concern. It is too risky to invest in a country that is not governed by the rule of law.

Indeed, we are losing more than that $280 million in EU assistance. We are liable to lose potential investors not just from the EU, but also from other countries too. We may even lose local jobs dependent on manufacturing products meant for export to the EU.

That’s why the economic planning secretary was surprised and worried upon hearing the news. He said the rejection was spawned only by the “temporary” unhappiness of President Duterte with the EU.

“No, no, no. It will not be a policy, not a permanent policy. It’s temporary… temporary unhappiness,” Sec. Pernia answered when asked if this was a signal of a permanent change in government official policy.

In this regard, I do not believe the claim of Sec. Dominguez that it was he who recommended the rejection. I think he is covering up for the President, thinking he can fix things later.

As my paper’s editor-in-chief pointed out, that decision has an impact on gut issues. The worse immediate possibility is losing our preferential trading status with the European Union under the GSP plus that accords our exports duty free entry.

The Philippines is the only ASEAN country and among 13 beneficiaries with a GSP+ status. See how special we are to the EU! But this privilege is also subject to among others, adherence to the rule of law.

There are foreign investors who moved manufacturing facilities here from China with the intention of exporting to EU states. Exports to the EU grew 48 percent in the first quarter of 2017, making the EU the biggest and fastest-growing export destination of Philippine goods. The EU overtook the longtime top export markets, the United States and Japan, in March.

Then there are our seamen. As my editor pointed out, “at least 28,874 Filipinos serve as crew on EU-registered commercial ships, remitting a hefty $3.35 billion over the years to their loved ones in the Philippines. Some of the sailors are ship captains… These are not investments or jobs that China can replace, especially now that the threat of war has been raised.”

Europe is now the fourth top source of OFW remittances contributing about 10 percent to the Philippines’ GDP. BSP data show remittances from Europe reached about $3.8 billion, the fourth top source next to Asia, the Middle East and US, in 2016. Those inflows from Europe accounted for about 14 percent of the total $26.9 billion in remittances that overseas Filipinos sent home in 2016.

So the President is now in Russia in pursuit of an independent foreign policy. Befriending Russia is good even if there is nothing Russia can significantly contribute to our economy any time soon. 

Maybe we can sell bananas to the Russians and reduce dependence of our banana exporters to China. Maybe there is potential in tourism. Russians trying to escape their cruel winters are frequent visitors to Boracay.

We may buy weapons from Russia to cover what the US will not sell us due to human rights concerns. But getting investments from Russia? Nada! Its nuclear arms aside, Russia is as third world as we are.

We ought to get increasingly worried about how the President conducts foreign policy. It seems dependent on his mood or frame of mind.

The President conducts no policy discussions with the Cabinet and the professional diplomats at DFA. And now that our secretary of foreign affairs is an ambitious politician with zero experience in diplomacy and no inclination to correct Duterte, we really have problems.

The governance of our nation and our foreign affairs cannot be determined by the single issue of drugs. The Mayor has to learn to become the president that we elected him to be… he has more areas of concern than the anti-drug drive.

And in making new friends among nations, we don’t have to throw aside old friends… no matter how personally pissed he is with them. We have invested years working with old allies in trying to build up our country and improve the lives of our people.

Yes let us reject foreign aid with strings attached detrimental to us… like virtually giving up territory a UN Court has determined to be ours. But objecting to a requirement calling for “adherence to the rule of law” is like saying the rule of law in our country is dead or is applied only as our President sees fit.

That’s shameful. Every Filipino should honor the blood spilled by our heroes who fought and died precisely so we, their children, can live in a country where adherence to the rule of law is paramount.

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @boochanco.