MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang yesterday said it is apparent that the military officer who called for the ouster of President Aquino from office is working for the former President, Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Last week, Marine Col. Generoso Mariano was seen in a 95-second video on Facebook calling for the replacement of the government.
“It is the duty, it is the right of every Filipino including soldiers to replace the government. I repeat, replace the government,” Mariano says in the video dated July 3, 2011. The shared videos on Facebook originate from the account of a group called “Oust Noynoy Movement!”
A copy of the video was distributed to journalists hours before Aquino presided over a command conference in Camp Aguinaldo.
“He (Mariano) can start working full time for Rep. Arroyo after he retires but not when he is in active duty. Their mandate and duty are clear. It does not include engaging in partisan politics,” said deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte in an interview with state-owned radio dzRB.
Valte said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) considers Mariano’s action an isolated case in the organization.
“It’s apparent that he is alone. No one came after him. We can see if a person’s action is isolated,” she said. “We are confident that the soldiers know that they are here to uphold the Constitution, to secure the county and not to engage in partisan politics.”
The military said Mariano was among the soldiers who participated in the 1989 coup attempt against Aquino’s mother, the late former President Corazon Aquino.
Mariano is detained in his Navy quarters while his actions are investigated.
Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Omar Tonsay said Mariano faces charges of sedition and conduct unbecoming of an officer.
Navy chief Adm. Alexander Pama said that in the course of the investigation, it would be determined if Mariano has supporters.
Mariano, who was scheduled to retire from service yesterday, was imprisoned during the 1989 coup attempt against the first Aquino administration. It remains unclear if his retirement benefits will be withheld pending the results of the investigation.
AFP spokesman Commodore Miguel Rodriguez said there is no need to conduct a loyalty check in the military.
“Loyalty check? Laos na ‘yan (That’s passé). We are no longer in a regime similar to that during World War II,” he said.
We have learned so many lessons from the past. This (military uprising) should not happen. We cannot backtrack from our advancements. We will not move forward,’ he added. – With Alexis Romero, Christina Mendez, Paolo Romero