Staying in Cabinet prolongs the crisis - GOTCHA by Jarius Bondoc

Executive Secretary Ronnie Zamora wants us to believe that Joseph Estrada is a changed man. That two years of loafing and cronyism after, he is ready to run the government the way a President should from day one. That eight mistresses and several mansions later, he is ready to walk the straight and narrow path of upright leadership. "Stay tuned for new policy pronouncements," Zamora pines, "and you’ll see what I mean."

While miracles can happen, Zamora seems to be striving more to convince himself than outraged citizens that Estrada indeed has reformed. Fellow-Cabinet members and LAMP partymates are clinging to that hope, or rather, singing that note, to justify their decision to stay put in the wake of substantial evidence and confessions of presidential misdeeds. They’re trying to assure themselves that, by leaving, Mar Roxas, Jun Magsaysay, Frank Drilon, Manny Villar and many others blew their chance to alleviate the people’s misery during the crisis. They’re even patting each other on the back for little victories, like getting Estrada to sign this or that directive which he should have done long ago to begin with.

One such jubilant hanger-on is presidential spokesman Dong Puno. He claims to have convinced Estrada to open Manila’s port modernization to at least two management-builder contractors, instead of the onerous monopoly envisioned in Executive Order 59. Yet the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and shippers who had long opposed EO 59 are not smiling. They say that while Estrada scrapped EO 59, he replaced it with surprise EO 308 that seemingly aims to make public bidding fail from lopsided division of the areas to be privatized.

Another is agrarian reform chief Horacio Morales. He jumped for joy when Estrada finally signed an EO awarding the long-disputed coconut-levy funds to poor farmers. Ironically, the very farmers whom he claimed would benefit from it are unsatisfied and, thus, taking the matter to the Supreme Court.

Ed Angara reportedly had warned Estrada about impeachment when he got wind of jueteng payola long before Chavit Singson exposed it. Yet he chose to stay. For, he thinks that, despite insufficient funds resulting from dwindling tax collections, he can still fulfill the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act that he fought so hard for as Senate President.

Jose Pardo daydreams he can stop cronyism once and for all. He got Estrada to announce last Oct. 30 such "reforms" as public bidding of radio-television frequencies, "open skies", and privatization of the state gambling firm. Yet he can’t explain why SSS and GSIS, which are supposedly within his finance department’s turf, are frittering away private and government workers’ life savings to prop up the stock market. SSS reportedly buys and sells shares through only one brokerage – the one owned by a mistress.

Orly Mercado believes he’s the last ace who can stop restive military officers from staging a coup d’etat against civilian authority. But Estrada only rattled the chain of command by promoting to general – a protégé of PNP chief Ping Lacson and Zamora brothers Ronnie and Manny – over 150 more senior officers.

Artemio Tuquero wishes to restore order and respect for law in the justice department. But Malacañang has other designs with his National Bureau of Investigation. Potential witnesses on the presidential mansions case have clammed up after scary visits from NBI agents.

The list goes on. Bienvenido Laguesma dreams he can stop laborers from losing jobs by the tens of thousands each month due to the business crunch. Felipe Medalla wishes he can still entice foreign investors despite his grim forecast of recession in the first half of 2001.

They think they’re doing citizens a favor. But they’re only imitating Ferdinand Marcos’ ministers who, by sticking it out with him after Ninoy Aquino was killed in ‘83, prolonged his reign of terror – and the people’s misery – for two-and-a-half more years.

Cesar Virata, Ronnie Velasco, Bobby Ongpin, among many esteemed economic managers of the time, resisted counsels to abandon ship to force Marcos to abdicate. They said they had to stay to prevent any more theft of public funds. The economy only contracted farther: -7 percent in 1984 and -4 percent in 1985. By contrast, GNP rose 6 percent in 1987 and 7 percent in 1988 (despite coup attempts against Cory Aquino) largely from goodwill and confidence in the wake of the peaceful EDSA Revolt of 1986.

History is repeating itself. By staying with a President who has lost moral ascendancy to lead, Estrada’s men are prolonging the present crisis.

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INTERACTION. Samuel S. Aherrera, mydestiny.net: "One Mansion Equals 2,000 Mass Houses" (Gotcha, 20 Nov. 2000) shows how he is bleeding the masa dry. Sixteen mansions at P400 million each is P6.4 billion in two years in office (P266 million per month) on an official salary of P650,000 a year.

Danny Vargas, eudoramail.com: Filipinos are unable to put into office the right leaders; this means they can’t govern themselves. They’ll have to wander in the desert before they find their destiny.

Yul Atienza, pacific.net: Sen. Santiago’s fearless forecast of acquittal (Gotcha, 18 Nov. 2000) all the more justifies the need of protest rallies.

Ramon A. Carballo, yahoo.com: The fact that our Vice President can come from a party opposed to the President affects the impeachment proceedings, unlike in the US system. John Osmeña can’t imagine himself voting to impeach, for that would lead to the rise of Gloria Arroyo and her ally Lito Osmeña, John’s brother with whom he is feuding.

Susan Velasquez, attcanada.ca: Erap’s line that he didn’t touch the P200 million (Gotcha, 15 Nov. 2000) reminds us of another President who claimed he "did not inhale."

Wren Cinco, Valenzuela: Will somebody please tell him to stop saying he will never resign. Every time he does so, the peso takes a beating.

Thank you, Rafael Oriel, Alex Roces, Ike Eslao, E.C. Ibazeta, Abel Coloma, Jojo Gonzales, Gracita Bucad, Victorio Matias, Aida Aguas, Alex Sinson, Boy Ner, Cesar Francisco, Dr. Rufino Santos, Megan Canda, Jojo Murata, Charibeth Y. Ko, Jose Mangahas, Adel Kareem DI.

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YOUR BODY. A 57-year-old woman underwent a surgical gamble last week in which doctors in Houston, Texas, temporarily removed her heart, sliced off three rapidly growing tumors, then returned the repaired organ. The surgery team was cautiously optimistic afterwards. Only one patient has survived the procedure. More on this in cnn.com/health.

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