He was right, but he was the wrong guy to say so

There he goes again! Nobody can dispute the truth of what United States Ambassador Frank Ricciardone stated in a speech to foreign correspondents, but it wasn’t his business to say so.

Ricciardone is supposed to be a diplomat, the representative of his country to the Philippine government – not a judge, a lecturer, a critic or a scold. Or some muckraking columnist for that matter.

Most insulting of all, as the legate of this nation’s former "colonial master" he comes across as clinging to the insolent notion that the Americans still have dominion over the affairs of this land through a High Commissioner or Governor-General – and that he, Feckless Frank, is the Governor-General. Shaddup, Ricciardone! Let others assail our courts and our society for "corruption" (as we’ve done so innumerable times in this corner). On the other hand, an American ambassador – even more than the envoys of other countries – must diplomatically be quiet as a mouse.

I wrote some months ago that Ricciardone was arrogant. Once again, he’s demonstrated this. (Will he never learn?) Sure, he may fancy himself as brilliant, fluent in languages, from Italian, to Turkish and Arabic, but these "gifts" don’t entitle him to spank us Filipinos for our sins. Foreigners may and do criticize us. But never Ambassadors. This is not their brief.

Can you imagine the American Ambassador to Vietnam speaking publicly of "corruption" in the government over there – and this exists – in the same way? They would have strung him up from the most convenient archway in Hanoi, or dunked him in the Lake of the Restored Sword. In Istanbul, for a similar offense, they would have dragged him down the Bosphorous, chained to the hull of one of their freighters, all the way to the Black Sea. Or at least turned him into a Turkish shishkebab.

As for the US Ambassador in Beijing, could you ever conceive him making such a cheeky speech before the Beijing Foreign Correspondents’ Association without the People’s Liberation Army marching up to him and politely inviting him to grace the PLA’s 75th anniversary parade (yesterday) by being tied to the muzzle of a cannon belonging to a T-72M tank?

Alas, we Filipinos are much too meek and mild when dealing with Americans. This is why guys like Ricciardone are spoiled rotten – besotted in attitude by all the fawning and arse-licking they encounter from day to day. Indeed, President Macapagal-Arroyo’s far too temperate reply will only encourage Ricciardone to even greater heights of effrontery. The President conceded that the US envoy’s warning that corruption is scaring away investors from the Philippines was valid. She admitted that each time they spoke with each other, Ricciardone had mentioned this problem to her. Yes, Madame President – and I’ve heard him say so while we were having dinner together – but precisely owing to the nature of his office, those remarks should have remained private.

Part of the problem, I believe, is that Ricciardone and other US officials, their conceit fattened by the growing US military presence in our archipelago, have begun to view the Philippines – like they do Israel – as a "client state". The difference is that the Jews have tremendous clout in media, in Hollywood, in banking and finance, and even the arts in the United States, aside from their voting numbers. We can’t even present a united front in their electorate, to the extent of being able – like Japanese-Americans, Chinese-Americans and other ethnic minorities – to send a representative to US Congress.

It’s time to remind Mr. Ricciardone, though, of his place in the scheme of things. (American ambassadors should be seen and not heard.) If he can’t learn to behave, then it’s better we shipped him back to Boston, where his patrician airs would be better appreciated. For, judging from what we’ve seen, a diplomat he is not.

Or else, send him to Afghanistan – where the Pushtuns, Uzbeks, Tajiks, etc. know how to deal with insults, real or imagined. If they’re offended, they shoot people – even their own Vice Presidents and Ministers of Tourism.

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A survey by American Chambers of Commerce (AMCHAM) of countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reportedly indicated that the Philippines tops the region in terms of graft and corruption.

Instead of just shrugging and agreeing with Ricciardone, President GMA should take this as a nudge to go out and do something about it.

Do you recall why the former presidential graft-buster, Chairman Eufemio Domingo, resigned almost a year ago from the Presidential Commission Against Graft and Corruption? Fem Domingo bewailed the fact that curbing graft and corruption was "not a priority of Malacañang". Those were strong words, especially coming from a man of proven integrity as well as experience and courage in combatting graft. The irony of it is that we have all the structures in place for the waging of this battle. We have one of the best anti-graft laws in the world, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and, currently, two anti-graft investigating agencies – the Office of the Ombudsman and the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission. The first is run by Ombudsman Aniano Desierto, who is retiring on August 5. The second is headed by a new Chairman, former Comelec Commissioner Dario Rama.

Why have both failed? The awful truth is that no anti-graft drive can ever succeed without all-out presidential backing. It’s time GMA addressed that problem personally, instead of merely shrugging about it.

At a private dinner in Malacañang just a week ago, in fact, the President complained about almost the same things the US ambassador had criticized. She even added that another reason foreign investors shied away from this country was corruption in the bureaucracy. When one of the guests pointed out to the Chief Executive that the bureaucracy was under her, so what did she intend to do about it – the President didn’t reply, but merely looked pensive. I think she has thought about that matter long enough. It’s time for action – and I mean both ruthless and relentless.

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The Barangay elections were a total flop. They were also bloody. With 87 dead and 45 injured, these Barangay polls may be the most violent in memory. How could Lt. Gen. Gregorio Camiling Jr. call them "generally peaceful"? Must be something wrong, not just with his arithmetic but with his logic.

Violence aside, I think the Commission on Elections flunked the test. If the Barangay and the Sangguniang Kabataan elections were supposed to be a "dry run" for the coming 2004 elections, then the Comelec has been exposed as being incapable of mounting a credible election. Can it shape up before 2004? From what’s just transpired, it doesn’t seem likely. Even when you discount the weather, which was terrible – with rains, floods, and other adverse conditions preventing elections in many Barangays – there was a marked lack of response on the part of the electorate. Few went to the polling precincts. One reason is that the Comelec, so busy with its own intramurals, had not properly publicized the importance of the Barangay polls. (Never mind the youth polls, which are a useless exercise.) The sad offshoot of this neglect is that many of the wrong Barangay leaders may have managed to sneak their way into office – either through force and intimidation, or by ballot-stuffing.

Millions of pesos were wasted, sad to say, in the event. I submit that we ought to go back to the drawing board and rethink the Barangay-election process, as well as the nature, functions, and responsibilities of our Barangays. There are already too many layers of bureaucracy in our society, each costing us money, each jealous of petty position and pride, and, for that matter, abusing the power to "tax". And if, by fraud or some monumental mistake, the wrong Barangay "leadership" gets "elected", then it’s woe to the neighborhoods under its control. Having to contend with petty tyrants on your street can be more onerous and personally exhausting than dealing with big shot tyrants on higher levels of stratification.

Remember when we were kids? Until and unless you learned to finally knock him down (or at least run faster than he did) it was the local bully who concerned you most.