Editorial - Raising false hopes

The Marcos family has asked the Supreme Court to reverse its ruling on the $683 million held in escrow in the Philippine National Bank. The tribunal, however, rarely reverses a ruling especially on such a major case. In Switzerland, authorities have approved the release of the money to the Philippine government following the Supreme Court’s landmark decision handed down last July 15.

The betting is that it’s only a matter of time before the decision becomes final and executory. So big plans are being readied to utilize the $683 million – over P37.36 billion at last Friday’s closing rate. Remitted to the national treasury, the amount can provide substantial relief from the massive fiscal deficit. Malacañang has vowed compensation for victims of human rights abuses during the Marcos dictatorship. Some lawmakers have insinuated that part of the money should go to the congressional pork barrel.

Before raising the hopes of potential beneficiaries, however, everyone must be reminded of the law stipulating that all ill-gotten assets recovered from the Marcoses should go to the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. There is no provision in the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law that allows for fund diversion to other purposes, no matter how altruistic the cause.

If the government is serious about using part of the money to compensate human rights victims, Congress should get to work on the necessary legislation. There must be clear-cut guidelines on who can qualify for compensation. Otherwise, with that kind of money available, the list of human rights victims could jump overnight from 10,000 to 100,000. Farmers, who are the beneficiaries of the P683 million under the agrarian reform law, must be consulted regarding any shift in funding priorities. Public consultations must be held especially if lawmakers want a piece of the action.

There are only a few months left before the general elections in May. Can Congress pass the necessary le-gislation? Unless the law is amended, national leaders should stop raising false hopes among those who may never benefit from the $683 million.