La Emperadora has won: It’s all over but the shouting – and whining

LONDON – Here in London, one of the leading dailies, The Guardian headlined, although only on page 13: Arroyo Declared Philippines Winner.

The same story was run by The TIMES, which by the way is now in a tabloid format, in keeping with its racier articles, a far cry from its previous conservative image of a serious broadsheet, which English butlers of the P.G. Wodehouse era, like Jeeves, used to press with a flat-iron lest the ink rub off on the Master’s fingers.

The Financial Times of London, which was handed to this writer at Singapore’s Changi Airport where we changed planes for the 12-hour 24-minute hop to London was even more specific. On Page One, a two-column headline blared: "Macapagal Wins Another Term as Philippine Leader."

The subhead said, of course, "Results to be debated and approved by Friday."

But it’s already clear the word is out internationally: It’s all over but the shouting – griping, complaining, protests, and whining.

In short, GMA has been given her legitimate six years as President, not a hand-me-down three years cadged from the upended term of former President Joseph Estrada.

What La Gloria will do with those six years, now that she doesn’t have to please everybody or yield to nagging selfish interests, or react to bad jokes that she’s "Missus Macapidal", is critical to our nation. If she persists in believing she’s a perennial candidate, over-eager like a puppy for ersatz and counterfeit affection, anxious to please and accommodate, then her six years will be wasted to our country’s detriment and regret. She’ll be one of the worst duds in history, unable to reverse the bankruptcy her own profligate pro-poor, populist, non-stop-foreign-borrowing policies have engendered.

Her spokesman, Secretary Ignacio "Toting" Bunye already used the expression, "Bite the bullet", in connection with the government taking over the P500 billion obligations and expenses of the rotted-away National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR). That’s precisely what GMA will have to do now: Bite the bullet.

As for NAPOCOR, let’s stop treating this power-generating but eyeless and toothless giant like a political extension of Malacañang, with its giveaway subsidies that are weighing us down with a monstrous budget deficit and international debt. In case you haven’t noticed, NAPOCOR’s leading Board members, those who ran it into the ground, are members of GMA’s own Cabinet. Her own official family.

How can she wash her hands of responsibility for that?

* * *

At this stage, it doesn’t seem likely that the threatened protests and anti-Administration rallies, or a "revolution", can be mounted by the angry Opposition.

The KNP Opposition and Erap groups tried to stage a demonstration in front of Club Filipino last Monday – but, alas, it was pathetic. The deposed former President’s home is on Polk street, North Greenhills, just behind the swimming pool of Club Filipino – and the Club has long been an Erap "bastion". No longer, it seems.

What is distasteful, though, is that recently, eager-beaver Director (General) Reynaldo "Wyke" Wycoco of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) sent his agents to Club Filipino – by the way, I’m a member – to "investigate" who had been paying for or financing the lunches, dinners, and meetings held there by FPJ, and the KNP party.

Sanamagan. Director Wycoco! What do you think the NBI is supposed to be? A Gestapo? Or some bunch of muttawas? Or Thought Police? Or Brownshirts? Go catch criminals, kidnappers, druglords, and crooks, and stop wasting agents’ time and resources tracking down political or social events – and who paid for them. It reeks of cheap, phoney-baloney persecution and harassment.

In any event, La Presidenta is already in excelsis. It’s a time for sobriety and, yes, reconciliation. Didn’t she once promise "not to run" in order to secure national unity? Having been re-elected despite breaking her pledge, it’s time she resumed that undertaking and strove to heal all wounds, and really worked for that elusive unity.

* * *

Just before I left for Europe, I happened to sit down with Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo and his lovely wife, who lives up to her name, Lovely Tecson. I was with Precious at the head table of the Thai Ambassador during her glittering culinary evening affair in honor of Queen Sirikit’s birthday at the Inter-Con.

In contrast to some other Romulos (Triple R in particular), Bert Romulo has always been like our brother. So, he exclaimed, "Why are some reports going around claiming that I’m ‘sick’ and ‘want out’ of the Executive Secretaryship?"

"Don’t you see," Lovely pointed out, "Bert is both strong and healthy?"

"Anyway," Bert declared in his usual mild manner, but in a decisive tone: "I’m not quitting! I will remain Executive Secretary as long as the President wants me. If there are any people trying to ease me out, that’s my statement."

So there.

I told him that there was a group actively campaigning to get his cousin, Roberto R. Romulo, appointed Executive Secretary in his stead. (Triple R already tries to wield influence non-stop in the Foreign Office and other branches of government anyway, and everybody knows the President’s daughter, Luli, works with him.)

From Romulo to Romulo? That would be absurd. If Bert goes, and he will not, thank goodness (for he’s the best man) he must never be replaced by another Romulo. If that happened, the nation might believe that there’s only one anointed dynasty, or that the Palace has run out of family names to tap.

Another post which his "supporters" (not the Illuminati, surely) are boosting Triple R for is Ambassador to Washington, if they can’t get him the Executive Secretaryship. Gee whiz. They never give up, do they?

Why doesn’t Malacañang just throw that bunch a bone? Send the Chief Camel Driver, as they’ve been quietly maneuvering, to the Vatican as Ambassador to the Holy See. Then he’ll be happy on his knees. Praying the Rosary, of course.

* * *

In the meantime, Malacañang and the Bureau of Internal Revenue are desperate to raise taxes in order to cope with the yawning and worrisome budget deficit.

When the silly idea of slapping a tax on text messages was proposed – Filipinos send some 300 to 400 million "texts" everyday (we are the Texting Capital of the world) – it was greeted with a universal uproar of fury and disapproval.

Fearing a Text Tax Revolt, the government hastily abandoned this plan. In fact, the Palace was compelled to loudly deny it had even been "contemplated". Now, the government is planning to slap tax on "soft drinks", you know – soda pop, the stuff you drink. This is surely not a "sin" tax, since there is nothing sinful about a harmless carbonated drink.

The tax "experts" of the National Tax Research Center are in the process of revising an old study discarded some years ago to tax soft "cola" drinks and fruit drinks.

Will the soft-drinkers of the Philippines also rise up in public indignation? A sheaf of new taxes is being drawn up by the National Tax Research Center to be submitted to the Department of Finance and finally to the House of Representatives where revenue measures must emanate.

I’ve already mentioned the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) collecting a P520 fee per capita from jeepney drivers so they can post a "fare guide" on their windshields in order to collect the newly raised fares. That’s not all. The LTFRB is busily imposing multmillion peso penalties for "out-of-line" operations. This penalty is being calculated retroactively.

For instance, JAM Transit alone was ordered to pay P39.4 million for using the Ayala Terminal Center as the "terminating point" for its buses from year 1995 to year 2003 – or an estimated period of 3,285 days. This was pro-rated to P200 a day for each out-of-line bus.

According to transport business lawyers, the P39.4 million penalty is not only outrageously oppressive but downright illegal, because it is a cardinal rule that a penal sanction cannot be given retroactive effect.

The present LTFRB chief, a lady dispatched there from Malacañang, assumed her post only last year. This indicates she is penalizing buses retroactively for alleged infractions committed before she assumed the office.

Oh, well. The government is broke. Somehow, GMA must raise money. But not, I maintain, by hook or by crook.