Let’s just do it!

If there was a phrase that went down well with the audience during the President’s inaugural speech in Batasang Pambansa, it is these words: Let’s just do it. It shows she understands what is holding this country back. This country suffers – ennui, discussion ad infinitum – making it the laughing stock of other nations in the region. That is what stands in the way. We do not do things, we just talk about them. That says the same thing about the NAIA 3 mess.

There is no question there are legal and business conflicts to be threshed out about the new terminal but if we were to open it after resolving the matter to the satisfaction of all parties, it would take us forever, if at all. I agree with commentators who value the state’s oversight power. That is precisely the tool in the hands of the country’s chief executive, that she take the matter into her hands and open the airport as soon as possible in the interest of the country. The word sayang is more true than ever in this case.

As this column has repeatedly said, the solution can only come if the public interest issue were detached from the intramurals. NAIA 3 is not only a necessary public service; it has become the symbol of what stops the country from moving forward. "Let’s just do it", to paraphrase President GMA herself.

On the other hand, there is an obligation of fairness, so opening it does not mean disregarding the issues of the conflict. That can continue. So if what we want is to immediately avail of a public service and make a powerful symbolic welcome to tourists and investors, then all the parties concerned must join hands to do just that – open the airport.

It is hypocritical to use the state’s sovereignty to go against public interest which is obviously ill-served by the protracted dispute. Does not the Constitution say that this government is a republic? Therefore the state’s sovereignty is only held in stewardship on behalf of the republic, from res publica. I was amused by the comment that the airport tours sponsored by PIATCO were described as superficial. So what if the air-conditioning and escalators work and it is technically spic and span? ask those who had never even seen it. That is uninformed opinion and certainly less credible than those who had been there, inexpert as it may be. They were in a better position to make an opinion than someone who had not been there and simply making a case against the opening of the airport.

On the technical aspects of the airport, I understand airline operators are ready to release the list of requirements and what have been met by the contractors so it is not misused by partisans. Airline operators have the biggest stake in making sure that the airport is safe and sound so their opinion is not only important, it is indispensable.

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BELONGING TO ASIA. Of late, President GMA has been cobbling foreign policy which would allow it more flexibility towards its neighbors, primarily China which looms as the superpower in the region and its traditional ties with Western countries particularly with America. This will be difficult balancing act as the competition between China and the United States for hegemony in the region hots up.

The criticism of Heritage Foundation against President GMA is an indication that the United States will not stand idly by while she cultivates deeper and wider relations with China. This will require from her exceptional mettle on how to keep in mind the country’s welfare at all times. As Mahathir of Malaysia said in a speech Asian leaders must assume and assert true leadership, seize the initiative in ideas and restore self-respect. Although he did not name names, the advice is cut out for our President in these trying times.

While there is a need for tackling corruption from wherever it comes from, it is also important to consider that the same issues can be used for a political agenda. Not unlike the George Soros affair that Mahathir fulminates about, there is a case for asking just why military scandals are being unearthed at a time when the country needs to keep focus on the how to tackle the fiscal crisis. There is a pattern in unnerving (I dare not say destabilization) of weak countries. As in the Soros case, the Asian currency problem might have come with or without his mischief but Mahathir is right when he says political reasons for the 1997 debacle were not far behind. Soros admitted it himself.

The independence of a country to forge its own future remains the most important consideration. Whoever wants us under their thumb must be told we will do whatever is good for our country just as they would for their own country. Does President GMA have the strength of will to do that? Can she resist the blandishments of powerful countries and at the same time retain their goodwill? Whatever his faults, Speaker JDV is a good model for this win-win attitude. If that’s being a trapo, then let’s have more of it. That’s what makes for an effective manager of conflicting interests in this strife-ridden country.

Let’s not get angry just because the Heritage Foundation of the US insults our President as the weakest leader in Asia. It was too good to be true that she could champion the cause of Angelo de la Cruz without a peep from the US. Nor is it enough to say the Foundation is Republican. It would also happen were a Democrat in power. It is time our interests come first. The warning that ‘the longer her administration makes foreign policy, the more it seems that threats from terrorists and regional bullies influence her more than diplomatic and financial aid from Manila’s friends and allies;’ is ominous. It should be resisted by patriotic Filipinos.

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RAMADAN AND GOODWILL. It would be salutary if leaders of different religions were constantly aware of the need for peace and harmony. They serve their followers well if they use every opportunity to be examples on how to live harmoniously even if they represent different beliefs. For example, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Manila, HE Mohammed Ameen Wali’s letter conveying King Fahd’s greetings to Filipinos, whether Muslim or non-Muslim on the eve of Ramadan is well taken. "May Almighty Allah make this holy month where the people of the world shall live in fraternity, peace and stability," the message reads.

Ramadan is a month of fasting (something like the Christian Lent) for the Muslims. They fast all day, break the fast in the evening and come together as a caring community. At the Saudi Embassy are hundreds of bags with food and other commodities to be given away to the poor and the less fortunate. It is part of Muslim religious ritual to remind them through righteous deeds of their homage to the Almighty Allah.

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