EDITORIAL - Saviors of the people

The Armed Forces of the Philippines laughed off yesterday reports of young military officers again on the move to oust a president. The level of threat may in fact be comical, but in the highly politicized AFP, where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire. The only question is whether the source of the smoke is just a flickering candle or a conflagration that can engulf a presidency.

For about three decades now there has been restiveness in the AFP. Having played a key role in the ouster of a president in 1986, the Philippine soldier has tasted power and reveled in its headiness. The years after the first people power revolt saw soldiers launching a succession of coup attempts. In 2001 the military didn’t even need to bring in foot soldiers or heavy artillery; top commanders simply announced their defection to opposition forces, and a commander-in-chief realized he had lost his government.

Since then some military officers have continued to immerse themselves in politics, giving tacit support to opposition forces, and staging a short-lived mutiny two years ago. If the nation has seen no repeat of that mutiny, it is because for the first time, the government came down hard on the participants while at the same time addressing the legitimate grievances of the mutineers. Reform and punishment can make adventurous soldiers think twice before betraying their oath.

That message must be sent to any soldier again agitating for extra-constitutional means of resolving the current political crisis. Leaders of the mutiny in Makati were youthful, charismatic and idealistic, yet Filipinos were simply fed up with soldiers manipulated by shadowy political patrons salivating for power. The mutiny collapsed when people power did not materialize. No mere pushups as punishment this time; the mutineers were marched off to detention centers and court-martialed. Their leaders are still languishing in detention.

In the current crisis the AFP has so far comported itself with professionalism. But there are still soldiers out there who, seeing the vulnerability of a president, may again see themselves as saviors of the Filipino people. They should be disciplined and told that what the nation needs is to be saved from deluded, self-appointed messiahs.