The historical footnote came to mind when invited by Ateneo law students to ponder "The Military’s Role, Function and Effects on the Arroyo Administration". Also at the forum were ex-senator Rene Saguisag, ex-defense chief Fortunato Abat, and retired commodore Rex Robles.
Any military relation with the highest civilian official rests on three Constitutional provisions:
• Declaration of Principles and State Policies (Art. II, Sec. 3): "Civilian authority is at all times supreme over the military. The Armed Forces of the Philippines is the protector of the people and the State. Its goal is to secure the sovereignty of the State and the integrity of the national territory."
• Executive Department (Art. VII, Sec. 18): "The President shall be the Commander-in-Chief of all armed forces of the Philippines and whenever it becomes necessary, he may call out such armed forces to prevent or suppress lawless violence, invasion or rebellion. In case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it, he may, for a period not exceeding sixty days, suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or place the Philippines or any part thereof under martial law."
• General Provisions (Art. XVI, Sec. 5): "(1) All members of the armed forces shall take an oath or affirmation to uphold and defend the Constitution... (3) Professionalism in the armed forces and adequate remuneration and benefits of its members shall be a prime concern of the State. The armed forces shall be insulated from partisan politics. No member of the military shall engage directly or indirectly in any partisan political activity, except to vote... (7) The tour of duty of the Chief of Staff of the armed forces shall not exceed three years."
When the military dumped Estrada in 2001, then-AFP chief Angelo Reyes said they acted as "protector of the people." Sticking to Constitution, Congress installed and the Supreme Court upheld the lawful successor, then-Vice President Arroyo.
Estrada mobs assaulted Malacañang in May 2001. Arroyo, only four months in office, declared a state of rebellion under the Commander-in-Chief provision.
Arroyo came under threat of coup d’état in July 2003. It fizzled out into the so-called Magdalo mutiny, but Arroyo nonetheless declared a state of national emergency. Rebellious officers were court-martialed; their troops demoted three ranks. To this day supposed mastermind Gringo Honasan has yet to face trial in a civilian court. Cashiered from the Army for several coup attempts in the ’80s against President Cory Aquino, Honasan later became senator like Arroyo in 1995.
A Feliciano Commission was formed to study the causes of the coup try. Its findings were akin to the 1990 Davide Commission’s on anti-Aquino coups, namely: leniency towards plotters only makes them "habitual destabilizers"; widespread corruption in the military must be cured; and soldiers’ pay and benefits must be improved. Arroyo put Avelino Cruz as defense chief and Carol Hernandez as presidential adviser to implement the reforms.
Meanwhile, Arroyo had set a revolving-door policy in appointing AFP chiefs of staff. Critics described it as too accommodating to generals who are only months away from retirement. At any rate, Arroyo so far has had seven AFP heads, with an eighth coming up before yearend (in addition to four PNP chiefs, soon to become five by July).
This policy bred corruption, insiders noted after the exposure of Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia’s illegal amassing of P302 million in three years as AFP comptroller. Garcia served under four chiefs who came and went without looking deep into military finances, but over-depended on his say-so and gracious cash releases. The chiefs’ revolving-door stints were too short that their "impact projects" consisted mainly of painting the Camp Aguinaldo chapel with their service branch color – green for the Army, or blue for the Air Force.
Arroyo again came under threat of coup in Feb. 2006, and again declared a state of national emergency under the Commander-in-Chief provision. But Presidential Proclamation 1017 also invoked a Charter provision that has nothing to do with the military, to wit: (National Economy and Patrimony, Art. XII, Sec. 17) "In times of national emergency, when the public interest so requires, the State may, during the emergency and under reasonable terms prescribed by it, temporarily take over or direct the operations of any privately owned public utility or business affected with public interest." Arroyo foes are awaiting a Supreme Court ruling on the validity of using this clause to "restrict the press and arrest dissenters without warrant."
As disclosed by the AFP, the coup codenamed "O-Plan Hackle" was a conspiracy of communists with the Honasan-led Makabayang Kawal Pilipino. Had it won, it would have installed a junta, which has no basis in the Constitution.
Opposition forces accuse Arroyo in the "Hello Garci" tape to have used certain generals for her 2004 election victory – a violation of the non-partisan clause. O-Plan Hackle has them calling on military officers to also break the Constitution and dump the President by force. Arroyo is Spanish for ditch.