Yes, we should be afraid

Noynoy has been quoted as saying that “the wrong choice of leader could make the situation of the country worse.” I agree with him. But not in the way he wants me to agree even if he rates high in surveys. From his statements, it seems clear that he does not have the qualities necessary for a good president never mind if he is the son of “two democracy icons.” He insults the intelligence of Filipinos when he says that if we are not able to “repair the situation with changes come May 10”, it will be infinitely worse”. But what does he mean by change? If by change he means to make him the president, heaven help us all.

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On vital concerns he fails to articulate a credible perspective. In the front page of a national daily there was a picture of a field cracked with caking mud and a story of Noynoy saying there was no drought. It was only an excuse for government’s plan to cheat he reportedly said. How is this leader going to cope with understanding the needs of the country when the drought and power shortages are already upon us and he’s still talking about politics?

Mercifully in his mother’s time, the power failures happened at the end of her term and a new President FVR quickly turned it around to save the country. The son is not even president yet and he is already dismissing the drought as politically motivated. How can we plan ahead for the country’s energy needs with a leader like him who does not have a clue?

One question that will come up in long term planning for energy for the country is whether or not we will construct a new nuclear power plant or rehabilitate the mothballed BNPP to meet the country’s needs.

All around Asia, other countries are already well ahead in developing nuclear energy programs even in countries like Vietnam and Cambodia.

And you wonder why we cannot catch up with our neighbors?

Two groups, one Korean and the other, French have offered their expertise to construct a nuclear plant in the Philippines to address the looming power shortage aggravated by the drought.

The South Korea-based Korea Electric Power Corp. Kepco is said to prefer developing a new nuclear power plant rather than rehabilitating the BNPP. A new nuclear power plant would cost about US$1 billion. The BNPP rehabilitation will take at least five years to finish while a new nuclear facility may take as long as 10 years.

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Noynoy does not score better on foreign relations. In one interview this presidential candidate said he did not have a clue about Myanmar.

What? Someone wants to be president of this country and he does not know anything about a country whose politics has been the bone of contention between Asean leaders and the West led by the United States. Recently, the US was forced to recall its policy of sanctions against the country as ineffective. The reporter did not pursue the question and just brushed it away perhaps thinking it was irrelevant.

That is the quality of leaders we are expected to elect in our decrepit presidential system. He may not have been taught in school that Myanmar is at the crossroads of Asia’s great civilizations — India and China. Moreover its relations with the Philippines date back to pre-modern period.

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In deference to the request of Jocelyn Dawis-Asuncion, daughter of Col. Jose H. Dawis who was the Chief of Police of Quezon City during EDSA 1, I am giving her space in today’s column.

She was indignant at the continuous misrepresentation of the facts repeated by her father’s boss then, Gen. Alfredo Lim who by the way is running for reelection as Mayor of Manila. She believes that Lim is burnishing his image for cheap politics at the expense of her father.

Lim used an excerpt from Nick Joaquin’s book as EDSA’s untold story finally narrated.

Here is her version of events told and retold to her by her father while he was still alive. Hers is the real untold story, not Lim’s but she did not know of any journalist who might take it up.

 “Each year, every February, stories like this (published in another newspaper, not The STAR) will come out in the papers. My dad, Colonel Jose H. Dawis, the then Chief of Police of Quezon City during the time of the EDSA 1, will always tell us the story of his Commanding General who was cowardly hiding in small Antique shop in P. Tuazon the whole time laden with fear and who actually ordered him to disperse the crowd of EDSA at all cost upon orders of then President Ferdinand Marcos.

My dad, who had less than 300 people under him at the time, was ordered by Gen. Alfredo Lim to disperse the crowd of more than 100,000 and Gen Lim promised him 500 men will come from the military. My dad stood his ground and told Gen. Lim that he will not disperse the crowd who were just expressing their grievances peacefully. He got mad with my Dad’s response and started to berate my dad. My dad did not follow the orders of his superior officer. It did cross his mind that this may break his career but he stood by his decision anyway.

Sen. Butch Aquino is witness to this because my dad has always dealt with him when they would go to Quezon City to hold demonstration rallies. My dad, the Chief of Police of Quezon City, had developed a very good relationship with the opposition leaders led by Sen. Butch Aquino and then students leaders like Lean Alejandro, Senator Kiko Pangilinan, Chito Gascon and Mike Defensor. He would always allow them to protest peacefully in Quezon City and after a few hours the protestors will disperse without any incidence of violence.

It is unfortunate that my dad is not here anymore to refute all the lies peddled by General Lim. Through the years, he kept his silence knowing in his heart who the real EDSA hero is.

But I will not keep my silence. I know who the real EDSA hero is.

It is my father not General Lim. If my Dad is indeed General Lim’s friend as he claims, I wish he would stop using the name of my father and dishonoring him.

My dad is one of the real heroes of EDSA and should be counted among the hundreds of thousands of people who fought the oppression of the Marcos regime.