The greatest fears of Norberto Gonzales

National Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales has been posturing lately like a puny sardine trying to project himself as a dangerous Great White Shark.

Gonzales pretended to inherit the role of organizing the new political opposition to the incoming Benigno Simeon Aquino III administration. He even invited losing Lakas Kampi CMD Party presidential candidate Gilbert Teodoro to join him in this task. Known for his intelligence — Teodoro ignored the invitation.

Why, of all people, should Gonzales presume to be organizing the new opposition? Should that not fall upon the laps of Madame Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) when she occupies a congressional seat representing her district in Pampanga?

Once Aquino becomes president, Gonzales will not even occupy a government position. Neither can Gonzales presume to have the political clout nor the deep pockets of GMA in organizing and funding the new opposition. Other than GMA, there are other members of the Lakas Kampi CMD Party who are more credible as the rallying figures for the new opposition.

Not only that, if the Liberal Party and the bitter Mar Roxas camp succeed in alienating incoming Vice President Jojo Binay — transforming a long time Aquino ally into filling the role of Aquino administration opposition — that would make the PDP-Laban and Pwersa ng Masa coalition of Binay the opposition party to contend with. In fact, Binay as opposition instead of ally could well become the single biggest threat to the Aquino administration.

Gonzales has also been issuing warnings to the incoming president who prefers to be addressed as P-Noy. Gonzales had the cheek to call Aquino to task in respecting the military officers and the chain of command. His obvious ulterior motive was for P-Noy not to replace General Delfin Bangit as AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) Chief of Staff.

He even criticized P-Noy for supposedly conducting an AFP and PNP (Philippine National Police) loyalty check. Gonzales had the gall and the temerity to say that when in fact it was the GMA regime which was so insecure and paranoid after the Oakwood Mutiny and had since been conducting regular loyalty checks in the AFP and the PNP.

If you happen to be intelligent, you cannot presume that all others are also intelligent. If you’re stupid, you must not also presume that all others are stupid. Does Gonzales really think that P-Noy will just assume the position of Commander-in-Chief without checking the trustworthiness of those allowed to command the soldiers and the police of the Republic of the Philippines?

Your Chair Wrecker thinks that Gonzales is trying to divert P-Noy into taking the wrong direction — to prevent the incoming administration from getting to the bottom of the extrajudicial killings where Gonzales, as former National Security Adviser (NSA), has been blamed in the past by the Left and some anti-Arroyo AFP junior officers as the culprit behind it.

How many times in the not-too-distant past have we seen Bayan Muna stalwarts denounce Gonzales as the architect of the GMA regime alleged plot to eliminate above ground militants? In the not-too-distant past, a paper and a video was leaked to media by AFP junior officers about a series of seminars which were organized by Gonzales that allegedly preached the necessity to address the Leftist insurgency by eliminating their above ground militants.

It is believed that UN Human Rights investigator, Philip Alston, who was sent here to look into the extrajudicial killings, had concluded that the GMA regime was to blame largely because of these revelations by the AFP junior officers.

Indeed, Gonzales has every right to be deeply concerned and worried. If he is linked as the architect behind these extrajudicial killings — this is a crime worse than plunder. Gonzales should be worried because the Left can easily go after him after he steps down from power like they went after Rolly Abadilla, the late Marcos regime enforcer. The Aquino administration will be expected to reassign the security detail of Gonzales to whoever replaces him as Defense Secretary.

Granted that the new Aquino administration will allow him to carry a licensed firearm for protection — that would be like a pea shooter and it cannot hope to deter a determined NPA (New People’s Army) from settling scores with their alleged tormentor. Even if P-Noy agrees to provide a two-man detail to protect Gonzales — that will hardly prevent the NPA from liquidating him like Rolly Abadilla.

Last Saturday, ABS-CBN host Ted Failon exposed on his program Failon Ngayon (now) the fund misuse charges against Efraim Genuino, Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) Chairman. Genuino allegedly paid Pagcor monies to his son and daughter to cover their personal needs. Copies of the checks that Genuino issued were presented.

The P-Noy ascendancy had ushered a new national mood that will encourage the people working within graft ridden government agencies to come forward, expose graft and corruption cases and provide evidence. What is happening in Pagcor may soon happen in many other agencies. Norberto Gonzales can expect the same from insiders in the NSA and the National Defense Department.

P-Noy’s high trust level will encourage the flow of evidence against grafters and corrupt public officials. More evidences will surface should P-Noy enhance the anti-corruption campaign with incentives as well as recognition.

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Chair Wrecker e-mail and website: [email protected] and www.chairwrecker.com