EDITORIAL - A day at the circus

Even the accused have rights, and in several countries court trials are closed to the media in part to protect defendants from public humiliation. Filipinos who profess to value civil liberties are aware of this. Yet among the most viewed TV shows in this country are the live telecasts of congressional investigations.

Last Thursday the wife of former military comptroller Lt. Gen. Jacinto Ligot finally faced the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, which is investigating corruption in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. But Erlinda Ligot, who was summoned to explain the numerous pricey real estate properties in her name in the Philippines and the United States, broke into tears and suffered hypertension and was excused from the proceedings. Senators instead grilled the retired comptroller’s brother-in-law Edgardo Yambao for deposits in three banks from 2001 to 2005 that supposedly amounted to a whopping P255 million, with no record that he paid any taxes from 1999 to 2004.

Why do people in this predominantly Christian country enjoy watching individuals who have not been convicted of anything twist in the wind, live on TV? Probably because it’s only in such a circus where they see anyone in this country — particularly the big fish — suffer for their crimes, and never mind if guilt has not been established beyond reasonable doubt, with finality. When corruption cases can languish for at least a decade, and then take another decade — or forever — for the Supreme Court to resolve with finality, there are people who are willing to settle for the limited but instant justice that they see on TV, live from the session halls of Congress.

The average Filipino has become a self-styled expert at jumping to conclusions, simply by watching the body language and assessing the answers of “resource persons” during congressional investigations. And there are people who believe the answers and body language of many of the retired military officers implicated in fund diversions say guilty.

Ligot has been deflecting questions thrown at him by senators by saying that the issues are pending with the Sandiganbayan. If the case of another military comptroller, Carlos Garcia, is a good indication, Ligot’s case could languish in court for many more years. The circus at the Senate is just a manifestation of the weakness of the country’s justice system.