‘The road to hell....’

It was unimaginable for Filipinos to see one of the most powerful personalities in the country, EDSA hero and former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile arrested for the crime of plunder. No doubt many people agree that those who participated in the pork barrel scam should be made accountable and jailed, but on the other hand many also share the opposition’s sentiment that non-administration allies are being singled out, if not persecuted.

At the center of the debate is the Supreme Court decision declaring the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) as unconstitutional, in particular the doctrine of separation of powers where the power of the purse that exclusively belongs to Congress was “usurped” and the violation of the Constitutional provision prohibiting the inter-branch transfer of appropriations (or diversion of funds as some would put it).

Palace spokesperson Edwin Lacierda commented that an act that has been declared unconstitutional does not necessarily mean a crime was committed or that there was wrongdoing, arguing that President Aquino acted in good faith and that they had all good intentions in the use of the DAP. Immediately legal luminaries jumped at such a “despicable” comment and pointed out – “If these acts imbued with good intention violated the Constitution – enacted in 1987 during the time of the president’s mother – logic dictates that such acts are then deemed illegal or contrary to the law.”

They further argued that, “In the simplest sense, a crime is an act (whether of omission or commission) that is unlawful or violates the law. And if an act is illegal, it means the law was broken and therefore the act was criminal. Being the supreme law of the land, the Constitution takes precedence over all other laws, therefore it must be strictly followed and any violation thereof should be punishable. In any democracy, among the paramount obligations of the President and the Executive branch is to defend the Constitution.” An angry IBP member pointed out that the Palace spokesman who also happens to be a lawyer should be disbarred for making such an irresponsible comment.

Sparking a debate on Facebook, one pointed out that “if we had the ‘good intention’ of killing all the politicians in the country so we can get rid of all the corruption in government — does that mean the act will not be considered illegal or criminal because we really believe we are acting in good faith?” As former National Treasurer Professor Leonor Briones said, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

But what is most disturbing for many is the thought that the DAP may have been used to manipulate the outcome of the Corona impeachment trial in 2012 — giving credence to what Senator Jinggoy Estrada said in a privilege speech. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president Archbishop Soc Villegas — a very close friend of the Aquino family — is challenging the president to disclose where his discretionary funds — meaning DAP — went. “A government that professes to tread the straight path must remain true to that profession and must be willing to let go of the corrupt in its own ranks,” Archbishop Villegas said. “Investigation and inquest cannot and must not be selective,” he stressed, because public perception that some are shielded while others are persecuted will erode the people’s confidence in government.

Certainly, there is simmering anger spreading among Filipinos, who want all those responsible to be made accountable. No question somebody has to take the bullet for the President over the DAP issue — and the obvious choice is Budget Secretary Butch Abad who is tagged as the brains behind the DAP, being a lawyer and having been a former chair of the House appropriations committee when he was a Congressman.

But the president is assuming responsibility for the DAP (perhaps rightly so — due to command responsibility) and shielding his people. But clearly, his legal advisers did not study the implications of the DAP very well, and their failure is surely going to cause a lot of damage to the president’s credibility even if some believe P-Noy may not have been aware of the Constitutionality (or not) of certain items in the DAP.

As it is, calls for impeachment are starting to get louder despite the possibility that any attempt to impeach the president will not prosper — a “waste of time” as his allies in Congress described it. After all, impeachment is a numbers game and administration allies far outnumber the opposition. However, many share the view of San Beda College School of Law dean Fr. Ranhillo Aquino that a case for impeachment should be filed nevertheless so that it is on record, and to communicate that the people will not tolerate acts that violate the Constitution no matter how well intentioned. A constitutional lawyer pointed out that the opposition in Congress should do what is rightfully their duty.

Once again people are decrying what they perceive as two interpretations of the law — prevalent during the Spanish times and similar to the “kami pwede, kayo hindi” kind of cacique mentality that allows the landed rich to do whatever they want regardless of what the law says.

In the end, we can only be guided by what a respected Justice of the Supreme Court had said: “For the rule of law to prevail and for the people to respect it, there should be no perception of a double standard where the application of the law is colored by ‘good intention.’ The law should apply to all or none at all — to do otherwise can only lead this country on the road to hell even if it is paved with good intentions.”

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