On Bad Jokes and Coups

A couple months’ back, I jokingly made two comments that, if told at the present time, would be in really bad taste. First was the wish for a coup attempt so that classes would be suspended; second would be my wish that I could observe martial law. I know just how horrible those comments were given this context now, but I ask for mitigation, considering that the former was a result of a lack of sleep and two- or three-inch thick readings for Constitutional Law. The latter, meanwhile, is one of my fascinations for the longest time; there’s something about the Marcos period that just pulls my interest, particularly since I was born after his time as president/monarch/dictator (weird, I know, but then, what is normal?).

I guess they really were right when they said, “Be careful what you wish for, it just might come true.” The first “joke” came true; the second, something akin to it is happening right now. For me, however, the present-day form is much worse than that horrific ruling the Philippines was forced to endure three decades ago. With martial law, at least you know where you’re standing. There are clear-cut boundaries made already – people know whether they’re violating laws or not. Now, with GMA’s declaration of “state of national emergency” in Proclamation 1017, coupled with General Order No. 5 (which directs the AFP and the PNP to carry out whatever means necessary to suppress terrorism and lawless violence), there are no visible lines that tell people what to do and what not to do. Rallies have been banned, numerous people have been arrested without warrants, and a newspaper office has been raided, with the other media threatened to be subject to the same (or worse) if they fail to conform with so-called “government standards” (whatever that means) – all of these done ostensibly in accordance to Proclamation 1017. What has it accomplished so far? The only thing I can see is that it has deprived people of their rights. The government cannot put up the defense that those are not rights, but privileges that they are “regulating,” because these aren’t privileges. These are rights inherent in every Filipino – freedom of the press, freedom of speech. Even warrantless arrests are prohibited under the Bill of Rights. All of these amount not only to a deprivation of these rights, but also that of due process. With Proclamation 1017, people can get thrown in jail without a trial. That’s distinctly unfair. Some might say that those people got what they deserve, but I beg to disagree. No one deserves that. Might as well throw out the Bill of Rights out the window if that’s what you’re going to do. A blockmate said that it is the government’s task to regulate the rights of the people. Right now, what it’s doing is not mere regulating, but completely junking it. You deprive these people of something they hold dear, probably the only thing that they can boast of as truly theirs.

GMA said that she allowed this because of all the mess going on around the Philippines, but I ask you, has it subsided since the declaration? No. Au contraire. A lot of people have taken to the streets even more now, not only for the rescission of such proclamation, but also for GMA to step down. Personally, I really hope that she would, if not because she’s not really supposed to be the “real” president of the Philippines (arrovo comes to mind), for the peace that her stepping down would bring. I’d be honest, I’ve stopped being a GMA supporter since approximately when I was a sophomore in college, when she declared to the entire world that the Philippines is an ally of the US of A. For me, that has got to be one of the most egg-headed thing that she could have done. First, it brings our country in the direct line of fire of the enemies of America. Second, what can the Philippines boast of as its defense system? I don’t mean to insult the National Defense, or the Armed Forces, but the probability that the country can stand its ground is practically nil, nada, zilch. Third, if it’s one thing that I hate, it’s suck-ups, and GMA proved to be one of the biggest suck-ups when she made that declaration. Fourth, even if she allied the Philippines to the USA, what guarantee does she have that America would come to our aid? And even if it did, would that not be an encroachment of the sovereignty of the Philippines, because it proves that we cannot stand on our own two feet? I don’t want to insult the leader of the country, but that was just egg-headed. Back to the present. She said that she would step down if anyone would give a better alternative on who would lead the country, and she implied that so far, no one looks fitting for the position. I agree with that speaker who said that that statement is an insult to the intellect of the Filipino people. There are how many million Filipinos right now, and she says no one is capacitated to take over? Come on. Either she underestimates Filipinos, or she has a really inflated view of herself. There’s no one better? What about the one sitting right now? Is she the better choice? Is that really the mandate of the people why she’s there to begin with? This is a really frustrating part; why the people can’t think of someone better. A part of the problem would be because they are looking at the direction of the same old people who are always involved in the power plays. How do we know that the next ruler can be found there and not somewhere else?

A huge part of the problem is, those people who want to take over the presidency are those who have ulterior motives – it’s always a “me” thing for them. They think about what they’ll be getting out of it that they don’t realize that the Philippines is bleeding so badly. The people are really hurting, whether they realize it or not. Another sad thing is that out of those people, a lot are too apathetic to do anything about the situation – or they (pretend to) not care. They’re the ones who are directly affected by it, but they’re not reacting. Wake up, people! It’s your country that’s dying right now! If you don’t care about the Philippines, then think about what’s going to happen to you! You can always say migration is always an option, but would other countries accept more Filipinos, when almost everyone is trying to escape the tumult? The Philippines does not really hold all that good a position in international eyes right now.

A sticky question that I’ve been asking myself for the past few days is, if I can do something to help the situation, what would it be? To do what is good, or to do what is right? To do what is good would be to just shut up and not to add to the mess that’s going on right now, because I’d end up being another nuisance. To do what is right would be do what I can to put an end to all these, and that means run the risk of, if not being directly subversive to the government, be an inciter. Heck, maybe I’d be imprisoned for all that I have said in this entry, never mind that I’m really upset, have been upset, these past days about the current situation. Maybe I’d be imprisoned for signing that freedom board in school that asks students who are against Proclamation 1017 to jot down their names there. Or maybe I’ll just be taken as some angsty student who’s venting her spleen for nothing. Right now, however, I just don’t care about these. The country’s suffering so much right now, and I’d rather it be relieved of its burden. Personally, however, I’m not all that comfortable with taking to the streets. I don’t believe in going and having an EDSA (insert number here) whenever we’re not comfortable with the Chief Executive. It’s an abuse of the so-called people power if that’s the only solution the citizens could think of. The situation’s turning into such a vicious cycle, and I don’t know if the Philippines has it in her to break it.

As far as jokes go, this is one of the least humorous. And honestly, I don’t think I can truly laugh while this situation is going on. I just can’t. I might end up looking as though I’m still the same, but I haven’t, for these past days. I can’t, knowing how horrible are. I can’t, because I feel the other people’s pain as my own.

Lord, I pray for our country. I pray for those who are in office to come and know You, Lord, and let them stop thinking about their own selves and instead seek what Your will is for them. Let them do their respective tasks according to the purpose that You’ve called them. Lord, I pray that Your blood cover the country, and save us from destroying what You have given us. You are the Great Healer, Lord, and I claim Your healing for this land.