True picture

One year after assuming office as President, the silent majority of Filipinos are fervently hoping that PRRD will paint an accurate and real picture of the situation in our country when he delivers his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 24, 2017. Indisputably, he enjoys a very high satisfactory and trust ratings conducted by our pollsters based on the response of 1,200 people supposedly reflecting the thinking of the more than 100 million Filipinos regarding his job performance after one year in Malacanang.

It must be pointed out however that a high rating in the opinion polls cannot be used as a credible and reliable gauge to show the true state of the nation. They are mainly based on Duterte’s popularity due to constant media exposure. The true situation in our country and the real condition of our people now can only be determined by keeping our ears on the ground and going to the very peripheries and remote areas of our country where the bulk of our population are situated. It can also be determined by looking into equally considering both the good and the bad developments in our country since he assumed office.

It can be said first of all that our country is now in a state of war – the war against dangerous drugs traffickers and users. The most noticeable and quite alarming aspect in this “war” is the big number of casualties due to the extra-judicial killings of suspected drug addicts, users and pushers under Oplan Tokhang launched by the Philippine National Police (PNP); and the deaths perpetrated by killers mostly riding in tandem which have been denominated as deaths under investigation (DUI).

Based on the PNP statistics, and on the daily news reports, an average of six persons are killed each day in this war who are mostly of poor people in slum areas allegedly committing unlawful aggression (nanlaban) while being arrested. The unanswered question up to now in these EJKs and DUIs is the reasonable necessity of the means employed to suppress their aggression – is it really necessary and justified for the law enforcers to kill them instead of just disabling them to resist arrest? So far, no officers or members of the PNP have been indicted for the EJKS and DUI under this Oplan Tokhang except Superintendent Marvin Marcos and nine other policemen who shot suspected drug lord, Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa inside his jail cell. The Senate and the Department of Justice (DOJ) investigators have already found probable cause to charge them with murder, but this finding was recently downgraded to homicide so that Marcos and the other accused can be released on bail. In fact Marcos was even reinstated to his former post as the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) Head in Region 12. Such move has incurred the ire even of Senator Ping Lacson one of the calmest and discreet Senators, who cannot help but utter obscene and cuss words ala Duterte himself.

Also coming to mind in this connection is PRRD’s repeated encouragement and reassurance to the members of the PNP that they will be eventually pardoned if they will be charged and found guilty in connection with these EJKs. Likewise noteworthy and alarming here, is PRRD’s recent statement encouraging people to “kill all criminals” particularly drug offenders. This statement is quite dangerous because persons cannot be considered “criminals” unless they have been arrested, tried and finally convicted in court. PRRD’s “criminals” on the hand apparently refer to persons who are mere suspects and still at large, thus prompting Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales to say that Duterte’s statement in this regard is “unacceptable”. And Duterte’s retort has not put an end to the controversy. He told the Ombudsman to shut up and fix her office first. Then he even challenged the Ombudsman to find him a law which says that he cannot “threaten criminals” with death. Obviously such retort is quite different from his previous statement encouraging or “goading” people to kill criminals especially drug offenders. This kind of confrontation between high officials of our country has obviously cheapened and devalued human life aside from creating an atmosphere of lawless violence and unsolved killings. It is another manifestation of the real state of the nation.

And then there is also the state of hostility and antagonism among high officials in our government. It has already been going-on since PRRD assumed office when his rabid supporters also adopted his style of uttering cuss words and abusive languages against those who disagree with him and those who are not yet convinced that his job performance is excellent; or do not believe their boast that he is the “best president” our country ever had so far. There seems to be no end in sight to this unfortunate discord and division among our countrymen brought about by the hostile attitude of Duterte trolls especially in social media. Hence it can also be said that our nation is now in a state of discord, division and moral bankruptcy in our society.

Of course our country is also in a state of actual rebellion endangering public safety of the civilian population especially in the Mindanao region because of the uprising and terroristic activities of the IS backed Maute Group specifically in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur. For more than two months now, Marawi has been under siege by this group, as military operations and bombings continue despite the military’s assurance that they have almost suppressed the rebellious group. To be sure, Congress is now even considering the extension of martial law in the region up to the end of this year.

Then there is also the seemingly endless state of poverty in our country. Statistics show that about 80 percent of our population remain below poverty level as only ten percent of our population own and control the country’s wealth and resources. People continue to go abroad in order to earn a living even to the extent of leaving their families behind and suffering the pain of loneliness and separation. This problem has been with us since we became an independent country. Apparently, there is a connection between poverty in our land and the unabated corruption in our government. “Walang mahirap kung walang corrupt” should really be recognized by this government. Considering that most of our people remain poor, it would seem that corruption in the government still persists up to now. PRRD should be more aggressive in addressing this problem. There should be less talk and more action in his fight against corruption. The campaign against political dynasties should be pursued more aggressively.

Finally, it can also be said that we are in a state of uncertainty – about PRRD’s real state of health. Rumors and talks about his serious illness continue to spread and remain unabated. He should be more transparent in this regard and issue regular medical bulletins concerning his state of health issued by a reputable medical hospital or well renowned doctors.

This is the true picture of our country at this stage. Hopefully, PRRD will be able to clearly see this picture when he give his SONA on Monday.

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