Our evolving politics

It is easy to be discouraged by the politics that surround us. You hear people saying there is no choice in a close contest between GMA and FPJ or there is a choice for the lesser evil. We can’t have the ideal. To make do with what we have is to accept that like evolution, the process through which life develops, politics is as much a protracted affair. Yet the signs of change for a maturing electorate are before us. Who would have throught that from a vantage of invincibility, FPJ of movie popularity, would be surpassed by President GMA in poll surveys? The much-maligned masa are not what the better educated make of them. If President GMA wins in May she will be closing the chapter on movie popularity as a way to political leadership. That to me is the importance of her victory. But it is double-edged. If Filipinos put their stakes in GMA’s victory in May, she must pay a heavy price. Her election is to enable the country to achieve much needed political reforms.Otherwise, it will be a pyrrhic victory. It does not take expert analysis to foresee that victory would be more daunting than defeat. The loser has only to cope with defeat. The winner carries the burden of managing the country at a crucial stage of our politics. Those who think that all there is, is to win in May, and be back in business as usual may be in for a rude surprise. I hope President GMA and her supporters are aware of this paradox of victory.

A few days ago, my friend Augustine Anthuvan of Radio Singapore called for a radio hook-up The topic was the May elections which is being keenly watched by our fellow Asians. He wanted a three way conversation. At first I suggested another journalist cum political analyst. But in the end I thought it would be better if we had someone from the opposition instead. I had Senator Edgardo Angara’s mobile telephone to hand so why not try for the top to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.

His reply on why despite the intelligent men and women in the opposition, they had to choose FPJ with zero background on public office, let alone the highest one could not have been more candid. He said, we needed a popular figure like Poe to stand against the money, the resources and power of a sitting president. If FPJ is now a presidential candidate despite his lack of qualification, it has to do with winning through movie popularity against the odds. It may be fatal miscalculation with poll surveys running against the actor.

FPJ might have fared better if his candidacy were not linked up to Erap. Erap’s support does not help him. On the contrary, it goes against him. Theoretically given the present conditions, a no-election scenario is a more justified if the aim of our leaders is to put the country on a more stable economic footing. I don’t know how the May elections can contribute to that. Whoever wins, if he or she does not pursue the necessary political reforms faces retribution that we can not as yet determine. If President GMA wins and she gets the resounding victory she desires, it is tied up with expectations that she is in the best position to lead constitutional reform to shift the country to a parliamentary federal system. A growing number of Filipinos now understand a powerful President with a fixed six year term is less accountable than if we had a parliament which makes it possible to cut short her or his term by a no-confidence vote.

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Al-Qadhafi urges EU to speak up. The TV newsclips on Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi on his statement to the European Union to make its voice heard over Iraq forebodes a new leader for the Arab world and his message is one of peace. He chose his words carefully even if he spoke extemporaneously. Each word for Middle East peace was a pained cry. In his first trip to Europe in 15 years which marks a further step to end Libya’s isolation he said:. "I want to hear Europe’s voice about the current tragedy in Iraq. Europe should ask questions of other people about the reasons for this occupation. I would like Europe to contribute to resolving the problem of the Middle East in a direct way, and not to be marginalised." He rejected the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict proposed by the so-called road map."In my opinion the solution is to build a democratic state for everyone," he said. He warned an upsurge in violence across the Middle East could undo Libya’s conversion.

Kadhafi’s trip came days after US President George W. Bush announced Washington was easing nearly two decades of economic sanctions on the oil-wealthy country. Libya has in the past year tried to end its isolation. It agreed to pay families of passengers killed in the 1988 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, and a 1989 attack on a French airliner over Niger.

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A century of friendship and alliance. US Chargé d’Affaires Joseph Mussomelli paid tribute to four Americans who one way or another fostered friendship between the Philippines and the United States. He named the newly-refurbished ballroom, a conference room and two courtyards in their honor: Charles Parsons, Jr., Dr. Najeeb Saleeby, Claire Phillips and Francis Murphy. Parsons went on numerous secret submarine missions. His wide knowledge of the country and his network of local contacts enabled him to communicate effectively with guerrilla units. He later became a businessman and stayed here for the rest of his life. Syrian-born Dr. Saleeby worked in Sulu and Mindanao as the superintendent of schools. Najeeb was fascinated with Moro culture and published two books on the subject. He made the Philippine his home. Most interesting was Claire Phillips who opened a cabaret not far from the Embassy which was called ‘Club Tsubaki." Using this as her cover she spied using the alias "high pockets" and passed it on to Filipino guerrillas. She was subsequently arrested and tortured. Francis Murphy was governor general in 1933 but later appointed to the Supreme Court. When General Yamashita was sentenced to death in the very ballroom we crowded in, Murphy dissented and said, " while peoples in other lands may not share our beliefs as to due process and the dignity of the individual, we are not free to give effect to our emotions in reckless disregard of the rights of others. An uncurbed spirit of retribution, masked in formal legal procedure can do more lasting harm than all the atrocities giving rise to that spirit." Bravo.

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