Silencing of the critics
Is the AFP being ignored by the Palace? Is the AFP top brass not getting the respect it deserves from the Palace? At a Senate budget hearing, AFP Chief of Staff General Carlito Galvez stated that the Liberal Party, Magdalo, and Akbayan were not involved in any plan to oust President Duterte by forming an alliance with communist forces, specifically the so-called “Red October” plan. But the Palace insists that the aforementioned groups are involved. Senator Drilon even challenged the Palace to file criminal cases against anyone in the LP if they truly believe any of its members were involved in any sort of plan. Then, General Galvez confirmed that Senator Trillanes did apply for amnesty. Ge neral Galvez believes there were lapses in the AFP’s handling of the senator’s amnesty documents, causing them to be misplaced somewhere along the line. But again, the Palace still insists that Trillanes did not apply for amnesty, because of the absence of his application form. Roque even belittles the statement of General Galvez, saying he would rather believe the words of a learned judge over that of Galvez. For the Palace, only lawyers and judges, not generals, have any credibility. Right.
It is clear that the Palace just wants to silence critics of the administration. If the highest officer of the AFP claimed that Trillanes had indeed applied for amnesty, then shouldn’t those responsible for safekeeping said documents be accountable, and not Senator Trillanes? I truly agree with the analogy that if the Department of Foreign Affairs cannot find your passport application form, then your passport is invalid. Since you travelled with an invalid passport, you should now be arrested, prosecuted, and imprisoned. That same analogy can be used for any government document like permits and licenses. A doctor who has practiced for years can suddenly be arrested if his application form for a license to practice suddenly cannot be found, even if he does possess a license. This administration has really come up with novel ways to silence its critics. From Quo Warranto to Ab Initio.
The military has issued a statement that it is leaving it up to the courts what to do with General Galvez’ statement on Senator Trillanes’ amnesty, and that they would no longer issue any statement on the matter because of the sub judice rule. I can imagine the stars on General Galvez’ shoulders having a slight red tint after the Palace’s belittling of his statement. The Palace continues to downplay or brush off all the evidence of Trillanes’ amnesty, and insists that the missing application form has more weight than any of the said evidence. I will say this, application forms can easily be misplaced, be made to “disappear,” as opposed to statements and later testimonies by witnesses that will always be there, along with all the other evidence the Trillanes camp holds, which now includes the statement of AFP Chief of Staff General Galvez. May the stars on his shoulders stay bright, as they should be.
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