Not a game among generals

“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire” and in the Philippines, where there are rumors there is a great possibility of truth to those rumors.

In the case of the Presidential shutdown of all government sanctioned gambling at the local level, we are told that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte got fed up upon discovering that much of the graft and corruption in state sponsored local gambling is controlled, influenced or masterminded by retired and active generals in the Military and the Police. That of course is nothing new. I for one have known and mentioned in this column that part of the in-fighting and mudslinging in the “local gambling industry” had to do with the fact that a bunch of retired generals had joined the business, tried to displace historical gambling lords, tried to muscle their way into PCSO by dislodging uncooperative officials and eventually tried to broker their hard won and over priced “Franchise” back to a well-known gambling lord. That was just last year. Before that there were earlier retirees who managed to get “lotto outlets” from the very beginning. Greed simply multiplied and attracted an even “greedier” batch of retirees.

The thing about these “General” problems of the President is that they are anywhere and everywhere there is money to be made via influence, connections, batch mates or muscle. Far from being a marginalized sector in the landscape of corruption, these general headaches are well entrenched in businesses that operate on cash flow. The tragic part about it is that their nefarious activities are only spoken about in the form of rumors because you could end up getting your vehicle carnapped as I did when we merely featured “The Mansions of the Generals” back when I was just starting out on TV with ABS CBN. It wasn’t even my idea but I paid the price and got the message not to mess with the “Lifestyle of the Generals.” Fortunately, I do have friends in interesting places and it was also a police general who told me that the mastermind behind my stolen SUV was the son of a retired police general!

But let’s not get distracted. It may interest President Duterte to know or perhaps just recall that rumors abound about how many of the buses on EDSA as well as provincial buses belonging to “generals”. In the provinces, I’ve been told about one or two generals who control the business of commuter vans in parts of Mindoro and Cebu province. Then there is of course the often-mentioned involvement if not direct ownership of Security Agencies by retired generals and colonels and the way they underpay guards just like in the military. Of course, when you hear about security agencies, you also hear about armored trucks and vans, that once upon a time were the terror of city streets for their impunity and reckless disregard of the law. Does anybody out there have actual knowledge of generals that own tow trucks? That would not surprise me one bit! Let’s also not forget about trucking services at the different piers and customs because even there, their presence is felt.

There is also the long talked about ownership by generals and politicians of fish cages and fish pens in Laguna de Bay and Lake Taal. Every time a major fish kill or pollution issue pops up, we all talk about removing those fish farms that have over populated the lake but what always bounces back to the public is that they are untouchable because they belong to generals and politicians! Every now and then, President Duterte talks about or tells stories about people and friends who were involved in small claims mining particularly near Davao. I remember a time when a businessman I knew had looked into a major paper mill in the area that also had potential sites for gold mining. What he initially called a high potential project was quickly abandoned and when I asked him why, he said that most of the gold mining operations where in the hands of “Generals” or the NPA!

At the risk of finding an empty parking space once again, I humbly suggest to President Duterte to seriously consider forming an investigative panel to look into how deep these “General Headaches” have penetrated and corrupted government and public services and businesses. If the President is convinced that his Generals are true Officers and Gentlemen, then it is time for them to clean up their own ranks. It is one thing for a retired officer to go into business, but it is a totally different thing to do so through corruption, intimidation and impunity.

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“AMPAO” or Hollow is the term that best describes two of the most important government agencies; the MMDA and the Department of Interior and Local Government. I did not come up with the term nor do I attach the label to them. Truth be told it was how DILG Undersecretary describe their dilemma in going after uncooperative and law breaking local officials or politicians.

I have long known that the MMDA was just an implementing agency or an office that put into effect what the Metro-Manila Mayors Council tells them to do. The MMDA cannot do things on their own, they don’t have the power to legislate, and their budget is determined by powers that be. What I did not know is that the DILG is no different in terms of disciplining or punishing governors, mayors, and barangay officials. The only reason that the local officials are now “following” the DILG is because President Duterte gave a direct order and a promise that he will immediately suspend and remove any local official who does not comply with the DILG. Things are getting done because the DILG has a wall to lean or “Masa-sandalan” called Duterte.

But once the President is out of office, all the accomplishment will be for naught if PRRD cannot clone himself after 2022. This is why President Duterte needs to push for two urgent bills that will give the MMDA autonomy and power to operate and legislate and give the DILG power to suspend or remove elected local officials who are in direct violation of the law! Do it or lose it!