> The
element of surprise
At first I wanted to write about that tragic Leyte Landslide, but
since everybody has been so preoccupied either writing or yapping
about it and blaming everyone but themselves for it, I thought it
better to steer away from this sad and sudden loss of innocent
lives, and get back to my old and hackneyed topic: that long
brewing Coup d’Etat that keeps on ‘coming’ but never manages to
really ‘arrive’!
That a Coup is indeed in the air is obvious, though, it seems like
every time some people in the Armed Forces of the Philippines need
something done or given to them by the Government, news of an
‘impending’ or ‘imminent’ coup is floated around, and, in record
time the Executive branch goes out of its way to grant it directly
or thru some summary legislation of Congress! Mama Mia! A
government cannot really help but be cowed by some of these
eggheads who hold the planes, tanks, and guns! Just like those
Politicians who swagger around with a coterie of burly gun-totting
bodyguards. They feel secure only when these numbskulls are happy
and contented, but they should also be aware that these guys can
be easily bought, if the price is right, and forced to shoot them
instead!
In the past, during those wishy-washy days of the now defunct
Philippine Constabulary, and before the emergence of the Conjugal
Dictators who were primarily responsible for politicizing the
Military, the soldiers then were as tame as ‘pussycats’! They
never thought twice about being subservient to the Civilian
Authorities, at all times. In fact, I can still vividly remember
the 2 Carbine and Garrand rifle totting P.C. escorts in their
faded khaki uniforms, who guided us during our 2 hour steep treks
to our homestead ranch in Calumagnan, Minalabac, during the early
sixties! They even allowed me to shoot their rifles which I
subsequently ‘mastered’ during one long summer vacation away from
the Land of the Blue Eagle! Aside from being ‘tame’, the Military
Men then were also true Officers and Gentlemen who never dipped a
finger in Politics. Mama Mia! The only time they got close enough
to doing so was when they were requested to act as ‘escorts’ to
the politicians then (my good old mom was a cute, little
Vice-Mayor of this City for more than 10 years!).
Nowadays, even a lowly 1st Lieutenant has the guts and balls to
stand-up to even the President of the Republic and demand her
unconditional resignation! Madre Mia! Of course, a thousand ARMED
Lieutenants are indeed more powerful than a female President
barely 5 feet in height, even if she is the Commander-in-Chief of
the Armed Forces of the Philippines! The soldiers of today are
fully aware of the power that emanates from the barrel of the GUN
and are quite capable of using this to their maximum advantage!
Consequently they have been trying to wrest control of the
Government ever since, but fortunately, have not yet succeeded in
doing so!
The very recent ‘bomb blast’ in Malacanang, coupled with the
renewed threat of another Coup which could be made to coincide
with the Edsa I anniversary, has arrested the climb of the Peso
vis-a-vis the U.S. Dollar and has further depressed investors’
hopes in being able to do good business in this country of ‘a
thousand and one threats’!
The only guys who seem to be fueling these ‘burning issue’ of
destabilizing Coups are the Politicians and the Newspapers
themselves, for obvious reasons! Opposition politicians think that
they have a lot to gain should Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo be
taken out A.S.A.P., not even thinking about WHO can take her
place! The Newspapers don’t give a hoot about the WHO, WHAT, OR
WHEN of things, provided they SELL their papers in record numbers,
even if these exaggerated news will tend to pull the Economy
further down!
A Dog’s Life is indeed what we have: everybody trying to bite each
other’s tail, bordering on chaos and anarchy! Even the Church
which should be the proverbial ‘cooler head’, has joined the fray,
thinking, erroneously, that their word would be the ‘end all’ of
these troubles, not thinking that their unsolicited opinions and
advices could add more fuel to the fire of our helplessly
‘distorted’ public opinion, and lead us farther down the road to
Perdition!
Until it happens, the Coup threats will have to remain THREATS,
and nothing else! Even if the plotters insist on launching it in
the dead of night, their plans, and even their identities, are no
longer secret. The only way a Coup can now succeed is IF it is
launched INSIDE MALACANANG. That way they will regain that ELEMENT
OF SURPRISE!
