Month: October 2008

The Webster dictionary defines “seditious” as “tending to cause discontent among the people; fostering the spirit of rebellion.”

I think Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez was barking up the wrong tree when he said that the pronouncements of Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines ; Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz;Bataan Bishop Socrates Villegas; Masbate Bishop Joel Baylon, and Legazpi Bishop Emeritus Jose Sorra at a press conference last Tuesday were “seditious.”

I checked again what the five bishops said. Their statements were mostly on graft and corruption which they said were the “biggest culprit and major cause of the our nation’s poverty and hunger.”

Asked if they think Gloria Arroyo is corrupt, Archbishop Cruz did not hesitate to say, “Yes, because the incumbent Malacanang occupant has received not long ago the very distinguished award, never have been given before in Philippine history, as the most corrupt President.”

Cruz further said, “To say that the Malacanang occupant is but the follower of corruption and not a leader of corruption is asking too much. It will take somebody from the moon to believe that the head of corruption is down below and not from above.”

Since “seditious” means “tending to cause discontent among the people or fostering the spirit of rebellion.”, what causes people to be enraged, the corrupt practices or the criticism of the corruption?

The impeachment complaint filed by citizens concerned of the the country’s degradation enumerates the documented crimes of the Arroyo against the Filipino people. Here’s the short list

1.The $329 million deal with the Chinese firm, ZTE Corp to establish a national broadband network;

2. The sale of the country’s gold reserve in Mt. Diwalwal to ZTE Corp. in an agreement described by the complainants as “grossly disadvantageous to the country’s interests”;

3. Entering into the Northrail Project without the approval of the Monetary Board and which failed to give preference to Filipino labor and investment;

4. Distribution of bribe money to congressmen last year, which she supposedly authorized, to speed up the referral of the impeachment complaint filed against her last year by lawyer Roel Pulido to prevent the filing of a genuine complaint;

5.The diversion of P3.3 billion intended for farmers, P728 million of which were supposed to be spent for fertilizer, to the campaign kitty of Arroyo in the 2004 elections;

6.Similar to the fertilizer scam is the illegal and improper use of the P5 billion loan obtained by the Quedan Rural Credit Guarantee Corp. to fund her 2004 election campaign.

7.Cheating in the 2004 elections.

It’s good that former Agriculture Secretary Jocelyn “Joc-Joc” Bolante is back. He has a lot of explaining to do on the P3.3 billion supposedly for agriculture that were released just a few weeks before the 2004 elections and the P5 billion unaccounted Quedancor funds.

Every impeachment complaint filed against Arroyo the past three years includes cheating in the 2004 elections that is referred by Bishop Cruz the “original sin” because all of the other crimes cited in the impeachment complaint were committed to either cover up or pay back her accomplices in the rigging of the 2004 election results. The NBN/ZTE deal, for example. Why was a retiring Comelec official into a telecommunication project? Simple. Abalos gave her the presidency that the Filipino people denied her in 2004. He had to be rewarded for that.

Arroyo has yet to explain why she said “I am sorry” when the “Hello Garci” tapes surfaced in June 2005. In that tape, she was heard talking to Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano about tampering the election results in the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao.

In this year’s complaint, lawyer Harry Roque has included the testimonies of some members of the Special Action Forces of the Philippine National Police who participated in the switching of election returns at the Batasan Pambansa storage room.

Now, what could be more seditious than thwarting the will of the people?

Gonzalez was so riled up with the statement of the five bishops saying that “The time to start radical reforms is now. ..The time to prepare a new government is now. ”

Arroyo was never elected by the people. Every day of her illegitimate presidency is sedition at its highest form.