Tidings of (dis)comfort

IT’S the season of gift-giving.
And President Benigno Aquino III (PNoy) wasted no time looking for the perfect gift for his nemesis, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) – a suite befitting of a former president, in jail.
Now, only a few weeks after GMA’s arrest and before Christmas, PNoy and his constituents in Congress have fast-tracked the impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona.
With an overwhelming 188 votes in the House of Representatives, the Chief Justice’s impeachment has been elevated to the Senate.
Clad in robes the color of the season (but apparently in the wrong shade of red), the 23 senators took their oath and officially began the arduous process that is the senate trial for Corona’s impeachment.
In comedic fashion, the senators mumbled amongst themselves about the unflattering shade of their robes and even took time to have a photo-op of this historic moment, before adjourning. The Senate session will resume in January 16, after the Christmas break.
But what lies ahead is no laughing matter. After all, an impeachment court for the trial of a Chief Justice is unprecedented in Philippine history.
While the members of the Upper House distinguished themselves by wearing red robes, more than a thousand members of the black-robed judiciary stepped out of their courts on Wednesday and marched to the Supreme Court building in Manila to show their support for Chief Justice Corona.
Reactions have been mixed on the issue. Some have expressed admiration for PNoy’s political will, in fulfilling his campaign promise of “daang matuwid,” while others have referred to the chief executive as a brat on a vengeful rampage.
The country is in the midst of a major all-out war between the executive and judicial branches of government, and the Senate will serve as the final frontier and the great equalizer who will end this political turmoil.
Sen. Miriam Santiago (who has been recently given a seat in the International Criminal Court) opined that the instability that has emerged due to Corona’s impeachment “has created doubt on the integrity of the judicial system.”
“Instability becomes the worst fear of the judicial system because if it is unstable, people will no longer believe in the integrity of its decisions and that will destroy our democracy,” she said.
Sen. Joker Arroyo thinks that the country is now under a constitutional crisis.
All these legalese may overwhelm the ordinary Juan — the taong-bayan, who, ironically, have been designated as the “bosses” of PNoy since he first stepped into office.
It’s always easier to join the bandwagon of the disinformed mob, than to actually make an individual and educated stand on an issue.
While the mud-slinging continues, perhaps “We, The People” should keep our minds open and our feet on neutral ground.
This is not to promote the philosophies of anarchy, but to see it as an opportunity to finally open our eyes and do a litmus test on ourselves, when it comes to our involvement in national affairs.
And despite Sen. Miriam Santiago’s bleak forecast of the possible outcome, we must always keep in mind that we, as guardians of our democracy, play a pivotal role in the grand scheme of things.
In the words of Prof. Randy David: “Impeachment is not just a legal battle; it is also very much a political one precisely because the question of public trust lies at its core.”
While we may not be experts on the constitution, law and justice (because that’s what our leaders are for), perhaps the best gift we can give ourselves this holiday season is sound judgment.
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Weekend Dec 17-20, 2011 Sec A pg.12)