The CBCP’s call for communal action that it itself dropped amidst public outcry of vagueness and timidity when the CTE-NBN issue was at its hottest point now just might turn out to be the best path after all. At least, it is a lot preferable to Cardinal Sin’s forthright call to the streets. People power only aggravated the problem, instead of addressing it.
That we were a lot better off before EDSA 1 and 2 is an observation that only those who are in power might dare dispute. This, along with the grim specter of anarchy, a civil war, military junta or a communist take-over, forces many of us to grin and bear it with the luckiest bitch while nervously praying that the 2010 elections finds us all still intact.
But, come to think of it. Elections never bring relief, only false hopes that last for a year at most. Alas for the oppressed majority, elections differ not at all from people power. It is perhaps this predicament that draws us to other options. Cha-cha, for one, is considered even if we have to dance to a cacophony of sounds under the baton of a usurper who obviously seeks an extension of evil. An unlikely knight in rusty armor who comes to revive her fading hopes, albeit unwittingly perhaps, is drawing much attention.
Senator Nene Pimentel correctly suggests that our problem arose from too much power and resources lodged in the Presidency. He wants some of it devolved. No more shall our fortunes or misfortunes rest on a woman or a man. Fine! There’s just one small hitch though. His proposal carries with it its own death sentence – 70 Senators and 350 Congressmen. How insensitive can one be?
How ironic indeed that the Local Government Code of 1991 he himself authored is capable of giving the benefits of federalism without its costs. The Code itself mandates that it be visited every five years. It provides for dynamism yet it’s been 17 years since its approval but the League of Governors still struggles to have it amended. What does this show? That Congress, including the good Senator himself, was never too keen about giving more powers to local governments! Perhaps, it has yet to see its full import.
We think that Senator Pimentel is agonizing. The formula slept with him for too long. Now he wants to make up for lost time through the cha-cha that he used to oppose vehemently. We understand. Ganyan talaga ang mga taong bagong gising. Wala pa sa sarili. He can recoup faster if he let his son take care of his own ambitions. It’s time the Code is updated to suit the challenge of the times. It’s time for the old man to sit with the League of Provinces or any other concerned party. We need his expertise and true advocacy, not the heel licking ULAP and League officials.
Communal action goes beyond Gloria bashing and search for truth. It seeks dialogs, not impulsive action. How was it that she was able to freely do her thing? Was it because we failed to pass the laws that could have curbed her powers? Was it because we were not vigilant enough and failed to act on the little things that could have meant a lot, like the PNP’s inability to serve a warrant of arrest to a high profile and potentially voluble convict who finds safe haven under a fetid skirt? Not Garci, stupid! He’s too big for us.
What now? What must we do after the EDSA option failed, or while it simmers? Shall we go the way of Senator Pimentel? Or, have we other ideas? We now rage for communal action. Will CBCP pick up the pieces and provide the much needed leadership, if only to regain its relevance? Its call is obviously inspired. Let no man or woman put it asunder. Or do we just wait for the bubble to burst?
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