This question is being asked lately by some analysts and pundits both in the US and in Manila in the wake of many recent developments that seemed to indicate that the military and police are now calling the shots in the Philippines.
***** For instance, they say that while
Malacanang welcomed the current probe by the Democratic-controlled Congress
into the unabated killings of activists, journalists and religious leaders in
the Philippines, the military and police roundly
deplored it. They even sent their top officers to Washington D.C. to counter the claims of the human
rights groups’ testimonies before the Senate and House subcommittees.
Ordinarily, it is the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs which handles
issues raised in the US or any other foreign country.
***** Other recent red flags cited by
these observers are the failure of the military and the police organizations to
put a stop to the killings despite the oft-repeated “strong” orders from
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to arrest and prosecute the killers. And
despite the doubts expressed lately by the President and the Commission on
Elections about the deployment of military elements in the Metro Manila area
during the election campaign, the military leaders said this was necessary in
the war on the communists and Muslim militants. This month, the military, not
Congress or other civilian agencies, urged the government to outlaw the communist
party and its military arm even as it arrested Rep. Satur Ocampo, the top party
list member of Congress, for cases that occurred decades ago. The arrest
elicited criticisms from members of Congress, including supporters of the
President. Malacanang simply washed its hands off the case although the
department of interior and local governments was at the forefront of rushing
Ocampo to Leyte despite the lack of a court order.
***** In Mindanao, the recent military clashes with the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front despite the ceasefire and the President’s order
to desist from doing so have threatened to unravel the peace talks. .Then there
is the growing concern that the government is top heavy with former generals in
key departments.
***** Analysts believe that if the
President cannot do anything to stop the military from doing its own thing, it
is probably because she owes her stay in power to the generals. Some of the
generals in key positions now have been mentioned in the Hello Garci tapes that
ensured the President’s election in 2004.
***** The next few months, they say, will
determine who is really in charge.
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