The League of Filipino Students (LFS) is dismayed at the possibility of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo breaking free thanks to Noynoy Aquino’s repeated negligence on Arroyo.
Aquino has succeeded in the removal of Arroyo ally and former Chief Justice Renato Corona. But instead of being a step in prosecuting Arroyo, which was drowned out in the middle of the drama, it was only on the basis of technicalies and undecleared assets. It only served to consolidate his political power and further his yellow agenda. In the “daang matuwid,” the prosecution of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo remains stuck in a traffic jam.
All the more now her allies are engineering her escape. Arroyo has petitioned to post bail with support from the Lower House for the weak electoral sabotage case filed against her. With only two star witness implicating Arroyo, one of which has gone missing, the case is sure to be whitewashed. Arroyo herself had pleaded ‘not guilty’ before the Sandiganbayan.
No one is to blame but Aquino, who remains insincere in the quest to persecute Arroyo:
(1) The cases against Arroyo and Abalos are going to be whitewashed, with only two star witness implicating Arroyo, one of which has gone missing.
(2) Up until now Aquino has filed zero cases for the more serious offenses of HRVs, plunder, graft and corruption (!), especially the Ampatuan massacre, the Hello Garci election fraud, and the still hiding Palparan.
(3) While everyone is hooked to the Corona drama of bank accounts, Arroyo is merely “arrested” in a hospital, while allowing her requests and being granted one privilege after another.
Aquino’s continued inaction toward Arroyo is no longer a symptom of ‘noynoying,’ but is indicative of gross indecisiveness on his part. It isn’t hard for Aquino to unleash all his powers to convict Arroyo the same way he used them against Corona, but even now that Corona’s out, he has not done everything to convict Arroyo. It is even possible for new signs of collaboration between the two to emerge.
It remains that Aquino is using Arroyo and his election gimmicks to portray himself different from the corrupt Arroyo regime, the question now is for how long could he keep this up. Aquino keeps covering up the fact that they are essentially no different from each other in terms of economic and political policy, especially their continued subservience to US imperialist powers.
Noynoy’s Oplan Bayanihan is merely Arroyo’s human rights violation and counterinsurgency scheme Oplan Bantay Laya taken to a more rabid and deceptive level. Budget cuts continue in education and social services, and houses continue to be demolished for commercial establishments. Workers’ wages continue to be below the cost of living, with increases amounting like P20 bills. Foreign policy and debt servicing is intensified. Aquino’s state visits and agreements with Obama and his $1B fool’s pledge to the IMF are no different from Arroyo’s unhesitant support for Bush during the Iraq war.
As Aquino is nearing the second year of his term, it is high time we demand accountability for the weak charges on Arroyo and for action on her non-bailable offenses and for her immediate arrest and detention. If Aquino is serious in his line of the “daang matuwid,” he should get real and to stop acting like Arroyo, and take action to the genuine demands for land reform, workers wages, and quality education.
Our calls remain: Convict and jail Arroyo now! ###
