Philippines Mired In Worst 'Plunder' Scandal, Aquino Battles 'Pork' Claims
Philippines Mired In Worst 'Plunder' Scandal, Aquino Battles 'Pork' Claims
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Philippine law has an all-purpose word to describe the massive theft of public funds: "plundering."
The anti-plunder law, passed in the aftermath of the demise of the long-ruling Ferdinand Marcos in the People Power revolution of 1986, seemed like the most appropriate term to cover the looting of public money by Marcos, his wife Imelda and a cast of "cronies" with fingers in just about every pie of commerce and industry.
Now the word is coming up again with charges against one of the men most involved in bringing about the downfall of Marcos, 90-year-old Juan Ponce Enrile, a long-time senator and former defense chief, two other influential senators and numerous aides.
They're all under arrest, but Enrile is getting special medical treatment in deference to his age and degenerating eyesight. His one-time top aide, Jessica Lucila "Gigi" Reyes, is demanding similar consideration after suffering a "panic attack" at the prospect of being held in the same room with women affiliated with the communist "New People's Army."
At the heart of what's said to be the biggest financial scandal in years is the ease with which politcos and bureaucrats are accused of having made off with large portions of government funds given to them to allocate for public purposes at their own discretion.
Some of the funds may have come from a "disbursement acceleration program" set up by President Benigno Aquino III and still more from a "priority development assistance fund," long regarded as a cesspool of graft and corruption. The Philippines' supreme court has ruled both programs violate the country's constitution.
Aquino, in a televised defense of the "disbursement acceleration program," addressed the Philippine people who elected him as "bosses" -- a play upon the familiar polite word of respect when asking for a favor or assistance. In this case, Aquino wanted Filipinos to distinguish between his scheme for providing quickly much needed assistance when and where needed from the corrupt practices of his predecessor, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, whose presidency was marred by charges of pervasive corruption.
President Benigno S. Aquino III (Wikipedia)
"We are now righting the wrongs in the system," he said. "I will not allow your suffering to be prolonged."
Aquino not only vowed to fight the Supreme Court decision but also refused the resignation of his budget secretary, Florencio "Butch" Abad, who critics say has never revealed how or where the funds flowed from the central government to remote provinces.
The controversy over what the Philippine media refers to as "the president's pork barrel" has sparked a movement to impeach him while his popularity rating has sunk to a low of 25%. The ruckus has invited comparisons to the movement that finally toppled Marcos after the assassination of Aquino's father, Benigno Aquino II, as he returned to Manila from the U.S. to challenge Marcos' rule.
Benigno Aquino's widow, Corazon Aquino, mother of the current president, running for president as Marcos and his family and cronies fled to the U.S., sought to institute far-reaching reforms that critics have said were never effective.
Adding to the irony. Enrile, who had served Marcos, turned against him in an alliance with Fidel Ramos, the general at the forefront of People Power during the massive demonstrations that engulfed Edsa, the main north-south artery through Metro Manila. Ramos succeeded Aquino as president.
Others accused also are members of political families associated with bygone scandals. Most prominent among them is Jinggoy Estrada, senator, lawyer, former movie actor and son of  Joseph Estrada, a former president who was deposed in 2001 in "People Power II," the uprising that vaulted Arroyo, the vice president, into the presidency. Then there is Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr., also an actor, who succeeded his father as a senator in elections 10 years ago.
Also under arrest, at the center of the case, is businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, accused of having diverted funds from the "priority" program by setting up phony NGO's. Labelled as the "mastermind" by prosecutors, she too has said she suffers from medical problems in requesting special treatment.
While President Aquino shifts responsibility for corruption to the Arroyo government, his critics warn the scandal could give rise to political unrest similar to that in Thailand in recent years -- or to the the type of People Power revolutions that unseated first Marcos in 1986 and Estrada 15 years later.
Senator Sergio Osmena III,  member of another leading political family, hinted darkly at "extrajudicial moves" by those who "don't like these sorts of things." He predicted, though, that Aquino would "finish his term" amid "serious question about his credibility."
As for Aquino, despite the arrests of prominent figures, he showed no sign of backing down. "Any good president," he told the nation, "would want to implement projects that benefit the public at the soonest possible time."