Sometimes, I think that Filipinos are too shallow and
starstruck to make democracy work in this country.This is no more evident in the uptrend of the
twitter hashtag “#dubredo”.This hashtag refers to the tandem of
Philippine President Rodrigo DUterte
and Vice President Leni RoBREDO.
All this arose after the first meeting of the newly inaugurated
heads of state and the pair were photographed looking very comfortable with one
another, Leni Robredo in particular looking very giggly—like a schoolgirl in
the presence of her crush.
Later, more “shipping”
happened when Duterte asked Robredo if she wanted to head the Housing and Urban
Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC). Twitter was literally blowing up with #Dubredo memes.
What kind of people have we become that we let this
touchy-feely, kilig-ness affect our
national consciousness?Makes me question
the sort of logic “Dubredo” voters applied last May 9.
More disturbing is how this shipping is somehow worthy
of being featured in the news.Did
Duterte’s boycott of the Media reduce them to reporting mush?Or is it because the persons allied with the
Liberal Party are fighting to keep their party relevant in the new
administration?One would think that the
media, in the face of the criticism arrayed against it by Duterte would strive
to report on things of greater substance than kilig-ness mush.
All this may just seem like harmless fun, but I can’t
help but think that there is a darker side to all this.It is no secret that Duterte and Robredo come
from opposing political parties, and that there is actual enmity between
them.During the election campaign,
Robredo would go along with her running mate Mar Roxas’ negative portrayal of
Duterte as a dictator and would spread black propaganda.Some have also theorized that former
president Fidel Ramos put some pressure on Duterte to give Robredo a position
in his cabinet.Duterte, in turn,
complied but just offered the HUDCC, a post that has been held by the past two
Vice Presidents and is a fairly low-key post.
Duterte is probably hoping that that Robredo just
stays quiet in the post he gave her.It is
well known that the Vice President in the Philippine system has no role apart
from existing for the purpose of succession in case of the President’s death or
incapacity.It appears that the media is
not going to let that happen.They have just
found their new darling.
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs.BERNARDO QUIDATO, JR., accused-appellant.
Topic:Disqualifications as a witness; when it
applies.
FACTS:
Accused
Bernardo Quidato Jr was accused of parricide.He and two co-conspirators allegedly attacked with a bolo and iron bars
hack and stab the victim, Bernardo Quidato Sr., appellant’s father and
namesake, which caused the victim’s untimely demise.
Among those
presented as witness were accused’s wife and brother.Also presented were the extrajudicial
confessions of appellant’s two other co-accused.Appellant’s wife testified that while the
accused were drinking tuba she
overheard them saying that they were planning to go to the victim’s house on
the night of the incident in order to “get money” and that she had no idea of
what later transpired. Appellant objected to his wife’s testimony as it was
prohibited by the rule on marital disqualification.Appellant likewise denies the allegations of
his co-accused who in their extrajudicial confession pointed to the
participation of appellant.
ISSUES:
1. Whether or
not the extrajudicial confessions should be given credence as they were
obtained in violation of the constitutional right of appellant to confront
witnesses.
2. Whether or
not the testimony of appellant’s wife is disqualified.
HELD:
1. NO. They
should not be given credence, and indeed, appellant should be acquitted.The prosecution relied heavily on appellant’s
co-accused’s affidavits.However, the
failure to present the affiants in the witness stand gives these affidavits the
character of hearsay.It is hornbook
doctrine that unless the affiants themselves take the witness stand to affirm
the averments in their affidavits, the affidavits must be excluded from the
judicial proceeding, being inadmissible hearsay. “The voluntary admissions of
an accused made extrajudicially are not admissible in evidence against his
co-accused when the latter had not been given an opportunity to hear him
testify and cross-examine him.”
Section 30,
Rule 130 is not applicable in this case because it refers to confessions made
during the existence of the conspiracy.In this case, the conspiracy had clearly ended by the time the
confession was made.
2. YES.The testimony of appellant’s wife must be
disregarded.As correctly observed by
the court a quo, the disqualification is between husband and wife, the law not
precluding the wife from testifying when it involves other parties or accused,
but not where the testimony will be used against the accused-husband directly
or indirectly.
DECISION:
Given the
inadmissibility of accused’s wife’s testimony and the extrajudicial confession
of co-accused, the appellant is hereby ACQUITTED.
ACUÑA, JESUS RAMOS
and ANTONIO (TONY) DIONISIO, defendants.
Topic:Qualification of adult
witnesses.
FACTS:
Defendants were
charged with murder.The complaint
stated that they conspired together and assaulted the victim, Tranquilino
Mariano, and while two of the accused were holding him, one was hitting him by
a 2x2 piece of wood.Then they stabbed
him to death.There were a number of
witnesses who saw the beating and another who saw the accused dragging a dead
body.
The RTC
convicted the accused and hence this appeal.The main issue in this appeal is the credibility of the witnesses.Accused claim that they should have noticed
the witnesses if they claim to have been there when the crime was happening,
the fact that accused “did not notice the witnesses’ presence” makes their
testimony incredible. The witnesses were also first cousins of the victims and they
failed to report the incident immediately.
ISSUE:
Whether or not
the witnesses’ testimony is incredible.
HELD:
NO.First, where the issue is the credibility of
the witness, the Supreme Court, as a general rule will not disturb the findings
of the lower courts as regards to their findings of the witnesses’
credibility.
As to the fact
that accused “did not notice” the presence of the witnesses, it was correctly
pointed out by the prosecution that the accused were probably too engrossed
with their assault to have noticed the witnesses.Besides, the area where the incident occurred
was partly concealed by gumamela plants
hence it was possible for the witnesses to see the incident without being seen.
It is also true
that the witnesses were first cousins but “there is nothing in our laws that
disqualifies relatives of a victim from testifying in a criminal case … so long
as said relatives who were actually present at the scene of the crime,
witnessed its execution.”Furthermore,
there was no showing of ill-motive.
The fact that
they failed to report the incident immediately is also understandable. The accused
were locally known troublemakers who would intimidate people once they fell
under the influence of liquor.The court
also takes judicial notice that the witnesses were town mates and must have
feared reprisals.Such reticence has
been declared as not affecting credibility.
The witness who
saw the accused dragging the cadaver, likewise reported the incident 6 months
after the incident.The court held that
this does not affect the credibility of the as it relates to a matter that
occurred after the crime was
committed and merely corroborates the testimony of two other credible witnesses
(the cousins) who actually witnessed the incident.
I have blogged before about how I felt that Indian
cars would produce great customer satisfaction for a Filipino motorist. I wrote that:
“Their cars
are rugged and durable. Mahindras, Hindustan Motors, Tata and Maruti/Suzuki
have built a reputation for simplicity and quality.
x x x
“Indians are also technically
proficient. A quick look at their internet forae and the number of car programs
as seen on youtube shows that the Indian is a discerning motorist. I also
suspect that the road conditions in India are so much worse than in the
Philippines that a car built for India would have no trouble negotiating the
potholes and floods of Manila and the dirt and mud of the Provinces.”
Thus, when word came out that the Philippine National Police was going
to acquire Mahindra Enforcers (known in India as the Bolero), I was thrilled. I
knew that my hypothesis was going to be proved correct, so much so that when
the Senate questioned the acquisition, I wrote in
favor of it.
Mahindra
Enforcer PNP Patrol Car
More than a year later, is my hypothesis correct? It seems so.
In the May 20, 2016 edition of the Philippine Star* explains that the
PNP is very satisfied with the Enforcer’s performance. Antonio Mallari, Jr., the after sales
director stated that only 61 of the the 1,470 Enforcers or only 4% have been
brought to Mahindra’s service depots for minor repairs and preventive
maintenance.
Keep in mind that these vehicles have been in use for over one year and
under “rigorous usage” as patrol cars.
So there you have it folks, Indian cars can cope well in Philippine
conditions. They are rugged and
reliable. Sure, they don’t look “pogi”, but for some, that isn’t
important.
Will the government consider getting more Indian vehicles? Will you
consider getting one? I for one, consider them great value for money, an
Enforce costs between P750,000 for the lowest spec, single cab model to P995,000
for the top of the line double cab, 4x4 version.
The Sad Fate of Grace Poe and Alan Purisima
The award of the contract to Mahindra will be the only project I will
commend the now-discredited and shamed Gen. Alan Purisima for. To be fair, he deserves to be thrown in jail
for graft and corruption if not for his flat out incompetence. But this acquisition shall be his enduring
legacy.
Alan Purisima
On the other hand, when Senator Grace Poe openly questioned the
acquisition of Mahindra trucks to be used by the PNP, I criticized her. The neophyte senator displayed her ignorance
of the motoring world. I could never
trust her to make our laws and I could not trust her with the top post in
government.
Grace Poe
---
*I could not find this article online, however, I was lucky enough to
have snapped a picture of the article as it appears on print. Here it is below.
This article is a response to a Philippine Star Opinion Piece Written by
Crispin C. Maslog dated April 12, 2016.
An opinion piece recently appeared in the Philippine
Star entitled Martial
Law Amnesiawritten by Crispin C. Maslog. This is a cut and dried piece basically
explaining how the Marcoses abused their power during Martial Law and because
of this, we should not elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., as Vice
President. The article begins with an explanation as to how the Millennial
generation is not to blame for “Martial law amnesia”. Maslog explains that this is because their
generation “did not teach history properly”, and then he proceeds to talk about
how President Marcos wanted to increase his term, suspended the constitution
and declared martial law and how everything went downhill after that et cetera, et cetera.
I am a Millennial and forgive me Mr. Maslog, but this
sounds eerily like what we have been indoctrinated in in school. This is the same history and the same
discourse that is being taught to the kids today. I will give Mr. Maslog credit though, he has
come to terms with the fact that it is not the Millennial’s fault for the
historical revisionism and glamorization of the Martial Law period, but this is
not for want of being told stories of the “horrors” of Martial Law rule. I’ll put it to you plainly, this is a
reaction to the failures of Maslog’s generation.
Let me be blunt about this, everything that the
Martial Law generation did after 1986 makes me want to puke. What we are seeing today is a reaction to the
incompetence and failure of the Martial Law generation to create a better and
more prosperous Philippines after the dictator was toppled. Newsflash!
The Millennial generation has come of age.
No longer do we look up to the previous generation who, after 30 years,
represents nothing but stagnation and incompetence to us. My generation knows that what we want is a
leader who has genuinely created in us a sense of hope for the future—a leader who,
to us represents a future that does not involve having to choose “lesser
evils”, a country that is united to achieving status and prestige.
-o0o-
These times remind me of 2010. There was a man, then running for President,
his name was Gilbert Teodoro. Of all the
candidates then, it was only he who could give us a vision of the Philippines
“taking off”. His vision of the
Philippines then was one where the Philippines had a credible military, a
booming economy and self-sufficiency. A
lot of the youth could relate with this and it is not surprising that in
college polls, Teodoro always came out on top.
My generation wanted this man in office.
Instead, the Martial Law generation disappointed and further
disillusioned us when, riding on a wave of sympathy and nostalgia of the Cory
years, voted her son into office knowing full well that he was not prepared for
such a position.
He was popular with the youth, it’s just too bad that many were too
young to vote in 2010
Times have changed though, in 2010, a lot of
Millennials were still under 18 years old.
Many were in college or were fresh graduates—we didn’t have a say at
all. Now, the Millennials are all above
18 years old, many are independent and holding positions in middle to upper
management, many are married and have children.
The Millennials are becoming increasingly aware of the political and
persuasive power they hold and are more than willing to think for themselves. On the other hand, the Martial law generation
has aged, many have died, others have lost parental authority over the
Millennials. Yes, that generation has
failed and disappointed us Millennials.
We all know what happened after—six wasted years.
The Millennials
are becoming increasingly aware of the political and persuasive power they hold
and are more than willing to think for themselves.
The article ends stating:
The history of this economic plunder is one of the blind spots in the
minds of the Filipino millennials today.
It worries me and my generation no end, that the son of Ferdinand Marcos
is running for vice president of the land, and be just a heartbeat away from
the presidency. If that happens, philosopher George Santayana may again be
proven right when he said long ago that a people who do not remember their past
are condemned to repeat it.
My generation knows this. Our history of economic plunder
continues. It continues today with the
mismanagement and cronyism of the current administration. With all due respect to Mr. Maslog, my
generation lives through this, every day when we ride the decrepit trains, pay for
overpriced electricity and telecom, line up for hours at government offices,
see news of starving farmers and yet another massacre, whenever we see
incursions in our territory and how powerless our military is to stop it. Make no mistake, we are repeating history, it
just looks like the role of villain and hero has been reversed.
The
campaign is in full swing and we’ve recently just concluded the CNN Vice
Presidential Debates. And what a debate
it was! It was certainly a more
provocative and intellectual discourse than the Presidential debates, and with
a fair amount of politicking, considering that most of the candidates are
members of the Legislature.
Vice Presidential Debates Part 2 (Audio Only)
This is also a very good time to be giving some advice
when you make your choice of Vice President on the ballot. My advice is simple: Vote
for the one whom you would most like to see sitting as President.
The reason for this
is that the Vice President is considered as the “substitute President” or the
“President-in-waiting”, a “spare tire”, so to speak. The 1987 Constitution does not give the Vice
President any role in government, instead it provides in Article VII:
Section
7. The President-elect and the Vice President-elect shall assume office at the
beginning of their terms.
If the President-elect fails to qualify, the
Vice President-elect shall act as President until the President-elect shall
have qualified.
If a
President shall not have been chosen, the Vice President-elect shall act as
President until a President shall have been chosen and qualified.
If at the
beginning of the term of the President, the
President-elect shall have died or shall have become permanently disabled, the
Vice President-elect shall become President.
Where no
President and Vice-President shall have been chosen or shall have qualified, or
where both shall have died or become permanently disabled, the President of the
Senate or, in case of his inability, the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, shall act as President until a President or a Vice-President
shall have been chosen and qualified.
The
Congress shall, by law, provide for the manner in which one who is to act as
President shall be selected until a President or a Vice-President shall have
qualified, in case of death, permanent disability, or inability of the
officials mentioned in the next preceding paragraph.
Section 8. In case of death,
permanent disability, removal from office, or resignation of the President, the
Vice-President shall become the President to serve the unexpired term. In
case of death, permanent disability, removal from office, or resignation of
both the President and Vice-President, the President of the Senate or, in case
of his inability, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, shall then act
as President until the President or Vice-President shall have been elected and
qualified.
The Congress shall, by law,
provide who shall serve as President in case of death, permanent disability, or
resignation of the Acting President. He shall serve until the President or the
Vice-President shall have been elected and qualified, and be subject to the
same restrictions of powers and disqualifications as the Acting President.
Please dwell on the phrase “...the Vice-President
shall become the President to serve the unexpired term”. This phrasing means that the Vice President
literally becomes the President in case of the President's death,
permanent disability, removal from office, resignation or
disqualification. The Vice President becomes
a President. Additional support for this
is that the Vice President shares the same age, citizenship and literacy
requirements as the President.
Why is this important?
Two of our recent Vice Presidents have acted as
“shields” for the President, helping to insure that they stay in office. Noli de Castro during President Arroyo’s term
and the incumbent Vice President Jejomar Binay in this present Aquino administration. Both of the Presidents they served under have
faced impeachment complaints and been asked to resign, but the intelligentsia
in both cases have not supported such moves because the would-be successor was
not seen as an acceptable alternative: Noli de Castro was considered weak; and
Jejomar Binay is considered corrupt. The
sitting President was considered the lesser evil. Indeed, this very situation seems so absurd,
it shows great disrespect our system of Presidential succession and a failure
to understand the duties of the Vice President.
Let me be clear, I do not want to see this situation
happening in the next administration.
Indeed, the next administration may very well see a Vice President
succeed to the Presidency. Let us go
over the candidates:
Duterte – He pledged that he will end criminality in 6
months, after which, will resign.
Defensor-Santiago – Sick with cancer and with one foot
in the grave, bless her soul.
Llamanzares – Contrary to appearances, the decision in
Poe vs. COMELEC leaves a
disqualification case open at the Presidential Electoral Tribunal. She may win the elections, but she may still
be disqualified.
Binay – The plunder cases filed against him may also
disqualify him even if he were to win the elections.
Roxas – He is so far down in the polls that in the
unlikely event he will win, it will be because of cheating and he may just get
disqualified.
