Babe's Eye View article

Presidents may have all the power in the world, but they are also the most watched. A leader—especially, in democratic countries with a very free media—is virtually put under a microscope where everything he or she says and does is scrutinized. Which is why any hint of indiscretion—bribery, corruption, philandering—can be multiplied a hundred times, with presidential foes and even allies ready to pounce on it to expand their political fortunes.

Presidential indiscretions are not new. History is full of stories about the carelessness of leaders, which oftentimes leads to their downfall. The goodlooking president Quezon was a playboy who had trysts with so many women reportedly at the Pangarap rest house. He was so charismatic he got away with his indiscretions.

Rampant corruption marked Elpidio Quirino's term—but what gradually caused disenchantment among Filipinos were accusations that he used taxpayers' money to buy a P5,000 bed and a P500 gold bed pan for his granddaughter. This perception of frivolousness at a time when the economy was tottering cost Quirino his reelection bid.

In the case of Joseph Estrada, the story was he was in his room when Clarissa Ocampo arrived at the State Guest House. She was waiting for one of Erap's lawyers and since the door to Erap's office was open, he saw the legs of Ocampo and found them attractive. He went outside—and the rest is history. This carelessness with seemingly inconsequential things eventually helped in his downfall.

No matter how good a leader is, a single careless indiscretion can weaken his position. Whoever thought of giving "cash gifts" to those politicians should be shot by musketry. For heaven's sake, why do that at this time when the administration is reeling from all these scandals, corruption charges and bogus impeachment—and why do it in Malacañang of all places? Even a GMA cabinet secretary admitted it was the most stupid thing to do. A case of stupidity—or hubris (the arrogance of power)?

I had dinner with Ping Lacson (GMA's arch enemy) a couple of weeks ago, and he said he would have thought GMA would have been more careful after she got away with the Garci scandal. But as Ping says, it seems she hasn't learned with this new NBN deal, and now these supposed pays-offs in Malacañang.

Marcos' undoing happened when he clipped the authority of his minister of defense Juan Ponce Enrile over coconut levy funds—leading to their split-up and ultimately, JPE and Honasan plotted a coup against Marcos. A more recent history is Erap's falling out with Chavit over jueteng money and the Bingo 2-ball franchise which went to Eric Singson, Chavit's cousin and foe. This time, the cracks in the administration coalition between Joe de Venecia and GMA were obviously triggered by money and power as well.

GMA's problem has been, more often than not, herself. She seems to have the knack for alienating allies or people who have worked for her, the most recent of whom is Speaker Joe de Venecia and "The Firm" particularly Pancho Villaraza, who have now turned against her. I remember what Max Soliven used to tell me: "We have to save Gloria from herself!"

But more than the dissolution of political alliances or attempts to grab or perpetuate power, politicians should be concerned with the growing majority still complaining of hunger and poverty. Young military officers continue to be restive, frustrated that government is supposedly too hard-up to increase their combat pay yet could afford to give away millions to politicians.

We're lucky the last two EDSAs were peaceful. If politicians continue with the "business as usual" of corruption and power play, we may not be as lucky this time because of a brewing social volcano ready to erupt anytime. There are 35 million Filipinos (and still growing) who continue to feel neglected, growing resentful of being mired in poverty, and whose long, suffering patience could explode—reminding me of the famous piece written by Raul Manglapus, "Land of bondage, land of the free" which we had to memorize by heart during our elocution days at the Ateneo.

I distinctly recall that ominous refrain referring to the Spanish encomenderos at that time, which could very well be addressed to people in power today if they continue to turn a blind eye to the plight of the ordinary Filipino: "Build a wall around your home. Build it high! Build it strong! Place a guard on every corner of your house. For I, the Filipino who has been silent for three hundred years will come to you in the night while you are feasting, with my cry and my bolo at your door. And may God have mercy on your soul!"

As usual, there's a lot of speculation about the blast in Glorietta. Could this be the handiwork of disgruntled soldiers? In any language, this is pure and simple terrorism. Other countries obviously have better intelligence since there have been past travel advisories warning about possible bomb blasts in Metro Manila. Let's face it, mall guards here are just very lax, conducting very cursory checks on bags.

We should spend money on better security equipment but most of all, we should hire people who are trained and know the difference between Play Dough and a C4 plastic explosive, not some dumb guards who can't even distinguish a cellphone and a triggering device even if it stares them in the face. There's no question about it—this blast was an act of terror, and it was a disaster waiting to happen.