get the hell out of there

It is hard not to take a stand these days. The political ruckus is just too disconcerting to ignore. As much as I want to convince myself that my activism died on that surreal day when the moron was deposed and the opportunist was thrust into power, I cannot force my mind to shrug it all off and focus on more important things in my life. After all, where would these ‘important things’ be if my country is spiraling down the drain like tapeworms being flushed down the toilet bowl?

The president must resign. Now. She must stop scaring the country by dangling the prospect of a Noli de Castro presidency, which Vishnu knows, would probably be worse than Erap clambering up the presidential throne again. But that’s beside the point. She has already lost what little credibility she had when she first ascended the presidency. She can still resuscitate her dying dignity (I’m assuming, of course, that she is still dignified after what she has owned up to) by resigning, and thus, ridding us all of an undeserved albatross around our neck. This has gone on for so long. Her apology, at best, merely soldered the public’s suspicion that she indeed cheated in last year’s presidential elections. The public can never lap up the mea culpa of a sorry-ass president pretending to be wallowing in contrition. Seasoned thespian Zenaida Amador, who used to coach her in her State of the Nation Addresses, is already dead. She has no acting coach to make her statements believable now, which explains her catatonic posturing during that laughable, televised apology.

What I find terribly disheartening, though, is the fact that the opposition itself is just as tainted as Gloria. Their only concern is to push Erap’s fat ass back into Malacañang, or at least, get him off the hook. And then there’s the brooding nightmare of Noli de Castro taking over the reins. A military junta is out of the question, and so is the transition government being peddled by the clergy. This kind of thinking is dangerous, especially in these times. Who would constitute this transition government? Who would choose them? And by what power would they choose them? This perhaps, would invite other sectors to venture into political adventureerism. If a group of personalities could take it upon themselves to elect a body to rule, then what stops other groups from doing the same?

An extra-constitutional solution will merely send our economy plunging down the depths of whatever is under Hell. But judging from what has been happening, this might be the only thing that would make Gloria leave the palace. Contrary to what some sectors are saying, this solution is not exactly unconstitutional. As constitutional expert Father Bernas put it, the Constitution recognizes the right of the people to revolt. But a peaceful uprising would never fructify if the middle class and the military would not join it. The former is still making up its mind as to whichever is better: tribulations with Gloria or hell with Noli; and the latter is still weighing its options, possibly thinking of how it could highjack the situation to their own advantage.

But then again, are we not doing the country more harm than good if we take this path?

We are only left with one solution. And that is for the president and the vice president to resign. Noli’s mandate is as questionable as the honor of the president he serves. These two should leave their posts vacant for the conduct of a snap election. The officials of the Commission on Election, too, must resign to give this process some semblance of credibility. Either that or we go for more drastic measures like a charter change that would usher in a parliamentary government or federalism. We can’t just sit and pray and hope that everything goes well. Whether or not we accept it, things will still get worse. And no amount of praying can help it.

photo from news.yahoo.com