We should have done more

There is a full page ad in the papers today paid for by the Partido ng Masang Pilipino. In gist, it quoted the analyses of international political scribes published in well-known newspapers with global circulation that People Power II was illegal. I myself have no legalistic counterpoint to their arguments. I am not a lawyer nor do I claim to be a political analyst.

 

Having been involved in the event, I am sometimes confronted by the question of whether we erred in kicking Estrada out of office—all the more because his replacement turned out to be worse.

 

But however these analysts decry the “mob rule” the issues for us then were clear. Estrada was an immoral President who deserved the fate that befell him. While the Constitution may have been circumvented, it was only because Estrada had complete control of the political processes that shored up his immoral administration to the detriment of the people’s interests. What were we to do but assert our right to reject immorality in government? Between the two, we simply believed that we deserved a fresh start rather than continue to suffer Estrada—regardless of whatever that was set aside. 

 

I do not begrudge the writers for thinking the way they did. They were from countries with political systems that did not allow for persons like Estrada (or gma for that matter). They did not know our desperation for genuine social change and justice. Their constitutions were so respected by their politicians that their peoples were not forced to “supplant” them for higher and moral objectives.

 

No, I do not feel I need to apologize for my decisions and actions in 2001.

 

What I deeply regret though is that gma was the constitutional successor at the time. Had we known then that she is worse than Erap, we should have supplanted the Constitution more and disallowed her to profit from our sacrifices and dreams.