July 28, 2006

It was a package of promises and ironies presented as a State of the Nation Address (SONA). And there were some in the media who likened the SONA to a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) report.

On July 24, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) presented grandiose plans of massive telecommunications and transportation upgrading. These promises are intended to please local government officials and allies of Malacañang who packed the Batasang Pambansa, who almost fell off their seats for overly applauding.

While the president condemned political killings “in the strongest possible terms”, she however praised to high heavens Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, the butcher of political activists. Despite protests raging in streets nationwide, she had no qualms about declaring an improved peace and order situation in the country, much more the supposed poverty reduction. Her policies on E-VAT, oil price hikes, no living wage increase and the price increases in basic services and commodities have further aggravated the already unbearable socio-economic situation of the majority of the Filipino people.

The obvious ploy to cover up for her anti-people policies and crimes are the promises, tailor-cut in a presentation of adjoined islands provinces, lands due for agribusiness, trade, and tourism. These indeed are the apt preparations to further accommodate imperialist globalization in the country, which she intends to pursue through Charter Change.

Target: Northern Luzon
The Cordillera is one of the target regions in the creation of GMA’s super regions, the concept of which is no different to the North Luzon Quadrangle of the Ramos administration’s Philippines 2000, which was meant to facilitate the plunder of our patrimony and resources. “Agribusiness investments” will be prioritized under this. We wonder what business there is left to fuel in the agriculture sector when it is already in a state of bankruptcy due to unhampered liberalization of the agricultural sector. But even without this having taken place, development aggression (large mines, dams) has already taken its toll in the Cordillera. The expansion plan of the San Roque Dam is a concrete expression of this ploy to exploit and plunder.

While GMA was very careful not to mention anything on her mining agenda as this is very unpopular, people’s struggles in affected communities speak the truth, as in the Cordillera region. The provinces of Apayao and Kalinga are the current mining hotspots in the region, on top of the existing large-scale mining operations in Benguet. Militarization remains an important tool for the GMA government to pursue its mining agenda. In the long run, the implementation of this program, coupled with massive counter-insurgency operations, will heighten human rights violations and national oppression among indigenous peoples here in the region.

In her SONA, she has harped incessantly of the supposed benefits of federalism offered by Charter Change. But this federal system is mainly intended to further strengthen warlordism, local political dynasties and corruption in the Cordillera. Likewise, it is also a mechanism for the national government to pass on its obligation of providing basic services to local governments. This will, in turn, only worsen the disparities in public access to basic services with most of the poor provinces worst off.

For the Cordillera region, genuine regional autonomy entails the correction of historic injustice and national oppression of Cordillera IPs, and political unity as a region. It entails empowerment of the people and the full recognition and practice of IPs’ collective rights over their land and resources, in accordance to their own path and pace of development. Government has failed twice, and bigtime, on its experiments with autonomy. The Cordillera peoples do not want more of this. Not in another plebiscite, not in another organic law. The CPA has exhausted the means for this in the government framework long before, to which constructive results or sincerity was far from attained.

Oust GMA
At the end of these overwhelming plans is the practical question of “Where are we going to get the money?” By nature of an export-oriented, import-dependent Philippine economy, the only recourse is to loan the funds from foreign sources. The inevitable result would be unending debt servicing, while majority of the Filipino people remain poor. Had there been any revenue at all as claimed by GMA, there is no guarantee of any allocation to basic services. As one local official in Benguet put it, why hadn’t there been reports on the education or health sector at all? The revenues are collected still to pay off foreign debts and big infrastructure projects, which are a major source of corruption at all levels.

GMA may be working hard, yes. But only to save her regime that is at the brink of collapse. Recall how she has commended her allies at the SONA, a desperate move to reaffirm their loyalty. It is also this same set of people who are backing her up on the Charter Change. GMA is working so hard that she is busy pulling the trigger at political activists, with the aid of berdugos implementing the Oplan Bantay Laya.

The Charter Change is a vital component to her self-serving interest to remain in power (not to mention the stolen presidency) which explains why she keeps selling it to the public, both by hook and by crook.

GMA’s ambitious “development plans”, however, are not for sustainable development of the poor majority. The crux of the matter remains that GMA’s legitimacy as president is still in question, and that there are gaping issues of graft and corruption and human rights violations in her shadow. The call of the times has not changed, as we have had enough of GMA. There should never be another SONA by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. ###

CORDILLERA PEOPLES ALLIANCE

Reference:
Windel Bolinget
CPA Secretary General