‘Let’s dissolve the Republic!’

MANILA, Philippines –Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile vehemently denied rumors that an additional P100-million pork barrel had been given to some senators in exchange for their votes to postpone elections at the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

“That’s a canard, and whoever said that is a liar,” Enrile said during the Senate’s weekly forum on Thursday.

The ARMM election this coming August 8 was effectively postponed after House Bill 4146 was approved at the Senate, with a 13-7 vote.

Instead, the said election in Mindanao will be synchronized with the mid-term national and local elections in 2013, as decided on the third, and final reading of the bill.

The second reading ostensibly had the same voting result among the senators, and was also held that day, in which the debate took about six hours, with the bill having Senator Franklin Drilon as the principal author.

The 13 senators who voted for the postponement of the ARMM election were Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, Senate President Pro Tempore “Jinggoy” Estrada, Majority Floor Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, and Senators Franklin Drilon, Teofisto Guingona III, Ralph Recto, Francis Pangilinan, Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Panfilo Lacson, Gringo Honasan, Pia Cayetano, Lito Lapid and Antonio Trillanes IV.

On the other hand, the 7 senators who voted against the bill were Francis Escudero, Sergio Osmeña, Joker Arroyo, Juan Miguel Zubiri, Edgardo Angara, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

Senators Manny Villar and Alan Peter Cayetano were not present during the the nominal voting and Senator Loren Legarda is currently outside the country for an official mission.

“Do you think anyone of us is that bad? We’ve reached that level of badness that we barter our honor for money?” Enrile posed the question during the Senate forum.

Enrile also dispelled speculations that senators who had met with President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III prior to the Senate vote, had made a deal in exchange for their vote for the ARMM postponement.

“When we are invited by the President, it is a matter of courtesy that we respond, go to him and talk to him. But that does not mean that we will make a deal,” he said.

“I think you should have at least faith in your elected people. If you have no faith anymore in your elected people, let’s dissolve the Republic. I’m willing to get out for my region if that’s the way the people think about it,” Enrile said.

President Aquino initially wanted to push forward with the ARMM elections reportedly to give justice to those slain in the November 2009 Maguindanao Massacre, whose relatives are afraid that postponing the polls may give the Ampatuan clan time to retain power. Several members of the clan are currently being held, and tried, for allegedly masterminding the elections-related killing of 57 people.

But in recent months, the president’s position had veered towards the idea of postponing the elections to 2013 to synchronize it with that year’s regular elections. He was quoted as saying that the issue “requires time and serious effort to really delve deeper into the issue.”

Other advocates, have batted for holding the elections at the appointed period, noting that postponing the elections might hurt the already fragile state of democracy in the ARMM.

They also pointed out that the ARMM cannot afford the vacuum of legitimate leadership that may result if elections are not held.
But in the end, the president and his legislative allies decided that postponement of the polls would be preferable due to the region’s volatile peace and order situation, and to ensure that the current attempts at peace talks with ARMM-based rebel groups would not be derailed by partisan politics.