‘Our president #16 feels he is under attack. The arrest of Apollo Quiboloy was a blow to his political infrastructure…’
VERY, very, very rarely do former US presidents issue statements from retirement about current matters of state. This practice is mainly out of respect for the incumbent – even if, as in the current situation in the United States, the incumbent keeps making statements about his predecessors, blaming them for things that are going wrong and calling them names.
Of course, the nature of the personality of the incumbent is such that he does his best to project to others whatever inadequacies, even sins, he has. Think of every adjective he has used on his political opponents and you will realize that they are actually apt descriptions of himself. Except for felon, which is unique to him. But no president in modern history has been as quick to fix the blame on his predecessors as #47; and yet none of his predecessors, except during the campaign period, have spoken up to strike back.
It’s the established culture of civility in the highest level of US politics that is under attack today. I am hoping it survives these next four years.
This level of civility has also been, in the main, practiced in the Philippines. Until now. Because, let’s face it, like #47 in the United States, our 16th president is not known for his civility. And that’s why Rodrigo Duterte is unique among former presidents in not respecting the “once a president, shut up” tradition.
Former presidents, like ex-wives, are better relegated to the background – unless they have a “palengkera” vibe that makes them keep clacking away like chickens. But former presidents, like ex-wives, also have to be conscious of the fact that what you say can only get you into deeper trouble. And the careless among them can end up saying things that are admissions of legal value in a proper court of law.
Before FPRRD, only two former presidents came out of retirement to make statements on matters of national import. Former President Cory Aquino (our 11th president) led the public outcry against the efforts of her chosen successor, Fidel Ramos (president. #12), to amend the Cory Constitution and allow a president to run for a second term. Ramos, on the other hand, was more than eager to issue statements to the press on almost any controversial issue, whether on economic or defense matters. But both of them took pains to avoid personal attacks on the incumbent. For them, there were certain lines not to be crossed.
Our president #16 feels he is under attack. The arrest of Apollo Quiboloy was a blow to his political infrastructure; the apparent relaxation of the government’s previous strong position against collaborating with the ICC is another. And then there is the concerted effort to impeach his daughter, Vice President Sara, which, if successful, will disqualify her from running for public office ever again. So, for #16, there seem to be no such lines to be respected and not to be crossed.
Understandable, but he does it at his own risk.
