The many Pontius Pilates in government
In the Philippine government, (and all governments under presidents Duterte, PNoy, GMA, FVR, Cory Aquino, and Marcos), there are many Pontius Pilates. Nobody accepts full responsibility. Everyone points to a superior, peer, or underling. Whether it is the Dengvaxia debacle, the Boracay cesspool imbroglio, the MRT mess, the PhilHealth alleged missing billions, the Mamasapano massacre, the Kuwait hullabaloo, or whatever issue the Senate or the House find worthy of investigating in aid of future reelection, it is the same old finger-pointing, that tried and tested defense of fools. In the Philippine government, no one faces the nation, accepts full responsibility and commits "hara-kiri." Everyone is a clone of Pilate.
The distinguishing trademark of Pilate, that coward politician and Roman governor deployed to Israel, was his infamous washing of hands, which now symbolizes a declaration of abrogation of any kind of responsibility. He found Jesus Christ not guilty but allowed Jesus to be crucified anyway. The reason was simply because, as a foreigner in the land of the Jews, Pilate did not want to antagonize the likes of Caiaphas and Annas, the high priests who were the heads of all scribes and Pharisees, or King Herod, the local chieftain who commanded the blind loyalty of the local warriors. Pilate did not have the guts to confront the powers of the Jewish church and state. He was a weak governor, unprincipled, and without scruples.
And so are many of our so-called political leaders and their subalterns. In Japan, when there is an imbroglio like that of Boracay the governor of Aklan, the DENR regional director, the mayor, and barangay captains of the localities would put their heads on the chopping blocks. No ifs and no buts. They would bow to the emperor, the prime minister, and the people, and tender their irrevocable resignations. If there is some mess like the MRT, the transportation secretary, general manager, and manager in-charge of operations shall immediately resign. Here nobody accepts responsibility. No one is accountable. They keep blaming the past administration.
If the Dengvaxia debacle happened in Japan, the investigation would last only four hours. In the afternoon, charges shall be filed against the DOH secretary, the FDA administrator, the drug company owners, the local distributors, and all those who signed the contracts including the former president who approved the transaction, and the budget secretary who realigned the budget and released the money. In 24 hours they shall be indicted, arraigned, and prosecuted. In one week, they shall be convicted and in jail, if there is evidence beyond doubt. If guilty and they were in an Arab country, they would all be executed by beheading. If found guilty, of course, which is 99 percent of the time. Here, no one is convicted. The due process takes too long and the judges and prosecutors die before judgment is rendered.
In the Philippines, the accused, the offenders and the criminals have more rights than the victims of their heinous crimes and violence. Only in the Philippines.