No militarization in civilian government
The president is not militarizing the government. That line is a communist propaganda and those traditional politicians who use that to undermine President Duterte are unwittingly endorsing a MarxistLeninist sloganeering. The president is just making use of the proven executive competence and operational experiences of retired generals. There is nothing wrong with presidents calling upon retired generals to continue serving their country and people, to whom they owe a lot. General Carlos P. Romulo was the most durable example of a general who served as an excellent diplomat and career executive. President Ramon Magsaysay was a military man who served well as a Defense secretary. FVR was a chief of staff of President Cory and deputy chief of staff of his distant cousin, Ferdinand Marcos. They served well. General Pong Biazon was the “goat” of his class in the PMA and he was a good senator. Senators Honasan and Lacson, too. I do not know about Trillanes.
Today, President Duterte is being attacked for making use of the services of retired generals to head civilian agencies of the government. What is intrinsically wrong with that exercise of the presidential power to appoint. These generals have had the privilege of having obtained from the PMA free military education, with salaries and allowances, while still studying. Their four year stint in the military academy was with free food, free uniform, free board and lodging and free use of government facilities, equipment and premises. When they retire from the military at the young age of 56, they carry as their long tenure of service the four years they spent studying for free are counted as years of service. They enjoy hefty retirement benefits. They live in government camps in mansions built in government properties. Why can’t the president require them to serve the civilian agency and make use of their executive ability?
We need to trust our leader. Even if some of us do not like his demeanor and his mouth. He has been elected by more than 16 million voters, less those not counted by the Smartmatic machines. He is both our head of state and head of government. He is both the commander-in-chief and chief executive of the civilian government. He leads a nation of 110 million Filipinos, more than 25 million of whom are living below poverty line, who is sworn to defend a country of 7,107 islands which are prone to natural disasters and all sorts of calamities. He has supervision over all provinces, cities and municipalities. Thus, he needs our trust and confidence and support. The least we can do is to understand where he is coming from, not merely to judge his words and his decisions. If there is one thing we need to trust him for, it is his appointment of heads of agencies.
It is not the fault of the military if Generals Faeldon and Lapeña failed to curb corruption in the Customs. Lapeña and Faeldon did not invent corruption in the Customs. That corruption was there even before these generals were born. Generals Delfin Lorenzana in the DND, Esperon as national security adviser, Cimatu in the environment, Año in DILG, Bautista in DSWD, del Rosario in housing, and now Lapeña in TESDA, and Guerrero in Customs. These are indications that President Duterte wants action, not discussion. He wants performance, not Powerpoint presentations. Military officials are trained to be mission-oriented. They are disciplined to follow the chain of command and to hold military secrets in strict confidence. These are the qualities the president wants.
As the leader, we should give the president the presumption of good faith and the privilege of doubt. Those who have dedicated themselves to making the president fail should realize that at the end of the day, the buck stops in Rodrigo Duterte, not in Trillanes, not in de Lima, much less in the Reds and the Yellows.