Lawyers group hits revgov proponents

THE Philippine Bar Association Inc. (PBAI) on Thursday expressed its opposition to the proposal for the establishment of a revolutionary government (revgov), saying such an ill-timed advocacy must be condemned. In a news statement signed by the group’s President Jose Perpetuo Lotilla and its trustees Mariano Jesus Averia, Joel Raymond Ayson, Othello Carag and Rodelle Bolante, the PBAI stressed that every freedom-loving Filipino should block such plan as it would erode the “rule of law” in the country.

“It is fitting that the groups calling for a revolutionary government received near universal condemnation. But it must not end there. The gathering was just the latest in a series of openly defiant acts that target the duly constituted government,” PBAI said.

“While the true principals have yet to show their faces, their method is already clear—to sow the subtle seeds meant to erode the rule of law and the Constitution,” the group said.

The group said such move should not be allowed to fester without immediate action because doing so would encourage them to “coagulate and gather.”

PBAI said the proponents of the revolutionary government are taking advantage of the current pandemic, the economic crisis and a presidency on its last years to gather supporters from those who desire power themselves.

“History shows that revolts do not happen overnight. It summons its strength over time and creeps on the unwary. It capitalizes on the overconfidence. The greatest sin we can commit right now is to dismiss, or ignore, the true dangers these repeated calls for ‘revgov’ pose,” PBAI said.

Earlier, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines also criticized those calling for a revolutionary government, saying that such move is “repugnant to the Constitution.”