Dear Senator Noynoy Aquino,
For the past few weeks you have been propagating all sorts of doomsday scenarios with the obvious intention of conditioning the public’s mind that your victory is already certain. You have been repeatedly saying that the only way you could lose is if you are cheated.
I certainly do not subscribe to your theory. Still, I could easly ignore that as nothing more than a politician’s braggadocio.
I am however deeply troubled by the latest pronouncement you made which ended up in the Bloomberg article entitled “Aquino Says Philippine Poll Fraud May Trigger Turmoil.” Here’s the relevant excerpt so you may know exactly what I’m talking about:
Aquino Says Philippine Poll Fraud May Trigger Turmoil
By Francisco Alcuaz Jr. and Haslinda AminApril 27 (Bloomberg) — Philippine presidential frontrunner Benigno Aquino said only fraud can stop him winning next month’s election and any such attempt would trigger unrest comparable with the protests that swept his mother to power 24 years ago.
The 50-year-old son of former president Corazon Aquino, who has led opinion surveys since entering the race last year, criticized how a switch to electronic voting machines is being implemented and said a declaration that he is the loser of the May 10 poll would bring supporters on to the streets.
“If we have a correct counting of the votes, I think we will be very victorious,” said Aquino, whose mother toppled dictator Ferdinand Marcos amid protests that followed a rigged election in 1986. If “the people’s will is frustrated,” demonstrations could make this month’s protests in Thailand seem “mild” by comparison, he said in an interview in Manila yesterday.
I really hope you were misquoted because, if indeed you said those things particularly that part where you made a rather ominous comparison to the protests in Thailand, then I think you really are so blinded now by your desire to win that you seem to have lost all regard for your countrymen.
Do you even really know what you were saying? Don’t you realize that what you said can be easily misconstrued by your die-hard followers as a call to action? Do you not realize that some of your supporters may actually heed your words and carry out protests that would make “this month’s protests in Thailand seem “mild”? Let me remind you sir that lives have already been lost in the turmoil gripping Thailand. Are you saying something worse than this could also happen here in the Philippines in case you don’t get elected?
Dear senator, I certainly hope you’d be more circumspect with your pronouncements. Do not be so blinded by your ambition that you end up ignoring the possible consequences of your every move. Please do not put your countrymen at risk.
What Aquino fails to realize is that his support — assuming the surveys are accurate — is a plurality, not a majority. Something in the neighborhood of 60% of the voters (again, if we make the assumption that the surveys on which he is making his ill-conceived statements are reasonably accurate) do not support him. His calling the results of the election into question before they have even happened makes even a positive result for him questionable as well.
What he is doing is no less than fomenting insurrection. He is very quickly moving from being an unimaginative dolt to being a seditious criminal.
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It’s pretty obvious that the person who posted the response has a lot to lose if the present system is shaken.
I for one strongly abhor the idea of extra-constitutional means of resolving electoral disputes but is it not necessary for the people to rise up in order to restore the integrity of our democratic institutions?
I am entertaining this idea in view of the Orwelian “Catch 22″ mentality which have been injected into our democratic institutions by Mrs. Arroyo herself.
The very institutions which are supposed to uphold our democratic ideals have been bastardized Mrs. Arroyo.
Look at the COMELEC after Garci, it has become a host for evil spirits so deeply entrenched in its structure that no amount of exorcism can drive out our fears that we may yet again have another massive cheating in May 2010 despite the prospect of poll automation.
Look at the Supreme Court after Mrs. Arroyo insisted that she can appoint the successor of the retiring Chief Justice, the high court’s remaining vestige of respectability was put into into grave danger as a consequence.
Unfortunately for those who are comfortable ensconced in their comfortable nests. A revolution is maybe our only way restoring the integrity of our democratic institutions.
Senator Aquino may just be right in his calling for another revolution if the automated election fails.
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bp Reply:
April 28th, 2010 at 7:58 pm
abu,
that’s a big if. also if you care to backtrack a bit, noynoy is setting up the people to equate his defeat with a failure of automation/election/cheating etc. if you consider that context, noynoy is nowhere near being right for saying what he said. in the first place, who’s to say he’s the one to lead a revolution? the people? i don’t think so.
btw, i don’t know if you’re referring to me when you wrote this:
if yes, may i suggest that you look around this blog first. i’m sure you’ll find that i and some of my readers actually want real change in this country. we just don’t see noynoy as the one to initiate that.
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BenK Reply:
April 28th, 2010 at 11:44 pm
And if you were referring to me, I have absolutely nothing at all to lose, and more to gain if the system is shaken. Crying “cheat!” and calling for “people power” is NOT shaking the system — it’s the same old tired song & dance this country has been playing for a long time now.
A guy who behaves like this is who you want for president? That’s up to you, your call. Don’t be shocked, though, when the rest of the world decides they don’t want to do business with this clown or the people pulling his strings.
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paul farol Reply:
April 29th, 2010 at 10:12 am
There is a point of view that says that the only way to fix the Philippines is to raze it to the ground and start things over.
I can’t think of any better person to lead the country into complete devastation than Noynoy Aquino.
Grabe… nauuwi na talaga sa galit at pagkamuhi ang feeling ko towards NOYNOY. hindi ba sya nahihiya? he hasn’t even passed a single lw while staying on congress and being called a LAWmaker for 12 years!
Well, in a democracy, we deserve the leaders and the government we put in power.
Noynoy Aquino might win… and it is to teach all of us a great lesson on political maturity. That INTEGRITY is not dependent on surnames or parents. That a LEADER should come out on his/her own merits… that if we want to move forward, we should vote on merits not on memory, on policies not on personality. Unfortunately, 6 years is too long. Vietnam, Malaysia, China, India are moving forward so fast that by 2016, we’re already too far behind.
Please, I want Noynoy to lose! We have a very short time to rescue this country from a mediocre, non-performer Noynoy Aquino.
http://insidemybackpack.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-am-i-not-supporting-noynoy-aquino.html
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yappy Reply:
April 30th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
i agree… filipinos are too fond of tele seryes, and are too obssessed with the ” messiahnic ideology” that they shun to see the truth… let us face reality… noynoy only shines because of his parents legacy…
when will filipinos learn that reality is far from the “movies”
this nation does not desererve another edsa 2… we don’t deserve another dummy president…
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Hi there fellow blogger! I made a poll and it is about your bet this coming 2010 election. The survey is very simple, choose your president and vice-president. As you can see, I just want two results, a president and a vice-president, these two are the most important because they are the persons who will finalize everything, from bills, laws, government projects, cabinet officials and other government-related issues. With this I can gather information and make a tally of your votes. Please visit the link to vote. Bloggers’ Choice This Coming 2010 Election
http://www.semidoppel.com/bloggers’-choice-this-coming-2010-election/
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bp Reply:
April 29th, 2010 at 10:59 am
semidoppel,
considering that it’s easy for any to vote more than once online, i think this poll of yours may do more harm than good. just an opinion.
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noynoy’s call for edsa is nothing like the first edsa…rather it’s oppression of the constitution, dictatorship by the elitists who call themselves the masses,and suppression of true democracy…
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polls results being presented are just some guidelines to picture the leading candidate during the campaign period, and if the citizens think enough on who to vote for this coming election , for sure they will satisfied, rather than choosing the candidate on the top, just because he is the leading person….
edsa revolution will rise again if the people will not be satisfied with the performance of the president this year…
lets just hope that those promises this candidates proclain during their campaign will be done, not all but may some will be accomplished…
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The more he speaks, the more he loses votes. Hayaan n’yo s’ya. Sawang-sawa na ako sa kakalintanya tungkol sa pag-uugali n’yang dilaw na mama na ‘yan. Pati yata utak nagka-hepa na. One word: EXPECTORANT.
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