By Adolfo Quizon Paglinawan

 

Part 4: Is it worth saving an incompetent and corrupt President?

I insinuated in my Facebook post that Martin Romualdez may have been emboldened by his perception that the military has his back.

This is in the light of a revelation made by a Senate witness that some retired and active military servicemen are being used as delivery boys by Zaldy Co for billion s of “basura” being shuttled from a basement of a hotel in Bonifacio Global City to the residences of the former Chairman of the House appropriations committee, the former Speaker, and a certain address at Aguado St, across Malacanang Palace.

“Basura” in the vernacular is trash.

The term was used by Orly Regala Guteza (left), a retired marine who served as a a former security consultant of Ako Bicol party list representative Zaldy Co, in his testimony at the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on 25 September 2025, referring to luggage or suitcases containing dirty money, with each containing approximately P48 million. At one instance, he said they hauled 46 suitcases, carrying an equivalent of P2.2 billion.

I accompanied my post with a graphic questioning why AFP Chief of Staff Romeo Brawner was allowing members of the military to be alleged “delivery boys” of Romualdez and Co?

My opinion was “This is an insult to our military organization, most of whom are loyal to protect the people and the state. Some few corrupt members of the AFP, most of whom are in the uppermost echelon of the chain of command.”

To my dyslexic readers, this is where I was coming from:

I had at the back of my mind that in January 2020, new implanting rules and regulations issued by President Rodrigo Duterte in Executive Order 98 (EO 98) Series of 2019 prohibiting military personnel to be detailed to government civilian offices and officials for protective security assignment that will be solely undertaken by the Philippine National Police.

Even the Philippine National Police has time and again found this bodyguard business inappropriate.

As recent as eight months ago, former PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil withdrew about 674 police personnel assigned as security escorts for individuals, including politicians and government officials. The breakdown provided was 445 police escorts were recalled from government officials, 228 from private individuals, and 197 from candidates in the 2025 elections.

An exemption, however, was made for individuals with verified security threats who have requested for police escorts for up to 30 days provided the recommendation is approved by the regional Justice Sector Coordinating Council while awaiting authorization from the Commission on Elections because that was during an election season.

Violent reactions

The first reaction I received was from a public relations practitioner. The lady said “I don’t agree with you Ado . I am a member too of the AFP and we are committed to the Filipino people and our national security.”

I could not understand why someone in the reserve force would disagree to what I found insulting to the AFP that some of them are being used as delivery boys by politicians for dirty money. So, I just dismissed this as an over-reading of my comment and an emotional outburst.

But soon enough a former major general shared my post, with some fireworks:

“THIS IS NOT FAIR TO THE AFP, MR PAGLINAWAN. You are overstepping with your analysis.

“Masyado na bang INTSIK ang utak mo?

“I cannot agree with your thesis. First, because they were NOT factually based on what the GOOD Sgt said in the Committee.

“Second, the picture of the Speaker with the Generals does not “talk” of what transpired there. Produce EVIDENCE to this effect and I will JOIN your crusade.

“Masyado ka namang nagpapahalata na PROPAGANDISTA ka na ng mga Intsik.

“Sorry, but this is not the way we pursue TRUTH and justice amidst this scandal.

“HINDI GANYAN ANG LAHAT NG OPISYAL SA AFP!”

The Original Post

I replied to his wall:

“No need to call me names, sir. You misread my post. Read it again. What I said was – ‘This is an insult to our military organization, most of whom are loyal to protect the people and the state. Some few corrupt members of the AFP, most of whom are in the uppermost echelon of the chain of command.’ With all due respects, I can go to town about your racist remarks but I do not want to go that level. Of course, you are free to disagree and there is no need to feel alluded to, if you are not one of them.”

Judge for yourself as who was overthinking the situation.

I never fault people for disagreeing with my opinion, especially the sensitive ones. But when comments resort to “ad hominem” attacks, that is different.

But I did not have to do the cudgels of going to town as a certain “Gen Bautista” posted a response:

“I agree with Ka Ado. Please read and comprehend what he wrote: ‘Some few corrupt members of the AFP, most of whom are in the uppermost echelon of the chain of command.’ Resorting to the tired old cliché of ‘pro-China’ and ad hominem of ‘Intsik’ is neither defense nor an explanation. Do better.”

He also issued a rejoinder:

” I have long advocated that the PMA and PNPA curricula should be rebuilt from the ground up to get rid of the lingering pro-American imperialist colonialist worldview they inculcate and completely eliminate the internalized inferiority complex when dealing with white westerners.”

As expected a great majority of comments took my side but so much for that. Moving forward to where I wanted the debate to come to a logical destination, I consulted a Atty. Arnedo Valera on a legal theory I hope to advocate.

His manifesto now serves as our battlecry:

Legal question

“In the face of worsening poverty, inequality, and systemic corruption, the Filipino people are forced to confront a fundamental question: when does corruption cease to be a mere violation of anti-graft laws and begin to constitute terrorism under Philippine law? Recent revelations concerning the diversion of public resources by individuals embedded in the highest echelons of political power demand such inquiry. The brazenness of certain officials—emboldened by an apparent cloak of protection from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)—has raised the stakes beyond ordinary graft. What is at issue here is the destabilization of the Republic itself.

The Military Question

“The Armed Forces of the Philippines has historically played a pivotal role in safeguarding constitutional democracy. The institution, bound by its oath to defend the people and the state, remains one of the last bulwarks of legitimacy in times of political crisis. Yet, when whispers emerge that select figures within the AFP’s uppermost chain of command have aligned themselves with political actors engaged in systemic looting, the very credibility of the military is threatened.

“This does not indict the whole AFP—indeed, most soldiers remain loyal to the Republic and its citizens. Rather, it highlights how the capture of key commands by political elites creates the perception that the military has become a shield for impunity. That perception alone erodes democratic trust and corrodes the people’s faith in the state.

From Corruption to Terrorism

“The Philippines is no stranger to plunder. Republic Act No. 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, punishes public officers who cause undue injury to the government or give unwarranted benefits to private parties through manifest partiality, evident bad faith, or gross inexcusable negligence.[^1] Republic Act No. 7080, or the Plunder Law, further criminalizes the accumulation of ill-gotten wealth amounting to at least ₱50 million through a series of overt acts.[^2]

“Yet the gravity of what has been alleged goes far beyond enrichment at the public’s expense. Republic Act No. 11479, the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, defines terrorism broadly to include acts intended to cause “extensive damage or destruction to a government or public facility, critical infrastructure, or private property” or those designed to “seriously destabilize or destroy the fundamental political, economic, or social structures of the country.”[^3]

“By this statutory yardstick, systemic diversion of national wealth—the national treasury itself—cannot be trivialized as “mere corruption.” When state coffers are plundered on a monumental scale, the consequences devastate the ability of the government to provide basic services, exacerbate poverty, and undermine political stability. This constitutes economic sabotage that strikes at the heart of the nation’s social and political foundations.

The Taiwan Diversion

“Equally troubling is the strategic narrative promoted by President Marcos, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, AFP Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner, and Vice Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad. The fixation on a hypothetical war in Taiwan diverts attention from the immediate war against poverty and institutionalized graft within the Philippines.

“This deliberate shifting of public discourse serves a dual function: it creates a false sense of external threat while concealing the internal rot of a mafiosi-style criminal structure embedded within government. Such misdirection is itself a form of psychological sabotage against the people, manipulating national consciousness to deflect accountability.

Terrorism in the Guise of Governance

“The essence of terrorism is the use of unlawful means to sow fear, destabilization, and destruction of the social order. While public imagination often limits this to bombs, assassinations, or armed rebellion, Philippine law explicitly includes economic destruction as a qualifying form.

“The wanton looting of the national treasury, engineered by the Marcos-Araneta-Romualdez network, represents a “planned, wanton, and monumental heist.” Its effects—massive inequality, loss of public trust, and the incapacitation of state institutions—mirror the destabilizing impact of terrorist acts. By any legal and moral measure, those involved in this systemic sacking of the Republic’s resources are no less terrorists than those who wield arms.

Timeliness

“The time has come to recognize that corruption on a monumental scale, when it deliberately undermines the economic and political stability of a nation, is indistinguishable from terrorism. RA 11479 is unambiguous: the destruction of political and economic structures through unlawful means constitutes terrorism.

“Thus, those who orchestrate and benefit from the systematic looting of the Philippine state should not only be tried for graft or plunder but also for terrorism. The Filipino people must reclaim both the language and the law to confront the true nature of this betrayal. To do otherwise is to concede defeat to those who weaponize power against their own nation.”

Conclusion

            In an embassy reception last September 25, I had the pleasure of a discussion with my good friend, the former Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana about the present leadership over the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

            I was surprised to learn that other than military exercises, the present dispensation has landed almost no assets acquisition toward military modernization since Marcos took over.

            What we heard as new batches of FA 50s from South Korea and Brahmos missiles from India and other deliveries, were still offshoots of acquisitions from the last year of Noynoy Aquino to the last year of Digong Duterte.

            The two new missile corvettes from South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries scheduled for delivery this year and in 2026 were paid as far back as 2021.

            I also learned that the past administration engaged in a wide range of sourcing not just from the United States but from many countries, prominently Spain, Czech Republic, Turkey, United Kingdom, Brazil, South Korea, Japan and Israel.

Curiously, we received a donation from Russia in 2017 of 20 Ural 4320 eight-ton heavy trucks with at least one converted for mobile medical surgery.  Trucks, and 90 GAZ Sadko 2 ton utility trucks in 2021.

China has also donated P1 billion in military equipment as part of a 2020 pledge to support the Philippines in counter-terrorism and humanitarian assistance in the form of rescue and relief equipment, drone systems, detectors, water purification vehicles, ambulances, firetrucks, X-ray machines, EOD robots, bomb disposal suits and transport vehicles and engineering equipment like backhoes, dump trucks, forklifts, and earthmovers.

It will be remembered that China was the first country to come to the aid of our soldiers fighting in the Marawi siege. When the Americans refused to deliver Armalites that have already been paid for by our government, China donated two batches of rifles and ammunition to the AFP as well as P5 million cash for the soldiers. When the fighting came under control in October 2017, this was followed by another donation of 47 pieces of heavy equipment and a pledge of P1.15 billion donation for the rehabilitation and rebuilding of Marawi City granted by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.

While the US was politically leveraging its delivery of Covid vaccines to the Philippines, China became the first country to donate and deliver 600,000 doses of Sinovacon February 28, 2021 allowing the Philippines  to kick off its vaccination drive on time on March 1. In August, China delivered another two million vaccines to the Philippines, one million of which was donated with the second million procured at cost.

            Acquisition of French Scorpene-class submarines, a range of helicopters  like S-70 Black Hawks, additional FA-50 fighter jets, offshore patrol vessels, and land-based missile systems such as the Typhon and Nmesis are all pie-in-the sky.

            True to form, Marcos has only preoccupied in braggadocios poking the dragon and with near zero delivery for military modernization.

            So my dear soldiers, it is with a heavy heart that I now tell you that your funds went to the pockets of the neo-terrorists and nepo-babies.

To be continued.

   

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