By Adolfo Quizon Paglinawan

 

Part 26 – Where the Philippines seeks war, China sees diplomacy

I may agree with Romeo Brawner, chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, that the story that “President Marcos Jr. Survived a Quiet Coup” last September 21, was over the fence.

Manuel Mogato, bruited to be Pulitzer Prize winner, said “Talk of the ballooning flood-control scandal sparked heated conversations, while guarded whispers hinted at something even more explosive—a hidden plot to topple a sitting president.

“Behind closed doors, a powerful leader of a major Christian sect—an organization capable of turning out hundreds of thousands of disciplined followers—was quietly reaching out to the military.

“According to a source familiar with the plan, the religious figure met a key Army commander, urging him to move against his commander-in-chief in the name of ending government corruption.

“The promise was staggering: half a million faithful would descend on Rizal Park…(and) after a show of force, they would march toward Malacañang Palace, a human tide meant to signal to the Armed Forces…”

Brawner told a news forum organized by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines, “the rumors (of a coup d’etat) are not true. I myself was surprised when I saw the article,” referring to a column by journalist Manny Mogato. “If you’re referring to me, I can tell you directly that I did not talk to any religious group. I did not plan a coup d’état with the secretary of national defense directed by the US Central Intelligence Agency.”

This is the same Mogato who last December wrote “Anticipating a Chinese invasion by 2027 to reclaim Taiwan, Taipei has been spending billions of dollars to build its defenses, acquiring fighters, warships, missiles, drones, howitzers, and multi-launch rocket systems.”

Even as he denied any plot to unseat Marcos, the AFP chief of staff admitted that restiveness has begun to ripple through the military fueled by reports of corruption in government infrastructure programs.

“We know what is happening, and we are just people also. We get angry, and we are angry at what is happening to our country,” Brawner said.

The Daily Tribune writes that unlike coups of the past — direct, bloody, and confrontational — this unrest has taken shape more quietly through backchannel meetings, social media messages, and protest actions where military figures are openly courted to switch sides. One such attempt came from retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Romeo Poquiz, who led a coalition of ex-soldiers and civilian groups in a march to Camp Aguinaldo to demand a meeting with Brawner.

“Yes, there are calls for the Armed Forces of the Philippines to intervene,” Brawner said, “there were posters and speeches calling for the Armed Forces to withdraw support [from] the President. This is not hidden; this is not new.”

Coup d’etat or withdrawal of support?

Brawner added that no agreement was reached with Poquiz, but “the dialogue reaffirmed the AFP’s commitment to constitutional order, an opportunity to make clear that the military will not intervene in politics.”

This has thrown the AFP chief to a conundrum of sorts, seemingly not able to distinguish a coup d’etat from a withdrawal of support. A coup is directive; a withdrawal of support is non-directive.

A coup, just as in the first people power revolution at Edsa in 1986, was an intervention in politics by the military taking one side over the establishment. It is a sudden, violent, and unlawful seizure of power from a government. This explains why the person that lost the snap election by the people, was the party who took over the reins of the government.

Jose Alejandrino blogged, “Gen. Romeo Brawner is not known to be bright. He obtained his position because his father was loyal to Bongbong’s father. The present Brawner cannot make the distinction between being loyal to a corrupt government and withdrawing support, meaning being neutral. When you support a corrupt government, you support corruption.”

Darwin Canete, a vocal prosecutor and a blogger, was more blunt – “As for me, the AFP isn’t neutral. rather, they’ve been neutered. Their idealism burned by leaders who’ve been wined, dined and given profitable sinecures. In addition, you can add slavish obedience to the US.”

On the other hand, withdrawal of support by the military, such as that which ushered in the removal of former President Joseph Estrada, does not grab power but stop giving help, approval, or backing to someone or something, often by removing resources, encouragement, or participation.

On January 19, 2001, Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Angelo Reyes, seeing the political upheaval throughout the country, decided to “withdraw his support” of Estrada, allowing the reign of government to “constitutionally” transfer to the duly-elected vice president, which at that time was Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Article VII, Section 8 of the 1987 Constitution specifies the Vice President assumes the Presidency, namely, death, permanent disability, removal from office, or resignation.

Reyes and the military did not seize power. He stressed that the military should remember that the uprising against Estrada was the “unmistakable, very clear voice of the people,” adding that the troops should always rally behind the people.

The popular and bloodless uprising marked by massive street protests in Metro Manila and major cities nationwide was triggered by the collapse of an impeachment trial against Estrada, who was accused of bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution.

Reyes said he received reports that certain military groups were preparing to “act up,” while communist guerrillas were also headed for the metropolis for an unspecified purpose. Marine commandant Lt. Gen. Edgardo Espinosa confirmed that he was ready to mobilize some 300 soldiers armed with six tanks, a helicopter gunship and a fighter jet, but the plan was preempted by Reyes’ defection.

Reyes did not remove Estrada but his withdrawal of support pushed the former president into what the Supreme Court later on termed as “constructive resignation”, leading to the take over of the duly-elected vice president to take over.

This jurisprudence is carved in stone in our history. A coup lead to a regime change, a withdrawal of support lead to a constitutional succession.

Constitutional mandate

The imperative that Alejandrino and Canete are directing the Armed Forces-to is not to intervene nor sit on the fence, but take a proactive role in serving its hallowed mandate of protecting the people and the state as enshrined in Article II Section 3 of the Philippine Constitution.

Why do the people need protection?

The AFP chief also acknowledged that the discontent is real — and its source is not ideology, but corruption.

Brawner said, “if the government collapses due to massive and chronic corruption, even the Armed Forces and the National Police will also collapse. No salary, no benefits, no food allowance, no new supplies of bullets and armaments. We will all crawl in poverty.

“Needless to say, corruption in large-scale public infrastructure projects, particularly in flood control, could significantly hinder the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) modernization efforts.

The AFP chief confirms that the military has confirmed the massive corruption, first hand.

Brawner himself has revealed that the president himself has tasked the military to audit about 16,000 government projects, many of them flood control initiatives now under scrutiny. Field units, he said, have inspected around 30 percent so far and have already uncovered “ghost projects.”

What is his prognosis? “When a project turns out to be a sham, it is not only the public that suffers — our soldiers who validate these projects also see firsthand the waste of public funds,” he said.

And yet where does he direct his action? He engages in overthinking the role of the AFP and when one does that, one arrives at a doubt, and he who  doubts, does nothing.

0 si dubium est, noli agere. In case of dsoubt, don’t act.

He is perfect choice by President Bongbong Marcos, as Brawner has been known even by his peers to be indecisive.

This is his overthinking process. Brawner emphasized that the AFP’s role is limited to verification, not governance.

Brawner argues “Our mandate is to serve the people and defend the state — not to run it,” he said. He confirmed that some retired officers have floated a proposal for a military-led transition council to “reset” the government but said he rejected it outright. The truth of the matter is nobody is asking the military to run the government except adventurists who want to end up in power without being elected by the people.

So first he ends up contradicting himself as he added, “Instead, the AFP will continue assisting with audits and oversight “to ensure accountability without crossing the line.” But sir, by audits and oversight, you have already crossed the line because that is a civilian function.

Further, he ends up dribbling the ball as he rationalizes “The Armed Forces of the Philippines remains loyal to the Constitution, to the chain of command, and to the Filipino people.”

How can one be loyal to the Constitution and the people when he has defaulted to the chain of command of his mindset – the organizational chart on the wall.  That chain ends with the president who only enjoys derivative sovereignty delegated from the people – the absolute sovereign, who has been removed from that chart.

Finally, the man is frozen stiff, in obeisance to his commander-in-chief that has already betrayed the people’s trust by the military’s own validation.

When a general becomes frozen when the situation demands a definitive action, there is name the Marines call him.

This confirms Retired Brigadier General Orlando de Leon ‘s Facebook post last November 27, 2024. “I am officially calling General Romeo Brawner a COWARD, who throws his soldiers and subordinates under the bus just to save his neck.”

“Mr. Brawner, you don’t deserve your designation as Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. In fact, you don’t deserve the respect of the whole soldiery. No wonder that you avoided hazardous duty all your life because you lack the wherewithal to lead, much less to uphold the morale of your troops.

“You are nothing but a bootlicking four-star disgrace.”

            Ouch!

To be continued

   

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