Stability and growth C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz 07/04/2010

Stability and growth

C.R.O.S.S.R.O.A.D.S Jonathan De la Cruz 07/04/2010 Here’s what President Noynoy Aquino III (It will probably take sometime before I can get used to addressing our Chief Executive using the abbreviated P. Noy) said immediately after addressing the men and women of the AFP for the first time two days ago during the turnover ceremonies for newly installed AFP Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Ricardo David: “...I emphasized that more than anything, loyalty has to be to the institution, to the flag, to the Constitution and not to any single person or personal interest...” The reiteration, not mere clarification, was expected given the antecedent verbal tussles, if we may call it that, featuring the then President-elect and then AFP Chief of Staff Delfin Bangit and his then nominal boss, DND Secretary Bert Gonzales. In the course of their farewell visits to various units, the Bangit-Gonzales duo, engaged P. Noy in a running argument to overturn his decision “not to have Bangit as his Chief of Staff.” The duo’s argument used all kinds of democratic sophistry, as it were, in insisting that Bangit be retained. Well, P. Noy maintained Bangit’s designation was irregular, a variation on the unwanted “midnight appointment” rule beloved by the previous regime and, worse, was essentially undemocratic. The message in no uncertain terms was clear: Bangit’s retention would unduly politicize the military, put him and his administration on a bind and thus, contribute to the kind of instability which will deter growth and, possibly, even national healing. In a word, responsible governance can only be founded on the stability of our institutions and processes not on the whims and caprices, the uncrated swings in the manner we conduct our affairs. The need for stability cannot be more critical than in the case of our security forces and, perhaps more importantly, the dispensers of justice — as these institutions have, in more ways than one, are legally empowered with life and death decisions over our people.... MORE Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20100704com5.html

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