Atty. Mel Sta. Maria said in his column on Wednesday, September 21, that Senator Leila de Lima’s removal from her Senate committee chairmanship showed a “deadening of legitimate dissent” and an “ominous” sign that without opposition, the Philippines might be moving towards autocracy.
In his Opinion column on Interaksyon.com, Atty. Sta. Maria wrote, “Ominous stifling of dissent.” He addressed de Lima’s ousting as the chairperson of the Senate committee on justice on September 19 after being voted out by 16 senators. He then warned how losing a genuine opposition is never good for the country.
“This is ominous. Eventually, Congress’ role as the fiscalizer of the executive department may virtually be non-existent. The check to balance the powers of government will be in danger of obliteration. Autocracy by conspiracy might just be lurking around the corner,” he said.
“Is it too much of a coincidence that certain high officials of the executive department are now entertaining ‘Constitutional dictatorship’, an oxymoron in itself?” he added.
Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo earlier suggested giving President Rodrigo Duterte legislative and executive powers, forming a “constitutional dictatorship,” for him to be able to deliver on his promise to suppress drugs and criminality in the Philippines.
Sta. Maria said that even the presidents before Duterte suffered through opposition from the Senate as hearings were conducted on the NBN-ZTE deal under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, on the Mamasapano incident under former President Benigno Aquino III, on the jueteng corruption case under former President Joseph Estrada. Even Vice President Jejomar Binay also became a subject of a Senate investigation.
“In all these senate inquiries, its members proceeded with the hearings, uninterrupted by any dramatic intra-senate committee shuffling ostensibly because of a member’s bias or “personal vendetta,” he said.
The lawyer-columnist also emphasized the importance of the Senate probe into the cases of extrajudicial killings linked to the government’s war on drugs.
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“And now, we have the issue of nearly 3,000 mostly poor people dead on allegations or suspicions of drug-related crimes. There is no denying that the deaths sans due process resulting from “encounters,” either with the police for the cavalier reason of “nanlaban,” or death at the hands of vigilante groups, are legitimate public issues deserving of unfettered investigation and debate,” he said.
“Investigation of these killings has even become more compelling since there is also the question of whether those people were encouraged or inspired, intended or not, by equivocal words of government officials from the executive department,” he added.
Duterte has received criticisms for his colorful threats against criminals from the United Nations, European Parliament, Human Rights Watch, and several other human rights advocates.
Sta. Maria then explained that the executive, legislative and judiciary branches of government were created to “disperse governmental powers” and to check abuse committed by the other branches.
“Concentrating power or almost all the powers of government only in one branch (directly or vicariously) can lead to a monarchial kind of authority that is absolute and unconditional,” he said.
He noted how many members of the House of Representatives seem to be following Duterte, just like what was shown during de Lima’s ouster. He added that if this apparent alliance between the House and the Senate, they would form a “powerful association.”
The lawyer recalled what happened 44 years ago during the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law.
“Forty-four years ago today, Proclamation No. 1081 placing the entire country under martial law was issued by a dictator. Marcos abolished Congress and issued General Order No 3 and 3-A, removing from the judiciary the power to decide on cases “involving the validity, legality or constitutionality of Proclamation No. 1081 dated September 21, 1972, or of any decree, order or acts issued, promulgated or performed by me or by my duly designated representative pursuant thereto.” By these acts, Marcos eliminated the institutional checks against his exercise of power. We should never let this happen again,” Sta. Maria said.
He emphasized that all the Filipinos will suffer from the absence of “genuine dissent.”
“We all stand to suffer if there is no genuine dissent; if there is no balance among the institutions in charge of checking each other’s powers. Quoting from political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu, ‘If in the interior of a state you do not hear the noise of any conflict, you can be sure that freedom is not there,’” he added.
“To this, we should also most definitely say: Never Again,” Sta. Maria said.
Source: (interaksyon.com)
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