By Aries Rufo
abs-cbnNEWS.com
10/28/2008

Are Church leaders now ready to back attempts to oust the Arroyo government?

In its strongest position yet indicating that they are ready to give their blessings for what may be a drastic change in government, five bishops, led by Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president Angel Lagdameo, condemned the unabated “top to bottom” corruption in government and asked the public to shake the status quo.

Lagdameo went as far as assuring the public that “liberators” may be just around the corner.

“In response to the global economic crisis and the pitiful state of our country, the time to rebuild our country economically, socially, politically, is now. The time to start radical reforms is now. The time for moral regeneration is now. The time to conquer complacency, cynicism and apathy to prove that we have matured from our political statements is now. The time to prepare a new government is now,” Lagdameo said in a forum organized by the CBCP.

Lagdameo added the public should not lose hope that changing the present system is futile. “In spite of the seemingly hopeless and negative prognosis, our liberation may yet serendipitously happen. We are dreaming, praying and hoping that our county may yet have the needed liberators.”

It is hoped that these “liberators,” Lagdameo said, “will in a courageous peaceful way effectively and uncompromisingly reform our country.”

Also present in the forum were Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz, Bataan Bishop Socrates Villegas, Masbate Bishop Joel Baylon and Bishop Emeritus Jose Sorra. We learned that seven more bishops would have attended the forum but cancelled for some reasons.

Active involvement

Villegas urged the public “not to be passive” but engage “in active involvement” in effecting a change in governance. He noted that curbing corruption by only half of its present level would immensely benefit the country. “The problem is not population, the problem is rampant corruption,” Villegas said.

He said that the country would have been better prepared to deal with the ongoing global financial crisis if not for corruption.

Cruz said the country is now in a “precarious, dangerous and critical situation” because of massive corruption and directly blamed the “incumbent occupant” in Malacanang as the culprit.

In his statement, Lagdameo took to task the government’s claim that prosperity is now being felt by the masses pointing out that 20 million people will surely disagree with this, as shown by surveys. He said rampant poverty and hunger are directly related with rampant graft and corruption “which has invaded all public and private institutions.”

Endemic corruption

Lagdameo noted that corruption under the past few years of the Arroyo government up to present has become “endemic and systemic.”

He pointed to “overprized projects, multi-billion scams of various kinds, election manipulations, anomalous transactions, bribery of both high and low, unsolved murders of media practitioners” as the “faces and symptoms of corruption.”

He lamented that the country is now tagged as one of the most corrupt country in Asia, based on a survey conducted by Transparency International. “If we are not horrified, disgusted, exasperated and enraged by these realities, can we still we love our country?” Lagdameo said.

The bishops’ statements came on the heels of the arrival of former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn “Joc-joc” Bolante from the US following futile efforts of seeking asylum there. Bolante, tagged as the main architect of the P728-million fertilizer scam, had claimed political persecution but US immigration junked his alibi.

Also providing backdrop was the current “euro” scandal in the Philippine National Police where four police officers, including one retired, are set to be charged with unauthorized release of intelligence funds, and the fresh impeachment initiatives against the President.

Church leaders have been criticized for just waiting in the sidelines and giving mixed signals on its verdict on the Arroyo administration. At the height of the wiretap scandal, where the President was caught on tape giving orders to disgraced poll commissioner Virgilio Garcillano during the canvassing of the results in the presidential elections, the CBCP sought for truth but withheld passing a guilty verdict. Lack of active Church support has been cited as one of the major dampeners on attempts to oust Arroyo.

By Romy Lim
07 July 2006
Malaya

BRIG. Gen. Danilo "Danny" Lim, relieved commander of the Philippine Army First Scout Ranger Regiment, really took his licks from the official comment made by the AFP on the video where he allegedly announced his withdrawal of support from the government. A very tragic fate, if not an outright maltreatment, from the institution that he has served so well.

ANALYSIS

By Alejandro Lichauco

The Daily Tribune
10/23/2008

The hunger problem is now at the center stage of the national problem following survey reports that the hunger situation has sharply aggravated.

In his column of Oct. 21, titled Local Leaders should solve the hunger problem, Alejandro Roces of the Philippine Star urged the nation’s political leaders to do something about the problem. Roces alluded to the fact that the Philippines has been listed “as one of the 33 countries with a serious hunger problem along with troubled economies in Africa. He went on to cite that 11 million Filipinos “or about 12 percent of the population are food poor and live below the subsistence level.”

Truth is that the hunger situation is much worse than the statistics cited by Roces. Way back in 1986, immediately after Edsa, a survey commissioned by the office of then Speaker Mitra found that more than 40 percent of Filipino households are living in hunger conditions. And in 2003, a government agency found that 80 percent of Filipino households are hungry.

The global meltdown which has recently exploded with the financial explosion in Wall St. is bound to accentuate beyond calculation the hunger situation in the country and the wonder of wonders is that there isn’t a single politician or political leader in the horizon who has stepped forward with just as much of a suggestion as to what should be done.

The situation is made-to-order for the opposition but sadly there isn’t a single one of them who has come out with even as much of a hint as to what should be done. The deafening failure of the nation’s political parties and politicians to even suggest that Congress should now meet in emergency session just to discuss and focus on the hunger situation and the repercussions of the global meltdown on the Philippines is proof conclusive that the nation can’t rely on civilian authorities to respond to the humanitarian disaster that is going on right before our very eyes and nose.

Question is, if the country can’t rely on the civilian and political authorities, on whom can it rely to solve or at least attempt to solve the hunger problem?

The answer is, the military revolutionaries. Only the military revolutionaries, a faction of which goes appropriately enough by the name of the Bagong Katipunan. A few years ago, this group issued a Manifesto titled The Last Revolution: Toward a New Philippine Order. In that document, the revolutionary group traced the root of the hunger to globalization and a failed electoral system. Their proposed solution: Suspend elections, reorganize the electoral machinery and put an end to globalization.

“Globalization must be stopped,” the revolutionary manifesto declared and, it continued, “it cannot be stopped by a regime that had been reduced to a mere lap dog by multinational financial institutions.” The military revolutionaries described globalization as a “masked evil.”

Raising the issue of hunger — and mind you that was several years ago when politicians didn’t even mention the word — the Manifesto starkly stated that “Our people are literally dying of hunger in the countryside.”’ It continued: “Our society is slowly being engulfed by the fires of poverty, war and corruption.”

The military revolutionaries, mind you, issued that statement years before the global meltdown and years before this very government finally acknowledged that hunger — and even starvation — now stalks the countryside.

What is this piece trying to say? This piece is trying to say that the only organized faction in Philippine society that has displayed the foresight and concern over the problem of hunger are the military revolutionaries. Their Manifesto on the “Last Revolution” and call for a “New Philippine Order” alone are indications enough that they are the elements in our society qualified to take political leadership of the nation in these times.

The behavior pattern of the nation’s political leaders tell us only one thing: That it is utterly futile to look to politicians and the political system to address the humanitarian disaster that has the nation in grip and which threatens to tighten that grip even more in the immediate years ahead.

As one re-reads the Manifesto of the military revolutionaries today, one can only be overwhelmingly impressed by the patriotic concern and foresight that the group displayed and this writer will hazard to say that as the hunger pangs become more acute and as the people become increasingly aware, as they are bound to, that the nation now stands in urgent need of class of leaders that offer the prospect of leading the nation out of its hunger, the realization will dawn that the only political solution to the hunger crisis is a revolutionary military government composed of the best and the brightest in the Armed Forces.

The Third World abounds with examples of how military governments led by the patriotic likes of Nasser, Park Chung-hee, Suharto and Khadaffy took political hold of starving nations and delivered their peoples from poverty and hunger.

So, let’s all look to that. We need the new Bonifacios and they can be found only, it seems, in the idealistic and still uncorrupted elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

(Very Important Prisoner)

By Fe Zamora
Philippine Daily Inquirer
July 23, 2006

BRIG. General Danilo Lim has the heart of a civilian trapped in a soldier’s battle-scarred body.

“Maybe I should have not been in the military,” Lim told a friend who had visited him recently at his heavily-secured military quarters at the Philippine Army Officers’ Village (Paovil) in Fort Bonifacio. “I cannot be a fence-sitter; never was, never would be,” Lim was also supposed to have said.

Outside his leafy abode, a group of soldiers man a makeshift checkpoint; another group had set up a sentry at the back, beefing up the guards at the Paovil gate, just 20 meters away from Lim’s house. Such airtight security arrangements have earned Lim the distinction of being “most important prisoner” in recent coup-prone military history.

Lim has been under military custody since a videotape of himself announcing his withdrawal of support from President Arroyo surfaced in a news program. The tape was to have been used on Feb. 24, when soldiers marching out of their camp were supposed to meet with civilians out in the streets to commemorate the Edsa revolt. It was proof, claims Malacañang, of a Leftist-Rightist plot against the government that justifies Arroyo’s proclamation of a state of emergency.

The charges that Lim would lead the conspiracy have surprised those who know him only as an indulgent father to his only daughter, Aika.

Just five years ago, Aika Lim dragged her father to the Cineplex in Glorietta. The older Lim had already forgotten what it was like to watch a movie. “I haven’t been inside a movie house since 1973,” Lim told the Inquirer then. Transformed from security-conscious officer into a dutiful dad, Lim was having a good time when Aika nudged him to take a closer look at their seatmate. It was Phillip Salvador, the movie actor whose tumultuous love affair with Kris Aquino had been the staple news in those days. Lim was amused, but Aika was adamant. She wanted her Dad to get Phillip’s autograph.

Putty

Lim, the hardline Army captain who negotiated that the rebel troops be allowed to return to barracks, weapons and all, can be putty in his daughter’s hands. An only child, Aika was a baby when Lim was detained for the December 1989 coup. A former detainee recalled several officers doing “infantry” duties in jail, among them Lim.

Another detainee, an alleged communist leader from Southern Luzon, Vic Ladlad, would be Aika’s godfather, a relationship that transcended the ideological divide between Lim and Ladlad. When Aika starred in her school’s musical production in 2001, Lim unabashedly invited media friends to watch the play. The souvenir program also showed ad placements from military organizations that could only have come from the solicitation of a very supportive father.

A consistent honor student in Solano, Nueva Vizcaya, Lim was a freshmen at the University of the Philippines in Diliman when one of his classmates, Renato Heredia, came to class with application forms for the Philippine Military Academy (PMA). It was 1972. Martial law had just been declared. Lim said he signed up for the heck of it. “There were many who had signed up, so I joined the line,” he said. The successful examinees either had brothers at the PMA, like Heredia, or had fathers who were PMA alumni or military officers.

Second highest

Lim, the youngest of five sons of a Chinese migrant worker from Xiamen and a hardworking businesswoman from Bohol, did not top the exams, but the topnotcher backed out, pushing Lim, who had the second highest score, to the top slot. Lim was sent to the US Military Academy in West Point in 1974.

“I would have wanted to be a doctor, but it was too expensive,” Lim said. He did not want to burden his mother or four brothers, either. Lim’s father died when he was 5 and his mother raised the brood by herself. Since his older brothers finished college on scholarships, Lim felt he too had to get by on scholarship.

Fortunately, Lim found academics, especially the math subjects, a breeze at West Point. The regimented military life also suited him, as he adapted to it seamlessly. Even his marriage was something of a record, according to another classmate. Lim’s wife, Aloysia, was actually his neighbor and classmate from elementary to high school. “But there was nothing there then,” Lim once told the Inquirer. “(The attraction) came later.”

Upon graduation from West Point in 1978, Lim was sent to Jolo to head the all-Igorot Forward Recon Unit. The unit was often sent out to patrol the enemy lairs, chalking up seemingly endless encounters that had their senior officers shaking their heads in disbelief. A former pilot who sometimes airlifted the wounded recalled in jest that the Igorot troops never realized what they were getting into because Lieutenant Lim kept them drunk with gin.

Wounded twice

But Lim would himself be wounded twice from grenade shrapnels. After his second hospitalization in 1981, then Col. Arturo Enrile sought him out. “He told me, ‘I better take you out from here before you run out of luck,’” Lim recalled. From Jolo, Lim was transferred to the PMA, where he taught math subjects. He would also become the aide-de-camp to PMA Superintendent Brig. Gen. Jose Ma. Zumel, and administrative officer of PMA Superintendent Brig. Gen. Rodolfo Biazon in 1986.

In March 1987, a bomb exploded at the PMA grandstand, ripping off a roof and wounding several personnel, including then Col. Lisandro Abadia, the PMA commandant of cadets. Lim was among those suspected behind the incident, but this was never proven.

Before the incident, however, Lim had supposedly questioned the alleged anomalous deals at Biazon’s office. From the PMA, Lim was transferred to the Scout Rangers, the unit that he led in the takeover of the Makati Commercial and Business District in the December 1989 coup.

Doubts

The Feb. 23 videotape seemed to be an apt follow up. Lim’s doubts about President Arroyo’s mandate started soon after the May 2004 elections, when rumors circulated in the military circle about how some senior officers had allowed the President’s allies to use the military camps in the cheating operations, particularly in Basilan, Sulu, Lanao and Cotabato areas in Mindanao. There were also rumors that some units from the Marines and the Scout Rangers had reportedly refused to cooperate with Malacañang’s allies in the military.

Compounding the situation was the alleged braggadocio of some officers who were supposed to have orchestrated the cheating operations, to the consternation of the young officers, including some Rangers who sought out Lim for advice. A senior colonel who talked to Lim then told the Inquirer that he was concerned about the Scout Rangers that Lim headed. “Lim does not believe that GMA won the elections. This is problematic,” the colonel said of his former classmate.

Fearless prognosis

Lim’s doubts were reportedly shared by many officers, with one of them expressing doubts that the President would be hounded by questions about her mandate. “GMA cannot govern,” was his fearless prognosis, as of June, 2004.

The cracks in the military armor surfaced after the June 6, 2005 airing of the “Hello Garci” tapes, the wiretapped telephone conversations between Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano and several personalities, including Ms Arroyo and her husband, First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo. The tapes seem to confirm allegations of fraud during the May 2004 elections, with at least four generals mentioned in the tapes as being involved. On July 8, 2005, a group of military officers had reportedly planned to withdraw support from the President, joining the group of senior cabinet members who had resigned en masse and urging Ms Arroyo to do the same for the sake of national unity.

But Lim prevailed over the disgruntled. Later that month, Lim’s group, the now-defunct Young Officers Union (YOU, also issued a statement of withdrawal from the 1995 peace agreement it had forged with the government. Lim denied the YOU statement. He also sent a text message to the Inquirer, to the effect that he was “under pressure from all sides.” In fact, Lim was under surveillance from the military and under intense courtship from the opposition. At the necrological rites for Capt. Rene Jarque at the Fort Bonifacio chapel in September 2005, Lim showed up by his lonesome.

Close tabs

But a civilian-clad soldier tailed him, always keeping within earshot of the general. Malacañang also kept close tabs of his activities, often inviting him to dinner at the Palace. By late January 2006, Lim had reportedly visited troops in Mindanao to sound them off about his plans to withdraw support from President Arroyo. An officer he talked with said Lim did not indicate he would “do something” anytime soon. “We talked and he said it was ’no go,’” the officer told the Inquirer. In less than a month, Lim would “go,” to the surprise of even his closest friends.

Since Feb. 24 when he was placed under house arrest, Lim has not been allowed to talk to the press. Some have managed to sneak in, however, accompanied by lawyers, priests and relatives. Former Inquirer reporter Andrea Trinidad-Echavez visited Lim one day in July. Lim had been Echavez’ sponsor at her church wedding to Dick Echavez in 2001.

According to Echavez, Lim was in good spirits, and seemed at peace with himself and the world. “He looks confident that all would end up well,” Echavez said. Having hit rock bottom after the 1989 coup, Lim knows only too well how to play his cards. “He’s a tactician. He’s been through a lot. What is happening to him now is chicken feed,” Echavez added.

Besides, people who’ve met Lim also know that the man would rather pay the price of taking sides than stay still, watching from the sidelines.

This article was posted at www.sundalo.bravehost.com

by Victor Reyes

THE chief prosecutor in the court martial of 28 military officers implicated in the supposed plan to overthrow the Arroyo government in February 2006 yesterday said he has recommended to AFP chief Gen. Alexander Yano the dropping of the mutiny charges against almost half of the accused.

At the resumption of the trial against the officers, chief prosecutor Col. Jose Feliciano Loy however said Yano did not approve or deny the recommendation. He did not say when he made the recommendation or exactly how many officers he recommended for “nolle prosequi.”

“I made a lengthy communication to the convening authority (Yano). Had the convening authority approved it, the charges against half of the accused would have been withdrawn at this point. But the recommendation was returned without action,” said Loy.

Loy made the manifestation after the defense panel inquired about the status of the prosecution’s earlier pronouncements that it will request for a nolle prosequi (do not pursue), or the discontinuation of the trial against some of the accused.

Initially, Loy asked that his statement be kept off the record but the court wanted it reflected on the records for transparency. Loy’s revelation prompted the defense to ask the court to compel him to furnish the tribunal a copy of his recommendation.

Defense lawyer Trixie Angeles said the Loy recommendation proves that the prosecution has no case against at least 14 of the accused. He said these officers have been in detention for over two years and “one minute longer is one minute too much.”

In an apparent attempt to force the prosecution to name the officers recommended for nolle prosequi, lawyer Teddy Rigoroso said he is filing a motion to dismiss the case on behalf of his clients – Maj. Francisco Domingo Fernandez and Lt. Belinda Ferrer.

This got the ire of Loy who said that the defense should not be filing such motions because they were still in the pre-trial stage. He said such motions should be filed after the prosecution and the defense are through in the marking of their evidence.

Rigoroso then asked if Loy had any objection to his motion in fact and in law and in equity and in justice. Loy replied that he thinks the prosecution has sufficient evidence against his clients. Rigoroso said he will later file a written motion.

The court’s law member, Col. Marian Aleido, said the court cannot compel the prosecution to submit to the court a copy of the nolle prosequi recommendation, saying the matter is between the prosecution and the convening authority under the court martial procedure.

Yesterday, the prosecution marked additional evidence against the accused – affidavits of some officers, including that of Lt. Michael Cuarteros who was initially charged for involvement but was later dropped as a respondent; and the video of accused Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim shown on television while withdrawing support from President Arroyo.

The defense also submitted as evidence affidavits of Maj. Oriel Pangcog, a former Scout Ranger operations officer who was also a former accused in the case but was subsequently cleared; and that of Col. Ariel Querubin.

Querubin’s lawyer Rodrigo Artuz asked the court to summon former AFP chief now ambassador to Iran Generoso Senga, then AFP deputy chief of staff for intelligence now AFP deputy chief of staff Lt. Gen. Rodrigo Maclang and Querubin’s wife Maria Flor, as witnesses.

Lawyer Gilbert Gallos, counsel for accused Col. Orlando de Leon, tried to have a stipulation of facts with the prosecution, which denied most of the assertions, including Senga’s instruction to former Marine commandant Maj. Gen. Renato Miranda to meet with the Marine officers on the night of Feb. 23, 2006 after information reached him that the officers were planning to join protest actions; the award of a medal to De Leon by Miranda’s successor, now Western Mindanao Command chief Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga, for his role in the peaceful resolution of the Feb. 26 standoff at the Marine headquarters; and Miranda’s assurance to then Navy chief Vice Admiral Mateo Mayuga that no Marine officer will join the protest actions against President Arroyo.

Captions:

1. Scout Rangers including Brig. Gen. Danny Lim
2. Col. Ariel Querubin and Col. Nestor Flordeliza
3. Col. Januario Caringal
4. Col. Orlando de Leon
5. Col. Achilles Segumalian and Lt. Belinda Ferrer
6. Col. Armando Bañez

We, the Officers and Members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police, loyal to God and country and to our duty under the Constitution, do hereby make the following declaration:

A crisis of extreme proportions now confronts our people. The economy, the rule of law and the moral order lie in ruins. Political, judicial and economic power, as well as the power of the mass media, has been perverted to inflict and justify high crimes against the Filipino people. More and more among our people no longer eat, while the idle rich and the corrupt live like kings. Minority rule has replaced majority rule. The three branches of government are now in total disarray, the entire system has broken down, thanks to a President whose legitimacy is denied by the vast majority of our people.

Corruption has not only become a way of life among those in power. It has also become the most effective means of destroying our country and people. Mrs. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has played a key role in promoting corruption to its present levels. In her mad desire for power, she has corrupted and destroyed all institutions. She has promoted a policy of loot and plunder while hypocritically announcing a war against corruption.

She has corrupted the justices of the Supreme Court, the entire Commission on Elections, the mass media, some members of the military, the police and the clergy, and countless teachers who took part in counting the votes in the last elections. She is not only the most corrupt official in the country today. She is also its No. 1 corruptor.

We cannot stand idly by while the rule of law, the moral order, the integrity of our institutions, the very future of our country and the people, and our own professional careers are destroyed by this bogus President. We cannot afford to do nothing while she and her cohorts turn our government into a criminal syndicate. We cannot allow ourselves to be used as a tool of injustice and oppression. We must act, and we must act now.

Pursuant, therefore, to our constitutional duty as “protector of the people and the state,” we have today withdrawn our support from Mrs. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, in order to end her unconstitutional and illegal occupation of the Presidency.

This we have done to restore the rule of law and public morality, the legitimacy and accountability of government, the integrity of our public institutions, the sanctity of the democratic process, and the trust and confidence of our people and the rest of the world.

We call on all our comrades-in-arms to discharge their genuine responsibilities to our people with full dedication and fervor. We call on our people to support the men and women at the forefront of this undertaking. We call on Mrs. Arroyo to accept gracefully the formation of a new government.

As soldiers, we do not seek political power for ourselves. But we shall not allow anyone to use political power to commit crimes against our people or to pursue their own personal agenda, at the expense of the national interest. We shall maintain law and order, prevent any group from taking advantage of the situation, and protect the innocent from all possible harm. We shall leave the actual business of governing the nation in the hands of professionally competent, morally upright, patriotic, trustworthy and self-sacrificing Filipinos whom we now invite to form a new government.

This may be our last chance to correct our past mistakes. We cannot afford to fail. We must not fail.

We appeal to everyone to give this effort a chance to succeed. We appeal to all our people to unite and extend all the support and counsel which the new government will need from them. We pray to Almighty God to bless our efforts and keep us pure and strong in this hour of need.

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!

Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim
Regiment Commander
First Scout Ranger Regiment

San Juan Gossip Mills Outlet

By Edwin Lacierda
July 13, 2006

One of the standard features of a high school examination is the Compare and Contrast test. Let us then compare and contrast the Garci tapes and the Danny Lim video.

First, the Garci tapes indubitably reveals the female voice in the tapes as that of the president. The Lim video clearly shows Brig. Gen. Danny Lim voicing his withdrawal of support from the Arroyo government.

Second, GMA has hid behind the legality of the Anti-Wiretapping Act and therefore, denies she is the voice in the tapes despite the fact that she has this unique voice timber and a thick “s” in her manner of speech. Danny Lim bravely admits he is the man in the tape.

Third, GMA is recorded in the tapes conspiring to defraud and cheat the presidential elections and wants a clear mandate of a 1 Million vote edge over her opponent. Danny Lim is recorded in the video conspiring to right a wrong by withdrawing his support from a president whose legitimacy is in question – one that he brazenly calls a bogus president.

Fourth, GMA stages an apology to the Filipino people. Danny Lim has no need to stage an apology and instead asks Secretary Raul Gonzales to investigate the video leakage.

Fifth, GMA’s and then Chief of Staff Angie Reyes’ withdrawal of support from their commander-in-chief and their president is not a crime. Danny Lim withdraws his support from what he claims to be a bogus president and is exiled to Tanay.

Sixth, to survive politically, GMA made a pact with Old Nick and his minions in the Lakas party and promises charter change, short cutting her term etc., anything to maintain her hegemony. To maintain his principles, Danny Lim refuses to turn state witness and offers nothing for the government to squeal on his brethren.

Seventh, GMA tells herself and the Filipino people to move on, calling us to forget her embarrassing recent past. Danny Lim has no way to move on, his acts will remind us of his recent past.

Eighth, GMA will be remembered as the president who brought down decency, civility and good government. Danny Lim will be remembered as the soldier who defied the chain of command because the chain has been infested with the corrosion of corruption.

Ninth, sadly, GMA will be reviled by future generations. Danny Lim may be a footnote in history but his place amongst historians will be secure.

Mga Diskurso ni Doy
Friday, July 07, 2006

Kudeta, sedisyon, rebelyon, article of war o court martial ang ikakaso sa dating puno ng Scout Ranger na si Gen Danny Lim? Kung kudeta, may kalabuan dahil wala namang kudetang nangyari. Malayong-malayo ito (1987-89) sa mabangis na kudetang inilunsad nung kapanahunan ni Presidente Cory Aquino. Magkakatuwang na isinagawa ng RAM-SFP-YOU, kung saan, maraming napinsalang ari-arian, buhay, ari-arian at nasira ang umaarangkada na sanang kumpiansa ng namumuhunan sa bansa.

Kung sedition at rebelyon? Mukhang alanganin, sapagkat isa lamang “withdrawal of support” at hindi naman consumated ito o binalak pero hindi naipatupad, sa madali't sabi, naunsyami! Nasaan nga naman ang sedisyon at rebelyon dun? Ang totoo pa nga daw, si Danny Lim pa nga ang umawat sa mga maiinit na junior officers na i-assault na ang Malakanyang nuong nakaraang Pebrero,'06. Kaya't sa totoo lang, maari pa ngang magpasalamat ang Malakanyang kay Danny Lim. Ang sedisyon at rebelyon ay lubhang malayong-malayo sa patuloy na inilulunsad ng mga kaaway ng gubyerno, ang CPP at NPA.

Kung ibabase ang kaso sa Article of War at iko-”court martial” ang maramihang kasangkot dito at kapag itinuloy ang pagpaparusa sa mga miyembro ng militar na inaakusahan daw sa kudeta, posibleng mag-init na naman ang mga junior officers sa hanay ng militar at imbis na maistabilisa, mag-alburuto, lumala ang pagbaba ng morale (restiveness) ng mga sundalo at sumabog ang sitwasyon?

Ayon sa ibang nagmamasid, ang timing ng pagpapalabas ng “Danny Tape” sa publiko ay kduda-duda. Ayon kay Sen Biazon, sinadya at masinsinang pinagplanuhan ito ng ilang malapit na Heneral (AFP) ng Malakanyang (Gen. Esperon?) ang “Danny Tape” upang ilito at ibaling ang atensyon ng mamamayan sa umiinit na ikalawang impeachment complaint kay Ate Glo. Sinasabi ring na, isa itong pagsubuk (testing the water), pagtantya at pag-antabay sa posibleng magiging reaksyon ng ilang matataas at junior officers sa AFP.

Maaring magkaroon ng backlash ang nasabing pagsasapubliko (no win situation sa pig ng Malakanyang) ng Danny Tape. Kung masama, kung illegal at kung labag sa Konstitusyon ang “withdraw of support” ng grupo nila Gen Danny Lim, walang dudang masama at illegal din ang “withdrawal of support” ni Sec Gen Angelo Reyes nung 2001 Edsa revolution, ang kapanahun ng dating Presidenteng si Erap Estrada. Ang kaibhan nga lang, nabigo ang huli at nagwagi ang grupo ni Gen Angelo Reyes.

Sa totoo lang, mas magaang pa nga ang dating ng panawagan nil Gen Lim, kung ikukumpara sa kaso ni Gen Angelo Reyes nung panahon ni Erap, mga Kudeta ng RAM-SFP -YOU at ni Gringo Honasan nung kapanahon ni Tita Cory.

Ano ang ipinapakita ng Danny Video? Nakakatulong ba ito sa Malakanyan o nakakasira sa katatagan ng gubyerno? Pinatutunayan lamang na totoo ngang may alingasngas sa hanay ng AFP, totoong watak-watak na ang hanay ng militar, kabalintunaang sa sinasabi ng chief of staff Gen Senga,ni Gen Esperonng AFP na solid, nasa panig ng Konstitusyon, may propesyunalismo at susuporta ang lahat sa ilalim ng pamumuno ng commander in chief.

Pinapakita lamang na may namumuong restiveeness sa hanay ng AFP, lalo na sa hanay ng Junior officers. Ipinapakita lamang na ang Danny Tape na “ganun na nga kalaki, kalawak at kasolido ang restiveness sa loob ng AFP.

Doy cinco/ipd
July7, 2006

By Fe Zamora
Inquirer
March 5, 2006

AS he lay dying in January last year, retired Commodore Domingo Calajate kept asking for Capt. Danilo Lim. When Lim finally showed up at the Cardinal Santos Hospital, the nurses heaved a sigh of relief and ushered him into a room.

“How can I refuse a dying man’s wish?” Lim would tell the Inquirer in May at the Club Filipino, where he was given a testimonial dinner for his promotion as brigadier general, and as chair of the Rebolusyonaryong Alyansang Makabansa (RAM), which was Calajate’s dying wish.

In his speech, Lim dispelled doubts about possible conflict of interest that may arise from his positions in the Armed Forces of the Philippines and in RAM, which, despite a peace pact with the government, continues to be linked to destabilization plots. Lim emphasized that under his helm, RAM would become a civic group, even a cooperative for the welfare of retired and active military men.

Calajate’s final request highlighted his trust and confidence in Lim over the more senior former Sen. Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan, who co-founded RAM, then known as Reform the Armed Forces Movement, in 1985. Honasan tried to wrest control of RAM by declaring himself chair of the steering committee. But majority of RAM’s some 4,000 membership agreed to honor Calajate’s choice.

Former rebel soldiers from RAM, Young Officers Union and the Soldiers of the Filipino People (SFP) speak highly of Lim’s role in the peace negotiations in 1993, which resulted in amnesty in 1995. Except for those who opted to retire with full benefits, the mutinous troops, including those convicted for the 1987 violent attack on Camp Aguinaldo, were reinstated and given back pay for years spent in the military stockade.

No work no pay

Lim, the defiant Army captain who led the march of fully armed Rangers back to Fort Bonifacio after a failed coup in December 1989, waived his back pay, invoking his personal creed of “no work, no pay.” But he would not impose his belief on others. That was one of the reasons he negotiated the back pay.

Close friends said that was typical Danny, whose military career had been described by his wife, Aloysia Tiongson-Lim, as an exhilarating “roller-coaster ride.”

“Danny’s military career can be described as a roller-coaster ride mainly due to his principles, advocacy and fight for ideals in the military organization and good governance for the country,” she wrote in the class roster.

West Point

A 1978 graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point and member of the same batch at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA), Lim’s military career began as platoon leader of the all-Igorot Forward Recon Unit based in Jolo, a unique group organized and led by another controversial officer, then Lt. Ricardo “Dick” Morales.

But Lim’s career took a nosedive when rebel soldiers led by him occupied the Makati commercial district from Dec. 1 to 7, 1989 in an attempt to unseat President Corazon Aquino.

The Scout Rangers occupied Makati after other rebel attempts to seize military installations had failed, including the rebel Marines who rammed Gate 1 of Camp Aguinaldo with a Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT), leaving more than a dozen soldiers dead and wounded.

... Ariel Querubin’s escape

Among the ‘cadavers’ was the team leader—then Capt. Ariel Querubin. Querubin was bleeding profusely from wounds in the stomach. A doctor who checked the cadavers for identification, however, noticed a slight twitch on his finger.

Querubin was nursed back to life at the V. Luna Hospital where he would escape months later with the help of the doctor. Years after the incident, Querubin would tell the Inquirer that his getaway vehicle was driven by a businessman.

Wanted

He joined the underground rebel group when the military issued “wanted posters” with rewards for him and three other Marines who were branded “mad bombers and terrorists.” Then AFP chief of staff Gen. Renato de Villa even described Querubin as “psychotic.”

By that time, however, Querubin’s exploits at Gate 1 had already formed part of combat stories that soldiers love to talk about among themselves.

Even his classmates expressed awe at his exploits, but in typical PMA banter. “Whenever we hear rumors of a coup, we always ask, ‘On which side is Ariel?’ We don’t want to be on his side because he would surely survive, and we won’t,” a colonel from PMA Class 1979 said with a laugh.

Truancy

Even at the PMA, Querubin already led a charmed life, according to another classmate. Querubin was originally a member of class 1977, but was “turned back” twice for various infractions of PMA regulations, such as drinking alcohol, breaking curfew and even plain truancy. “But never on academic deficiencies,” Querubin once told the Inquirer.

That Lim and Querubin would find themselves on the same side during the 1989 coup was something that colleagues did not find surprising. But their amnesty and subsequent promotion were resented by officers who fought them during the coup. One officer said promoting Lim would send the wrong signal to younger officers that in the military “one can get away with murder.”

The rebellious past of Querubin was also the subject of discussion by the board that decided to award him the Medal of Valor. A source, who was privy to the discussion, said the issue also hinged on the “wrong signal” that could arise from giving the most prestigious medal to a former rebel.

That they would become “suspects” in fresh plots to unseat a President also did not surprise a police senior superintendent, who is close to both Lim and Querubin.

“They are not corrupt. They are both idealists and they have their own tales of heroism that would inspire soldiers to follow them,” the source, a 1978 PMA graduate who is involved in monitoring suspected coup plotters, told the Inquirer.

Below is the transcript of a blogger discussion group talking about BGen Danny Lim that was posted at www.ellentordesillas.com.

1. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 3:45 am

   Whewww!!! At last, nakatuntong din ako ng Maynila after being away for a few months. Mas malamig pala ang beer dito. Hehehehe.

   I got interested dito sa thread about Penafrancia and Gen Danny Lim. Kanina nakita ng mga kasama ko sa bahay na nagbabasa ako ng blog ni Ate Ellen. They noticed nga this thread na na-mention si Gen Lim. Yung isang bisita namin mentioned something about a child or high school student ata yun na nag-interview kay Gen Lim as part of her school assignment. I am very interested on what questions were asked and how Gen Lim answered it. Am trying to find out more details about it. Baka maya-maya makuha ko yun. Konting snooping lang. Kukwento ko sainyo pag nakita ko mamaya. Hehehehehe

2. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 5:31 pm

   Wow, I got what I wanted….and fast at that. I thought it would be in a folder packaged as a school report, but instead, what was handed me is a xerox copy of the original, in Gen Lim’s own handwriting.

   Six (6) questions were asked of him by this child on 22 October 2007.

   1. Did you intend to become a soldier?
   2. Who and what inspired you to become one?
   3. What did you expect life in the military?
   4. Do you feel fulfilled or frustrated as a soldier?
   5. Will you encourage the youth to become a soldier and serve the country?
   6. Who is your personal hero and why?

   His answer to question #6 is very interesting.

3. Ellen Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 7:51 pm

   It’s okay Sulbatz.I’m interested to know his answer.

4. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 8:45 pm

   Q#1. Did you intend to become a soldier?

   Ans: As a young man, soldiery as a profession was farthest from my mind. Had we the means to support my college studies, (taking up a course I truly like), I should either be a physician or an engineer now. Even with a college scholarship, other expenses were still considerable. I was a freshman at UP when some classmates (some had elder brothers at PMA) convinced me to to take the entrance exam for PMA with them. I did very well in the exam and eventually decided to enter the Academy. After one year at PMA, I took another competitive exam for USMA at West Point and was lucky to be selected to represent the country as a member of USMA class ‘78. Having gone through all the preparations for a military career (1 yr at PMA and 4 yrs at West Point), while not initially inclined to it, I have embraced and learned to love the vocation.

5. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 8:50 pm

   Q#2. Who and what inspired you to become one?

   Ans: Honestly, no one in particular inspired me to become a soldier. My mother was so much against the idea of me, the youngest of her 5 boys, entering the Academy that she must have gone to all the churches she could go to praying that I flunk the entrance exam. I guess pragmatic considerations and some “peer pressure” from my UP freshman classmates helped me become one.

6. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 8:56 pm

   Q#3. What did you expect life in the military?

   Ans: I expected that life in the military would be difficult and would offer challenges that not very many would experience. That in many ways, it is, in a sense, tantamount to sacrifice. I expected the kind of training that would build character, instill discipline and imbue one with the moral courage to arm him for the realities associated with the chosen profession. I expected professionalism at all levels.

7. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 8:57 pm

   Daming typo…sorry.

8. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 11:44 pm

   cont….

   Q#4. Do you feel fulfilled or frustrated as a soldier?

   Ans: I feel fulfilled having developed that character and sense of self-discipline I believe I have put to good use in all the modest accomplishments I have undertaken while performing my sworn duties. I am blessed by the many experiences I’ve gone through which you can’t find if you’re not in the military. I am frustrated when I observe that the actions and attitudes of our leaders (both civilian and military) sharply contrast with the ideals that we were supposed to have internalized.

9. SULBATZ Says:
   

   September 21st, 2008 at 11:50 pm

   Q#5. Will you encourage the youth to become a soldier and serve the country?

   Ans: Even with all its defects (mainly the faults of senior military people who have allowed themselves to be prostituted by partisan considerations and personal aggrandizements), the military remains a noble and honorable profession. I would encourage our young people to join the service. But one word of caution, be prepared for its disappointments. It is not a perfect organization.

10. Ellen Says:
    

    September 22nd, 2008 at 1:11 am

    Where is #6?

11. SULBATZ Says:
    

    September 22nd, 2008 at 1:25 am

    Sorry Ate Ellen, I have to call some people just to get my data right kasi yung sagot ni Gen Lim sa #6 got me interested and made me recall some incidents and stories in the past. I happen to be one of the audience sa kwentuhan and I just have to check with some people I remember who were there kung tama yung recollections ko.

12. SULBATZ Says:
    

    September 22nd, 2008 at 1:41 am

    Q#6. Who is your personal hero and why?

    Ans: My personal hero and a very dear friend - Haydee Yorac. She embodied everything - good, right, just and the truth. This is not my first time to be detained for my principles and convictions. For my involvement in the Dec ‘89 military rebellion, I was jailed for almost three years. During those times, Haydee was a frequent visitor. And we have maintained our very close friendship till the time she went ahead of us. If she were alive today, she would be lawyering for me.

13. SULBATZ Says:
    

    September 22nd, 2008 at 1:48 am

    What struck me about this revelation of Gen Lim in regard to his answer to Q#6 is that at that very same period where his friendship with the late Haydee Yorac was developing, another friendship was being developed with another Marine officer several miles away from the detention center of the former in 1989.

    The then Major Miranda, who was a Battalion Commander of the 3rd Marine Bn in Sulu, had his first encounter with Haydee Yorac, who was then with the party of FVR, Ninez Cacho Olivares and some local politicians. This first encounter with the much respected lady would soon bloom into a deep friendship until her very last days.

    Gen Miranda, when asked the same question as that of Q#6, would answer the same as Gen Lim’s.

    Unfortunately, both are now in incarceration...

GMANews.TV
11/29/2007

After storming out of the Makati City Regional Trial Court on Thursday, Senator Antonio Trillanes and Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim marched to the Manila Peninsula Hotel where they read statements in front of members of the media.

Following is the transcript of Lim's statement which he read during the conference:

The die is cast.

BGEN DANILO LIM AFP

SENATOR ANTONIO F TRILLANES IV

By Nikko Dizon
Philippine Daily Inquirer
04/27/2008

MANILA, Philippines—For Darryl Mobley, one of America’s popular life coaches, his first trip to the Philippines turned out to be more than just for a speaking engagement for a top multinational corporation.

It led to a reunion with a classmate he had not seen in three decades—a friend who, unbeknownst to him, had been tagged an enemy by the government.

When Mobley saw Army Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim at the latter’s court-martial hearing early this month, memories of the years they spent together at the US Military Academy at West Point came flooding back.

“We recognized each other right away. Danny had the same smile, the same kind of intensity. He was always kind of intense but he would crack jokes,” Mobley told the Inquirer in a recent interview at the Peninsula Manila hotel, where he was billeted for a week-long stay for his “work life balance” lectures for Procter & Gamble employees.

Ironically, it was this same Makati hotel that Lim, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and their supporters had taken over for six hours before police crashed an armored personnel carrier into the front entrance and lobbed tear gas into the foyer in November last year.

Mobley, who left the US Army nine years ago, said he told their West Point classmates that he would update them on “everything that has happened to Danny,” the only Filipino in the Class of 1978, during their four-day 30th reunion celebration that ends today.

Lim, who also received the invitation sent to every ’78 alumnus, would not be attending the homecoming—for obvious reasons.

Meeting each other after so many years, Mobley and Lim lost no time catching up during a break in the hearing at Camp Aguinaldo.

Mobley rang up some of their West Point classmates, waking them up at 3 a.m. in the United States, just so they could say “Hello” to Lim. He also called up his wife in Texas and introduced her to Lim and Lim’s wife.

Two days later, after being given permission by Lim’s military and police custodians, Mobley visited him at the Camp Crame custodial center where the Army general has been detained with Trillanes and the Magdalo leaders since the Nov. 29 Peninsula Manila siege.

But at least for a few hours, the two friends had their own reunion—albeit under heavy guard and within the confines of a detention compound.

Had it not been for his Procter & Gamble speaking engagement, Mobley said he would not have been able to see Lim.

“I thought it was fate that sent me here,” he said, adding that he asked Lim’s wife, Aloy, and their 17-year-old daughter to regularly update him about his friend.

For Mobley, 50, seeing Lim incarcerated—tried by a military tribunal for leading a mutiny and charged in a criminal court for rebellion—was unbelievable.

“Danny is not a rebel. Danny is an idealist in a world that is not so ideal ... Rebels oftentimes exist for their own purpose,” he said.

Lim had been involved in the 1989 coup, the bloodiest uprising against then President Corazon Aquino, the failed February 2006 alleged power grab, and the Nov. 29 walkout from the Magdalo hearing that led to the Peninsula siege.

In the last two incidents, Lim was one with other military officers in denouncing the alleged massive corruption in the government, as well as the purported cheating in the May 2004 elections, supposedly with the help of some military generals, to favor Ms Arroyo.

But even with Lim’s supposed rebellious nature, he served the Armed Forces well after being granted amnesty which expunged his participation in the 1989 coup.

He became the commander of the First Scout Ranger Regiment (FSRR), an elite fighting force of the Armed Forces, and the youngest officer to be given star rank.

As early as then, there was talk among the troops that Lim would become Army chief, and eventually, AFP chief of staff.

Mobley, for his part, is known as the “black Dr. Phil” and the “male Oprah,” having made a name for himself for being an “expert on how to make a life worth living.”

He is a marketing consultant, an excellent motivational speaker, and the force behind Family Digest Magazine, the leading family and relationships publication for black Americans.

Mobley lost contact with Lim soon after graduation as the latter returned to the Philippines to serve in the Army.

It was only when Mobley was in South Korea en route to Manila for a speaking engagement that he decided to “google” Lim.

“While in Korea, I ‘googled’ his name, figured I’d look him up and say ‘Hi.’ And the first thing I see is an article about him being in trouble. I said, ‘Whaat?’” Mobley narrated.

During his talk at Procter & Gamble, he told his audience that his friend “Danny Lim” was in trouble. “I said if anybody sees him, please tell him that I hope he’s OK ... I don’t know what happened, but the Danny that I know would not try to hurt people.”

That night, he received a call from Vicente Verdadero, Lim’s lawyer.

Verdadero’s daughter, a Procter & Gamble employee, had been in the audience when Mobley spoke about Lim.

“It was providential,” Verdadero said. Lim, he added, was ecstatic when he learned that Mobley was in the country and they would have a chance to meet.

Verdadero said Lim became misty-eyed when he and Mobley met for the first time at the court-martial hearing.

The lawyer said it was the first time he saw the general like this in all the years they have known each other.

“People will be very surprised that Danny would be behind bars anywhere because this Danny... was always one who’d do what is right. That’s his deal,” Mobley said. “Danny’s always going to step up and be heard when the situation calls for it.”

Mobley and Lim became friends in their late teens, as West Point cadets trying to hurdle the grueling and challenging training to become Army officers.

He said they became “quite close,” especially after taking a summer training class together. They took the same engineering and math classes, boxed, wrestled, parachuted, played cards and traveled together.

“I knew him quite well,” Mobley said, noting that Lim was the first Filipino he ever met.

The cadet from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) who earned a slot at West Point spoke passionately about his country.

“I knew then that he loved the Philippines. He made me want to come to the Philippines because he spoke about it so much,” Mobley said.

At West Point, Mobley and Lim “took very seriously” the honor code: “A cadet would not lie, cheat and steal, and he won’t tolerate those who do.”

Mobley said that while observing his friend’s court-martial, he was a bit confused about the charges.

He was going to be “delicate,” Mobley said, in talking about his observations, admitting that he was not too familiar with the goings-on in the Philippines and the intricacies of its politics.

He said it was sad to see his friend Lim incarcerated, “the exact same Danny who loves the Philippines and wants it to be a better place for everyone.”

Lim has been consistent in saying he sacrificed his own career not because he wanted power, but because he wanted to see genuine reforms in the Armed Forces and in the country as a whole.

As a motivational speaker, Mobley said he would tell his friend that “change is necessary for people, institutions, even as a process to improve.”

“A seed must crack its shell to grow. A tree, every year, must change leaves. The waves change. Seasons change. The critical thing—when you are dealing with people—is how to create change such that you get to the end point in a way that is consistent with your values,” he said. “If you lead, the power of your ideas should lead people to a better place.”

Lim remains motivated, according to Mobley.

“You can tell he is not broken. One of my models is ‘We don’t give up, we don’t give in, we never quit. And I told him, Danny, don’t give up, don’t give in and don’t quit,’” he said, adding: “But that doesn’t mean you don’t step back and look at the situation. But keep the spirit and do what you have to do.”

“I just want him safe,” Mobley said of Lim as he prepared to go back to the United States. “He’s my friend. I just want him safe.”

By VICTOR REYES
MALAYA
14 MAY 2008

KEY leaders of the alleged power grab attempt in February 2006 yesterday said they are not going to ask for pardon from President Arroyo.

"I cannot see that we will reach that point. I know we are not guilty. If you ask for pardon, you must first accept your guilt," said former Marines commandant Maj. Gen. Renato Miranda at the sidelines of court martial proceedings against him and 27 other Marines and Army officers.

Arroyo on Monday announced she has approved the military’s recommendation for the grant of pardon to nine officers involved in the 2003 Oakwood mutiny. Captains Gerardo Gambala and Milo Maestrecampo and the seven other officers pleaded guilty to the coup d’état case filed against them before a Makati court.

Miranda, referring to the standoff at the Marines headquarters on Feb. 26, 2006, said, "If you are talking of the Sunday standoff, it’s not a coup, it’s about me, it’s about my relief."

The standoff came two days after the alleged power grab attempt to be led by Miranda and Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, former Scout Ranger commander, who would supposedly lead their men to a march to Edsa and air their withdrawal of support from President Arroyo.

The standoff, triggered by Miranda’s relief as Marines commandant, saw the massing of officers and men in front of the headquarters.

"If you can review what happened during the Sunday standoff, it is about the grievances, about how come you treated the commandant that way. Personally, I was very thankful, I was surprised how the men loved the (Marine) leadership," he said.

Miranda said he was "happy, at least" for the pardoned mutineers. "As to the manner it was done, I’m not privy to it," he said.

Lim, asked if they were going to ask for pardon, said: "They (nine officers) made their bed, they sleep on it."

Marine Col. Ariel Querubin said: "I won’t receive any pardon from this administration. I won’t apply... I’ll be cleared."

It was Querubin who called for support for their protest over Miranda’s relief during the standoff.

Miranda, Lim, Querubin and the other accused are facing a number of offenses before a general court martial. The charges include mutiny, conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman, and conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline.

Marine Lt. Col. Achilles Segumalian said they are not going to accept pardon. "Nothing is to be pardoned. We are good and professional soldiers."

Segumalian, who also figured in the standoff, said his group would pardon former AFP chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr. if he showed remorse.

Esperon, who relinquished his post to Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano Monday, has said he recommended pardon for the nine mutineers because they have shown remorse.

The group is blaming Esperon for the "prostitution" of the military brought about by his involvement in the alleged cheating in the 2004 presidential elections.

Segumalian said Esperon "should be going to the Comelec (Commission on Elections)."

Asked why, he said: "Do you have to ask that question? He is good at that," he said, referring to the alleged cheating.

Querubin said Yano is better than Esperon.

"At least General Yano has no baggage. He comes clean unlike the other (Esperon)... I think he’ll make good as chief of staff."

Lim said they feel safer with Yano at the helm of the AFP.

"Definitely. Compared to the former chief of staff, most definitely," he said.

Yano vowed he is not going to meddle in the court martial proceedings.

Miranda’s group has accused Esperon of meddling in the affairs of the military tribunal.

"Let me assure that as the new chief of staff, I will respect and recognize the independence of the court. That I will say because even if I am the chief of staff, there is a separate court martial headed by their president and it’s not apt for me to intervene with the results and proceedings of the court martial. I respect the independence of the court," he said.

By Ellen Tordesillas
September 20, 2008




www.ellentordesillas.com

Last Saturday, as Bicolanos celebrated the feast of the Virgin of Peñafrancia something stirred the curiosity of those who joined the “traslacion”, the procession transferring Ina, as they call image of Our Lady of Peñafrancia , from the basilica to the Metropolitan Cathedral of Naga City.

Around the city, there were several streamers that proclaimed “Viva la Virgen de Peñafrancia”. Below was the name and photo of Brig. Gen. Danny Lim, who is now in detention for allegedly planning to withdraw support from Gloria Arroyo in February 2006 following the expose of the Hello Garci tapes and in November 2007 following more scandals the most bewildering of which is the NBN/ZTE deal.

There were several reactions to the poster ranging from “What’s his plan?” to “Is he running for senator?” to “Guapo pala si Gen. Lim?”

I asked a friend of Gen. Lim and he said “Danny is a devotee of the Virgin of Peñafrancia. When Danny was a battalion commander in Camarines Sur, he often visited “Ina” at the basilica and always joined the traslacion incognito.”

Another sent me this info: “BGen Danny Lim commanded the 42nd Infantry Battalion, PA based in Bicol Region in 2000/2001. His area of responsibility covered the whole province of Camarines Sur and parts of Albay. He is well-loved and highly respected there and has many friends especially in Naga City.”

I posted a picture of one of the streamers in my blog and here are some of the reactions:

Parasabayan: “Sobrang aga naman yata ng posters ni Gen Lim! Although his candidacy would be a welcome thing. The only thing is, we do not know yet if there will be a 2010 elections. Mukhang ayaw pang umalis ni evil bitch sa Malacañang.”

Kabute sees no political color: “I think BGen. Lim is not campaigning. More likely he just wants to greet the Bicolanos whom he served during his stint there. Penafrancia celebration ngayon sa Naga City. A lot of devotees of the Virgin of Penafrancia or lovingly called INA (Mother) go there for a week-long celebration of the Feast of the Virgin of Peñafrancia. The celebration lasts from Sept. 12 to 19. Happy fiesta to all Bicolanos!”

Myrna, a Bicolana. doesn’t really mind: “That streamer of Gen. Lim is a welcome sight, and most appropriate, especially from someone who has endeared himself to the Bicolanos. Kung mukha man lang ni Gloria at ng kanyang alipores, huwag na lang. Baka masira pa ang fiesta atmosphere sa Naga.”

Jojovelas: “I read in an article by former Sen. Maceda in Tribune that Gen. Lim could be opposition senatorial bet.”

Chi: “Kahit presidente pa, uuwi ako sa Pinas and physically will campaign for my favorite General Danny Lim! Sori Ping, I think it’s not too early for the people to know that Gen. Lim will run for Senator, if true. Although, I see the streamer as just a ‘thank you’ from the Bicolanos who love the General.”

SumpPit: “I would prefer that B/Gen. Lim run, not just for the Senate (AT4 , Trillanes, has done that already), but as vice-president to Ping Lacson. Being a commanding general of the AFP’s elite force takes not just a bag of courage but a truckload of wits and management skills. Uncompromising loyalty to the flag, burning idealism, and resoluteness to the cause - they both have it. They believe in it.”

But not everybody agrees.

Dina Pinoy says: “Pinoy nga naman ok lang kahit wala sa lugar at sobrang aga basta bata nila ang gagawa. Kung si Bakekang sa malakanyang at ang mga alipores niya ang gagawa niyan, sigurado alburoto na naman ang Pinoy.”

Al has some apprehensions: “Another military man in the Senate? Aren’t you worried that even our legislature is being militarized?

Aren’t there competent and honest people in the civilian sector?”

***

Here’s something I got in the internet on the feast of Our Lady of Peñafrancia:

“On the first day, the image of the Virgin, a copy of the Madonna in Peñafrancia, Spain, is brought from its shrine to the Naga Cathedral where the novena is held. On the last day, the image is returned to her shrine following the Naga River route. The colorful evening procession is lit by thousands of candles from followers in boats escorting the image. When the flatboat reaches its destination, the devotees shout “Viva la Virgen” (Long live the Virgin!) and the image is carried back in a procession to the cathedral.

“History has it that a Spanish government official from Peñafrancia, Spain settled with his family in Cavite in 1712. One day, a son, Miguel Robles de Covarrubias, a seminarian studying at the Universidad de Santo Tomas got very ill. He and his family prayed to Our Lady of Peñafrancia, whose picture he was clutching to his breast. He made a vow that if cured, he would construct a chapel by the bank of Pasig river in Manila. Miraculously cured, he eventually was ordained a priest not in Manila but in the Ciudad de Nueva Caceres (now known as Naga City).

“In fulfillment of his vow, Padre Miguel mobilized the natives along the slopes of Mt. Isarog to construct a chapel made of local materials, nipa and bamboo this time by the bank of the Bikol river in Naga and ordered a local artisan to carve an image patterned after the picture of Our Lady which is known to have blessed some faithful with miracles.”