True heroes

DIE HARD III
Herman Tiu Laurel
2/18/2011



Last Feb. 14, the Court of Appeals’ First Division extended the 60-day temporary restraining order it issued last Dec. 1, 2010 on the implementation of the P14.3-billion settlement of penalties between the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

Penned by Associate Justice Japar Dimaampao and concurred with by Presiding Justice Andres Reyes Jr. and Associate Justice Jan Aurora Lantion, that decision said, “…there is indeed an urgent need for the issuance of a writ of preliminary injunction in order to preserve the status quo of the pending controversy until the merits of the case have been fully adjudicated upon and to forestall the injurious effects, which may be grave and irreparable, that may result from the defiance of such status quo.”

Such status quo stemmed from Meralco’s violation of its 10-year supply contract with Napocor, which case Meralco lost, and where ensuing negotiations metamorphosed into a settlement in which both parties agreed to pass on the accrued penalties to Meralco’s customers.

Given this blatant transfer of liabilities from the supply contract violator (Meralco) to its electricity users, power consumer advocacy groups waged a vigorous campaign to save all of Meralco’s consumers from another illegal, unjust, oppressive, and exploitative “pass-on” cost that the power distributor was solely responsible for.

How Napocor agreed to such a settlement is simply reprehensible; one can only conclude that, again, as it often happens with such cases, some officials were corrupted into acquiescing to such a deal, thinking that the public would be none the wiser. Thankfully, they were wrong.

Consumer advocacy groups, such as Nasecore (National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms), FDC (Freedom from Debt Coalition), EmPower, Sulo ng Pilipino, Kaakbay, Bayan, and others stepped up to the plate by wielding their bats to fight off this new ambush. And it was an unrelenting battle indeed. Not only were they up against Meralco’s great financial resources; they also had to deal with mainstream media’s persistent focus on the fleeting and petty.

Amid the public’s general bewilderment about the vital issues of the day, we take our hats off to leaders such as Mang Naro Lualhati (who helped win our P30-billion refund before); Pete Ilagan and the Nasecore lawyers; writers like Butch Junia; as well as all the others who led and supported such efforts for helping us (captive electricity consumers) win another major victory against Meralco’s unending predation--this, despite meager resources and struggling against protest fatigue.

Crucial to this victory, too, were the CA justices who took the principled stand of not merely “walk(ing) in to corruption” as Angie Reyes did and accepting “things as they are.”

Last Wednesday, former Marine Col. Ariel Querubin filed his application for amnesty after a general court martial junked his motion to dismiss the mutiny charge against him. One of the few living awardees of the Medal of Valor, Querubin attached a narration of facts explaining the events that led to the standoff at the Marine HQ in 2006. He told of being approached by US servicemen and young AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines ) officers who reported “rampant election fraud” in the 2004 presidential elections, becoming “the repository of… gripes and grievances” of those who “witnessed cheating or… themselves were used to manipulate the results of the 2004 election in favor of Gloria Arroyo.”

He was astonished when superiors told him, as he told Tribune, “not to rock the boat and not to be naïve. They told me that everybody cheats in the election and GMA was the lesser evil.” Of course, they couldn’t tell him that Gloria also gave out hundreds of millions back then and was to later reward those “higher AFP authorities” very handsomely.

Querubin continues: “…nobody (among his higher-ups) did anything, even after we brought up the matter to the chairman of the Senate defense committee (then Senator Rodolfo Biazon) who is a former soldier. The US servicemen were sent back to the States…”

When the Mayuga fact finding committee was formed to look into the military’s involvement in the electoral fraud, Querubin informed Vice Admiral Mateo Mayuga that there were officers willing to testify on the election cheating but they were never called to give their statements.

Further, Querubin’s brigade confiscated 34 assorted high-powered firearms with tampered serial numbers and thousands of ammo intended for the Ampatuans but senior military officers and politicians interceded for their release; and when he filed cases against a police provincial director and a mayor, these were simply dropped and he was relieved of his command in Marawi.

Querubin’s statement is a must read as it reveals more conspiracies between the AFP generals and the corrupt political cabal of GMA, including the connivance between Generals Senga and Demaala to intercede for the release of the firearms to the Ampatuans because, as Senga said, he was instructed “… look for ways (on) how to help (Gov. Ampatuan) since the Palace had asked him (Senga) to...” Querubin is a Filipino who may have “walked into” corruption; but he courageously turned and marched away, and fought against it.

With Col. Querubin is another true soldier, Gen. Danilo Lim, who up to now refuses to apply for amnesty as this, he says, would “mean that nothing wrong happened during the time of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.” Compare these to Angelo Reyes’ story.

From the justices of the CA who penned the decision, supporting justice for electricity consumers against the feared swindle of Meralco and Napocor; to the countless and unnamed consumer advocates fighting without even reimbursement of personal costs; to the gallant and genuine “Soldiers of the People” like Gen. Danilo Lim, Col. Ariel Querubin, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, Maj. Jason Aquino, and the many men (and women) of the Bagong Katipuneros (Magdalos) and Para sa Bayan (PsB), all true Filipino heroes stand proud.

Shame on those Gloria Arroyo hacks in print and broadcast media who praise the cowardly and corrupt cheats; and demean the true, the brave, and the noble Filipino heroes!

(Tune in to Sulo ng Pilipino, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 6 to 7 p.m. on 1098AM; TNT with HTL, Tuesday, 8 to 9 p.m., with replay at 11 p.m., on GNN, Destiny Cable Channel 8, on the “Sorry Yellow Movement” with Charito Planas and Linggoy Alcuaz; visit our blogs, http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com and http://hermantiulaurel.blogspot.com and listen to our select radio and GNN shows)