A compelling story Aquino can build on

SAN FRANCISCO—Undoubtedly, the Corona verdict was a victory for Noynoy Aquino.

But it is an incomplete victory.

Now, P-Noy must now defend and build on what’s promising to be a compelling story.

The verdict shows that Philippine democracy may be flawed and highly imperfect, but it has matured to the point where even a top court official who abuses his powers can be removed through a legal process.

Yes, critics could nit-pick the process to death. But P-Noy clearly took a big gamble in pursuing the impeachment campaign.

Acquittal would have essentially ended his presidency. The guilty verdict strengthens his position politically.

Not only that. It can be argued that having the country go through a very public impeachment process may have been fraught with risk – but it was worth it.

People – especially young Filipinos – learned from it. And hopefully, people in government, drew important lessons from the exercise. One can imagine a judge or government bureaucrat thinking twice of taking that bribe, or yielding to some other temptation.

“Kung yong chief justice nadale, naku, paano pa kaya ako kung mabisto?”

No, it doesn’t mean the end of corruption. It probably won’t mean the beginning of the end.

Still, it’s a small step forward.

The New York Times report on the verdict also noted: “This was the first time that a high-level Philippine official had been removed from office after impeachment and conviction. Officials here are often removed through street protests.”

And that point is significant.

This was the outcome the country should have had in 2001 in that other dramatic impeachment drama involving Joseph Estrada.

Eleven years ago, when the focus was on a scandal-plagued administration of Erap, having an unpopular president forced out through a legal, transparent process would have achieved greater meaning.

EDSA 2 was exciting, even dramatic. But given what happened afterward, that uprising ended up derailing the growth of a more mature democracy.

The Corona verdict has, at least, put that process back on track to some extent.

The democratic system can be slow, wobbly, at times frustrating and inefficient.

It takes time to build on it, expand it, strengthen it. Shortcuts must be avoided. And forces advocating shortcuts, political players pitching quick fixes must be viewed with suspicion. Patience is key.

And patient belief in a democratic system, I hope, is what the Corona verdict will inspire among young Filipinos who will be the ones to build on this system.

And this is where Noynoy Aquino’s victory is incomplete. This is where a lot still depends on what he does with this victory.

This is where the issue of Luisita reemerges.

His critics will continue pounding away at the view that the impeachment trial was all about Luisita and the economic well-being of P-Noy’s clan.

It’s interesting to note that while P-Noy himself has offered only timid remarks accepting the Supreme Court ruling in favor of the Luisita farmers, internationally his government has gotten positive feedback for that development.

As I’ve argued in previous columns, I think Noynoy’s team has missed an opportunity to highlight the signifcance of the Luisita ruling.

For in a society where political power has typically meant economic power, something strange has happened in the Philippines under Aquinio. For the first time in Philippine history, the country has a president whose family ended up losing economic power – instead of gaining more – during his term.

In any case, the point has resonated internationally.

Take what David Pilling, columnist for the Financial Times, said in a recent op-ed piece on the Philippines.

“The fact that a sitting president can be stripped of land is a hopeful sign that the separation of powers enshrined in the constitution is being honoured,” he wrote,

Now, what would he and others say if, as his critics have argued, the whole impeachment process was simply payback for the Supreme Court decision?

Can you imagine the backlash any attempt to reverse that historic ruling would have not only on Aquino, but, more importantly, on Philippine democracy?

That would be an unexpected and unwanted twist in what’s turning into a pretty interesting story. Hopefully, we won’t even have to worry about it.

Hopefully, Noynoy Aquino will not only stick to the present narrative, and perhaps even make it an even more compelling story.

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