GOD,MAN AND CRIME IN THE PHILIPPINES

GOD, MAN AND CRIME IN THE PHILIPPINES

  

   The death penalty is a very controversial issue when it is based on the conflicting views of the masses. Religious organizations in the Philippines oppose the practice of capital punishment in the country. This would be in accordance to their faith; as well as the principles it intends to influence. There exist other factions which favor the reinstatement of executions into the judicial procedures; with the assumption that fear of the law is the solution to solving crime. Spiritual leaders have questioned the reliability of capital punishment and the repercussions that follow it. According to them, if there occurred a situation wherein an executed person was mistakenly accused and discovered to be innocent; there would no longer be any means of returning the life taken. On the other hand, there are those who claim the existence of adept and talented lawyers who can manipulate the law and have supposedly guilty clients absolved of any accusations. For them, the infliction of divine justice is neither practical nor reasonable; since it is grounded on presupposed, or conjured, beliefs.

    Nothing, therefore, is socially correct for the Filipino people as they have different notions of what justice means. Those who are strongly devoted to their faith accept that karma or the Hand of God is more extreme than whatever punishment man can fashion. They are assuaged by the belief that wrongdoers will inevitably undergo such horrific condemnations, and eventually contest the morality of a death sentence. The ones who cannot easily be mollified by abstraction find this illogical. There is no veracity concerning such fabled ideas; as they argue from a logical standpoint. And by their personal sentiments; nothing short of death will appease their anguish.

    The Philippines is similar to the proverbial figure that stands with a sword in one hand, and the Bible in another. Unfortunately, the limbs that support them fail to reach a compromise, and function with mutual condemnation; because its owner suffers a dilemmic imperfection.

    Fear of the law. That must be instilled among the people in order to acquire a national sovereignty. The question is: ‘WHAT LAW; THE LAW OF GOD, OR THE LAW OF MAN?’ During the reign of Ferdinand Marcos, Sr. capital punishment was enacted. So was it during the term of Fidel Ramos and Joseph Estrada. Still, heinous crimes continue to prevail in Philippine society at present. With or without the death penalty; what matters is the audacity and wit of criminals. If they are bold and clever enough to commit a crime without being incarcerated; then they do it. Even the more inferior ones are occasionally lucky to get away with their offenses; the judicial system having its share of flaws and incompetence.

     The fervent supporters of capital punishment, however, may also criticize the procedures of faith worhsippers. It is undeniable that the latter-(while ingesting the Bible)-have come across the story of Moses and the Ten Commandments; as well as the extreme methods by which the Lord delivers His wrath upon sinners. Yet, many of Christianity’s followers continue to disobey the Holy Scriptures. Adultery, theft, blasphemy, murder, impudence; even absence from chuch: all part of social life’s downside.

    These realities, and others like it, exist because divine admonishment has not been experienced. And as much as there are followers of Christianity, not all of them profess their faith through actions. If they cannot accomplish this, influencing others will be as futile.

     Not everyone trembles when another announces possession of a big stick. That is because they may have a bigger stick; or they doubt the other person owns any.

    Considering the matter of justice in the Philippines; it is my personal opinion that there is no exact, or final, solution to the problem of crime. Because the law, whether enforced by bloodthirsty belligerents or self-righteous clergymen is never absolutely reliable. Both procedures are questionable due to the fact that they are not completely sound; and are tainted by flaws. With or without the existence of capital punishment, there is no way to efface the shortcomings and flaws of society.

    Crime gives justice meaning and purpose.

A POOR ANALOGY:

    In the morning of Septermber 12, 2001 (Philippine time), I heard radio broadcasts about an attack on the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York. Islamic terrorists took planes on a suicide mission; crashed into public edifices; and eventually caused the deaths of numerous unsuspecting individuals. Now I wonder if the followers of Muhammad’s religion truly have any fear of Allah. Surely, the Koran must teach what is good and right. If they struck in the name of their faith, then they are no different from the Jihad warriors bold enough to use the name of their god to conceal political and avaricious intentions.

    From another perspective: other than the destroyed structures in Manhattan, the Pentagon at Washington DC also was victim to the atrocities of the same faction, the same day. Taking the historical records of Hiroshima and Nagasaki into account; it is easy to assume the potential methods of retaliation which the United States is capable of. Perhaps the Afghan forces gained confidence from the fact that America lost at Korea and Vietnam; countries much inferior in comparison. Or they were fortunate enough to presume that George Bush was not man enough to emulate Harry Truman.

    Whether it was religious disobedience or improvident arrogance on the part of the aggressors, a wrong was committed…and more can/will be.

    

THE FBI AND RODRIGO DUTERTE: SCUM OF SOCIETY

The FBI and Rodrigo Duterte: Scum of Society

   Presumptive president Rodrigo Duterte, upon attaining a victory over his rival candidates for the presidency, has proposed a number of what could be considered ‘drastic changes’ within Philippine policies and mandates. Other than returning the death penalty as a means of ‘obliterating/eliminating/reducing’ crime, he has forwarded other propositions which are intended to ‘regulate’ the society; or more appropriately “set it straight”. Some factions contradict his ideals, however. These are the people who do not like the incoming president; or simply those who do not like being told what to do, even if it is for the collective good. And that includes them; but they don’t realize it.

    This article is intended to focus on the latter classification of individuals. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines and the Human Rights Commission can make their own essays about why they think Duterte is a jerk. Mine is centered on the hateful “fart-brained idiots” (FBI) in society; as a former schoolmate termed them.

   Let me begin with a narrative:

    I was born in 1971; and throughout the Martial Law period, I had no idea what on earth was going on around me. (Only Jesus Christ or Tony Stark can be gifted enough to understand such things before they could learned to walk and talk; so excuse my ignorance). In the ensuing years after I graduated from college, I remained under my father’s roof and was the only person tolerant enough to hear the idealistic views of a self-proclaimed philosopher. When my father described the early 1970’s, he left out the ugly aspects of Martial Law and shared the more favorable ones. If the post-Marcos administrations only revealed the bad side of this issue; it was only fair to hear about ‘another’ side of it. I like Phil Collins, so I decided to hear ‘Both Sides of the Story’. *

    My dad spoke of instilled public discipline. The people were ‘set straight’ out of fear of the law. The number of rapists, thieves, murderers, drug pushers, etc had diminished on a dramatic scale because they were afraid of having to undergo the harsh and violent treatment of law enforcers. Not only minors, according to him, were apprehended during curfew hours; but even those of legal age. They were made to spend the evening in jail and ordered to perform community services. And capital punishment; WOW!

    But that is too much for minor offenses, i.e. disturbing the peace and creating disorder; so I’ll leave that out and go to the ‘lesser’ scum of society.

    While reading posts on my Facebook timeline, I came across a couple of issues related to this topic. First were the sentiments of a fellow FB-user about how Rodrigo Duterte’s policies should have an effect on owners of vehicles, who use ‘noise-making’ mufflers. As every sane individual knows, the meaning of ‘muffle’ is to lessen or diminish sound; not enhance it. It truly is annoying when private vehicles in residential areas are made to sound like the Ghost Rider’s motorcycle or a formula one race car; which they are not.  Here is one specific example:

    Occasionally, the sound of what seems to be a Ducati heavy motorcyle will emanate from outside the entrance of the apartment building I live in. When tenants on the upper floors look down to find out what exactly is causing their annoyance, they would find a vain neighborhood fool revving his puny Honda Veet; a raucous muffler attached to the exhaust pipe.

    The second issue was actually a shared link centered on Rodrigo Duterte’s ‘three-child’ policy that suggests Filipinos to have only three children per family. My friend’s post read more like a challenge for the government to implement this upon what I deduced as ‘the lower classes’ of society. It read thus:

“Go tell that to the people occupying land that they don’t own; parks their jeep or whatever public utility vehicle on the road and sing out of tune till early morning. Oh yeah and lazy to get to work and starts drinking at 3PM.”

    To avoid being taken as prejudiced, as well as the criticism of sanctimonious readers, I will make two classifications of the impoverished members of society: the poor people and the f__king poor people. When people are not privileged enough to live in high-society places like Wac-Wac, Forbes Park, or Das Mariñas Village, most likely they will be residing among these two classifications.

    How are they different?

    Simple: the f__king poor people will engage in boisterous and unruly activities; inconsiderate of the rights of their neighbors; and ready to give the finger to anyone who requests moderation of them. I should know. I lived in Novaliches for thirty-three years; and in Biñan as of the present.

    During the campaign period for the recent 2016 elections, my rowdy neighbors would turn on their videokes at 6:30 PM and carry on until 2:30 AM. Their children would get first shot at the microphone; the latter chanting the word ‘Duterte’ repeatedly like some religious charismatic hymn. Nobody will even think of going to the ‘barangay’ hall and report such behavior. Because the employees assigned there are no different from the individuals in question. Now that the incoming president proposed a ban on videoke machines; I wonder if they will still have the same enthusiasm for him. The PARENTS, I mean. Only they can brainwash their young.

     My father was criticized by many as a ‘supercillious fascist authoritarian communist’. That is why I don’t instantaneously concur with his enthusiastic appraisals of Ferdinand Marcos’ accomplishments. To add: when rival polticians claimed that Rodrigo Duterte was a “dangerous” individual likely to emulate Marcos’ oppressive and tyrannical ways; I was filled with contempt for the man. Frankly, I don’t think the world -even a small one- of the Davao City mayor. He is still a suspiciously radical fellow by my estimation. But when I take my father’s statements into consideration (hopefully he was telling the exact truth), as well as the chance that my neighbors will metamorphose into decent human beings; Rody isn’t so bad after all.

    Here’s hoping he succeeds with the FBI.

   Epilogue: WAM!-wait a minute. Did he say ‘no demolishings and no relocations’? WTF!

___________

*Phil Collins, ‘Both Sides of the Story’, ‘Both Sides’ album, Atlantic Records, 1993