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Batas Mauricio

JUST exactly what did President Duterte mean when he said, according to media reports, that he will not listen to the Supreme Court nor to Congress on the issue of martial law in Mindanao? It could be very simple, really, and it is that, if his declaration is rescinded either by the court or by lawmakers, all he has to do is issue a new proclamation.

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Especially so if, in his perception and on the basis of reports from the police and the military, martial law continues to be a necessary weapon should invasion and rebellion persist, prejudicing public interest, welfare, and safety.

Yes, it could become a see-saw affair, or a “now you see it, now you don’t” situation, where the President will be declaring martial law over and over again, after each and every rebuff from Congress or the Supreme Court.

Of course, I would like to ask Duterte’s critics and political foes: is there any prohibition in the 1987 Constitution–the Cory Aquino document that castrated the powers of the presidency over martial law on account of the hang-ups of her government over President Marcos’ martial law–of a repeated declaration?

There is none. Indeed, as lawyers are won’t to say once in a while, where the law does not prohibit, it actually allows. For so long as the President believes there is a rebellion or invasion that is taking place, and it is to the best interest of the Filipino people to have martial law, he can, at anytime, and as often as he wants it, declare martial law.

Yes, who is to say that the President’s assessment of the existence of rebellion or invasion is factually wrong? In our kind of government where everything is centralized with a very strong presidency, the only one single official who has access to vital information about what is going on in the country is the president alone.

The prevailing sentiment of many Filipinos tend towards the declaration of martial law in the whole country.

Even in unsolicited text messages which flood our cellular text line, 0932 422 25 72, radio listeners who are aware of reports of continuing terroristic activities of terrorist groups that are now allied with foreign terror organizations, it is their firm suggestion that President Duterte should now place the entire Philippines under martial law, no longer just Mindanao.

These listeners of ours are saying they could entrust the whole country into the hands of Duterte, because they know him to be true and sincere president whose only objective now is to uphold the interest, welfare, and safety of his constituents. I believe this could already qualify as “vox populi, vox Dei”, or loosely, “the voice of the people is the voice of God which must be obeyed”.

In relation to the warnings issued by Chief Justice Lourdes Sereno, Vice President Leni Robredo, and former President Ramos against possible abuses in the implementation of martial law in Mindanao, let us try to understand certain things here.

First, declaring martial law is a power granted to the President by the 1987 Constitution. Under its Section 18, Art. 7, it is clear that when there is an invasion or rebellion, when public safety requires it, the President can declare martial law to fight invasion or rebellion.

Second, there is a clear armed uprising that is on-going in Marawi City. It is a public uprising using heavy firearms and ammunition against the government. The evident purpose is to take Marawi City and even the whole of Mindanao away from the Philippines, and make it a territory of an international terrorist group. The hoisting of the terrorist organization’s flag early on confirms this.

Why, even now, reports indicate that the violence and mayhem in Marawi City are being perpetuated not only by Filipinos, but also by foreigners who also bear heavy firearms. These foreigners, according to reports, are fighting side-by-side with Filipino terrorists groups against the government. Clearly, invasion is also present right from the start here.

It cannot be denied therefore that there was a necessity of President Duterte declaring martial law. His hand was clearly forced to make that declaration, even as it is an option that he did not think of by himself. It is a course of action that had been made available to him by the 1987 Constitution, and even by the 1973 and the 1935 Constitutions (in stronger forms, of course).

That he chose to declare martial law in the castrated form in which it is found in the 1987 Constitution, instead of availing of other options clearly open to him, should confirm to everyone, here in the Philippines and in the whole world, that Duterte is a leader who is willing to obey and use the laws in his presidency.

Sure, there are going to be abuses in the implementation of martial law in Mindanao. After all, soldiers and policemen, and other government functionaries assigned as administrators of martial law in Southern Philippines, are only humans. And humans can err, even as they do err almost all the time.

But this should not stop Duterte or even his government from pursuing martial law as a remedy to stop the rebellion and invasion that are taking place in Mindanao. For if we are going to allow ourselves to be paralyzed with the fear of abuses in the implementation of martial law, we might as well give up Mindanao to the terrorists, here and now.

Instead of undermining Duterte’s efforts to defeat the Marawi City rebels and the invaders with warnings of things that have not even happened yet, or which may never happen, after all, we should try to unite ourselves, first in prayer and spiritual strengthening through the Word of God, and second, in donating whatever we can to tide over our countrymen who have been rendered homeless, hungry, and destitute by the terrorism in their city.

E-mail: batasmauricio@yahoo.com

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