According to the 1987 Philippine Constitution , President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will become an ex President after 12 noon of June 30th next year. She then becomes a private citizen but with several honorific and service related perks. For instance she is still entitled to be called President, but can no longer be styled “Her Excellency”but “The Honorable”. Courtesy requires that she be invited to important social functions in the Palace. But we believe she doesn’t just want the honorifics and wants still to be a politician.
In many countries ex Presidents and Prime Ministers usually retire from politics (although this doesn’t mean that their political views are also retired). The new chief executive can assign the ex prez or PM some special status as an envoy. Examples include Tony Blair being appointed as a Middle East peace envoy, George Bush Sr and Bill Clinton as special envoys to help Southeast Asia deal with the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami, and Bill Clinton as UN envoy to Haiti. Jimmy Carter capitalized on the Sadat-Begin peace treaty which he arranged and went on to espouse peace and humanitarian causes. These appointments are not partisan political although they may be political.
In many democracies, ex heads of state or government are accorded courtesies but are never expected to to be partisan political still. While there have been US presidents that have had post presidential careers, many have opted to go on the lucrative lecture circuit. The most notable of US presidents to have a post presidential career is William Taft, who became Chief Justice of the United States. Taft considered the post the highest point of his career. Jimmy Carter’s post presidential career is considered by Americans to be one of the most successful. Carter won the 2002 Nobel Peace prize for his advocacy. He is one of three US presidents to be granted the honor.
The blurbs have it that Prez Gloria wants to be a member of Congress (and possibly a Member of Parliament). Now a PM even when deposed remains as an MP still although out of the front bench. In fact it is a humiliation if a PM loses his seat in an election. So we have no problem with a PM being an MP.
However we have a problem if a President wants to be an MP. In many hybrid parliamentary systems, a President may need to be elected as an MP before being made President, but once President, should vacate his/her parliamentary seat. The South African constitution requires this And after their terms, the politicians go on the lecture circuit.
However the temptation to be partisan political is strong. Mrs Aquino was led into temptation and so did FVR. Erap believed the Crown was stolen from him by the Supremes and so remained political. In the USA, while Dubya has largely refrained from directly commenting on Obama’s policies, his veep, Dick Cheney is the one making the criticism circuit. But Cheney was never Prez so he is largely free from the public expectation of being non-partisan political.
What Gloria is believed to be contemplating is against convention. We do suggest that she stick to her original plan of going back to teaching (and terrorizing non-performing undergrads as Ambeth Ocampo reminisces about his Ateneo days). This is perfectly in tandem with her going on the lecture circuit. A PhD like her is unsuitable in advocating social causes with a religious bent as Mrs Aquino did. She isn’t an engineer so she can’t do an FVR. And neither will she contemplate time under house/hospital arrest as her actor-predecessor did! Perhaps she can be a UN envoy to God forsaken places, but we really don’t think she is fit for the role. So she should be a teacher once more.
As Bolt’s Thomas More may say it “Why not be a Teacher. She could be a fine one.”
The Filipino people aren’t really a Bad Public when it comes to teachers.
Popularity: 1% [?]
blackshama,
You have to factor in one underlying reason that could be driving her widely suspected plan of becoming Deputado as a short route to becoming Premier: to enjoy continued immunity from suit.
Months ago there were reports that if she chose to retire from politics and go back to the academe there would also be established a Presidential Library with the Ateneo hosting it.
However PMs can be easily stabbed in the back. See what almost happened to Gordon Brown last week.
Also, if we do have a cabinet system and have a President with no substantial reserve powers (powers that need no advice from cabinet), we can have a situation worse than what the Thais experienced.
In fact the main defect of the 1973 Constitution is that the President had very little reserve powers. In this constitution the PM was commander-in-chief. The President should be CinC
That’s why you will remember than when Marcos experimented with an ‘Interim Batasang Pambansa supposedly modeled after the French system with an inherently strong President (him), they installed Finance Secretary (Minister) Cesar Virata as Prime Minister.
But with FM still ruling under martial law he retained decree-making powers with the IBP, largely a rubbers-tamp body dominated by his minions with token opposition representation.
Deja vu?
I personally am for a return of the parliamentary system of the Batasang Pambansa with significant reserve powers (not decree making powers) for the President. However we will have a problem of the manner of electing the President. Should he/she be elected by the Parliament from among MPs or should he/she be elected by the people. Will he/she be partyless or not? This had the Australians in knots during the last republic referendum.
A truly French model would have a partisan president and a PM accountable to parliament and the president. However, the French president has no decree making powers nor can he dismiss the PM unless the PM has lost confidence of Parliament. The President remains CinC and may push the nuclear button.
The parliamentary system of the Continental not Westminster type is I believe more attuned to Pinoy culture.
Whether it was IBP or HoR, i know idiots keep being voted into authority – not much of a difference, except for the party list.
And now even the party list has been perverted as trapos create their own parties and field it against the parties of the marginalized. And the thing is, there people who do vote for the trapo-created party – and the trapo.
It ain’t deja vu. It’s groundhog day.
LOL.
Certainly, that 1987 Constitution assumed that the President was ‘elected by the direct vote of the people for a term of six years’, but what about some possibly ‘indirect vote-garcification’, if we may call it that?
In fact, on the matter of contested election returns or certificates of canvass, all these were swept into a dustbin dubbed “noted” and there was no Supreme Court playing sole judge of all contests related to election returns.
I just thought of the views of that one Atty. Allan Paguia who teaches law at the Ateneo.
Primer,
What about the PET and Legarda’s case? Didn’t the SC play the role of “sole judge” for those election returns?
And didn’t we find out that there was no massive cheating done in both the Prez and VP elections?
Primer?
I thought as probably timely blog something like this – “What good are now presidents’ for?” and could only imagine how such blog comes to us?
The Constitution says what good is a president for!
“She isn’t an engineer so she can’t do an FVR”
what did FVR do that is engineering related?
Graduate from MIT!
FVR, a West Point graduate, also obtained a Masters Degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Illinois.
why is going to a school ” doing an FVR”
i dont get it.
Is MIT acronym for Mapua Institute of Technology where Bayani Fernando graduated his course in engineering, just asking – no mental baggage?
She does not want to become Ex President. She wants to become a
Lifetime President. With her sons who are in politics succeeding
her. Except North Korea’s Kim Jong Il. We may get a Family Dynasty.
China’s Dynasties had gone out of style a century ago. Maybe, it
will be revived in the Philippines.
We dont care where your Kleptomaniac patron had graduated. We only
care of his honesty.
Indeed, reality check, those posts must have also been garcified but I care less who really won between Noli and Loren – they came from the same mold of pekeng peryodista according to Renato Pacifico.
But you DO care about the GMA-Poe elections, right?
So when the SC actually opened the boxes and counted, it turns out that the original counts for VP were indeed correct.
The certificates and votes were the same ones used for the Presidential contest. And we know all the parties were eyeing those votes while officially looking at the VP ones.
Ms. Arroyo would do well to follow the model of Jimmah Carter and Bill Clinton to engage in something beneficial for Filipino mankind*. Unfortunately her Catholic faith would seem to preclude her from forthrightly working on women’s rights or birth education. But I suppose she could work on global warming or health care. Such an undertaking would enable her to resurrect her image, something both Carter and Clinton needed, too.
Alas, Jimmah has been getting a little lose of tongue with his advancing age, and has thrown a monkey wrench or two into the Arab-Israeli peace negotiations. Bill is his normal brilliant, glib self. His wife was always cool, intellectually and at heart. George W. needs to spend some time with his cows in Texas before he pops up again.
Where am I going with this . . .
Oh, yes, there are avenues other than professorhood that Ms. Arroyo could take.
Joe
*Gender neutral; includes women and children.
She could enter a convent (but first she needs to dump Mike), take vows, care for the poor and dying and give Blessed Mother Teresa a run for her treasures in heaven.
I think it may be best that she sticks to terrorizing under performing undergrads!
She, GMA, can do a Gore — get even richer after she leaves office.
She can do a Clinton. Do not forget that the Clintons were flat-out broke (from legal expenses) when they left the White House.
And leaving public service for the private sector makes sense. Many USA politicians do that — decide to leave public service because better financial opportunities are available by working in the private sector.
“She can do a Clinton. Do not forget that the Clintons were flat-out broke (from legal expenses) when they left the White House.”
You gotta be kidding.
Who will pay to hear her speak? The woman is the lousiest public speaker I’ve ever come to hear.