Eye Opener
Will Capitol assault affect GMA's candidates?
The incident at the Iloilo Provincial Capitol on January 17, 2007 wherein the police force stormed the capitol is now a nationwide issue. Even partymates of Pres. Arroyo have criticized the unfortunate incident which could have been prevented had the CIDG and the PNP used extra maximum tolerance and an iota of minutes in enforcing their decision to arrest Gov. Niel Tupas, who was holed up in his office at the new Iloilo Provincial Capitol. DILG and the PNP were in a hurry to arrest Gov. Tupas as they were reportedly ordered by the higher ups. DILG and PNP probably could not be blamed for the quick action they made shortly before 5:00 p.m. of January 17, 2007. But the way the order was carried seemed contrary to the way police in other democratic countries are doing when they want to arrest VIPs who are facing criminal charges.
PNP Regional Director Gen. Wilfredo Dulay justified the police action but with regrets as he reportedly said in a radio interview that it was not the intention of the police to harm the civilians and provincial employees. The event happened so fast that when the police was about to enter the governor's office, a TRO from the Court of Appeals Cebu was received and Board Member Jun Jun Tupas excitedly ran to the Capitol lobby exhibiting the court's TRO to the police and the crowd. Thus, the commotion at the Capitol stood still and the PNP personnel silently withdrew from the Capitol grounds and the siege was over.
The implication of the siege at the Capitol may run deep into the minds of the Filipino people that the May 2007 elections may not only be troublesome but bloody. Will the incident at the Iloilo Capitol affect the chances of the administration candidates both national and local? What about the opposition candidates both national and local? Will it be a landslide victory? Of course the incident at the Capitol will not be the major issue in the forthcoming election. The opposition candidates have other dramatic issues that they will surprise the Filipino voters come May 2007 elections.
The administration on the other hand has a well-oiled political machinery up to the barangay level plus power, money and influence. Will the power of GMA and her ASEAN allies bring back Congress and local executives to domination of the administration party?