Statement of the Jose P. Laurel Constitutional Law Society

We, the members of the Jose P. Laurel Constitutional Law Society, as citizens and students of the U.P. College of Law, in the exercise of our freedom of speech, hereby affirm our duty to participate in public deliberation of matters affecting the nation, and collectively express our opinion on the present controversy involving President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Last week, the President, in response to repeated calls for her to explain her side on the Gloriagate tapes, issued a public statement apologizing for what she believes was a lapse in judgment in calling a COMELEC official in order to protect her votes.

We cannot accept such an empty apology.

Any student of law will easily recognize that the deliberate vagueness of the President’s statement – the failure to name the COMELEC official involved (as if anyone doubts that it is any person other than Commissioner Garcillano) and to disclose the specific contents of her conversation – was meant to preserve deniability in any proceeding against her. We, the citizens, required the President to explain and she slapped us with a legal document devised to shield her from inquiry. This is not an act of contrition, but an act of deception calculated to avoid accountability. An apology that operates as a ruse to protect oneself is no apology. It is a mockery of the people’s common sense. This is just another spin in an already dizzying cycle of spins to which the Filipino people have been subjected. The President’s refusal to disclose the whole truth under conditions requiring her to do so is an admission to the misdeeds for which she is now charged before the court of public opinion.

Any citizen can also readily discern that the President’s conclusion that “the election had already been decided and the votes counted” is a blatant lie. All the conversations in the Gloriagate tapes (which can be none other than the very tape recordings referred to by the President in her statement – unless she possesses some other tape recordings) obviously transpired during the most crucial period of the elections: the canvassing of votes in the provinces, which is the most opportune time for massive cheating through dagdag-bawas.

The act for which she apologized is no mere lapse in judgment. A call by a candidate to a constitutional officer in charge of counting votes at a critical period in the elections cannot be dismissed as an oversight. Not only is it unfair; it is a culpable violation of the Constitution, a grave betrayal of public trust, and a clear act of corruption. Is it any wonder that Arroyo called Garcillano? Lest we forget, she appointed him notwithstanding widespread protests that he has a reputation for vote manipulation and is indeed facing charges for previously engaging in dagdag-bawas. Our outrage is not diminished simply because the President’s sin was publicized a year after its commission instead of immediately thereafter.

As an accountable public officer, the President is uniquely charged by our fundamental law to swear “to preserve and defend [the] Constitution” and “ensure that the laws be faithfully executed.” Beyond a mere lapse in judgment, her admittedly selfish act of “protect[ing] [her] votes” by making a personal call to Garcillano reveals not a conscientiousness to protect and defend the Constitution but rather a readiness to destroy its unequivocal mandate, undermining its guarantees.

As Chief Executive, Arroyo should have been protecting everyone’s votes, not just her own. And while an occasional bout of selfishness does not make one unfit to be President, it does when such selfishness results in a palpable violation of the basic law. By her own statement, she has publicly admitted to having violated the Constitution she had sworn to uphold, further devastating the already-tarnished image of an institution she was duty-bound to protect. This indicates the privation of a capacity to appreciate fundamental values embodied in our Constitution – respect for fair play, due regard for the independence of public institutions, and a commitment to the rule of law. Indeed, the President’s dismissive attitude is evidence of her inability to even comprehend the gravity of the violation she committed.

We believe that Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo does not possess the moral authority to govern indispensable to the performance of her duties under the Constitution.

We therefore demand that the President perform a true act of penance. We call on her to provide legal substance to her apology by resigning as President of the Republic. What she violated was the Constitution; the Constitution itself provides a voluntary, legal, and peaceful option to repair the damage she has done. It is not too late for her to redeem herself with a genuine act of leadership.

We also call on our elected leaders in Congress to join us in standing behind our Constitution. We therefore ask the House of Representatives to impeach the President and the Senate to forthwith convict her of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and corruption.

The call we make today is about symbols we are trying to promote as a nation. In 1986, we took to the streets to replace a symbol of tyranny with a symbol of freedom and democracy. In 2001, we stood up against a symbol of corruption and incompetence to affirm the symbol of accountability. Today, we reject a culture of impunity to stand for honesty, integrity, and commitment to upholding the Constitution. These symbols are necessary not only to the creation of a law-abiding, decent, and respect-worthy community, but to the continuing efforts of our people to build a better nation.

This statement has been adopted by an overwhelming majority of the members of the Jose P. Laurel Constitutional Law Society.

Florin T. Hilbay
Faculty Adviser