commander-in-chief – marichulambino.com

The President has been actively exercising his commander-in-chief powers by directly supervising the operations to end the Zamboanga standoff.

Last week, we had a post here on the commander-in-chief powers of the President: In particular: 1)the so-called “calling-out” power or the power to call out the armed forces to quell any rebellion, invasion, lawless violence.

This means that the President alone has the power to order, command, deploy, and direct the armed forces in order to suppress lawless violence, rebellion, invasion. But of course he can delegate the operational details to the defense secretary or the chief of staff.

But based on this president’s life history, maybe he has experience in security matters and would probably like to see through the Zamboanga crisis first-hand with minimal damage to civilian life and property.

(The other commander-in-chief powers have been discussed here last week: the power to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus subject to constitutional limits and the power to declare martial law subject to the same limits. )

What about the so-called “emergency powers”? What are those?

Only Congress can grant the President extraordinary powers under a state of emergency which Congress declares: In particular:

1.In times of war or a national emergency, Congress by resolution may grant the President emergency powers, such as the take-over of public utilities.

If the President on his own declares a state of emergency, that presidential declaration does not confer any extraordinary powers on him.

2.The second so-called emergency power (actually, it’s the first in the emergency powers clause Constitution) is dire. You don’t want it. They are war powers. As follows: Only Congress can declare a state of war by a vote of two-thirds of both Houses in joint session voting separately (that is: 2/3 vote of the lower House and 2/3 vote of the Senate). Only after such declaration of a state of war can the President exercise “war powers”.

Our generation has never seen a congressional declaration of war and God forbid that we do. Examples of war powers are: punishing, based on a compulsory conscription law, those who refuse to heed the draft to the armed forces; directing the use of communication facilities and other utilities for national defense; directing and controlling the transport of basic commodities like rice and food stuff; controlling news media content for defense purposes; etc.

We’re good with basic commander-in-chief calling-out powers. The mopping up operations is on-going.

The plight of more than a hundred thousand displaced civilians need to be addressed urgently, though.

“The Apotheosis of War”, 1871, by Vasily Vereshchagin, oil on canvas, published by the Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia

The President in a speech today said she would crush the insurgency in three years but said she would observe democratic processes and the rule of law.

It’s not really new since she said the same thing during her 2004 State of the Nation Address, after we thought she’d won the elections — a SONA she delivered after she broke every law since Day One of her “oath”.

Exhibits “A” to “A-33” – three-hour tape in mp3 format of the phone conversations between a woman who sounded like Gloria and a man who sounded like Garci, where the woman asked Garci to pad her votes by one million more.

Purpose of exhibits: To show that Gloria Macapagal Arroyo violated the Article XI Sec. 1 Accountability of Public Officers; RA 3019 Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and the Omnibus Election Code.

Gloria said in her speech today: “The AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] must evolve a strategy of rapid conclusion to address rebellion, with the National Security Council providing policy direction on communist insurgency, Muslim secessionism, and sheer terrorism.”

Exhibits “B” to “B-403” – the skulls and bones of NGO workers and human rights organizers, that had been politically assassinated by her military under her “Oplan Bantay-Laya” which she had approved for implementation.

Purpose of exhibits: To show that she and her personnel violated Art. 248 of the Revised Penal Code (murder), 403 counts.

She added in her speech: “We are currently engaged in three fronts – the communist insurgency, rebellion in the South, and sheer terrorism with no pretenses….I have specified a timeline — three years — to end armed rebellion in the Philippines.”

Exhibits C to “C-93” – clothes and personal effects of 93 victims of enforced disappearances during her term.

Purpose: To show that she and personnel violated Art. 267 of the RPC (kidnapping and serious illegal detention) 93 counts.

This evening, the Supreme Court en banc in a resolution penned by Chief Justice Reynato Puno on petition of farmers Raymond and Reynaldo Manalo, brothers, who were allegedly detained for 18 months and tortured by militiamen with the military, issued a TRO against the Defense Secretary, the Armed Forces Chief, and all agents acting on their behalf, to desist from arresting and detaining the brothers; the brothers also testified that they saw and talked to the U.P. students Karen Empeño and Sherlyn Cadapan when they were detained in Zambales.

She stressed today: “Either we get rid of them now or later, either way, they must be stopped…. We will not stop until the bandits find no more nook to hide in the land they have blighted and no sanctuary to seek from the people they have terrorized and used as shields.”

Exhibits “D” to “D-90” – the 90 cases of graft and corruption of Cabinet rank and other high-ranking public officials sitting on her desk submitted to her by her own PAGC, recommending dismissal of these officials and the filing of criminal cases against them.

Purpose: To show she violated RA 3019 Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices by knowingly coddling corrupt Cabinet-rank and high-ranking public officials.

Yesterday, she tried to dismiss new evidence arising from the testimony of her former spy, Agent Doble, that the phone companies were used to bug Commissioner Garcillano and other well-known individuals, by saying:

“I have a country to run…”

It isn’t hers to run. It was never hers.
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Tag: commander-in-chief

Commander-in-chief powers & emergency powers: Zamboanga standoff

The President has been actively exercising his commander-in-chief powers by directly supervising the operations to end the Zamboanga standoff.

Last week, we had a post here on the commander-in-chief powers of the President: In particular: 1)the so-called “calling-out” power or the power to call out the armed forces to quell any rebellion, invasion, lawless violence.

This means that the President alone has the power to order, command, deploy, and direct the armed forces in order to suppress lawless violence, rebellion, invasion. But of course he can delegate the operational details to the defense secretary or the chief of staff.

But based on this president’s life history, maybe he has experience in security matters and would probably like to see through the Zamboanga crisis first-hand with minimal damage to civilian life and property.

(The other commander-in-chief powers have been discussed here last week: the power to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus subject to constitutional limits and the power to declare martial law subject to the same limits. )

What about the so-called “emergency powers”? What are those?

Only Congress can grant the President extraordinary powers under a state of emergency which Congress declares: In particular:

1.In times of war or a national emergency, Congress by resolution may grant the President emergency powers, such as the take-over of public utilities.

If the President on his own declares a state of emergency, that presidential declaration does not confer any extraordinary powers on him.

We’re good with basic commander-in-chief calling-out powers. The mopping up operations is on-going.

The plight of more than a hundred thousand displaced civilians need to be addressed urgently, though.

“Sheer terrorism”

The President has been actively exercising his commander-in-chief powers by directly supervising the operations to end the Zamboanga standoff.

Last week, we had a post here on the commander-in-chief powers of the President: In particular: 1)the so-called “calling-out” power or the power to call out the armed forces to quell any rebellion, invasion, lawless violence.

This means that the President alone has the power to order, command, deploy, and direct the armed forces in order to suppress lawless violence, rebellion, invasion. But of course he can delegate the operational details to the defense secretary or the chief of staff.

But based on this president’s life history, maybe he has experience in security matters and would probably like to see through the Zamboanga crisis first-hand with minimal damage to civilian life and property.

(The other commander-in-chief powers have been discussed here last week: the power to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus subject to constitutional limits and the power to declare martial law subject to the same limits. )

What about the so-called “emergency powers”? What are those?

Only Congress can grant the President extraordinary powers under a state of emergency which Congress declares: In particular:

1.In times of war or a national emergency, Congress by resolution may grant the President emergency powers, such as the take-over of public utilities.

If the President on his own declares a state of emergency, that presidential declaration does not confer any extraordinary powers on him.

We’re good with basic commander-in-chief calling-out powers. The mopping up operations is on-going.

The plight of more than a hundred thousand displaced civilians need to be addressed urgently, though.

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