Grizzled veterans of the political arena have called for composure and civility in the divisive discourse among the government’s top officials that has gripped the nation.

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile advised the protagonists in the political skirmish to observe civility and to temper their anger because of the huge stakes should the dispute escalate.

The veteran public servant who, at one time or another, had advised members of the Duterte and Marcos families, said, “I am not judging anyone or any side. I am just expressing a suggestion based on my own experience. It is up to you if you agree or not. I am just pleading with everyone to be civil.”

For his part, senatorial candidate Luis “Manong Chavit” Singson has advised both camps to set aside their differences and devote their energies to the problems of the nation.

“Both sides are my friends,” he said.

Vice President Sara Duterte let loose with invectives and death threats last week after congressmen investigating her office sought the transfer of her chief of staff, Zuleika Lopez, from House detention to a regular jail after she was cited in contempt.

Duterte said she had instructed someone to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Martin Romualdez if she were killed.

Chief of staff released

The House Committee on Good Government ordered the release of Lopez yesterday, 10 days after she was placed under custody.

The release order was made public on Saturday afternoon. Lopez received the order at 5:34 p.m. on Saturday at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center where she was confined.

“Her release was granted after she pledged to attend all future hearings related to the ongoing investigation into the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds allocated to the OVP and the Department of Education under Vice President Sara Duterte,” the House said in a statement.

The House Quad Committee had cite Lopez in contempt and ordered her detention over evasive answers and “undue interference” in the House proceedings.

Lopez had asked the Commission on Audit in a letter not to release its report on the OVP’s confidential funds to the lawmakers.

Emotionalism dominates

“We are losing our heads because of emotionalism. Let us be civil with one another. We agree to disagree. We argue but let our debate be intellectually correct and honest,” Enrile said.

“Let us be calm and civil with one another. I am not looking for a quarrel with anyone. I have had enough of that with my more than a century on this planet. I am just inviting a civil discussion on the current issue,” he added.

He then offered some advice to a person he did not identify: “No amount of suspicions, criticisms, accusations, charges, and investigations will really injure you if you are clean and innocent. Just keep your cool and present your defense.”

“No need to lose your head or be noisy or make a spectacle of yourself. You only betray your weakness. You lose the game that way. Remember, we are a government of laws, not of men. Temper your anger. Be brave, but calm,” he added.

Similar past battles

Enrile said he had been through similar battles in the political arena in the past.

“I have been fighting for justice all my life because I was a victim of injustice when I was young and a poor rat,” he said.

“I am against corruption. I was exposed to many corrupt activities when I was in government. I was also charged by the Noynoy Aquino administration with corruption. I defended myself in court. I did not discuss it publicly. I fought my battles alone. I was jailed by the Cory administration and by the GMA administration. I was persecuted but I did not say anything. I fought my cases alone,” he recounted.

“I followed the process. I was acquitted in all. That is why I said, ‘If you are clean and innocent’ no amount of suspicions would injure you. I am not guessing. I am talking from personal experience,” he said.

Nonetheless, Enrile batted for accountability through the courts. “Dapat isakdal ang mga may kasalanan. Kaya mayroon tayong mga hukom. Ipresenta ang ebidensiya. At parusahan ang mga may sala. Huwag patayan agad (File a case in court, present the evidence and penalize the guilty. Avoid death threats).”

“I was also persecuted by the Cory government and the Noynoy regime. Cory charged me with a non-existent crime, without bail. I was arrested in the Senate by the National Bureau of Investigation chief, Alfredo Lim, and detained at the PNP’s Camp Karingal in Quezon City,” he said.

Enrile said he had to go to the Supreme Court to regain his liberty.

“(Aquino) had me followed by a police armored car in my political campaigns. In 1992, President Noynoy Aquino also caused Ombudsman Conchita Morales and Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to file plunder and other cases against me. I was again detained without bail until the Supreme Court ordered my release,” he said.

“I went through the wringer, so to speak. Father Danny Dagsaan, my principal witness that I was not a party to the crime filed by the Cory regime, was spirited out of the country allegedly with the help of Jaime Cardinal Sin so that I would be convicted and kept in jail. If that is not persecution, what is?” he said.

Meanwhile, Singson said he was not keen on meddling in the rift between the Marcoses and Dutertes, noting that both sides were his close friends.

In an interview on the sidelines of the Sumbingtik grand parade in Cainta, Rizal, Singson said he supported Marcos and Duterte in the 2022 national elections.

He likewise refused to comment on the supposed plan to impeach Duterte.

“We need to invite investors to our country, the political conflict would not be conducive,” he said.