Veterans of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, or AFP, who played roles in the 1986 EDSA Revolt, have called on the nation’s leaders to end the culture of vindictiveness, seeking a united front amid increasing internal and external threats.
Retired Marine Colonel Ariel Querubin said many reforms happened after that pivotal period, but the leaders of the nation should stop bickering since Filipinos have a common enemy in terrorist groups and the bullying that has been happening in the West Philippine Sea, or WPS.
He said it was time to set aside differences and stand together in the wake of recent terrorist attacks in Mindanao and the growing maritime tension in the WPS.
Querubin stressed the urgency of working together against the true enemies of the state.
Six Filipino soldiers were brutally murdered last Sunday in Lanao del Norte during a pursuit operation to neutralize the perpetrators of the Mindanao State University bombing on 3 December 2023.
The threat remains in the West Philippine Sea as the China Coast Guard continues to disrupt regular rotation and resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre.
Querubin also lamented Filipinos’ continued suffering from hunger and poverty.
He underscored the need for a strong, clean government to improve the people’s welfare and drive the nation forward.
“Thirty-eight years ago — has anything changed? I will return the question to you. I can still see up to this day that the enemies of the state persist,” Querubin said during the “The Agenda” media forum at Club Filipino in Greenhills, San Juan City.
Warrior to peacemaker
“The culture of vindictiveness is still there. I was known as a warrior. Now, I’m known as a man of peace. I will generalize; no matter who becomes President, there is vindictiveness,” Querubin said.
“Nothing will happen with the peace process if the government does not change. We in the AFP were demoralized because of overstaying generals, but when the EDSA revolt happened, reforms were initiated, and the ranks became professionalized, and now the trust rating of the AFP is high,” he said.
He said the insurgency persists because of corrupt government officials, social injustice, poverty and police brutality.
“As long as there are issues like these, we have activists. There are still many armed groups. Corruption, crimes, and illegal drugs are our enemies,” he added.
But, “as long as we have life, there is hope,” he said, referring to the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., whom he supported during the last elections.
Former police colonel Mariano Santiago, who was removed as chief of the Land Transportation Office during the term of the late former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and became a prominent figure in the anti-Marcos forces, said that taking part in the EDSA revolt was among the most difficult decisions he made in his life.
Santiago was reinstalled as LTO chief during the administration of the late former President Corazon “Cory” Aquino, who succeeded Marcos.
No reform
“In my opinion, there was no reform. We are mired in poverty even more due to political dynasties,” Santiago said.
He acknowledged that 38 years after the uprising, the problem of “rotating brownouts,” for instance, persists.
He lamented then that everything related to Marcos Sr., even the beneficial projects, was removed.
He cited, for instance, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, which should have solved the electricity supply problem.
The lack of a comprehensive energy plan led to the daily eight-hour brownout blight during Aquino’s term.
“The culture of greed for money is now the biggest problem (of the country). There is a big deterioration in Filipino morals,” Santiago said.