Nicanor Perlas

Poverty eradication and quality of life necessitate peace and order, law and justice, opportunity and responsibility. The Christian-Muslim conflict in Mindanao, for example, is driving to poverty majority of people in affected provinces. To address peace and order, you have to address the existing long term conflict not only between Christians and Muslims but also between the communist rebellion and the state, as well as other kinds of conflict that thrive in conditions of injustice, underdevelopment and lack of opportunity. One of my priority programs would be to address the roots of injustice in the Christian- Muslim conflict in Mindanao. Through my prior work with the joint GOP-United Nations Development Program in Mindanao, I learned that at base the conflict between Christians and Muslims is not really a religious conflict. Rather it is a conflict connected to justice and economic considerations, ancestral domain and governance issues. The answer is not more troops. The answer will be found through more dialog and through meaningful partnerships and genuine development. As for the communist rebellion, its ideological foundations have been seriously undermined by the philosophical and scientific developments of the 20th century. However it continues to be a real force in the Philippines because structural conditions, including massive poverty and injustice, breed support for communism. If these are meaningfully addressed, then communism will disappear. As long as poverty and injustice remain, people who are feeling the brunt of this oppression will continue to fight through an armed revolution. If you address, in an authentic way, the structural conditions that created the emergence of communism, there can be real dialogue with the communist movement in the Philippines towards peace. Peace and Order requires a strong partnership with and trust in the Military as a professional organization. One of the key tasks will be to depoliticize the military. The Arroyo government has co-opted a significant number of its generals and some junior officers to undertake actions unbecoming of an officer. This has led to widespread demoralization inside the military. Honest, clean and efficient Governance in support of genuine development will restore a clear sense of mission and purpose, integrity and fairness – core values that many idealistic men and women in the military hold. One of the tasks in the first hundred days is to examine the cases of military officers jailed by Arroyo and release those who are not guilty of the charges pressed on them. And on the other hand, criminal charges will be filed against those found guilty of involvement in extra-judicial killings. This will be an important signal to the military that only the highest ideals will remain as the motivating force for the military in the Philippines: honor, service, protection of country, and defense of human rights.
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Gilbert Teodoro

Peace and order is high in my priorities. I have started embarking on my own programs and there is the PDR that we need to continue. In three phases - military capability is relatively high; support of military to national development, which is happening; and enhancing our international military engagements and ties for mutual benefit to get the best for the Philippines would be high on our foreign policy and national agenda. I know there are other priorities but I know that it is a sector which has been neglected in the public arena for quiet some time.

To know more about my take on different issues visit http://gibo.ph/issue.aspx