“Is the daughter of a jailed president destiny’s child? Will 2028 be her date with destiny?”
In the Netflix series titled The Last Kingdom, leading man Uhtred kept saying “Destiny is all” each time a major event in his life transpired. There is some similarity in what our theology teachers taught us about “predestination.”
In Philippine politics, the death of an exiled opposition leader in a heavily guarded airport tarmac presaged the fall of the dictatorship.
The presidency of Aquino’s widow was likewise destiny.
Upon the prodding of American puppeteers, Marcos I called for snap elections, thinking Doy Laurel, who was proclaimed presidential candidate by the main opposition coalition UNIDO would certainly run, while the LP, PDP and motley civil society groups would insist on fielding Cory Aquino, thus paving the way for his re-election.
But Doy ditched ambition and rallied his UNIDO behind Cory Aquino, such that despite Comelec manipulation and Batasan proclamation, EDSA Uno resulted in the ouster of a 20-year dictatorship.
(Editor’s Note: Ferdinand Marcos of the Nacionalista Party beat Liberal Party re-electionist Diosdado Macapagal in the 1965 presidential elections, then defeated Liberal Party challenger Sergio Osmena, Jr. in the 1969 presidential elections.
(Marcos declared Martial law on Sept 21, 1972, one year from the end of his Constitutionally allowed second four-year term. He lifted this on Jan. 17, 1981.
(In the June 16, 1981 election, Marcos of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan defeated Alejo Santos of the Nacionalista Party for a six-year term, abbreviated by the snap election on Feb 7, 1986.)
Fast forward to 2025, when the second attempt to archive the presidential ambition of Inday Sara Duterte was thrashed by the Senate which decided, after semantic intervention of the Senate President and his tag-team in Alan Cayetano, to “archive” rather than “dismiss” the HoR’s impeachment complaint, which was declared void ab initio by the Supreme Court.
The first attempt was done as early as late 2023 in the PIRMA initiative, a clumsily disguised attempt by a gaggle of Katzenjammers to alter the 1987 Constitution and change the rules of the electoral game and the existing form of government, thus eliminating from contention the lady who would be president.
In 1992, the betting was between traditional politicians Ramon Mitra or Danding Cojuangco for successor to Cory, but interventions happened: the insistent candidacy of Imelda, the unexpected political ascent of Miriam, and Cory’s endorsement of FVR which allowed the latter to squeak into the presidency.
In 1998, all stops were pulled to derail the popular vice-president, Joseph Ejercito, including a last-minute exhortation from politician Cardinal Sin to vote for “anybody but Erap,” yet to no avail.
Erap, however, wasted his destiny by conduct unbecoming, as the educated class condemned. Two years and a half into his presidency, he was impeached by his hand-picked speaker of the HoR, the Senate trial aborted by a second though smaller “people power” at the EDSA altar, deserted by his handpicked AFP chief of staff, and finally deemed “constructively resigned” by the Supreme Court headed by his handpicked Chief Justice.
A strong-willed and politically astute GMA succeeded in getting herself elected in 2004, with a little help from Garci of the Comelec, destiny gifting her a nine-year reign. Yet she was unable to prevent the victory of destiny’s orphan, Benigno III popularly called PNoy, who as president consigned her to hospital arrest.
Neither was PNoy able to make his chosen successor Mar Roxas prevail over a surprise challenger from the first Mindanaoan to become president, Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
Still highly popular till end of term, Duterte failed to endorse a successor, while his mayor-daughter, contrary to expectations, chose to play second-fiddle to the princeling heir of an “archived” political brand in 2022.
But like Humpty-Dumpty, the eggshell of “unity” was broken early by machinations of the power-wielders behind her chosen president.
Still, destiny seems to be playing its hand.
A series of HoR hearings by inquisitorial members tried to destroy her and the former president in the court of public opinion. Her refusal to dignify the inquisitors led to a pre-determined tactic — impeachment.
But trial is senatorial turf, and a wily “bad cop” led his “republics” to tarry while awaiting a Supreme Court writ, which came three days before the president delivered his fourth SONA before a pork-hungry audience looking forward to “happy days” in the 2026 budget they would once again toy with.
After the senators “remanded” the impeachment articles to the HoR, this writer flatly predicted in a Bilyonaryo TV interview that Sara’s “conviction” was “dead in the water.”
Now that the SC’s decision was adhered to by the Senate on a 19-4 vote with one abstention, dead in the water has another name: “archived.”
How then will the SC view the HoR’s motion for reconsideration, sustained by the Senate through adherence?
Still, the HoR can try once again six months from now if they can cobble the numbers.
But numbers are a function of how they can manipulate the budget, to offer more billions of inducements, which Toby Tiangco, in so many words rightly calls, bribes.
Is the daughter of a jailed president destiny’s child? Will 2028 be her date with destiny?
