Out of the barrel of the gun

Mao Tse-tung once declared that every Communist must grasp the truth: political power grows out of the barrel of gun. Mao obviously knew whereof he spoke. As soon as he took over the reins of China , he wielded absolute power in presiding over the Cultural Revolution. Obviously, not only the Communists are listening. This became apparent when the usually unflappable Col. Tristan Kison, the Army public information officer, commented matter-of-factly that “the nation will collapse” if the military gave in to pressure to withdraw support from the President.

That there is truth to his statement, no one will deny. Had the coup plotters succeeded in recruiting the top officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines , who knows what would have happened since the wee hours of Feb. 24. Kison's statement, which has stirred a storm, however reflects the increasingly self-important posturing that the military has taken in recent months. No less than Sen. Rodolfo Biazon, himself a former AFP Chief of Staff, reacted that the belief that it is the military that keeps Pres. Arroyo is “the height of arrogance”.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, another former soldier, called Kison's statement “high-handed” and noted that the military has increasingly taken a “messianic role”. There is no doubt about the power that a gun brings to the one holding it. Those who doubt it can try arguing with one holding a gun – especially if he is intoxicated and there are few witnesses around. And while Biazon, Lacson and other senators may rave and rant, there are an alarming number of military men who think the way Kison thinks. Sadly, we cannot blame them for thinking that way.

The persistent questions on the legitimacy of the presidency have prompted a degree of unrest that may escalate not really because the opposition has made some headway but because a hungry people are an angry people. The failure of the present administration to deal not only with the accusations that Pres. Arroyo stole the elections but also the worsening economic crisis will ultimately fire up the people.

The solution here is not military adventurism or increasingly reliance on guns. The solution is to strengthen democratic processes. For a start, Pres. Arroyo should deal squarely with the election issues by confronting the allegations. What should keep her in office is the power that grows out of the people's trust. A gun may come in handy for a while, but its power will run out of style. Ferdinand Marcos tried that once and found out too late that it won't last.