November 29, 2005 · Posted in: Arroyo Impeachment, In the News

Garci’s fashion (and other) statements

IN the past two days, former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano has appeared on television and newspapers wearing different headgear — first a checkered scarf normally worn by Moros and Mindanao indigenous peoples, and later, a batik cap. The subliminal message of these fashion statements is this: after months of hiding among "trusted Muslim friends" in Mindanao, Garci has gone native. He has stayed in the hinterlands for so long that he has even taken to lounging in the local attire.

The headgear is only one of many signs that indicate a savvy PR hand is behind the sudden reappearance in the public scene of the elections official who dropped out of sight six months ago, eluding a congressional arrest warrant and an international manhunt launched by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The reality is that even as newspapers and TV news programs have been trumpeting their "scoops" and "exclusives" based on interviews with Garcillano, they were actually being led by the nose. All these were carefully orchestrated media appearances designed to give the former elections commissioner maximum public exposure — complete with the mystique of a headgeared fugitive (one commentator in this blog thought he looked like Yasser Arafat sans facial hair) accessible only to journalists who had to be blindfolded while being taken on a long, rough ride to a remote and scenic locale.

For sure, Garcillano could not have orchestrated all these by himself. The logistics of contacting journalists, setting up interviews in a faraway place and arranging guides, transport and other things for them are too much to expect of a lone fugitive evading arrest, especially if he is holed up in the hinterlands of Mindanao. All these require some sort of staff backup and a certain media savvy which the provincial Garci had previously not demonstrated.

Since Saturday, interviews were given in quick succession to ABS-CBN, the Inquirer and later, GMA-7. Separate interviews are more difficult to arrange; a one-off press appearance would have been more convenient. But the multiple interviews were obviously designed for maximum exposure in the country’s biggest print and broadcast media outlets. By giving each of these news organizations "exclusives," Garcillano ensured that his interviews were hyped as "scoops," thereby getting more column inches of newspapers space and more minutes on the TV newscast than would otherwise have been the case.

Even the prepared statement read by the elections official on Philippine TV appears to have been written by someone else — the polished style is vastly different from the letter he wrote to President Arroyo in November 2003, when he was practically begging to be appointed Comelec commissioner.

But the media statements that Garcillano has made since the weekend also offer a glimpse of the script or storyline, of an alternative narrative that the controversial Comelec official is offering to the public. It is a narrative that he and his allies have obviously pondered. But it is not a seamless tale. It has holes in various places and it could be punctured even more by tough questioning from Congress.

The problematic nature of Garci’s story gives credence to what some journalists like Ricky Carandang believe, that Garcillano’s public appearance was arranged "in defiance of his handlers’ wishes."

According to the ABS-CBN journalist, the official’s "handlers did not want him to come out yet but apparently the Garcillanos have grown very weary of life on the run and have decided to force the issue of facing the music and getting it over with."

So far the elements of Garci’s Story as told by Garci are:

1. He did not leave the country and was in hiding in Mindanao since June. This is the most problematic and possibly the easiest of all Garcillano’s statements to disprove, given that there is a paper trail — including letters from the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our very own Department of Foreign Affairs — saying that the former Comelec official landed in Singapore on July 14. It could well be, of course, as Justice Secretary half-jokingly (one never knows with the secretary) suggested in today’s Philippine Star, someone masquerading as Virgilio Garcillano landed in Singapore on that day. More plausibly, as Gonzales said at the Senate today, Garcillano left the country possibly in the guise of a member of the flight crew of the plane that flew to Singapore.

The question is why, despite contrary evidence, would Garci stick to his story? One possibility is that admitting to being outside the country could open up a whole new can of worms. Where was he all along? Who arranged for his departure? Who financed his trips? Who gave him protection? How did he manage to slip out? It could be that the answers to these questions are so incriminating that it is better for Garci to claim that he has been in the country since disappearing in June.

2. He was illegally wiretapped and his privacy was violated. This statement gives Garci the legal clout to demand that the reports of congressional investigations delete any reference to the so-called "Hello, Garci" recordings in their committee reports. He can also argue that since the wiretaps were illegal and inadmissible in court, these cannot be used in any proceeding, including potential lawsuits. But such admission is a double-edged sword as it also concedes that some parts of the recording were in fact authentic. Garcillano says that the "Hello, Garci’ recording, various versions of which can be downloaded from this site, is "spurious" and that these were "most likely spliced, edited and tailored to fit a sinister purpose."

This statement can be proved or disproved. A competent technical analysis of the recording could show whether in fact it had been altered. The problem is that it would then become a battle of technical experts. As early as June, both Sen. Paniflo Lacson and former senator Francisco Tatad presented independent verification of the authenticiy of the recording made by an Australian and U.S. firm, respectively. (See PCIJ’s account here.) In Augus t, Environment Secretary Michael Defensor presented his own panel of experts to cast doubt on the authenticity of the tapes. Defensor showed the findings of U.S. sound expert Barry Dickey who said there were “anomalies” in the recording, but also that these anomalies could be the result of “several transfers, which involved the audio being recorded/encoded/decoded by different devices.”

A plausible explanation for these anomalies is that the three-hour "Hello, Garci" CDs released to the media by former National Bureau of Investigation official Samuel Ong in June was made from what intelligence officers call the "master tape," which was in turn put together from a series of recordings. As explained in this blog in August, the normal procedure followed by MIG-21, the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) unit that supposedly tapped Garcillano, is to record wiretapped phone conversations on audio casettes. The time, date and other information on each conversation are noted down by the intelligence operative on duty.

Once the conversations fill one tape, the agent then removes it from the recording device and immediately starts preparing what would later become the "master tape," the master having been purged of irrelevant conversations but also containing the annotations made by the intelligence operative giving the time, date, and if possible, the persons involved in the conversation. Ong says he has possession of the master tapes; all other versions released to the public were CD versions of all or portions of the masters.

Last week, in his testimony before the Citizen’s Congress for Truth and Accountability, sound expert Jim Sarthou said that the recording — and the versions of it released by Ong, Lacson and lawyer Allan Paguia — could not have been manufactured.

In short, the authenticity of the recordings remains an unsettled issue up to now, and Garcillano’s appearance will not suffice to prove or disprove whether these are genuine. It will only serve to establish that Garci was wiretapped and that various portions of the recording are possibly authentic, while casting doubt on the integrity of the entire thing. Which means, on the question of authenticity, we are back where we started in June, when the tapes were first made public.

3. He only discussed "procedural matters" with President Arroyo and there was nothing illegal or improper about their conversations. This statement somewhat contradicts the president’s June 27 "I am sorry" speech when she apologized to the nation for having an "improper" conversation with an election official. Although Arroyo did not name the official or say what they talked about, Garcillano’s statement appears to confirm that he was the official alluded to in that speech (unless the president had spoken to someone else at the Comelec).

It’s hard to say what Garcillano means by "procedural matters." In his interview aired by ABS-CBN on Monday, Garcillano admitted to a May 24, 2004 conversation with Mrs. Arroyo. "The President was asking why her advantage over [Fernando Poe Jr.] had been reduced to 892, 000."

He added: "We are talking of the votes already counted so how can you rig the election? Besides, the results of the elections in almost all the provinces throughout the Philippines had already been submitted to Congress beyond the reach of anybody."

As pointed out in an earlier post, it is not true that the election results were all in when that phone call was made. There were special elections in, among other places, Lanao del Sur, and the results of these were still being awaited. Moreover, what should be stressed is that what is apparent from the conversations, if they are genuine, was Mrs. Arroyo’s concern, not so much about whether she won but whether she would get the one-million vote margin. (Tune in to the PCIJ podcast on the "Hello,Garci" conversations for more details.) In fact, the late-arriving Lanao del Sur votes were crucial not to her overall victory but to her getting the one million votes.

In an interview with ANC earlier today, presidential adviser on political affairs Gabriel Claudio said that even if, in the worst-case scenario, Garcillano authenticated the tape, it would still not change the fact that the conversations took place after the votes had been canvassed and Mrs. Arroyo already won. This echoes Garci’s line, but like the Comelec official’s statement, it is not that accurate (a few election results were still coming in early June) and also evades the issue that it was the one-million vote margin that the president was calling about.

4. He talked to other candidates, including those from the opposition, and these conversations are normal for Comelec officials who are always being called by candidates. Garcillano is probably right. He probably did talk to the opposition as well. The problem is that these were not caught on tape; or if they were, they were probably deleted from the recording by the people who released it. One other possible explanation is given by Liwayway Vinzons-Chato, a senatorial candidate in 2004 who has lawyered for various witnesses who testified to election anomalies in Congress. She says that Garcillano, as his nephew Michaelangelo Zuce testified in August, was given a special cellphone by Lilia Pineda, the Lubao, Pampanga mayor who is a close friend of the president and wife of the country’s most notorious jueteng lord. Chato is also lawyer for Zuce, who Garci says is a liar and ‘wheeler-dealer" who rigged the elections in Mindanao for his own clients.

According to page seven of Zuce’s affidavit, on Feb. 13, 2004, Garcillano asked his nephew to fetch the cellphone that Mrs. Pineda was assigning to the elections commissioner. "When I delivered the cellphone to Comm. Garcillano," Zuce’s affidavit read, "he told me the phone would be where PGMA [the president’s initials], Mr. and Mrs. Pineda,and other prominent persons would be calling him; the Commissioner referred to the cellphone as their Hotline."

If this was the case, then it was apparently this phone that had been tapped by ISAFP. The other conversations the commmissioner said he had with the opposition were possibly made on another phone or on other dates, before or after he was tapped (the recorded conversations supposedly took place from May 17 to June 18). Whatever the case, Garcillano’s admission of conversations with candidates raises ethical issues. While he says it is normal practice for Comelec officials to talk to candidates, such practice indicates that elections personnel are, at the very least, treading on an ethical minefield. Should officials be conferring with the very candidates they are supposed to be policing? Should they be having conversations with politicians on procedural or other matters?

But in the end, this is a minor issue. The major one is: did cheating take place in 2004? Garcillano insists the vote was not rigged. Will his statements hold?

52 Responses to Garci’s fashion (and other) statements

oscar

November 29th, 2005 at 10:25 pm

Go to hell mr virgilio garcillano,and all your handler`s,Rep Puno,Pichay,Nograles,Claudio Mike Arroyo,JDV etc.and also bring to hell your evil mama,ms Arroyo..sooner or later you will damn go to hell..only a matter of time..wish when you go and your evil handler`s and minion`s that will go with you…you bring with you all the bad spirit and nightmare`s of the filipino`s and this country have..when you all gone..I pray to God that in this island of 7,100 there will be a new dawn,,,peace,progress and good life for all.God be with us filipinos men and women who did everything good,so evil not triumph.

BY JOVE! » SEA GAMES 2005 (Day 3)

November 30th, 2005 at 2:26 am

[…] Much that I want to dissect Garci’s statements and probe into the many holes…. the trusty people from PCIJ already started their dissection: “…But the media statements that Garcillano has made since the weekend also offer a glimpse of the script or storyline, of an alternative narrative that the controversial Comelec official is offering to the public. It is a narrative that he and his allies have obviously pondered. But it is not a seamless tale. It has holes in various places and it could be punctured even more by tough questioning from Congress. […]

concerned citizen

November 30th, 2005 at 6:44 am

at ano pa nga ba eh obvious naman na scripted ang mga narrations ni garci. kasiraan sa ating mga muslim brothers yung “attire” nya. ginagamit nya mga muslim huh! nakakagigil talaga itong si garci.puro kasinungalingan at ang misyon ay iligtas si aroyo sa mga issues na magpapabagsak sa kanya. (yes oscar only a matter of time}.eh sino nga ba? syempre yung kanyang “bitter half” na si big mike and cohorts walang iba. salot talaga itong mga ito. pabalikin na yan sa usa. nakakasuka na! abangan na lang natin sa kongreso kung ubra kasinungalingan nya. sana matuloy na hearing. pwede nang hulihin yan . may warrant of arrest kung gugustuhin madali lang ito. ITANONG NYO KAY PICHAY. hahaha.

ellen

November 30th, 2005 at 8:53 am

DFA did not exactly conduct an international manhunt. Press release lang yun.In fact, there was one time when Foreign Secretary Romulo sat on the memo of Usec Ebdalin to foreign posts to report on information on garci.

Cromwell6

November 30th, 2005 at 11:25 am

November 29, 2005 @ 8:37 pm • Posted by Sheila Coronel

“IN THE past two days, former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano has appeared on television and newspapers wearing different headgear — first a checked scarf normally worn by Moros and Mindanao indigenous peoples, and later, a batik cap. The subliminal message of these fashion statements is this: after months of hiding among “trusted Muslim friends” in Mindanao, Garci has gone native.”

Sheila, Garci wore ‘kafiyeh’ an Arab worn headgear to fend sandstorms whenever traversing the desert in caravan of horses and camels among fellow traders, never indigenous to moros but has symbolized of late struggles of people everywhere, like the Che Guevarra of the 60’s with the red star black beret rebel movements make as fashion statements.

There may be things serious might it be Garcillano taking on to finding from amongst Muslim friends the kind of security he says he needed to be able to be safe away from possible assassins from both the Arroyo camps and the opposition.

I cannot liken this vainly man to my hero Ninoy Aquino, but yes Ninoy traveled to places like Singapore and Malaysia using falsified travel documents and whether these governments knew who Ninoy was or where finds no relevance to either government, Marcos asks and they deny. The thing is true, a Philippine passport is difficult to tell which would be the fake from the genuine, but the important thing is that Garci is back and is still alive.

Fear from death is a very real human experience that altogether can’t be taken astride, well to me it is normal to be afraid because people here die by the horde, massacres and summary executions happen and there seem to have occurred from amongst us a kind of disregard, an uncaring attitude but yes, we like writing about them sometimes but has never shown genuine interest pursuing to allow real justice take precedence.

What if Garci dies from unnatural causes like say from an assassin’s bullet, let us then make the right analysis right now, could it be as Garci says, Senator Ping Lacson may be possible to take to it, because he is already purportedly responsible for many other killings. What gain has he to kill Garci, Ping Lacson avers, he would rather that he (Garci) is alive so that he can be by his conscience, tell it all meaning the truth.

So the Arroyo camp comes in handy for the kill, of course to silence him (Garci). But no, it was actually as suspicions entails says government, the opposition is responsible because of the killing as parcel to the overall plan to grab power, therefore the opposition has more to gain from Garci’s death than the Arroyo camp, of course the hoopla of destabilization etc. as being the roundabout spectacle. Meanwhile, Garci really dies from heart attack.

If one can be attentive enough, Garci started off with the electoral outfit and over the many years of being there, developed rapport with co-workers to either be riding the ladder and be deeply beholden to politicians of his mold, and just master the art of at best, manipulating elections to whomsoever can give the right price it doesn’t matter what camp he may foreshadow to serve, it’s all about money.

This malpractice in the conduct of elections in the country have long been there, and I said in many of my blogposts, the senators have as much to know how this cheating happens, neither is it mine to speak ill of them but at least, make our senators do something to correct fraudulent conducts of our elections before its too late to do anything.

How much of people power can we perhaps do to compliment reform, keep unseating presidents and how much of unsettling situations can we be people-powering ourselves into all the time except but agitate people into armed conflicts, worst produce a military junta?

There have as now unfolded a scenario of armed confrontations, not only are the CPP-NPA capable of synchronizing their attacks and together with the Muslim rebels deep south, intensified pressure on the government military like as though they are altogether in tandem, it can be a terribly bad thing for the peace process.

So, no peace of mind and no development, no progress, a digressive society of people in perennial trouble with themselves, like you and me.

Sheila Coronel

November 30th, 2005 at 11:41 am

Point well taken, Ellen. Perhaps that phrase should have read either as: “an international manhunt supposedly undertaken by the DFA” or “a halfhearted international manhunt by the DFA.” You are right, the DFA did not look like it did a serious job of tracking down Garci.

ole

November 30th, 2005 at 12:37 pm

kilala nyo naman si ate glo! magaling magtrabaho sa salita, iba naman ang ginagawa, DEMONYO TALAGA!!!

indio_lawless

November 30th, 2005 at 1:25 pm

You may deceive all the people part of the time, and part of the people all the time, but not all the people all the time. — Abraham Lincoln

baycas

November 30th, 2005 at 2:16 pm

these statements (including the costume) claimed to be made and dreamed up by garcillano really add insult to injury on the very much “wounded and maligned” intelligence of us Filipinos…

yup, the headgears would make garcillano look very much “blended-in” with the commoners or natives in that part of Mindanao. the seemingly long period of time he spent with the natives there would explain that fashion statement.

but, you and i know that only the likes of kashiwara and other PR guys could think of such “trivial” detail – like “gloria and family strolling in Manila’s Roxas Boulevard seemingly unaffected by the gloriagate crisis.”

ms. sheila, it’s good you posted somewhat of a refresher in this blog post…people tend to forget and sometimes be confused by muddled statements brought up by garcillano himself and, of course, claudio et al…

however, to complete the stellar cast (not mentioned above) in garcillano’s political saga (the “hello, garci” telenovela), one must not fail to remember the following who were most comical during the cover-up (or damage control, whatever you may call it) of the “hello, garci” recordings:

IGNACIO BUNYE, who sang “i have two tapes (cd’s), the left and the right…” and…

GARY RUADO, whose voice was either inserted or overlapped with garcillano’s…in fact, one could hear three voices (3G?) in a supposed to be dialogue between gloria and gary in the bunye tapes (BunyeOriginalTape3 downloaded from PCIJ). it’s outrageously funny to note the voice of the third “G,” garcillano, at the end of the conversation! http://www.pcij.org/blog/?p=268#comment-6984

as we’ve learned from our “trapos,” in politics, it’s never good to commit a mistake and be caught…but to undo that mistake by another mistake and AGAIN be caught is really absurd and an extreme insult to one’s intellectual faculties.

jester-in-exile

November 30th, 2005 at 3:36 pm

here’s a garci statement (through his lawyer) that’s, to my mind, completely absurd:

“FORMER Elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano will attend the inquiry at the House of Representatives but will not comment about the tapes allegedly linking him and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to poll fraud, his lawyer told INQ7.net on Wednesday.”

” ‘We’ll not comment on the tapes because we will only be dignifying an illegal tapped conversation,” Eddie Tamondong said in a telephone interview.’ ”

http://news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?index=1&story_id=58283 – “Garcillano to face House but won’t comment on tapes–lawyer”

so stupid. the tapes either prove his innocence or complicity, and here his lawyer goes splitting legal hairs.

what a cop out. no offense to decent legal people, but statements like this lead me to agree with the shakespearean lawyer joke.

johnmarzan

November 30th, 2005 at 3:37 pm

IN THE past two days, former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano has appeared on television and newspapers wearing different headgear — first a checked scarf normally worn by Moros and Mindanao indigenous peoples, and later, a batik cap. The subliminal message of these fashion statements is this: after months of hiding among “trusted Muslim friends” in Mindanao, Garci has gone native. He has stayed in the hinterlands for so long that he has even taken to lounging in the local attire.

The headgear is only one of many signs that indicate a savvy PR hand is behind the sudden reappearance in the public scene of the elections official

This sounds like the work of Lupita Kashiwara. Napaka-Hollywood ang dating.

November 30th, 2005 at 3:41 pm

“kashiwahara,” sorry lupita…

jr_lad

November 30th, 2005 at 4:44 pm

agree jester. it’s really absurd. mag-ala norberto gonzales na naman si garci? if he has nothing to say about the tapes, then what will he do in congress? how will he clear his name and glue-ria? and whatabout if he is asked who helped him in getting in and out of the country? he cannot answer, “sorry your honor, i cannot answer that because it’s a matter of national security”. so he will stick to his story that they never left the country. gagawin namang sinungaling ang singapore, ang ating BID at justice department. yung joke ni gonzales na may nagpanggap na garci sa labas baka maging totohanan na naman. really absurd and stupid.

the other day big M is already trumpeting to the whole nation that glue-ria is vindicated with garci’s statements in the media.

regarding his new outfit (muslim look), looks like the PR people (of the mighty one) did not do their homework well. they left out the wife of garci. dapat nakaabaya rin eto or nakamuslim dress na rin dahil kasa-kasama niya sa pagtatago (kuno) sa kaparangan(?) di ba? at eto lang yung taong naghihirap at pagod sa pagtatago (daw) na lalo pang tumaba. mukhang hiyang ata sa kabundukan.

Toro

November 30th, 2005 at 5:04 pm

Whether Garcillano had left the country or not, either way the answers will be incriminating. The dirty tricks department had deliberately set up Garci’s whereabouts to confuse everybody.

Just as PCIJ ponders who arranged for Garci’s departure, I also pose the question: if he indeed stayed home who then faked his arrival in Singapore? It’s easier to masquerade as Garci, enter Singapore with a fake passport, give a false destination as London then get lost in the crowd. This is less daring than if Garci had shown up publicly. He carries a name which by now is a household word and famous face that he risks being recognized in a crowded airport.

They said Garci left Singapore for London. Why was there no confirmation or sightings at the Singapore airport and neither was there evidence to prove that he arrived in London. Garci simply vanished in Singapore. No trace anywhere because he was never there and in other places he was presumed to be.

Lacson tries to impress us that he has some one ’embedded’, to use his word, within Garci’s inner circle, how come he cannot account when and which airport Garci landed by plane or boat when he returned if indeed Garci left the country? How come nobody saw Garci arrived? Not even a sighting of him by port/airport personnel and cargadores.

A fugitive on the run will surely lose weight because of the rigors of travel, running, and worry, but do you see that in Garci’s face? The guy even gained weight obviously from the cool weather and restful mountainside environment in Mindanao.

Why did Garci choose Mindanao to hide and not in some far away place where no one can touch him?

The life of a fugitive in a far away country, all by his lonesome in an unfamiliar surroundings, with no friends, running and in constant fear is nothing less than living a miserable life. Mindanao was a good choice for Garci where he has friends and followers. It provides him protection that if push comes to shove he can be protected by his own people that he now identifies himself with, hence, he puts on his native attire to give him a sense of belonging. This is the message he is trying to convey to his detractors.

Garci has a lot of gaps and holes to fill in his story as they relate to the facts that are already known from statements of witnesses Zuce, Gudani, Sammy Ong and Doble. You can be sure every point in Garci’s tale will be contentious. Even this early his statements are being contradicted by Zuce.

How will the Garci story end? It will not, because there will be a lot of contradictions, denials and inconsistencies by both Garci and the witnesses, that it will be difficult to establish the truth. In all likelihood it will end in a stalemate or Garci’s story will be rejected with contempt. This may even become a battle of liars because some of the witnesses are not exactly honorable men. They have moral problems themselves and will have no qualms about lying for self preservation.

Ultimately Garci will find himself up against the wall and his only defense to save himself is to invoke the law that prohibits wiretapped evidence as inadmissible in court. This is going to be a classic battle of the legal minds on how to go around the law to use wire-tapped materials to pin down Garci. If the issue is referred to the Supreme Court, it’s gonna be a loooooooong wait.

Gloria could expect some respite from all this as media will be focused on Garci for a loooong time. The flavor of the month is now Garcillano. Bunye proudly says Garci has just cleared Gloria. Oh, really!

This will be fun. I could hardly wait for the hearings to begin.

mother

November 30th, 2005 at 5:51 pm

ah! leave it! why should there be an audience to this tremendously puking “play” – IN THE FIRST PLACE!?
everyone wants something intelligent even a weebit on all of these – yet, many watch the GARCI SHOW!?

from the costume, to the script, to the direction, to the scene sequence, to the fanning of the camera – even the ever CONDESCENDING JOURNALISTS (who play a lousy supporting role) – makes anyone beg on bended knees from quiapo to baclaran and back: “PPPPPLLLLLLLIIIIIZZZZZZ”?!

LET US ALL JUST ROCK AND ROLL IN GIGS, THE MALL, OUR TEXT, OUR TELESERYE, OUR TELENOVELA, OUR SKIN WHITENING HOOPLA –

coz…..

whilst some 8 upmost Generals and the caboodles of the local government and the congress round table big wigs are well fed – even andres bonifacio come alive WILL NOT do no nothing!!

Loi_Pogi

November 30th, 2005 at 8:04 pm

[Originally posted last Tuesday, November 29, 2005 at http://www.professionalheckler.blog-city.com.]

IF LOOKS COULD KILL, former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano would have been in the advanced state of decomposition right now.

But since he remains so lucky, the man whom we [fondly] refer to as Garci is very much alive, has improved his sense of fashion (whoever advised him to wear that Islamic garment should be given credit] and surprise… has been making demands prior to his appearance in a Congressional inquiry.

While almost everyone expresses disgust over Garci’s unrepentant stance, I opt to focus on the brighter side of his alleged wrongdoing particularly his involvement in the suspected massive electoral fraud in Mindanao.

Hence, the Top 10 Reasons Why We Should Be Grateful to Virgilio Garcillano:

If Garci did not help GMA…

… FPJ would have become president and Erap would have been freed; Marcos, interred as a national hero at the Libingan ng mga Bayani; Rez Cortez, appointed as PSG Chief, and Niño Muhlach, designated as Little President (Executive Secretary).

… Noli De Castro would have become president following FPJ’s death and turncoat-master Franklin Drilon, the veep. The presidential catch phrase would then be: Magandang Gabi ng Lagim Bayan!

… Dinky Soliman would have not realized her potentials as a dramatic actress.

… Tito Guingona would have lost his post as envoy to China and retired as a lonely, jobless octogenarian.

… Fr. Robert Reyes would have not performed exorcism at the House of Representatives (although we must admit, his was a wasted effort. The demons in Congress are far more cunning.)

… Mikey Arroyo would have stayed in the country and continued to make cheap, third-rate flicks. [Oh please, let Sablay Na, Pasaway Pa be your last cinematic exposure.]

… The public would have not realized the extent of electoral fraud in the country.

… The public would have not been informed that millions of taxpayers’ money went into waste during the campaign period.

… The palace would have not instituted reforms at the Commission on Elections.

… There would have been no “Hello Garci, Hello Ma’am” joke book from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.

November 30th, 2005 at 9:53 pm

…..there would have been no baycas here @ pcij…

to garci’s “tell-all” truth: thanks, but no thanks!

atom

November 30th, 2005 at 11:06 pm

I disagree to Loi top ten reason why we are grateful to a man who is assassin ,a liar to Flipino people,his position as Comelec Official is very vital for the democracy and unity of the country.
1)Whom do you believe the Singapore or Phil Govt officials example DFA/BI
2) Garci -Gloria or the Filipino people witnessing the govt.
3) Gloria economic tafeoff or the OFW dollar inflows to our country
4) Gloria Handlers or the opposition.Note Govt will not stand alone if there are no opposition or watchers.
The bottom line if you are clean you are always set you free
If our leaders is really love our country we are already the most progressive country in this world.
We Filipinos blame ourselves why we always believed with this dirty politician word,promises of work,money eveything.They run for self interest. power and money.
Matagal na sakit sa atin yan.Kailangan alisin ang mali at itama natin

Love and unity for our country and lead to prosperity

Garci wore the scarf to ask for sympathy to the Muslim people in Mindanao whom he cheated,Muslim brothers will tell the truth if he really cheated for GMA not Garci .And to Muslim brothers who witness come out and testify I know that youre God fearing only Allah that you fear than people with power who grab youre soveriegn right

My dear brother Loi dont be grateful to a man like it is not approproiate.

December 1st, 2005 at 6:41 am

OMG! grateful to garci? ano ka ba hilo? mahiya ka naman. ibang klase ka hahaha! who are the demons in congress? PICHAY? jdv? antonino? hehehe.

o ano nangyari sa sea games nabalitaan mo ba? matindi batikos ng thailand prime minister na may dayaan na nangyari sa sea games? ayan kasi alam ng buong mundo na mandaraya ang ating pinuno kaya kahit ligitimate ang panalo nagdududa sila. lumabas kasi si garci kaya nagduda.hahaha! kawawa naman mga atleta natin na tunay naman na magagaling at world class. nadamay. (sorry mr. alecks out of topic).

December 1st, 2005 at 9:02 am

loi_pogi,

love the irony.

my favorite is: “… Fr. Robert Reyes would have not performed exorcism at the House of Representatives (although we must admit, his was a wasted effort. The demons in Congress are far more cunning.)”

anyway,

” ‘When I delivered the cellphone to Comm. Garcillano,’ Zuce’s affidavit read, ‘he told me the phone would be where PGMA [the president’s initials], Mr. and Mrs. Pineda,and other prominent persons would be calling him; the Commissioner referred to the cellphone as their Hotline.’

“If this was the case, then it was apparently this phone that had been tapped by ISAFP.”

now i’m confused:

– was it the cellphone that was tapped or some other phone? was it a phone or the room that was wired? i gotta listen to the garci tapes more closely to make an opinion.

scenarios:

– if the cellphone itself was tapped by a bug internal to the cellphone, only those calling and called on the cellphone would be recorded. assuming it was a “hotline” exclusive to GMA and her cohorts, only they would be recorded.

– if the cellphone’s microwave signal was scanned and decoded (every cellphone has unique SIM and IMEI numbers which are broadcasted, thus it’s easy to lock into a specific cellphone’s signal; not difficult considering our GSM microwave network isn’t exactly scrambled), only those calling and called on the cellphone would be recorded. assuming it was a “hotline” exclusive to GMA and her cohorts, only they would be recorded.

– if somewhere along the fiber optic/ POTS backbone was tapped for the specific cellphone number (not difficult as long as you have access to the network switch in charge of the area where the cellphone is, or even as close as the specific cellsite TRX), only those calling and called on the cellphone would be recorded. assuming it was a “hotline” exclusive to GMA and her cohorts, only they would be recorded.

– if the room was wired, only garci’s voice would be heard, not ma’am’s. unless you have access to state-of-the-art front-end amplifiers and filters, it’s extremely difficult to pick up the sound output from a cellphone’s speaker from far enough away. caveat: unless they were on speakerphone mode.

if the opposition’s voices were taped, i’d conclude that the “hotline” provided to garci was not for ma’am and her pals’ use alone, or that the wiretappers linked up to the phone/s that were in common use by ma’am and her opponents, or that garci was on speakerphone mode all the time (this one i find unlikely, considering the sensitivity of their conversations).

garci and ma’am are caught. matter of time before they’ll be reeled in and gutted, i’d say.

December 1st, 2005 at 9:09 am

Pardon me Mr. Pabico, for digressing a bit but I find it important that I rebut Concerned Citizen’s statement.

I wish Concerned Citizen had lived up to its name and did not dignify the statement of the Thai PM out of respect for the Filipino athletes who have struggled to win their hard fought games. It is totally unfair to even associate the athletes to the unrelated political issues. Instead of subjecting the athletes to embarrassment Concerned Citizen should have ridiculed the Thai PM for his irresponsible, unsubstantiated, and unsportsmanlike remarks.

Thai athletes did well in the last Asian Games but they cannot claim a monopoly of better athletes that even the once lowly Vietnam has overtaken them now and the Filipino athletes are just as eager to restore their lost glory of being one of the best in Asia and that’s what they have done in the Sea Games to prove it. The Thai PM is sour-graping.

December 1st, 2005 at 9:37 am

wala akong sinabi na mahina ang mga athletes natin. talaga namang magagaling sila. di ba sabi ko pa nga ligitimate ang mga panalo nila. world class. and i respect and believe the greatness of our philippine athletes walang duda yun. kaya lang masakit man tanggapin maski saan ka man pumunta maraming ang kagaya kong nagco comment ng sinabi ko sa blog. sorry mr toro but really “the truth hurts”. GO PHILIPPINE TEAM WE ARE ALL THE WAY SUPPORTING YOU! GOD BLESS AND CONGRATS! YOU ALL DESERVE TO WIN NO MATTER WHAT.

December 1st, 2005 at 10:22 am

mr toro wala pong kinalaman ang mga atleta natin sa comment ko. si gma po ang pinatatamaan ko. ang linaw. talaga naman alam ng buong mundo na nangdaya “daw” si gma( garci tape) kaya nairelate ko ang issue. ano akala nila porke b may issue na mandaraya ang pinuno dito eh mandaraya na rin tayo? of course not. dapat nilang kausapin yung thai PM at magpaliwanag sa mga accusations nya. ano papayag na lang ba tayo na ganoon na lang? kasiraan ito sa atin. ako naman ay naniniwala na talaga naman NO 1 ang PHILIPPINES mr toro. ang layo ng agwat di ba? MABUHAY PHILIPPINE ATHLETES!!!

vonpogi

December 1st, 2005 at 11:48 am

BIRO NINYO PATI ANG IBANG BANSA AY NANINIWALA NA NANDAYA SI ARROVO. PATI NA ANG MGA ATHLETE NATIN AY NADADAMAY SA BAHO NA GINAWA NI ARROVO. SINO PA ANG MANINIWALA SA ATIN NGAYON. ANG PEKENG PINUNO NG PILIPINAS AY MAGNANAKAW AT MANDARAYA. DAPAT AY ISIPIN MUNA NG THAI PREMIER NA HINDI LAHAT NG TAO SA PILIPINAS AY MANDARAYA BAGO SIYA MAGSALITA. KASI BUMALIK SI GARCI KAYA AKALA NILA AY PATI ANG GAME AY DADAYAHIN NA RIN PARA LANG MABANGO SI ARROVO. KAWAWA ANG MGA ATLETA NATIN, KULANG NA SA PAG AALAGA, GAMIT AT PATI ANG ALLOWANCE NILA AY NAUKURAKOT PA. SINO DAPAT ANG SISISHIN NATIN.. SINO…

obet

December 1st, 2005 at 2:50 pm

Mga igan’ wag naman pati SEA Games ay haluan natin ng pulitika. Ang paghakot natin ng medalya at karangalan ay bunga ng pagsusumikap ng ating mga atleta at walang kinalaman to sa pamumuno ni Gloria. Ang dapat ngang gawin ay imbestigahan ito ng committee ng SEA Games at kung mapatunayan na walang pandarayang naganap, dapat humingi ng patawad ang prime minister ng Thailand sa Pilipinas. Dapat nating patunayan na hindi lahat ng Filipino?ý katulad ng kanilang mga namumuno. Ito?ý isang sampal sa atin ng isang bansang ating itinuturing na isang kaibigan at kapitbahay. Isa itong hamon para sa ating bansa at maaaring maging tulay para sa ating pagkakaisa.

eyesWideopen2

December 1st, 2005 at 8:28 pm

prior to GLORIAGATE, i used to be enthusiastic about having the SEAGAMES in the Philippines.

but when the GLORIAGATE came, i became apprehensive because this could be used to cloud the dignity of the medal tally. Knowing that the seating president herself is… believed by the “majority” to be a cheater…

When the news reported that the THAI minister says team Philipines cheated… i feel for him.

i give team Philippines the benefit of the doubt. I just can’t help thinking this could be true.

firstly, the kids baseball team in the 1990’s who supposed to win gold for us somewhere in the US… it was found out that they cheated.

the girl runner who wins several golds in national athletic meet, was found to be a man. forgot the name…

and this country who is currently run by a cheater…

i feel for those who believed the medal performance is being manipulated.

and i’m not even enthusiastic about the sea games anymore.

lokalokang matino

December 1st, 2005 at 8:51 pm

Garci granting interviews left and right, and Malacanang insists they have nothing to do with>>> Thats a LOT OF BULL——!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! STOP FOOLING THIS NATION!!!! Mahiya naman kayo. Nakakasuka Na.
I cannnot find a word to discribe these people. Sabi nga ng taksi driver nasakyan ko noong isang araw, siya raw ay takang -taka kung bakit may mga tao paring kumakampi kay ARROVO, samantalang hayagan at malinaw pa sa sikat ng araw ang mga pandaraya, kasinungalingan at pagnanakaw. Sabi nya, anong RULE OF LAW ang pinagsasabi ni Gloria, Mike Arroyo, Mike Arroyo, at mga alepores samantalang sila na ang gumahasa at patuloy na umaabuso sa RULE OF LAW. Sana nga matauhan na TAYONG LAHAT!!!!!!!!!

kapatiran

December 1st, 2005 at 9:23 pm

To refer to the Garci illegal tapes as “Gloriagate” is really downright misleading.
Let us remember that the Watergate scandal that eventually led to the resignation of US President Richard Nixon was about the violation of the Republican administration of the anti-wiretapping in the United States. On the contrary, the Garci illegal tapes were not the wrongdoing of the Arroyo administration. On this issue, the President was the victim. Allegations of fraud has remained unsubstantiated except for the minds of some who did not vote for her in the first place, and have in fact campaigned for other candidates.
In this country, bihira ang umaamin ng pagkatalo at halos lahat ay nagsasabing dinaya sila. Si Roco nga nagconcede na pero gusto pa ring bawiin nung ilan dito eh, hehehe.
Kaya tuloy pati yung Prime Minister ng Thailand inakusahan na tayong nandadaya sa SEAGames kahit walang matibay na ebidensyang pinanghahawakan. Nahawa siya sa oposisyon at sa ilang satsat ng satsat dito…harharhar!

December 1st, 2005 at 9:34 pm

Hindi ko talaga maintindihan ang isip ng ilan dito at ng mga nasa opisisyon!
Nung wala sa Garci, satsat ng satsat! “Ilabas nyo si Garci! Ilabas nyo si Garci!”
Ngayong lumabas si Garci, satsat na naman ng satsat! “Sinungaling si Garci! Sinungaling si Garci!”
Kung hindi nyo rin pala paniniwalaan ang sasabihin nya, eh bakit nagdadaldal kayo na lumabas siya. Pinahanap nyo pa. Nagbigay pa kayo ng pabuya para makita siya. Sala kayo sa init, sala kayo sa lamig!
Kung ayaw magsalita ng isang tao, pipilitin nyong magsalita! Kung nagsalita, sasabihin nyo “sinungaling!” harharhar! Talaga naman!
Meron pang isa rito palaging sinasabi, “i may believe you.” Mayroong “I, me and myself” complex ang taong ito! harharhar!
Narito tayo sa blog ng PCIJ para magpost ng opinyon hindi upang magkumbinsihan!

December 1st, 2005 at 10:23 pm

ang gusto ko ay yong hindi magnanakaw ng boto at hindi garapal ang mukha. ayoko kay gloria.

haiii!!!

December 1st, 2005 at 11:46 pm

http://www.answers.com/topic/gate-suffix
–gate
suffix

A scandal involving alleged illegal acts and often a cover-up, especially by government officials: Watergate (where this all started).

Juettengate, Lobbygate, and who would not recall…GLORIAGATE.

December 1st, 2005 at 11:58 pm

kapatid,

umiwas ka sa tanong ko:
http://www.pcij.org/blog/?p=434#comment-14015

“no comment” ka rin dito:
http://www.pcij.org/blog/?p=434#comment-14441

December 2nd, 2005 at 4:46 am

i would always remember GLORIAGATE… never will i forget the most infamous scandal in the philippines…

December 2nd, 2005 at 9:18 am

kapatiran,

“On the contrary, the Garci illegal tapes were not the wrongdoing of the Arroyo administration. On this issue, the President was the victim. Allegations of fraud has remained unsubstantiated except for the minds of some who did not vote for her in the first place, and have in fact campaigned for other candidates.”

not the wrongdoing of the arroyo administration? the “president” was the victim? allegations of fraud unsubstantiated?

wow.

let me see, with the GMA’s administration in mind: who appointed the comelec commissioners who served last elections? aaaah, riight, i’m sorry, it wasn’t GMA, was it? who is the commander in chief of the AFP, to which the ISAFP that bugged garcillano during the elections belongs to? oh, okay, it isn’t GMA, is it?

with GMA’s “victimization” in mind: did she or did she not make a call to a comelec official, something that is unworthy of a candidate?

with allegations’ substance in mind: has the media been lying to us all along? has the PCIJ been lying to us in this blog and in all their posts? are general gudani, et al, lying?

sorry, kapatiran, i apologize for not believing in your astute and perceptive analyses of the situation.

December 2nd, 2005 at 11:18 am

How’s that again, Kapatiran? You said, “… the Garci illegal tapes were not the wrongdoing of the Arroyo administration.”

I think it was, who else had access to Isapf, may I ask you. Isafp tapped Garci’s celfone to find out if he’s also playing ball with the other side and unwittingly caught Gloria talking to him. Some Isapf wise guy saw money in it big time, and sold the tapes to the guy in Tanay whose people spliced them, put the choice and juicy parts about Gloria together, then expose them freely publicly in the hope it will precipitate people power. Have you checked the committee report on this lately?.

You also said, on this issue, the President was the victim. No sir, it’s the
people.

December 3rd, 2005 at 12:23 am

on one side the public is the victim of gloria’s wrongdoing. on the other side, the public is the culprit by allowing to continue gloria’s wrongdoing.

gloria is the culprit by her wrongdoing. however, gloria is NOT the victim for she stays in power as a result of her wrongdoing.

luzviminda

December 3rd, 2005 at 2:43 am

Kapatiran,
Tanong ko lang, Ikaw ba ay naniniwala ( sa iyong impartial asessment) na si GMA at si Garci yung na-wiretap? Kung hindi sa palagay mo sino-sino yung mga nag-uusap sa tape? Curious lang ako sa isasagot mo. Thanks!

December 3rd, 2005 at 11:38 am

baycas,

“on one side the public is the victim of gloria’s wrongdoing. on the other side, the public is the culprit by allowing to continue gloria’s wrongdoing.”

mismo. so damn frustrating, this apathy.

luzviminda,

“Tanong ko lang, Ikaw ba ay naniniwala ( sa iyong impartial asessment) na si GMA at si Garci yung na-wiretap? Kung hindi sa palagay mo sino-sino yung mga nag-uusap sa tape? Curious lang ako sa isasagot mo. Thanks!”

though i doubt he will give an answer, kapatiran may very well answer “romeo and juliet”, “tom and jerry”, “the porkchop duo”, “laurel and hardy”, “lucy and desi”, “mork and mindy” (damn my age is showing haha)… or even “jester and luzviminda”, for all we know, ha ha. nah, i doubt if the fellow will not evade your question and stoop to ad hominems.

someone has to have GMA and garci voiceprinted (from their tv spots and such) and correlated to the voices on the tapes to put that issue to rest.

heck, anyone of us could do that with our own computers and some freeware from the internet (i forgot the site, though, darn it).

December 3rd, 2005 at 3:06 pm

tsk, tsk, tsk. navirus na naman ang post na eto.

to everyone, my best friend kakitiran does not anwer any question directed at him. he’s comments are to justify and convince (hindi raw o) everybody that his boss did nothing wrong and the opposition is the evil one. just read all his comments. biktima pa nga si glue-ria. kawawa naman. tsk, tsk tsk. (expect kakitiran to go ballistic then ad-hominems again with matching devilish laugh).

but just listen to what miriam has to say to all those comelec officials’ callers (glue-ria included). what’s the intention behind it. kakampi na ng palasyo yan.

let’s see what garci wil have to tell under oath and grilled by the opposing congressmen if he will still stick to his statements in the media. and i hope the opposition and other cause oriented groups will file all those cases mentioned in court against him.

December 3rd, 2005 at 5:22 pm

It would really be nice if jr_lad suddenly finds himself accused of conniving to overthrow the republic with a taped phone conversation as evidence. If that happens, this s_o_b would know the real meaning of “innocent until proven otherwise” and illegally acquired evidences that are not acceptable in legal proceedings.

But I would still say that his civil rights be protected. He’s just disturbed, harharhar!

December 3rd, 2005 at 5:25 pm

I should have stated:

But I would still say that his (jr_lad) civil rights be protected. He’s harmless. He’s just disturbed, harharhar!

December 3rd, 2005 at 5:36 pm

jr_lad,
you will really be dismayed. mine is not a “devilish laugh” but a genuine laugher of enjoyment. i’m not GD like you. on the other hand, i’m enjoying the posts here especially yours … and your infantile disorder, hehehe!

December 3rd, 2005 at 6:00 pm

kapatid, maybe i’m harmless and disturbed but i’m not as stupid as your boss. now you and your ilk are scrambling to defend her and justify her deeds. you see even the ASEAN Games is now dragged into the controversy of CHEATING. it’s because of your boss (amo, senora, madam). it’s very obvious that our asean neighbors know what’s happening with our local politics. your boss (amo, senora, madam) disgraced the whole nation.

with your now soon to be famous ” innocent until proven otherwise” mantra and assertion that glue-ria is the victim, do you agree then with erap’s supporters that he is also a victim? yes or no kapatid?

December 3rd, 2005 at 6:14 pm

enough of the personal attack, kapatiran. if you’ve read this blog’s rules, you’d know that it’s disallowed. show some respect for the PCIJ people.

you would do well to answer baycas’ and luzviminda’s questions. for your convenience, here they are:

***
baycas said,
December 1, 2005 @ 11:58 pm

=========
baycas said,
October 14, 2005 @ 2:32 am

did you listen to the tapes? including bunye’s?

=========

(can’t find this one, sorry)

***
luzviminda said,
December 3, 2005 @ 2:43 am

***

maybe while you’re at it, you could answer the questions i raised in my preceding comment as well.

jr_lad,

you might want to consider not dignifying insults by ignoring them. this is supposed to be a venue for discussion and debate. by they way:

“mag-ala norberto gonzales na naman si garci?”

no doubt. look at what’s going on.

everyone,

pardon my sharpness. i think we all ought to review the blog rules.

http://www.pcij.org/blog/?page_id=2

December 3rd, 2005 at 6:23 pm

best friend,
dismayed is not the right word but disgusted. i can just imagine your face when you’re laughing. it’s gruesome. all mouth and nothing more. piece of advice, try to remove the “r” and you’ll look fine.
oh, the feeling is mutual. your posts actually make my day. it’s vitamin C
to me. infact, i’m always looking forward to reading them everyday.

December 3rd, 2005 at 6:50 pm

kadugo and pcij,

pasensiya na ulit. my best friend here as i’ve said is exceptional. too hard to resist. i’ll hold the sleigh next time. but can’t promise though.

to luzviminda,

i have ask that question already several times to kapatid. he’s answer is his favorite mantra: “a person is innocent until proven otherwise”.

as for baycas question, it’s very evident, he doesn’t want to hear it because it’s illegal.

we’ve been waiting to hear his answers for quite a long time already (including his true identity as he dared us- oh, i was shot!).

December 3rd, 2005 at 11:49 pm

Oh I see here a great reinvention!
The Constitutional right of an accused to be presumed innocent until proven otherwise has been reduced to a “mantra.” And to quote:
“…favorite mantra: ‘a person is innocent until proven otherwise’.”

December 3rd, 2005 at 11:52 pm

and to add:
“…with your now soon to be famous ” innocent until proven otherwise” mantra”

December 4th, 2005 at 1:07 pm

kakitiran,
it’s not my fault anymore if you’ve failed to comprehend what I mean when I say your “favorite mantra”. we are really miles apart. all i can say is that you have a selective memory. while your amo (boss, senora, madam) has lapse in judgment, yours is a memory lapse.

December 5th, 2005 at 2:43 pm

Guys,,
If somebody is resigning under your post it means you can’t manage the govt.But resigning with reason is something.Meaning as manager and a leader you must change to bettter strategy or quit,simple quit.
My logic Gloria cant simply resign and she will proved no matter what happened.Other wise she will be put in prison if proven guilty.Who will suffer then? us the citizen.
If there is no PEACE within your inner self there is no love of your country,family and others

We begin activating ,preaching PEACE within ourselves .And we can see
light in the darkness.If we dont do it especially all concerned politician who are involved inthis crisis than what?. We are sailing in one ship in darkness without knowing our direction. Just imagine what I am saying put yourself there.

Give PEACE a Chance

December 5th, 2005 at 3:19 pm

atom,

peace at the expense of justice and accountability is exactly what GMA’s allies are pushing for. with all the exhortations of “let’s move on”.

i disagree. without justice, there can be no peace. without accountability, there can be no peace. with pervasive lying, cheating, and stealing, there can be no peace. in place of peace we will have divisiveness instead.

“My logic Gloria cant simply resign and she will proved no matter what happened.Other wise she will be put in prison if proven guilty.Who will suffer then? us the citizen.”

i don’t think our suffering will begin when GMA and her minions are thrown into prison. i think that our suffering under her rule began when she decided to rig the elections with garcillano, et al’s help, perhaps even earlier when she lied in front of the Rizal Park in Baguio City, saying that she wouldn’t run again.

however, i think that our suffering will not end when GMA and her cohorts are thrown into prison — but with justice served, without fear or favor, we can be begin to feel at peace knowing that crimes are punished and our officials are accountable to us, the citizens, for their actions.

tenshio

December 5th, 2005 at 7:05 pm

Couldn’t have said it any better Mr. jester-in-exile. The thing is for us to always send the right message that any wrongdoing cannot and will never be tolerated.

Garci’s fashion (and other) statements

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