The Philippine Bar Association Inc. on Thursday voiced its strong opposition to a movement calling for the establishment of a revolutionary government, saying such call “should not be allowed to fester on.”
In a statement, PBA president Jose Perpetuo Lotilla and its trustees Mariano Jesus Averia, Joel Raymond Ayson, Othello Carag and Rodelle Bolante said that every freedom-loving Filipino should oppose such a call that it said would eventually erode the Rule of Law in the country.
“It is fitting that the groups calling for a ‘revolutionary government” received near universal condemnation. But it must not end there. The gathering was just the latest in a series of openly defiant acts that target the duly-constituted government. While the true principals have yet to show their faces, their method is already clear- to sow the subtle seeds meant to erode the Rule of Law and the Constitution,’ the group said.
The lawyers’ group said that such push should not be allowed to fester without immediate action as doing so would allow them to “coagulate and gather” as these groups are using the current pandemic, the economic crisis and a presidency on its last years to gather supporters from those who desire power themselves.
“History shows that revolts do not happen overnight. It summons its strength over time and creeps on the unwary. It capitalizes on the overconfidence. The greatest sin we can commit right now is to dismiss or ignore the true dangers these repeated calls for “revgov” pose,” the statement said.
“We should not allow glamour-seeking upstarts to undermine the Constitution and cast the country to another dark era of chaos,” it added.
Earlier, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines slammed the idea, calling it “repugnant to constitutionalism” and should be discouraged and denounced.
On Monday, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the department will “seriously investigate” any complaint for inciting to sedition that will be filed against proponents for the establishment of a revolutionary government.
Guevarra said the call for a revolutionary government has no basis as the constitution is well in place, all political institutions are functioning normally, and the head of government continues to have the support of the vast majority of the people.
