September 21, 2003

The Philippine STAR, Opinion Page

Behind the Bushes Trip  

By Babe Romualdez

It was that one early morning in July when word reached the US National Security Agency that one of the most wanted and brutal Indonesian terrorist and bomb expert Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi escaped from the Philippine National Police Headquarters at Camp Crame. Because of what happened, almost immediately, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice reportedly said in effect that they had to review the trip of the President and Mrs. Bush to the Philippines. It was now a question of whether to cancel it completely or abbreviate it. What compounded the issue was the report they received that al-Ghozi’s escape happened allegedly with the help of his jailers. This obviously raised the red flag with the US Secret Service. Initially, the plan was for Bush to stay 36 hours, but with the al-Ghozi escape, the duration of the visit was cut down to an overnight stay. The Oakwood incident coupled by the brewing political instability thereafter compelled Bush’s security advisers to further cut the trip down to eight hours. Ambassador Frank Ricciardone should be on his way back from Washington DC where he tried to persuade the White House to extend the stay of GWB for a couple of more hours. But I guess Bush’s security advisers prevailed. Bush will arrive in the Philippines sometime around midday of October 18, speak before the joint session of the Philippine Congress, and then go to Malacañang to attend the state dinner hosted by GMA. Shortly after, he will then leave for Singapore to spend the night there. The explanation given for his overnight stay in Singapore is supposedly to make it easier for President and Mrs. Bush to arrive in Bangkok for the APEC Summit at the specific time allotted for the US President. There are 21 heads of state attending the APEC Summit, each of them given an exact time of arrival to be properly met as dictated by protocol. 

From day one, Bush remained determined to go to the Philippines because of the personal relationship developed with GMA during her state visit to Washington. Full credit goes to GMA for her instinct to express immediate support for the United States right after 9-11. We are told that Bush is a very emotional man, and he never forgets to express his appreciation to friends, especially to those who have personally supported him and the United States. That’s why he reportedly told his security advisers, “Don’t give me reasons not to go to the Philippines. Find me a way to get there.” He’s always been anxious to see the Philippines since he’s been hearing a lot of good things from the 26 Filipino-American “ambassadors” living and working in the White House.

There’s no doubt in Bush’s mind that the Philippines plays a major role in the war against terrorism in the region. Up front, both countries feel the same way about terrorism because both the US and the Philippines were victims of it. There’s no arguing that as long as terrorism is “alive and well” in Asia, no country will be safe. That’s why I totally agree with STAR columnist Alex Magno when he said the leftists have become irrelevant and they belong to the 60s. The reported plan to burn 100 American flags during the arrival of Bush is completely ridiculous. Instead of demonstrating against the Bush visit, it would be far more beneficial for them if they demonstrate against alleged unfair trade practices by the United States, to protect Filipino jobs. Even I will join them. Secretary of Agriculture Cito Lorenzo is definitely one of those working hard and making a strong stand on trade issues with the United States. The idea of some people that GMA’s candidacy hangs on Bush’s trip to the country is just totally out of synch. Imee Marcos is the wrong person to criticize Bush’s trip to the country since everyone knows she has a personal ax to grind against the United States. The US is extremely careful of being “used” in local partisan politics. Ed Angara was right when he said a definite decision from GMA today is what the United States would like to clearly see before the Bush arrival.

Round ‘d clock preparations are underway, and both governments are putting in triple the effort to make the trip of George Bush to the country a safe and memorable one. Dick Gordon had a million plans for the Bush trip, but almost all were cancelled because of the short stay. But he is absolutely right in urging the public to put their best foot forward. There is no question that this will be an international media event. More than 400 media people will be in the country to cover this visit. For better or for worse, this will put the Philippines on center stage, at least, for eight hours. Obviously the United States is not taking any chances. No one believes, despite US denial, that the 1,500 US ground troops in the country have nothing to do with the visit of George W. The USS Essex carrier, which reportedly left Philippine shores, is cruising around the Asian region for the entire duration of the Bushes trip to Asia. A lot of US intelligence agents are already in the country, assessing round the clock the security situation. Clark has already been declared a no-fly zone where Air Force One is expected to land. High up in space, a so-called global “pinpoint” satellite system is honing its electronic eyes for this event. With this technology in place, all of Bush’s movements can be tracked down, and everything from within a radius of a thousand meters can be seen in high-resolution colored images. The trip of Clinton to the Philippines in 1997 cost the American taxpayers roughly 20 million dollars. This entire trip of Bush to Asia, with all the logistical support, equipment, security personnel and the tremendous preparations that will go into it, will cost about 50 million US dollars upwards. First Lady Laura Bush will have her own schedule, which will be slightly different from GWB, and this would take another special security planning. 

Full credit goes to GMA for bringing this relationship of the United States and the Philippines to its highest point. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain by making the visit of George W. Bush to the Philippines a truly successful one. 

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