RENEE MONTAGNE, Host:
Now let's talk about the political system of a country a quarter of a century after its revolution. The current president of the Philippines faces claims of corruption in the military. And today, a former military chief was found shot, an apparent suicide. NPR's Anthony Kuhn brings us the ins and outs from Manila.
ANTHONY KUHN: Security guards still give him funny looks when he enters the posh Peninsula Hotel, says retired Brigadier General Danilo Lim. That's because in 2007, an armored fighting vehicle and commandos smashed their way into the lobby, chasing after him. Lim was jailed for leading an attempted coup d'etat against then-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Lately, Lim has been feeling vindicated.
Former Army budget officer George Rabusa told Senate investigators that army chiefs of staff, including General Angelo Reyes, had controlled large slush funds and received multimillion-dollar retirement gifts. Today, General Reyes was found shot to death in an apparent suicide.
Danilo Lim says that last that July, he counseled Rabusa to go ahead and blow the whistle.
DANILO LIM: I advised him that if he was going to talk about the corruption, this is the time to do it. We have a new president whose program is anti-corruption, a new political atmosphere.
KUHN: Some poorly-equipped Filipino soldiers might be outraged to hear of graft among their commanders, but General Lim says the Senate investigation has actually encouraged most of the troops.
LIM: I see that our men in uniform are happy. Morale is high, because this time we are openly talking about corruption in the military. It's a confirmation of what everybody has been talking about.
KUHN: Next month, Filipinos will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled U.S.-backed dictator Ferdinand Marcos and replaced him with Corazon Aquino, the mother of the current president, Benigno Aquino III.
The past 25 years have seen coup attempts, corruption scandals and other signs that the revolution had limited effect on the country. But pollster Dr. Mahar Mangahas says that since President Aquino's election last May, 69 percent of Filipinos surveyed are satisfied with their country's democratic process.
MAHAR MANGAHAS: I feel like I've been waiting for this for 12 years.
(SOUNDBITE OF LAUGHTER)
MANGAHAS: This is something that should come about every six years. But six years ago, we didn't have it. You know, it was as though, what, we went through a presidential election and we didn't feel renewed.
KUHN: After more than half a year in office, Aquino still enjoys 80 percent approval ratings. Dr. Mangahas says it helps that President Arroyo, who is widely believed to have rigged her re-election in 2004, was the Philippines' most unpopular president ever.
After his election last year, Benigno Aquino III pledged to create a so-called Truth Commission to look into graft charges against his predecessor. But the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional.
Ateneo de Manila University law Professor Carlos Medina says this was a heavy blow to the new president.
CARLOS MEDINA: This was like a flagship program of the president, at the top of his anti-corruption programs, because it is executive order Number One. And he was really stung by the decision of the Supreme Court.
KUHN: Critics point out that 14 out of 15 Supreme Court judges are Arroyo appointees.
Aquino has also benefited from a robust economy, which grew at 7.3 percent last year, the fastest pace since 1986. But University of the Philippines Public Administration expert Professor Leonor Briones warns that an angry and hungry underclass could rise up and wipe out much of the Philippines' impressive economic gains. She refers to the president by two of his nicknames.
LEONOR BRIONES: There's a great deal of sentimental affection for PNoy, because of the mother. And he came in on a program of reform and anti- corruption. At this time, they don't associate their hunger, their joblessness with Noy Noy.
KUHN: Briones notes that civilian and military leaders have seldom been held accountable for past corruption scandals. But she hopes it will be different this time.
Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Manila.
MONTAGNE: You're listening to MORNING EDITION from NPR News.
Copyright © 2011 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.