President Benigno Aquino III finally demonstrated in 2011 his political conviction to clean and make government efficient and transparent. The President stood his ground on his pronouncements and ably commanded the national administration and his political forces and allies to march accordingly to his positions. P-Noy pushed his political leverage and forced Merceditas Gutierrez to resign as Ombudsman. The President risked his political capital by pushing for the cancellation of the ARMM election in August 2011 and synchronizing it with the 2013 local elections. He broke diplomatic protocols by meeting MILF Chair Murad in Japan and defied traditional role of being Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces by pushing for the peace negotiations with the MILF immediately after the ambush and killing of 19 military personnel in Basilan. Despite persistent criticisms and threat of economic slowdown, the administration pursued reorganizing budget and fiscal policies and procedures of the national and local governments. The last quarter of 2011 saw the P-Noy administration using available presidential powers and resources to put Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and former Comelec chair Benjamin Abalos in detention, impeached Renato Corona from the highest post of the Supreme Court and issued a warrant of arrest on retired Gen. Jovito Palparan.
analysis articles
2012 – Historical Political Conjuncture
Partisanship and Reform: The Making of a Presidential Campaign
There is real possibility for a significant leap in the reform process in the Philippines after the 2010 elections. If, as seems likely at this time, Noynoy Aquino wins the presidency, a number of converging developments could produce the conditions necessary for change. The first is Noynoy himself, who has successfully embodied the political legacy of his mother Cory, and his father Ninoy. This, in turn, has introduced a new dimension of enthusiastic voluntarism to the election campaign. Finally, the people running Noynoy’s campaign constitute the leading core of an enlarged reform constituency.















