There is a saying that goes “absolute power corrupts absolutely” and the same quote

applies to people in our government who hold high positions. This is simply due to the fact that
the closest thing to holding absolute power in the government is holding its highest positions in
our government namely, the executive as the president, the legislative as a congressman or
senator and the judiciary as the chief justice of the Supreme Court. Needless to say, there have
been controversies involving such people whom we hold in trust in the said positions who
abused their power.
When thinking about specific occasions wherein power was abused by people in high
positions in the Philippines in the past decade or so, the Disbursement Acceleration Program
(DAP) Scandal, the unjust impeachment of Justice Sereno and the recent violation of quarantine
protocols by senator Koko Pimintel comes to mind.
The DAP scandal stemmed from the inclusion of the namesake Disbursement Allocation
Program in the National Budget of 2012. The said provision allowed 72 Billion Pesos to be
withdrawn from the national budget which was said to be used to bribe the legislative
department by the executive department, the president to be exact, through its then Department
of Budget Management Secretary Abad. It was alleged that the fund withdrawn by the secretary
was used to bribe both senators and congressmen to oust the Chief Justice Renato Corona so
that the appointee of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo would be replaced by someone
appointed by then president Noynoy Aquino himself1.[ CITATION Cha18 \l 1033 ]
What I noticed in the nature of this scandal was that the executive department abused its
power to gain more power. The president abused its power to appoint a budget secretary in
being able to unjustly move billions of pesos from the national budget to be able to bribe and get
the legislative department to the president’s will. Furthermore, the executive department also
abused its power in seeking to remove an officer of the judiciary in order to have an unimpeded
control over the government. These three departments are kept separated and distinct from on
another in order to create checks and balances within the government. As much as possible,
undue influence of one over another is safeguarded by the Constitution itself so that such power
could not be abused. Sadly, the DAP controversy was an occasion that the executive
department got around the safeguards of the Constitution in order to further its own goals.
On the other hand, the Judiciary had controversies on its own which was very apparent
when the same department ousted then Chief Justice Sereno through the Quo Warranto petition
filed by then Solicitor General Joe Calida. A Quo Warranto petition, in a nutshell, asks a person
to show by what authority do they hold their current position. In the case of then Justice Sereno,
1
https://www.bworldonline.com/aquino-abad-charged-over-dap-controversy/
she was ousted due to anomalies in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth
(SALN) through the said Quo Warranto.2 According to the Constitution of the Philippines, the
only way to oust a Justice of the Supreme Court was to hold an impeachment proceeding with
the Legislative Department and the Judiciary department deciding on the said matter. By letting
the Quo Warranto petition proceed, the judiciary circumvented the Constitution itself and
allowed itself to impeach its own member even through such manner was not prescribed by law.
Amidst all of the legalities which surround the said controversy, the underlying theme
was the said justice was ousted to gain the favor of current President Rodrigo Duterte since
Sereno was an appointee of then President Aquino and the same was known to be very critical
of the President. Like the DAP scandal, the Sereno controversy also shows how the Executive
department can circumvent the constitution, ignore the powers vested in the legislature and
have undue influence towards the judiciary department. Likewise, by virtually having control
over the judiciary department, this further gives undue power to only one person in the land
which is the president.
Lastly, a more recent scandal, now involving the legislative department was when
Senator Koko Pimintel violated quarantine protocols instituted by the IATF and got away with it.
During the times of the pandemic caused by Covid 19, Senator Koko Pimintel went with his wife
in Makati Medical Center as she was about to give birth. Both him and her wife were tested
positive for the Covid 19 virus. By accompanying his wife, he violated the IATF quarantine
protocols and put both patients, medical workers and their immediate families and
acquaintances in danger by doing so. However, the case filed against the said senator was
junked by the Department of Justice itself.3
Through this controversy, we can see how officials holding high positions can use their
influence to circumvent laws even if doing so clearly puts a lot of people in immediate danger.
By abusing the powers given to a senator and the influence it brings, they are able to get away
with violating the law and putting people in danger.
If there is one thing common in these controversies, it’s that people who hold high
positions on the government can use their own influence to advance their personal goals.
Although there are specific Constitutional provisions against doing so, these people still get
away with the same because they can influence the other people who hold power to bend to
their will. Thus, the safeguards against these types of abuse may be deemed inept.

2
https://www.rappler.com/nation/sereno-ousted-supreme-court-quo-warranto-decision
3
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1386533/doj-dismisses-quarantine-violation-complaint-vs-koko-pimentel
 If there’s one concrete way to avoid such acts from happening over and over again, for
me, it would be first and foremost, simply learning how to be a better judge of character. In
being able to properly judge a person’s character, we, as a nation, will be able to know who truly
are trust worth of the responsibility and the power it brings when we elect them to higher offices.
By being able to properly judge a person’s character and educated in politics, the laws
and our own basic rights, we will be able to elect better leaders to hold power in the
government. Unless we elect people who are truly trustworthy, we would not be able to avoid
such controversies from people holding high positions in the government from happening agai.