The Window Will Not Stay Open, Mr. President

By Vincent R. Pozon

History offers moments of power. They do not linger.

Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has before him a fleeting chance—rare, fragile, but powerful. A window of opportunity for the legacy they say he so desires.

Flood projects have been exposed as deficient or imaginary, corruption no longer whispered but shouted. In the words of former justice Antonio Carpio, the flood funds scandal is the "biggest in history" and provides a tipping point. A grace period has opened; the anger of the country is at a pitch where he will be allowed to do more—allowed and expected, in fact, to round up and imprison the obvious culprits. Congressmen, senators, department officials.

Yes, drain the swamp.

But let it not be timid or even calibrated, like his recent cabinet revamp. Let it be large, unmistakable, visible. Let wrists be cuffed. Let the punishment be seen, heard, and felt.

Let it be with a broadsword, not a pocket knife.

Let his communications people give it a name, say, "Kalusin ang Kurap", suffuse it with anger, and an emblem. He should sell it well, so the people can rally round his flag. A crusade must feel like a crusade—visible, visceral, and unrelenting.

And let it be now, not later.

We have been here before.

After EDSA in 1986, Corazon Aquino had extraordinary legitimacy. She governed initially by revolutionary powers. She could have re-made the Republic’s bones.

Instead, she chose not to wield them, and immediately sought to hold a constitutional commission and elections—when she could have. She could have. She could have.

Historians argue that by prioritizing democratic processes, she missed the chance for radical reforms—land, institutions, the deep roots of corruption.

Global goodwill was hers; it would have granted her that latitude.

Marcos Jr. stands at a similar crossroads. The people’s fury has gifted him permission to act boldly. History will not remember him for small rearrangements or his normally tepid speeches. The country is hoping he recognizes it, this gift, this special moment, and draws the courage to act on it.

The window will not stay open long, Mr. President.

Vincent R. Pozon

After a year of college, Koyang entered advertising, and there he stayed for half a century, in various agencies, multinational and local. He is known for aberrant strategic successes (e.g., Clusivol’s ‘Bawal Magkasakit’, Promil’s ‘The Gifted Child’, RiteMED’s ‘May RiteMED ba nito?', VP Binay's 'Ganito Kami sa Makati', JV Ejercito's 'The Good One', Akbayan's 'Pag Mahal Mo, Akbayan Mo')). He is chairman of Estima, an ad agency dedicated to helping local industrialists, causes and candidates.

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