01/02/2025
The editorial presents a strong case against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s potential government shutdown, framing it as a dictatorial move rather than a governance failure. However, looking at the broader context, there are reasons why Congress and many senators continue to support his administration’s narrative.
Why Congress and Senators Support Marcos’s Narrative?
The legislative branch has long been a stronghold of political patronage in the Philippines, and Marcos Jr. benefits from a supermajority in both chambers. Many lawmakers align themselves with the president not out of ideological loyalty but because of political survival. They rely on executive backing for their own projects, budgets, and reelection efforts. This dynamic makes it easy for the president to push his policies and, in times of crisis, for Congress to echo his justifications rather than challenge him.
Additionally, the Marcos administration has strategically positioned allies in key government agencies and the Supreme Court. This consolidation of power mirrors tactics used during his father’s rule, where institutions were systematically weakened to serve executive interests rather than act as independent checks and balances.
A Weak Leader Clinging to Power
Despite holding vast political control, Marcos Jr.’s response to the Supreme Court ruling exposes his leadership weaknesses rather than his strength. Instead of finding legal and diplomatic solutions to address the budget issue, he resorts to drastic measures that hurt the very people he claims to serve. A strong leader would negotiate, find a compromise, and ensure government functions continue. Instead, he appears to be leveraging the crisis to expand executive power—something that ultimately suggests insecurity rather than authority.
History Repeating Itself
The fear that Marcos Jr. is following in his father’s footsteps is not unfounded. Ferdinand Marcos Sr. used economic instability, legal battles, and political opposition as justifications for martial law in 1972. If the current president continues on this path—shutting down the government, defying the judiciary, and suppressing dissent—he risks igniting the same resistance that led to his father’s downfall.
Instead of regaining the people’s trust in Marcos leadership, this crisis may reinforce historical fears and push Filipinos to remember why they rejected dictatorship decades ago. The consequences of his actions could be catastrophic—not just for his presidency, but for the stability of the nation itself.
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Andro
EDITORIAL | From Budget Crisis to Dictatorship: Is Martial Law Next?
By OPTIC Politics DEPO | Jan 31, 2025
By shutting down the government in response to a Supreme Court ruling against the 2025 National Budget, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would be dragging the Philippines into an unprecedented constitutional and economic crisis, proving once and for all that his administration is built not on governance but on authoritarian brinkmanship.
Let us be clear: A president who shuts down the government is a president who has failed.
By threatening to paralyze the state because he refuses to abide by a legal ruling, Marcos is not fighting for the people—he is fighting for his own power. This is the behavior of a dictator desperate to protect his interests, not a leader committed to democratic principles. And in doing so, he risks economic collapse, public outrage, and political isolation on a scale the country has not seen since the downfall of his father’s regime.
A President at War with the Constitution
The Supreme Court exists to interpret and uphold the Constitution. If the justices rule against the budget, it is because it violates the law. Marcos’s response? Not to fix the budget, not to negotiate, not to govern—but to throw a tantrum, shutting down essential government services like a hostage-taker who refuses to release his captives.
Let us not sugarcoat what this means. It means:
• Hospitals left without funding.
• Government employees unpaid.
• Law enforcement and social services thrown into chaos.
• Businesses paralyzed.
• Millions of Filipinos left at the mercy of a leader who values power over the people.
Marcos is testing the limits of impunity, pushing the country toward an artificial crisis manufactured by his own arrogance. And for what? Because he cannot tolerate a Supreme Court that dares to stand in his way? Because he would rather break the system than operate within its rules?
A Political Gamble That Will Backfire
Marcos Jr. is underestimating the Filipino people. He believes that because he controls Congress, he can get away with this abuse of power. But even his allies in government, the business sector, and the military will not sit idly by while he dismantles the state for personal gain.
Shutting down the government is not a show of strength—it is a confession of weakness.
• It exposes Marcos’s desperation as his economic policies crumble.
• It invites public outrage, mass protests, and worker strikes.
• It creates a rift within his own coalition, as lawmakers and local officials scramble to distance themselves from the fallout.
• It pushes the military and police to question their loyalty—because a leader who undermines the Constitution undermines the very institutions that protect him.
History is clear: No Philippine president has ever successfully ruled by force alone. The moment a leader is seen as a liability, even his closest allies will turn on him.
A Crisis That Could Lead to Martial Law
The real danger? Marcos may escalate this crisis into an excuse for martial law. He may claim that without a budget, there is chaos—chaos that only “emergency powers” can solve. But Filipinos have seen this play before. They remember how his father used “emergencies” to cement dictatorship. They remember the consequences of unchecked power.
If Marcos takes this path, he will ignite a battle he cannot win. The people will resist. The courts will fight back. The economy will collapse. And the international community—including longtime allies like the U.S.—will isolate him, cut funding, and slap sanctions on his government.
Marcos Must Be Stopped—Before It’s Too Late
This is not just a budget issue. This is a battle for the soul of the nation. A leader who defies the Constitution, sabotages government services, and threatens democracy itself is unfit to rule.
Filipinos must speak out now—through protests, through mass action, through every legal and democratic means available. Congress must choose between protecting the people or enabling a tyrant. The military and police must decide whether to uphold the Constitution or serve as the enforcers of dictatorship.
If Marcos Jr. proceeds with this reckless, self-serving shutdown, he will not be remembered as a strongman. He will be remembered as the president who gambled with the nation’s future—and lost.
