Nagsalita Nanaman Ang Mga Utak Pulbura! Utak Kudeta! Never Again to Senseless and Self-Aggrandizement Military Adventurism (Coup d’état) Reminiscing the August 1987 Coup d’état Attempt: They were five against 94 rebel soldiers with Armoured Personnel Carrier. Three of the escorts died. One lost an eye and took three bullets. One of the surviving victims who took five bullets in the different part of the body asked himself – why did he survived and those three men did not. The man who actually saved him, Marine Sergeant Samuel Santos drew the fire running away from the victims’ position. He got hit on the thigh, starts a tourniquet and somebody approached him from behind and shoots him in the head. Marine Sergeant Samuel Santos would have celebrated his natal day on August 31, 1987, and the ambush was August 28. His last child was born in September that year, less than a month after he died. Those who died would have not landed in such fate if they were not assigned to the surviving victim. He thought, what is the reason these men lost their lives? Who did they aggrieve? “For the victims, show them sympathy, but those who perpetuated it for selfish gains, I’d be lying if I said I’d forgiven them. At the minimum, I will watch them until the day they cannot inflict the same on anybody else, regardless of my position, whether I’m in public office or civilian side.” –Benigno Simeon C. Aquino, III (severely wounded who took five bullets inflicted in the different parts of his body, one of which is still embedded in his neck). From 1986 to 1987, there were at least six plots to overthrow President Corazon Aquino involving various members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. A significant number of the military participants in these attempts belonged to the Reform the Armed Forces Movement (RAM), while others were identified loyalists of former President Ferdinand Marcos, who had been deposed in the People Power Revolution in February 1986. Two attempts—the November 1986 God Save the Queen Plot and the July 1987 plot—were uncovered and quashed by authorities before they could be operational. The other plots were repelled with little or no violence, the deadliest being the August 1987 coup attempts which left 53 dead. Manila Hotel Plot – July 6, 1986, when some 490 armed soldiers and 15,000 civilians loyal to former President Ferdinand Marcos occupied the Manila Hotel for 37 hours. The Following were the Tumultuous Military Adventurism: 1. God Save the Queen Plot - The Davide Commission concluded that National Defense Secretary Enrile and members of the Reform the Armed Forces Movement (RAM) were behind the plot. Scheduled for 11 November 1986, the plot was discovered by government several days in advance and was deliberately leaked to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, thus thwarting the plan. The government then learnt that the plot was rescheduled for 22 November 1986. On November 22, the military was placed on red alert and the rebel troops were blockaded, leading them to return to barracks. The following day, Aquino announced she had sacked Enrile as Defense Secretary and that she would revamp her Cabinet, to give the government a chance to start all over again. 2. GMA-7 incident - From 27-29 January 1987, around 100 soldiers led by Colonel Oscar Canlas seized the main compound of GMA Network in Quezon City, while other troops attempted in vain to capture Sangley Point Air Force Base in Cavite. One rebel soldier was killed, while 35 people were injured. 3. Black Saturday incident - On Black Saturday 1987 (18 April), 56 rebel soldiers staged a raid on Fort Bonifacio. It was repelled within the morning, with one rebel soldier dead. 4. MIA plot - In July 1987, a plot to stage another coup attempt through a military takeover of the Manila International Airport was uncovered before it could be implemented, with four officers being court-martialled for the plot. 5. August 1987 Coup d’état Attempt - On 28 August 1987, the most serious attempt up to then to overthrow Aquinos government was launched by members of the Reform the Armed Forces Movement led by Colonel Gregorio Honasan, who had been a former top aide of Enrile. In the early morning of the 28th, rebel soldiers launched an attack on Malacañan Palace. The siege was repelled within a few hours, with several military and civilian casualties including Aquinos son, current President Benigno Aquino III, who was wounded. 6. December 1989 coup attempt - December 1989 coup attempt - On 1 December 1989, three rebel T-28D Trojans (Tora-Tora) raked Malacañan Palace with rockets and gunfire. The rebel soldiers wrongly assumed that they achieved air superiority by effectively neutralising the assets of the 5th Fighter Wing of the Philippine Air Force. Rebel soldiers in Mactan successfully trapped most of the F-5s and combat-ready pilots, preventing them from interfering with rebel operations. Meanwhile at Basa Air Base, only three F-5A and an F-5B remained partial mission capability. 7. October 1990 coup attempt - The last coup attempt against President Aquino happened on 4 October 1990, when mutinying soldiers staged a dawn raid on an army base in Mindanao. The seizure lasted for two days, ending with Brigadier General Danilo Lim and 21 others capitulating to the government on 6 October. Research: Dr. Delmar Topinio Taclibon, Bt., DKR, KRSS, BSCE, MBA, Ph.D.D.A., August 3, 2014 References: Esquire, July 2013 Philippine Coup Attempts, The New York TimesPublished: December 1, 1989 The Davide Fact-Finding Commission (1990). The Final Report of the Fact-Finding Commission (pursuant to R.A. No. 6832). Makati City: Bookmark Inc. Major Events in Philippine Coup Attempt, The New York Times, August 29, 1987
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 05:11:32 +0000
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