“Is the President a virtual dictator?”
In his column “To the Point” posted in The Manila Standard on Oct. 24, 2013, this is the question that reputable columnist writer Emil Jurado posts to the Filipino people.
Jurado then proceeds to add salient points;
“President Aquino appears to be a virtual dictator, having both the Senate and the House of Representatives, and now the Judiciary, under his control. With the House of Representatives ruled by the administration majority under Speaker Sonny Belmonte, and Senate President Frank Drilon acting like an extension of Malacañang protecting the President from allegations of abuse and misuse of public funds, with the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, and with most junior anti-graft court Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang as Presiding Justice of Sandiganbayan, the President now appears to rule over the three branches of government.”