Will history repeat itself?

THERE is a rising concern in the social media, so far unshared by the mainstream, that the government could implode because of an enormous combination of grievous domestic and external political problems. We have a looming proxy war with China caused by our blind support for the US in its global competition with Beijing, with whom we have a territorial dispute in the South China Sea. Meanwhile, the administration's promise of redemption from our dark past may have turned into a nightmare to many Filipinos.

A number of active and retired military and police officers, including some of three-stars' rank, have issued online manifestos complaining of the government's mishandling of its territorial and maritime dispute with China, of unchecked official corruption and other major ills that can only be explained by a "lack or absence of political leadership." Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. has had to acknowledge certain destabilization efforts by unnamed elements in the service, and the President and Commander-in-Chief had to regularly meet with his troops in camp to admonish them to remain "vigilant" and loyal to the Republic. Yet the problem remains.