Despite the success in quelling the attempted take-over of the government by the group of Antonio Trillanes IV and General Lim, the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is seething with anger at media. Because of the presence of media around Trillanes and Lim, the present administration failed to eliminate the two, thereby failing to totally eradicate the threat of the same incident from happening again. 

Members of the media are wondering why they were arrested as had never happened in the history of numerous coups and rebellions in the country.

Like all animals, people are made to do or not to do an act through the system of reward and punishment. We reward the good deeds to further encourage the doer to continue doing good while punish the evil doers for the evil deeds to deter the latter from doing evil.

The reward may not always be in the form of money or other tangible objects. Sometimes, the value of the reward is not as important as the idea of the reward itself. In the novel Bulaklak ng City Jail (Lualhati Bautista), jail guards received five pesos or a stick of cigarette from prisoners in exchange for favors. Sometimes, the happy feeling or satisfaction derived from the commission of the act is enough reward or incentive.

Those who obey orders for, and do things that advance, the interest of the government are rewarded. She rewarded promotions to the Generals involved in the rigging of the 2004 national elections, popularly known as the Hello Garci controversy. Jocjoc Bolante, who is wanted for his participation in the fertilizer scam and Lintang Bidol, who is also wanted by the Comelec for his to shed light on the 2007 election controversy in Mindanao, were given the cloak of invisibility. Otherwise, they should have been in jail.

The administration has palabra de honor. When she promises, consider it done. Thus, she enjoys loyalty form her people. She lives her creed. No wonder why her general imitate her. A general promised the Manila Peninsula incident would be over within the day, so it was.

Thus, the members of the media were arrested and herded into a police van yesterday. The government was punishing the act of the media in disobeying the order to desert the hotel which would result in the abandonment of Antonio Trillanes IV and General Lim and others. The government intended that the media suffer all the inconveniences and all the hardships there were so that they would learn their lesson and next time, when the government says leave those persons behind, media should leave them.

I remember an incident that happened in an airport tower here in Manila. The man took over an airport control tower to air his grievance and expose corruption in the government. He was being interviewed by a radio station, when suddenly, he was no longer on the phone. What happened was, while he was talking on the phone, the SWAT team assaulted the tower and murdered the man. It was a strong message to the world never take over an airport tower again, or die.

The administration does reward those who obey orders for, and do things that advance, her interest and punish those who do otherwise. Unfortunately for many, disappearance or death was their punishment. I am referring to the activists who were kidnapped and those who were executed.

The same fate (execution) should have met Antonio Trillanes and General Lim had the media left them. Damn the media.

But the government did not give up the goal of terminating the two easily. Even after the declaration of surrender, they kept throwing cans of tear gass in the lobby of the hotel thereby reducing visibility. The move to move out of the building after the tear gas had cleared save them not only their tears but also and most importantly, the lives of Trillanes and Lim.

Of course, who will ever forget that Madam Gloria reached the summit of the ladder of political success through people power? Trillanes and Lim or those they represent would like to reach the same summit by climbing the same ladder. Unfortunately for them, Gloria knows the way and how to block it. So, while the two and their cohorts were in the act of climbing the ladder, Gloria kicked it away. They fell stumbling on the ground. Hurt – but not dead. Thanks to the Media.