Two months ago when there was so much noise over the reassignment of NBI Regional Director Ricardo Diaz to the Central Office Jimenez unceremoniously broke into the fray and had himself repeatedly interviewed lambasting politicians who he said were responsible for the transfer. I don’t know from what planet he comes from but every Filipino knows that in our existing governmental system officials are routinely transferred either as a matter of office program, plan or policy or occasionally indeed at the behest not just of politicians but the constituents themselves or office employees who either like or dislike the management and leadership style of the official involved.

It was nothing, indeed, for someone like Jimenez, the self-imposed crusader against crime, who was thrust into the limelight because criminals snuffed out the life of a relative. It is not clear if after so many years riding on the VACC and the countless exposures in the print and broadcast media he is able to solve just even the death of his own relative, which should perhaps be the gauge of the futility of his continuing exercise in sound and fury signifying what else, but just sound and fury.

But there is no end to the Dante Jimenez show.

Several nights ago, I saw him again on TV talking like the saviour of our people, better than the duly constituted authorities. He wants the army driven out of the Bicol Region! I heard him say that the Army has no business being here because he said it was responsible for a string of human rights violations.
His logic, if it was, jolted me. For if this is the way these vaunted supposed crusaders expect to solve crime and corruption and Jimenez and his group would have their way, assuming there are no sane people in the government, this country would in no time go to the dogs.

Yes, soldiers are not angels; they do commit mistakes. This month, for instance army personnel figured in a shooting scandal right at the PNP station in Naga City and from all appearances the soldiers erred. But let those who commit mistakes face the consequences of their acts. You don’t burn the barn just to kill a mouse. That is basic for people who are reasonable.

Moreover, I thought these VACC people are for our justice system to grind on its course and that they, too, assume that every accused is innocent until proven guilty. But this man Jimenez without anyone yet formally accused, has prejudged the entire army by demanding that they leave outright after so many years that the civilian government requested the expanded presence of the Army here to stabilize the peace and order situation. What can Jimenez do if an unarmed civilian, perhaps, a barangay official is tortured or killed because the Army was not there? Go on television, that’s all he can do.

Yes, I know some military personnel are prone to abuses, especially these so-called CHDF volunteers (Volunteers again?) who are mostly unlettered and insecure and will always promptly cling to the barrel of the gun as a means for survival. But there are many ways of curbing these abuses and excesses and totally driving out the Army is the most pathetic option for any person who is undisturbed by any ulterior motive.

To me, anyone who harbors a sweeping distrust for the Army is anti-government. Nobody can dispute the fact that without the military the government cannot survive even a minute . Is that what Dante Jimenez wants? For if he does not want the Army to be here in Bicol he also does not want them to be anywhere in this country. He wants to get rid of all of them. All perhaps because he wants to look like a knight in shining armor.

By the way, outside of his rhetorics, what have Jimenez and his VACC done about the murder of Bubby Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito who were killed exactly six years ago this month?