When a person who violated both the law of the land and the moral law, he has also forfeited the moral right to the kind of mourning we reserve for those who have lived ethically. As for Enrile who has been part of corrupt practices and one of the central figures to the implementation of Martial Law that implicated death to thousands of Filipinos, grieving becomes an injustice and moral negligence of those who died due to his actions.
Juan Ponce Enrile, throughout half-century of his political career has treated the political landscape not meant for public service, but a game where he is a political player with viciousness and siding where he benefits and remains in power.
Enrile was one of the chief architects and the administrator of Martial Law, helping Marcos justify its declaration through Enrile’s staged ambush ‘incident’ on his own convoy in 1972. This was used to claim that the country faced communist threats and instability, further enabling the Marcos dictatorship, recording 3,257 documented extrajudicial killings, 35,000 tortured, and 737 disappearances where Enrile was the Defense Secretary who oversaw the Armed Forces at that time.
Enrile benefited from crony capitalism under Marcos. His companies, including San Jose Timber Corporation, controlled massive logging concessions across the forests of Samar and other provinces in Mindanao, while communities that resisted were militarized and red-tagged as communist sympathizers. He also embezzled billions of pesos from coconut farmers in Quezon through the coconut levy funds, with the assistance of Danding Cojuangco.
When the Marcos regime was collapsing under economic crisis, public unrest, and political opposition, Enrile betrayed Marcos driven by self-preservation and political survival as he feared that his loyalty would result in arrest or worse. Therefore, Enrile joined Fidel V. Ramos in order to position himself to be “hero of the revolution”. Clearly, he is an opportunist, switching sides to avoid being on the losing end and to retain influence in the post-Marcos government, even though he had helped implement Martial Law and the repression of thousands of Filipinos.
This was only Manong Johnny’s early days, already revealing a man willing to bend truth, law, and life itself in the name of power.
Enrile would continue his political career and would have no formal prosecutions for him to be held accountable for being one of the key players that resulted in the darkest years of Philippine history of violence and impunity. He would later even be the Senate President.
Enrile's desire is insatiable. In 2013 he was indicted by the Ombudsman and charged with plunder over his alleged role in one of the country’s biggest corruption scandals amounting to ₱10-billion on the Pork Barrel Scam. Where involved lawmakers funneling their PDAF allocations to fake NGOs linked to businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, in exchange for massive kickbacks. The Sandiganbayan found probable cause and issued a warrant of arrest in 2014. Enrile was detained at the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital in Camp Crame due to his age and health condition. Close to finally facing justice, but a year later, the Supreme Court granted his bail on “humanitarian grounds,” despite plunder being a non-bailable offense. And by 2024, Sandiganbayan acquitted Enrile, where sitting justices where Duterte appointees.
Enrile’s legacy is a stark reminder that brilliance without conscience can devastate a nation. Politically cunning and strategically ruthless, he manipulated laws, institutions, and narratives to serve his ambition. From orchestrating Martial Law to exploiting public funds, his actions demonstrate a moral bankruptcy that outlasts his public service. To view him merely as a survivor of politics is to ignore the lives lost, the suffering inflicted, and the communities silenced under his authority. Ethically, history judges him not by longevity in office or titles held, but by the blood and fear he institutionalized.
After a half-century of wielding power, Enrile never accounted for the countless lives he ruined, sending a grim message that only death seems to hold corrupt politicians to justice.
Some defenders argue that Enrile’s later defection from Marcos and participation in the 1986 People Power Revolution demonstrates patriotism or moral awakening. They claim he “helped end a dictatorship” and contributed to restoring democracy. Yet this view crumbles under scrutiny: his betrayal was opportunistic, not principled. He defected not to save the Filipino people, but to save himself, ensuring he would remain a central figure in whatever regime replaced Marcos. One cannot separate the lives destroyed under Martial Law from the convenience of political survival; opportunism cannot erase accountability.
Juan Ponce Enrile’s story is not a tale of heroism but a cautionary tale of unchecked power and impunity. We cannot allow public memory to sanitize the architects of suffering. To mourn or celebrate such figures would be an insult to those who endured torture, displacement, and death. We must confront this history honestly, insist on justice, and guard our institutions so that ambition never again eclipses ethics.
In the ledger of history, Enrile may live long, but no one mourns the wicked — and the people who paid with their lives demand we remember that truth.
Juan Ponce Enrile, throughout half-century of his political career has treated the political landscape not meant for public service, but a game where he is a political player with viciousness and siding where he benefits and remains in power.
Enrile was one of the chief architects and the administrator of Martial Law, helping Marcos justify its declaration through Enrile’s staged ambush ‘incident’ on his own convoy in 1972. This was used to claim that the country faced communist threats and instability, further enabling the Marcos dictatorship, recording 3,257 documented extrajudicial killings, 35,000 tortured, and 737 disappearances where Enrile was the Defense Secretary who oversaw the Armed Forces at that time.
Enrile benefited from crony capitalism under Marcos. His companies, including San Jose Timber Corporation, controlled massive logging concessions across the forests of Samar and other provinces in Mindanao, while communities that resisted were militarized and red-tagged as communist sympathizers. He also embezzled billions of pesos from coconut farmers in Quezon through the coconut levy funds, with the assistance of Danding Cojuangco.
When the Marcos regime was collapsing under economic crisis, public unrest, and political opposition, Enrile betrayed Marcos driven by self-preservation and political survival as he feared that his loyalty would result in arrest or worse. Therefore, Enrile joined Fidel V. Ramos in order to position himself to be “hero of the revolution”. Clearly, he is an opportunist, switching sides to avoid being on the losing end and to retain influence in the post-Marcos government, even though he had helped implement Martial Law and the repression of thousands of Filipinos.
This was only Manong Johnny’s early days, already revealing a man willing to bend truth, law, and life itself in the name of power.
Enrile would continue his political career and would have no formal prosecutions for him to be held accountable for being one of the key players that resulted in the darkest years of Philippine history of violence and impunity. He would later even be the Senate President.
Enrile's desire is insatiable. In 2013 he was indicted by the Ombudsman and charged with plunder over his alleged role in one of the country’s biggest corruption scandals amounting to ₱10-billion on the Pork Barrel Scam. Where involved lawmakers funneling their PDAF allocations to fake NGOs linked to businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, in exchange for massive kickbacks. The Sandiganbayan found probable cause and issued a warrant of arrest in 2014. Enrile was detained at the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital in Camp Crame due to his age and health condition. Close to finally facing justice, but a year later, the Supreme Court granted his bail on “humanitarian grounds,” despite plunder being a non-bailable offense. And by 2024, Sandiganbayan acquitted Enrile, where sitting justices where Duterte appointees.
Enrile’s legacy is a stark reminder that brilliance without conscience can devastate a nation. Politically cunning and strategically ruthless, he manipulated laws, institutions, and narratives to serve his ambition. From orchestrating Martial Law to exploiting public funds, his actions demonstrate a moral bankruptcy that outlasts his public service. To view him merely as a survivor of politics is to ignore the lives lost, the suffering inflicted, and the communities silenced under his authority. Ethically, history judges him not by longevity in office or titles held, but by the blood and fear he institutionalized.
After a half-century of wielding power, Enrile never accounted for the countless lives he ruined, sending a grim message that only death seems to hold corrupt politicians to justice.
Some defenders argue that Enrile’s later defection from Marcos and participation in the 1986 People Power Revolution demonstrates patriotism or moral awakening. They claim he “helped end a dictatorship” and contributed to restoring democracy. Yet this view crumbles under scrutiny: his betrayal was opportunistic, not principled. He defected not to save the Filipino people, but to save himself, ensuring he would remain a central figure in whatever regime replaced Marcos. One cannot separate the lives destroyed under Martial Law from the convenience of political survival; opportunism cannot erase accountability.
Juan Ponce Enrile’s story is not a tale of heroism but a cautionary tale of unchecked power and impunity. We cannot allow public memory to sanitize the architects of suffering. To mourn or celebrate such figures would be an insult to those who endured torture, displacement, and death. We must confront this history honestly, insist on justice, and guard our institutions so that ambition never again eclipses ethics.
In the ledger of history, Enrile may live long, but no one mourns the wicked — and the people who paid with their lives demand we remember that truth.
D
Written by Drew Ezekiel S. Diamsay (DrewnPerspective), Insight PH
Drew Ezekiel S. Diamsay (DrewnPerspective), Insight PH is a dedicated campus journalist and contributor. Their insightful writing sparks meaningful conversations and keeps the community informed.
