Student-Politicians. Pffft.

At around this time every year, students aspiring to be elected into their respective student councils are busy trying to convince schoolmates why they deserve to be voted. Of course, one effective way to woo the crowd is to embellish speeches with words like “service“, “integrity“, “hard-working“, et cetera. These speeches are not unlike the crap politicians say during election period. Well, these students are politicians, albeit on a smaller scale.

I respect their desire to “serve” their fellow students. I am, however, not a fan of how they put said service into action. Politics? Eww. I guess it’s a must that people run for office. Otherwise, the system won’t work, right? I mean, there wouldn’t be a council if nobody wanted to be a part of it. So, yes, kiddies, run for office, if you must. That’s the essence of democracy.

What I don’t get, though, is the need to stoop down to the level of trapos. My Facebook and Twitter timelines are filled with photos of candidates captioned with every good aspect of said person’s existence. Okay, we get it, you’re a leader, you’ve done this, you’ve done that, blah blah blah. If you’re so good, why take thinly veiled jabs at the opponent? “Marami nga namang sinalihang org, wala namang integrity.” Really? Is that really necessary? You’ve listed every single accomplishment you’ve… uhh…accomplished since you were an embryo. Your list of achievements is longer than all your classmates’ combined. Why is there a need to tarnish the name of your opponent and his/her party? Is it because he/she’s as good, if not better than you? Isn’t that what’s ideal? Let the best man/woman win? Ya know, a lot of people are very helpful towards others without yacking up repetitive words and redundant promises. Doctors, firemen, electricians, even band dudes simply do what they need to do. No more, “hey, I’m better than that other guy, so pick me to help with whatever it is that needs helping”.

After being fed idealistic nonsense in Political Science classes, I’ve had this vision of an anarchic society where everyone is living in harmony without the need of a central, authoritative figure that governs over all. LOL, we all know that’s not happening. Not in Philippine society, and definitely not within school walls. So there’s that.