The deadline for the filing of Certificate of Candidacy (COC) of those who plan on running for a a government position in the 2019 mid-term elections is Wednesday, October 17th, 2018. Several high-profile individuals, rookies and veterans in the political playground, have already filed their COC’s in the past week. It is expected the a number of other individuals are set to submit their copies at the last minute.
The actual filing of COC’s itself is an unremarkable activity, as it simply involves the would-be candidate handing over several sheets of documents to a Commission on Elections (COMELEC) official. This is no different from literally anyone handing over, say, a deposit form at the bank to the bank teller, who then processes it for the transaction to be complete. And yet, despite the boring nature of COC submission, Filipino politicians have managed to turn it into a circus. Yes, a routine task becomes a variety show on TV, complete with supporters and fans screaming their candidate’s name, chanting their slogan, that sort of thing.
To be clear, there’s nothing wrong with asking supporters for their, uhh, support. That’s why they exist. Obviously, without supporters, no one would vote for you. But, as with many other things, we tend to overdo this show of support, to the point that it inconveniences others. Last night, I heard on the radio that there will be traffic rerouting the following day in some areas of Iloilo City to make way for a local politician’s convoy en route to the COMELEC office, where said politician and politician’s allies are set to file their COC’s. The common citizen has to adjust to accommodate something that really isn’t necessary. Okay.
This is the circa 2012 ultra-naive, idealistic version of me speaking, but if you’re really trying to make a change for the better, as you so consistently say on interviews with the media, politicians don’t need to drum up the hype machine. Your achievements should speak for you. But alas, the reality of it all is that, politics is a dirty, dirty game that punishes good guys and favors those willing to cross lines of morality.
Unfortunately, this notion has already been accepted by the general masses and is considered a normal way of life. You can see it everywhere, from the lowest government position (barangay captain) to the highest (president). Blind loyalty prevails, and some supporters are willing to kill (literally) in the name of whoever they have their allegiance to, even if the politician is obviously skirting the law. Consider even the little things — during elections, vote-buying is rampant, and even though people know this is illegal, they still accept it as “normal” and turn a blind eye instead of ratting whoever is doing this out to COMELEC. Why? Because the PhP 500, which isn’t much a big deal to the deep-pocketed politician, meets the voter’s immediate need. They pawn the future to address the present.
We can’t put the entirety of the blame on people who sell their votes. They find it hard to think long-term if their survival is on a day-to-day basis. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the unemployment rate for 2017 is at 5.6%, while the underemployment rate is at 16.3%. There are people who have no guarantee they will have money for food on a given day, so any reprieve they might get (insta-money like the lotto or money from vote-buying), they will take.
There is no easy, single solution for this, but the biggest factor that could sway things for the better is education. Educate people on the long-term effect of their actions, as well as the benefits of voting wisely, and maybe they can be convinced to end blind loyalty to those who give them quick but temporary relief. This still doesn’t address the root for which the blind loyalty comes from. I am definitely no expert in economics and am not going to pretend I know how end unemployment and meeting the daily needs of the poor. What I do know is that we who are fortunate enough should do our part to make sure that politicians who leech off on the ignorance of others would never step foot in a government office again.
Exercise our right to vote and don’t fall on the lazy “bahala na”, “they’re all the same” attitude. Nobody is perfect for sure, competence doesn’t necessarily equate to perfection. However, that’s not an excuse to not do your homework and check out the achievements of the candidates who are running. If they all they do is look good on TV and speak all the right words — and they tend to speak a lot of “right words” — but have an unremarkable track record, I would do a double take before writing his name on the ballot.
One thing to look out for is the politician’s beliefs, positions on socioeconomic issues and ideals. They might contradict with the words that come out of their mouths when doing public interviews. Remember, these beliefs, positions and ideals are where they base their policies, and in the case of legislators, the bills that they propose and pass. You can argue that beliefs are personal, but they play an important role in how a politician goes about his business in office. I can’t imagine what would happen if a person with misogynistic views would ever win a seat in the govern…… oh wait. I can. And it’s not pretty.
This battle cry is corny as hell, but we need to keep on saying it so it sticks in our head: vote wisely. Think, research, do your homework. Do not be swayed with words. Words are easy to say; backing them up is a totally different thing. We cannot allow the same old corrupt individuals to stay in the government because the cycle will go on and on and on, with those in power the only ones truly benefiting. This, uhh, this sort of reminds of that one line from Game of Thrones.
Daenerys Targaryen said,
“Lannister, Baratheon, Stark, Tyrell, they’re all just spokes on a wheel. This one’s on top and that one’s on top and on and on it spins, crushing those on the ground. We’re not going to stop the wheel. I’m going to break the wheel.”
We might not have three (okay fine, two) giant fire-breathing dragons on our side, but we can destroy the aforementioned metaphorical wheel the Mother of Dragons spoke of. We can do this buy voting the right people and not settling into votes out of convenience or gratitude to a politician.
But please don’t go screaming “DRACARYS” while casting votes.
patrickkennan.com 