Thursday, February 14, 2008

Maybe because of the Lozada factor?

I myself remembered a fundamental truth about courage. Which is that courage is not the absence of fear. It is the presence of fear, often a most crippling one, but a fear that is overcome by a heroic act of will, or by the recognition that one has no choice but to do what is right. That is what Rodolfo Lozada has done.
- Condrado De Quiros
When I was young, my father ran for councilor in a small town where our surname was a household name. My fondest memories are of those when we visit the "barrio" and it would seem like major celebrities just paid them a visit. During that certain election year, I vividly remember parading around our green beat-up Volkswagen and giving out candies and hand-printed flyers. My father had the slogan "Maka-Diyos, Maka-Tao" and it was cool for me back then because it rhymed with our family name. So I kept on shouting it when we do little political soirées at the town plaza.

My father didn't have stickers, large banners and fancy gimmicks. He rode the carabao and went house to house. We were almost certain he would win. My clan owned more than half of the land there, most people were indebted to my Lolo and Lola, and most of all, people liked him because he is sincere and hardworking. But then he lost.

There were talks of cheating, but my father accepted the defeat. He was told to run again in the next election, but he didn't. He never ran ever again. Years later, I would learn that the people my father expected to vote for him were bought by the other inept candidates for a measly P20.00. It was my first taste of how politics can be.

So I think I acquired an unconscious political phobia. In school, I disliked the mere mention of my name in class election nominations. I never voted for myself either. When I win, I sulk then I do a lousy job. I'm so weird. It's the notion that I won because somehow I cheated with having more friends in the classroom, or my mother donating the new curtains, or being the teacher's pet, or simply because most of the kids were afraid of me (I was a big girl afterall). It just stuck on my mind that winning in an election constitutes cheating and we eventually elect inept individuals.

I look at Jun Lozada now, with the people dragged in this controversy and the many controversies before that, and cannot help but to think if I'm right? And because I have too much time on my hands, I was able to watch the senate probe on Lozada's alleged kidnapping. I look at the pool of the senators and some of them ask funny, inappropriate, and almost stupid unrelated questions. I look at the slew of government officers being dragged in controversies one after the other, as if it was another day at the office. I wonder how many of our government officials actually do their work?

School days suddenly remembered. Did we vote for a certain person because he was a friend? He was good-looking? He was an award-winning actor? Paid us P500? Donated curtains?

Looking at the government that we have now, I ask a question: have we failed, then?


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13 comments:

Lei_SATG said...

unlikely comeback post, i know. but i forgot to greet everyone happy new year :)

Lei_SATG said...

okay. it's already happy valentine's. lol :)

{illyria} said...

ahhh, yes. politics. it's that way even in the barrios. my grandfather lost to a doctor who paid P50 bucks to the voting public. that was for governor.

(and oh, you've been missed! :))

Lei_SATG said...

{i} kind of sad, isn't it? and oh, i miss reading your blog. heading over there right now :)

Anonymous said...

OMG, OMG.... you updated! Wow. Belated Happy Hearts Day! I've missed your stuff.

BTW, I updated yesterday, right after your comment which is one of 4 comments that prompted/inspired me to write yesterday. Thank you for the wake-up call. And I quoted your comment, too... in the entry. :)

OK, don't disappear for a long time again. Try to write at least once a month!

Lei_SATG said...

massa p really im back for good! lol^^ glad ur back too. belated happy bday! :)

Cordillera Blogger said...

btw,I'll link you up...I'm fond of blogs from the Cordi etc

Cordillera Blogger said...

nice to see former campus journalists around the blogosphere...

Mark Xander said...

Wow. I missed you. Awe, dirty politics.. Would never run for anything in the government, Lei. LOL. Would you? :)

Lei_SATG said...

mojo potato oh how did you know i was a campus journalist? yeah sure link me up :) i'm still trying to fix everything here bec my template before exceeded bandwidth. blah.

thanks for dropping by!

mark no, i guess. but you know, a few years ago, i began fantasizing becoming a senator! haha! so weird!

Anonymous said...

Welcome back! Missed your blog, miss you.

To answer your question, yes we have failed. The Philippines is a failed state. But of course there is hope.

Intelligent girl, google Nick Perlas, Pag-Asa Workshops, CADI, then let me show you how we can turn things around for this country ... seriously! It has started already in Baguio ...

Nick Ballesteros said...

Lei: sa Baguio pa lang nga, tingnan mo na. Do you have news about what happened to the new cars that were supposedly being bought for the officials there? Di ko na nasundan. pero ang kapal naman nung nag-suggest nun di ba, because Baguio will benefit more with other projects like new and better garbage collection service.

Kaya we really have to be more vigilant than ever, and also not depend everything on these people. Let's take action.

O ha. Rally na ba ito? hehe

Lei_SATG said...

lisa whoa! how badass is that?! i also read that in your site. i was like "sayang!"... that seminar should be mandated for everybody! like when Filipinos turn 18 or something. lol^^

would love to join in the next one :) i miss atenara. and bentley!

watson ooh i heard about this one, but i wasn't able to get details. the pressing issue nowadays is TFI (tuition fee increase). for the nth time!

yes, we certainly should take action. awareness is a good start. baguio needs so much restoration. good point on the garbage collection service. but i guess the city officials are now directing all their energies and efforts in building new flyovers. its becoming an obsession i tell you.