Bad enough that dynasties rule most localities

Manny Valdehuesa

VIRTUALLY all jurisdictions today—regions/provinces down to barangays—are already controlled by political dynasties. Allow them to gerrymander the districts and subdivide the country into federal states ruled by autocrats, and we court trouble and even secessionist urges.

Under a federal system, will people be empowered? Will leaders share the power they already have, which they’ve enjoyed for so long? Will they let the masses learn to govern themselves?

No way! They will all the more monopolize politics. All the more will they buy votes. And all the more will they amass wealth, buy everything and everyone that money can buy.

They’ll get wealthier. They’ll be greedier. They’ll be more abusive. They’ll enjoy more impunity. And wallow in all the things that power brings.

These abuses are happening even now and no one seems able to do anything about it.

So let’s not play with fire. Let’s not yield to their temptations. Let’s not the trapos control the political system any more than they already do.

Let’s resist their blandishments. Let’s not have them take advantage of our people’s naivete about politics.

After one quarter of a century of struggle to institutionalize what’s supposed to be a democratic system, our society and culture seems locked in a feudal framework. Even in our community or barangay, we act in ignorance about responsible politics, accountability, or the principle of subsidiarity.

We are politically immature. We don’t understand the meaning of citizen sovereignty, of a citizen’s supremacy over mere public servants. We mistake popularity for competence.

We reward success in boxing with a senate seat. We allow our leader to bastardize social values, cursing and name-calling and mocking all that is sacred.

We choose leaders bereft of moral fiber. We let them defy social and moral conventions. And we tolerate their lapses, succumbing to graft and corruption and plunder. Then we spoil them all the more by letting them get away with impunity.

Although we take pride in our educational system and our professional attainments, we seem enslaved by primitive values. Too many of us tolerate abuse or corruption provided we get a share of the returns. There are those who view profligacy in office as a positive virtue in a leader, a desirable trait in a politician.

Our politicians haven’t learned the art and craft of statesmanship, behaving as if there’s no such thing as the Common Good, which must be upheld and promoted with a passion.

And now we let such leaders indulge in a conspiracy to replace a still-to-be-learned local autonomy or self-governance with an even more complicated federal system.

They exploit our society’s weaknesses—and our ignorance about the ways of democracy—and get away with it. We allow ourselves to be the instruments of our society’s bastardization.

Now, as they engage in a conspiracy to replace the unitary system of government with the federal system, we seem at a loss to react.

Will we allow more oligarchs and plutocrats to dominate our society? Will we let them keep a hammerlock on all jurisdictions and all economic resources?

Will we let their corrupt values go viral as never before, all the more causing the decay of Filipino society and culture? It will take generations to reverse or overcome their influence and impact!

(Manny Valdehuesa Jr is former Unesco regional director for Asia-Pacific; secretary-general, Southeast Asia Publishers Association; vice chair, Local Government Academy; and awardee, PPI-Unicef outstanding columnist. Today he is chairman and national convenor of the Gising Barangay Movement Inc.  valdehuesa@gmail.com)