How can we put an end to oligarchic rule in our country?

Armando Tavera, Las Piñas City: I don’t think we can put an end to oligarchic rule. If we really want this stopped, serious changes must be made to counter the power of money.  

Lorenzo A. Fernandez Jr., Cabanatuan City: Oligarchic rule or not, it’s all the same banana as long as we do nothing. Tulog na hipon ang karamihan sa atin at naghihintay lang ng grasya tuwing eleksyon.  

Only a revolution can change us

Jim Veneracion, Naga City: Based on history, only a Communist-inspired proletarian revolution can obliterate the oligarchs in this country. An oligarchy thrives in a democracy.  

Felix Ramento, Metro Manila: Let’s elect Satur Ocampo as President and let’s see how the filthy rich will scamper out of the country. But that’s not a good idea. Wait na lang tayo ng magandang pagkakataon.  

Manuel Abejero, Pangasinan: We are a nation of cowards and servants and corrupt officials and dynasties. Only a civil war can change RP into a progressive nation. Huwag lang makialam si Uncle Sam.  

Rodolfo Talledo, Angeles City: It’s a long shot and only feasible if there’s a radical overhaul of our society, our way of thinking, our aspirations, and mythology in life.  

We need divine intervention

Pedro Alagano Sr., Vigan City: Due to poverty aggravated by our false sense of democracy, we need divine intervention to cleanse our land of corrupt elite spirits.  

We have to act now

C.B.Manalastas, Manila: I don’t foresee an end to oligarchic rule within this generation unless our people act now. Panahon pa ng Kastila, nandiyan na ang mga iyan.  

Ruben Viray, Metro Manila: We can put an end to this kind of rule by not patronizing oligarchs in the coming elections. Sure, they are big contributors to our society with their businesses and they lower unemployment in our country, but some of them have been enriching only themselves, their kin and associates at the expense of the Filipino people. I believe that their rule in the country is now nearing its end. The entire voting population should now combine forces to make this happen. The time of awakening is now.  

We must first find our identity

Ruel Bautista, Laguna: We’ve been colonized and influenced by foreign cultures, and this has made us lose our identity. Finding it is a good start to end oligarchic rule.  

Norberto Robles, Taguig: The best we can hope for is the emergence of a discerning populace capable of loosening the stranglehold of entrenched oligarchs on the nation’s resources.  

We have to vote wisely

Lydia Reyes, Bataan: It’s the electorate that should put an end to this. Think seriously, especially so kung dynasty na magkakamag-anak na ang tumatakbo.  

Dennis Montealto, Mandaluyong City: Simple. Don’t elect old political families and emerging new dynasties into public office. These oligarchs should stop thinking that it is their birthright to rule this country just because.  

Lolong Rejano, Marinduque: Sacrifice, sacrifice, and sacrifice. These simple words I use in my advocacy to put an end to oligarchic rule in our country should be taken seriously by our kababayan. In the coming elections, don’t vote for any of the candidates with sustained infomercials. That’s it. Money coming from oligarchs is the root of evil, both in the public and private sectors. They are maniacs who only care for their wealth and business interests, no matter how evil society would become. Oligarchs make use of politicians, people in government, and even officers in the military to rule and get what they want. Are we ready to sacrifice money from dignity and soul?  

Col. Ben Paguirigan Jr., Ret., Zamboanga City: We can put an end to their rule if voters do not vote for them. Educated voters can take a stand but will poor voters resist financial assistance?  

Louella Brown, Baguio City: We can put an end to oligarchic rule in our country if we elect candidates whose interest is national, not personal.  

Yes, through electoral reform

Ric Vergara, Calamba City: I maintain that the restoration of the two-party system will improve the quality of our leaders.  

Robert Young Jr., San Juan: The government has always been under the control of a few persons in a dominant class or clique. The main reason may be because of the way officials are elected. You need to be rich to be able to afford to run for election. Wealth begets power and power begets wealth. Laws have been passed to limit the term of incumbents but they have a way of circumventing it by asking their wife or relatives to sit for a term and they come back again. It has become a vicious cycle. How do we put an end to it? First, revert to the two-party system to give qualified but poor candidates the opportunity to run. Craft a better anti-dynasty law. Computerize elections and clean up the list of voters. The corrupt must be prosecuted. The next may be controversial, but we should allow only the literate with legal addresses to exercise the right of suffrage. The swing votes of the illiterate often determines who get elected; they elect movie and sports personalities, incompetent people that become inutile in the House, or corrupt officials who drain government coffers dry.  

Ricardo Tolentino, Laoag City: When political campaigns come cheap and require no contribution from the rich, that’s the only time we can say that we can be free from oligarchs.  

The BIR must step in

Jun Sevilla, Quezon City: If the BIR would screen, identify, and tax all political contributions, oligarchic rule will be minimized. That was how Mark Jimenez was jailed in the US.  

Tall order

Rey Ibalan, Antipolo City: Our patronage system of politics will never put an end to oligarchic rule in our country.  

Miguelito Herrera, Cabanatuan City: There is no end to oligarchic rule in our country. It is no secret that even our bishops acknowledge them as big donors to church projects and that every election time, they play an important role in supporting politicians. The Filipino people, unfortunately, have been inured to such promises mouthed by oligarchs.  

Cris Rivera, Rizal: How can we? Our Congress has no guts; it is blind, mute, and deaf. It doesn’t care about having an oligarchic government and is afraid of changes. So are we.  

Leonard Villa, Batac City: Poor people who constitute the majority can’t win over the minority elite and this constitutes oligarchic rule forever. Feudalism can never be uprooted.  

Gerii Calupitan, Muntinlupa City: Oligarchic rule in RP will never end as long as the chosen few control the earth’s riches. Would the rich let power slip away from their grip that easily? We were conditioned to accept the myth that we cannot exist without their control. FM instilled fear in our minds that up to now, 50 per cent of Pinoys want him back! All that took place in just 20 years; what more with oligarchs who have been in power since the Spanish era? Malabo na’ng mawala pa ‘yun!  

Richard Decena, Quezon City: Nothing can put an end to oligarchic rule dahil hawak ng oligarchs sa ilong ang mga government leaders na dapat ay kapakanan ng mamamayan ang iniisip.  

Ernesto Oliquiano, Las Piñas City: Putting an end to oligarchic rule in our country is a tall order for everyone. It has been with us for more than 300 years. During the Spanish period, the insulares ruled over the indios. When we finally achieved our freedom, succeeding administrations, from Quezon down to the present administration, the insulares or oligarchs continued to rule over the indios or the common masses. The root cause of all these? Poverty. When you’re poor, you can’t get good and proper education. When you’re uneducated, you remain poor. But I do believe that all is not lost. Education is the key. With a good education, we can be sure that the next generation will grow up to be responsible, honest and respectable leaders of our country. It is a tall order but with diligence, patience and a lot of prayers, we can achieve this, if not in our time, maybe in the next generation.  

Better leaders will make a difference

Rey Onate, Palayan City: I believe that oligarchic rule can only be ended when Filipinos are united, organized and enlightened. Such unity will happen only if true, honest, patriotic, and committed leaders are elected. That is a quest that must happen in the next election. If it does not come, I dread the day that this country will become a failed state suffering a fate similar to that of Haiti and Somalia. In my own small way I do some informal lectures to emphasize the importance of being an intelligent and responsible voter.  

Elizabeth Oximer, Negros Occidental: Not in my lifetime, sad to say. I pray that our country will be blessed with public officials who will make a difference.  

Let’s not confuse power with evil

Juan Deveraturda, Subic, Zambales: With all due respect, the question should be why should we put an end to oligarchic rule? Are the wealth, power, influence, and business of oligarchic families in the country not helping the nation attain prosperity? If the answer is they aren’t, then let’s put an end to it. If they are, then let’s forget about the question being profound today.  

Grace Patricia Yap, Metro Manila: What the heck is an oligarch? In my study of Philippine history, the term was used to describe almost anyone: The academic elite, the junta, the judiciary, technocrats, businessmen, and almost anybody in a position of whatever form of power. Let us not create class conflict by speaking generalities here. Let’s talk about specifics, like thieves, economic saboteurs, turncoats, and so on. Those can be persecuted. While justice is ideally blind to economic distinctions, we can always find that the way our legal mechanisms sometimes work seems to be antithetical to our own personal ethical definitions of what is just. This may be most especially true when we hear about alleged cabals of businessmen conspiring to cheat or steal from either the consuming public or the public coffers, hence making it easy for the public to label them as oligarchs. I find this label uniquely Filipino in both form and fashionable definition. And though its synonyms are varied, it never fails to fire up an image of an Oppressive Rich Bastard/Bitch With No Morals. There lies my problem: We confuse power with evil, and all too quickly mistake retribution for justice. By narrowing the “oligarch” label to a certain economic class, we all too quickly forget the lessons of the past. In Indonesia, the Chinese were massacred; in Germany, the Jews were slaughtered; in Russia, the pogroms of kulaks; and yes, it happened even in the Philippines in the 17 and 18th century.  

Some prefer the status quo

Renato Taylan, Ilocos Norte: People aren’t really powerless. It’s their choice not to mind concerns about the decadence of government if they are still quite comfortable.  

End political patronage and dynasties

Janet Lopez, Manila: As an example, the Cojuangcos have had representation since the 1900s. Their split, in fact, strengthens them, assuring them of fielding multiple candidates.  

L.C. Fiel, Quezon City: The few who have taken control of our nation are from old moneyed families, which are captains of industry and commerce. If we really want to assert our power, then let us unite first as a people. Paano nga naman tayo makakalas sa tanikala kung hindi nagkakaisa?  

Ishmael Q. Calata, Parañaque City: Put an end to two things and oligarchic rule in our land may end: Political patronage and political dynasty. On the first, the moneyed class in our society, most of whom are in big business, gamble on the candidacy of politicians with the end in view that they will benefit from it when their candidates win. They are not only untouchables but are also feared for their influence on politicians. On the second, power resides in a big-time politician and when he gathers the popularity, he first seeks and then the wealth he accumulates in office to merit being an oligarch himself, he gets his wife, children and relatives into the political playing field until all are in it at the same time! One at a time may be considered. All these could be stopped by legislation, but the legislature is replete with politicians involved in these two. Will they legislate against these practices? The only immediate hope lies in our electorate. We should not vote for politicians engaged in such known nefarious practices.  

Dennis Acop, Benguet: How did David slay Goliath? It’s a truly uphill climb. Just look all around you. The same few families have pretty much ruled big chunks of this country for generations. A patriarch maximizes his three terms as senator, congressman, governor, or mayor. Then the matriarch takes over or occupies another post simultaneously. When either or both are maxed out, a son or daughter takes over. It just goes on and on. What a familiar story of selfishness! Except that this family affair is a throwback to feudal times and a major hindrance to development. Oligarchies are monopolies. They keep the national wealth in the hands of a few who use their riches precisely to preserve the status quo, which naturally benefit them. Elite interests are therefore synonymous with political power and economic monopolies. No matter how the elite portray themselves as representing the interest of the masses, such representations are simply insincere unless they unselfishly step aside and allow the ranks of the long-deprived middle and lower classes to step in.  

Change the way our government works

Benjamin Nillo, Las Piñas City: Oligarchic rule will continue as long as we have the same type of government as we have now.  

Johann Lucas, Quezon City: Unless we reorient our government by grounding it on the democratic imperative to respect, protect, and provide for our human rights, we shamefully dignify the doubts that bothered Rizal more than a century ago.  

Lucas Banzon Madamba II, USA: We can put an end to oligarchic rule in our country if the government would adhere to and exercise proper democratic principles, functions, perspectives and freedom. As former US President Thomas Jefferson once said, “Human freedom is needed for human progress.”    

Leandro Tolentino, Batangas City: An immediate shift to a parliamentary form of government via Constitutional reforms might be needed to put an end to oligarchic rule in the country.  

A dictatorship can stand up to oligarchs

Germi Sison, Cabanatuan City: Oligarchs have been the bane of society since the start of human civilization, when the wealthy and powerful exploited the weak and the meek to further their own selfish interests. In the Philippine setting today, an oligarch is a political godfather, a group, or a family dynasty that supports politicians who will serve them when they win the election. The most difficult to contain are the taipans who support rival candidates, so whoever wins, they also win. Drug lords, gambling lords and all kinds of lords in the underworld are oligarchs as politicians approach them for support with the understanding they will be supported, too, in return. Only a dictatorship can put an end to oligarchic rule, as Marcos did, but who the hell would want a dictatorship?  

Rochelle Sy Chua, Manila: I actually agree that a dictatorship is the way to go for the Philippines to succeed, just like what China did. Look at them now.  

We have to put up a fight

Elpidio Que, Vigan: There are just a few oligarchs ruling our country, as even Chief Justice Rey Puno declared in his speech for his Moral Force Movement a few months ago. We must not be mere fence-sitters in this evil, because by being so, these hordes of the devil would go on widening the gap between us and the ruling class. They thrive in their bestial trade because of the corruptibility of the honorable in all three branches of government. We need to heed what Henry Thoreau said, that dissent without action is consent. In my own way, I am presently in an uphill battle of causing the concerned honorable in the government, local and national, to duly act on what I exposed as an ex-insider on the foul practices of a taipan. With the coming elections, we need to scrutinize who among the candidates, from the presidential down to mayoral level, are corrupted by these oligarchs. These should be junked in the ballots.  

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