Reject governors' and mayors' enticements

There are times in the lives of Filipinos when they just follow the trend and just go along with the flow of the many. In politics, everywhere else in the Philippines, voters just follow what the mayors and governors put in the sample ballots. But not Cebuanos. They support a good governor and a good mayor, but they choose their own president. Cebuanos are not blind fanatics. I hope other Filipinos are the same.

This coming May 2022, is such a time for our countrymen to think for themselves. They should vote not as Cebuanos, Ilocanos, Capampangans, Ilonggos, Warays, or Bicolanos, but as one nation facing tremendous problems. We should think not as loyalists of certain candidates or of some political dynasties. We should think of our nation and its many challenges, from the need to improve our pandemic responses and how to resuscitate the devastated economy to foreign relations, and the protection of our territorial integrity. We need to be mindful of the many pressing concerns, from food security, rising poverty, unemployment to disaster preparedness.

We should think of the candidates' competence, character, and their readiness to resolve the problems and bring back hope to a demoralized citizenry. We should reject what our local politicians are carrying as their chosen presidential bets. We should not remain as blind followers who swallow hook, line, and sinker whatever the governor and the mayor tell us. This is about our own destiny as a people. This is about the future of our children, the welfare of our people and the well-being of 112 million Filipinos. This is not about loyalty to our local politicians. We should stand on our own principles, consult our own conscience, and reject the dictates of our local trapos.

Governors and mayors receive truckloads of money from presidential candidates, from partylist aspirants, from senatorial bets, and others even from foreign local and foreign investors who have businesses and other vested interests in their provinces, cities, and towns. These local politicians are using the people to amass a lot of money during presidential polls like what we are holding next year. That is why we should reject the candidates they are forcing down our throats, especially those with issues about drugs, tax evasion, incompetence, unexplained wealth, and a history of corruption and vested interests.

These local politicians may be good as local government leaders, and they must have excellent track records in public service. We may have to support them for lack of better alternatives. But if they use their own merits in order to promote the political agenda of national candidates who are shady characters and have very bad or questionable track records, we should not follow their imposition. We should think for ourselves and refuse to be herded like meek lambs. We have our own brains, our own conscience, and our own free will. We are not robots or unthinking fanatics. This is about our own country, our own future.

At the end of the day, these governors and mayors cannot help us cope with our daily needs. They just throw people a few sardines and some kilos of rice, once in a while, and hand out a few hundreds to buy our votes. But they received truckloads of cash from incompetent but wealthy candidates for presidents and senators. Let us, for once, think for ourselves and refuse to be used.