The race begins

Ever since Comelec announced that the elections would be pushing through in May 2019 as scheduled – candidates have been scurrying to throw their hats into the ring. Filing of candidacy began last week and we have a new crop of senators, congressmen, governors, and more gearing up to either win a seat of power or retain their seat of power.

You’d think we’d be used to this circus by now. And I suppose in a way we are since so many of our voters are already numb to the whole process. I believe the term in Filipino is “manhid.” But there are still some that are fortunately (or should I say unfortunately) hopeful whenever elections come around. They believe that perhaps this time they can make a difference and vote for candidates who are truly going to serve the people and make the Philippines a better place.

I find myself somewhere in the middle of hopeful optimism and cynical indifference. As always, I will exercise my right to vote. I believe we have to try at the very least – and I don’t think we have the right to complain if we don’t do our civic duty. But I have to admit that while I plan on doing my part – I am also quite jaded by the way so many elections have turned out in the past. It just always seems to be more and more of the same.

At the beginning, it’s a huge multi-colored sensorial spectacle. Candidates make their way to filing with their entourage in tow and try to get whatever coverage they can to give them a head start in getting their name out there. Usually at this point the media likes covering the strange and almost comical would-be politicians who have crazy ideas and make for great front-page stories. These ones get the attention because they are funny, and unique, and make for good TV – even though we know they don’t have snowball’s chance.

Then as the grand façade is trying to keep us distracted, we have the scarier stories of violence and threats looming over candidates in more sensitive areas in the back alleys and provinces where politics has become a real-life Game of Thrones. Who can forget the horrible Maguindanao massacre that took place simply to stop one family for filing for a local government post that the other political family wanted to keep for themselves. Over 58 people died in that terrible assault and that is the probably the only reason why we even heard about it. Imagine all the one-hit targets that happen to political rivals and aspirants every day that we aren’t privy too. In many provincial locales – the easiest way to beat an opponent is by getting rid of them permanently.

This should not be the case, but it’s always more of the same when it comes to Philippine politics. If you break down the job to its core it seems crazy that people are killing one another or spending millions of pesos to be “civil servants.” This is already the biggest clue – and there are so many more – that politics is not about serving the Filipino people but about gaining wealth and power. That is why the position is so tempting enough as to drive someone to kill someone else who they perceive to be standing in their way.

After the filing the next phase of the familiar story begins. As we go along those crazy candidates or “nuisance” candidates as they are often called are weeded out or forced to back out due to lack of funding. This makes way for the usual suspects to sprint for the coveted finish line. And this is where things always end up the same. We usually have the same names and faces vying for the public’s votes and at the end of the day – they usually get them and cling on to their positions for another sought after term.

I can definitely understand why a lot of older voters are feeling skeptical about the elections. As time goes by and you see the same thing continuously happen you tend to ask yourself if it’s even worth the time to go register and eventually vote when nothing ever seems to change. After all, despite the president’s promise to stamp out corruption, nothing has changed at all. In fact – it’s even worse if that’s possible.

But at the same time the lack of hope for real positive change shouldn’t deter us from doing our part. As they always say – each vote counts – and while it might seem like your one vote isn’t going to do anything against say, 16M, we still have to try. Because we have to believe that things can change. If we no longer even feel the need to try that will be the day we truly give up on our country ever improving.

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We must remain vigilant and careful in the coming months. As I mentioned above, election season is often marred by violence, which can easily spillover to innocent bystanders or to people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. These next few months will be even more dangerous because the holidays are approaching and while the holidays should be times of fun and joy they are also times of danger as crime rates begin exponentially increasing.

I also don’t think I’m off base to say this particular holiday season is going to be much more dangerous than those of previous years. With the way things have been going in the country – prices soaring through the roof and so many people being unable to afford even the basic necessities much less the extras they like to indulge in during the festive season – it’s set the stage for an increase in crime. In many cases (as has happened in the past) – this inability to buy essentials or barely anything at all leads to fear and anger and eventually desperation, which then drives citizens to crime.

In fact, I’ve read that crime rates have already reportedly increased and it’s only October. We need to remember to stay safe, keep our doors locked literally and figuratively, and hope that somehow things will get better.