A bad national habit
Nowadays we are beginning to get a glimpse of people who intend to run for high political posts come 2010. They appear ready to lead and govern this country to greatness. On the one hand, some politicians posed as product endorsers on television and as advocates of pro-poor programs like cheap medicines, livelihood, and assistance to OFWs. On the other hand, there are also those well-meaning groups who package and advertise people as ethical leaders hoping that they will change our political landscape and our national life for the better. We are overwhelmed by the lofty-promises and sweetened assurances of these seemingly innocent and virtuous people that our country will be better off with their kind of ethical leadership. We are clueless if what they are saying is true or not. We should be cautious then. Politics after all had changed its meaning- it is no longer the art of governance but the art of not telling the truth. However, we will soon know the truth after election if indeed they are our sincere leaders who have the heart to truly care for us and this country.
Perhaps, equally important to consider aside from knowing the candidates for the 2010election is how to choose the best leaders. These days, we are going through tough times because we elected into office not the right kind of leaders. This is obviously becoming a bad national habit. Rather than working for our aspirations and hopes as a people, these elected leaders use their positions to enrich themselves and their supporters. We deserve this lot though. And true to the cliché- we deserve the kind of government we have.
When will we ever learn how to choose the right leaders to run the affairs of this country? When will we ever know how to cast a thoughtful vote and not a bought-vote? When will we discover that we have a reasoned conscience and God to deal with when we cast our votes?
At the very least what we need in this country are informed electorate. We can avoid an ineffectual government and forestall the influx of corrupt and shameless leaders when we vote intelligently and with conscience. Let me address this challenge to those who call for the moral force and ethical leadership of this country: help us voters prepare ourselves to choose the right leaders for this country. Help us have our voice be heard in the 2010 election. It’s about time that our voice be heard. We can change the fate of this country because we can vote wisely and rightly. Our national hero Dr. Jose Rizal eloquently echoed this sentiment when he said, “This people does not complain because it has no voice, it does not move because it is lethargic, and you say that it does not suffer because you haven't seen how its heart bleeds. But some day you will see this, you will hear its complaints, and then woe unto those who found their strength on ignorance and fanaticism!”
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I am glad that you are a keen observer of the posturing of our so-called national leaders or would-be leaders. They will certainly go to great lengths (and great expenses) to take advantage of name-recall or face-recall to get themselves elected into office.
ReplyDeleteAs other observers say, politics in the Philippines has become something like PBA - politiko, basketbolista, artista. And the great tragedy, as you said, is the bad national habit of getting all these guys into office, often on the basis of guns, goons and gold.
Unfortunately, bad habits are truly hard to break, especially if these habits are rewarded and reinforced time and again.
I think one greater tragedy is that as a people we have a weak sense of history and purpose and we seldom learn our lessons.
Another greater tragedy, to me, is that many people still cling to the idea that the solutions to our woes and worries lie in the hands of our elected politicians, instead of relying on our own individual talents and potentials.
For me the big challenge therefore is to get people to realize that by themselves, through their own efforts, through their own initiatives they can achieve their dreams and make their world a better place to live in.
Politicians are what they are - political leaders who make decisions which may affect our lives, one way or the other. But our destiny as individual persons should lie in our own hands. Our life can be better or worse, depending on how we want it to be.