This is the reason why people in this country don’t progress. It’s the very same reason why we get the kind of government we have…because when you do think about it, you are who you vote for.
This is a true conversation between real people (although it’s been translated from the local dialect to English):
Person #1 : I like Noynoy. He’s the one I’m voting for.
Person #2: Yeah, me too.
Person #1: Because if you vote for Gibo, he’s under GMA’s control, right?
Person #2: Right.
Person #1: And if he wins, then, we’re going to have GMA again as Prime Minister.
Person #2: Definitely!
Person #1: And then, there’s not going to be any change. It’ll just be GMA again!
Person #2 (along with other persons who heard person #1′s comments) : Absolutely!
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There are so many things wrong with this line of argument, it’s hard to know where to even begin.
It’s not that I’m campaigning for anyone, although I must admit I am undoubtedly in favor of the “other guy.” But if the main reason you’re not going to vote for one person is because you think he’s going to waste all the time, money and effort he spent to get elected to give way to another person, you’ve got another thought coming. I mean (!) who in their right mind would actually do that? Seriously?!?!
Imagine this: you’re vying for the top position in the government. This is your chance to be the most powerful person in the country. You’re spending 25 hours a day campaigning in every nook and cranny of the country, including the places you’d never dream of going. You’re spending not only you own savings (money which should’ve been saved up for your children’s future education) but also other people’s money for your campaign materials. You’re on TV all the time, trying to sell yourself. You’ve grown wrinkles on almost every part of your body and you’re not even 50 years old yet. In fact, you’re nowhere near 50! You’re trying to unattach yourself from the bad name that the incumbent president has carved for herself. You’ve been on the road campaigning for so long you hardly remember what your wife looks like. Hell, your children probably don’t remember having you as their father, either. You’re kissing all kinds of butts to get ahead of the other person.
Imagine further that after more than 6 months of intensive campaigning (starting even before the legal period for campaigning has begun), it’s election time. The results are in: you’ve just won for yourself the most coveted position in the whole country. You look back on all the hard work and you can’t help but think success is so sweet.
Imagine now that the former president comes to you and tells you to initiate the move for a charter change that will turn the governmental system of the country into a parliamentary one so that a prime minister will be installed. She tells you that she’s going to be the prime minister. Would you agree?
Suppose you are God’s little angel sent here on earth to clean the government of all kinds of corruption, would you succumb to what the former president, practically a “has been” in all senses, plans?
Suppose you are the right hand man of Satan, corrupt to the core of you bones. Getting elected as the country’s top leader now gives you the chance to amass bucket loads of money. Would you even consider giving way to another (probably) less corrupt person’s whims to put her back in power???
WOULD YOU?!?
The glaring answer to every question is NO. In fact, the answer is so obvious it’s probably insulting to even ask. I mean, no one in his/her right mind would willingly give up his hard-earned seat just so he/she could let another person enjoy all the benefits of that hard work!
I would’ve pointed this out to the persons I’ve overheard talking/declaring. But it would’ve required much effort from me to even explain it let alone try to convince them to see the fault in their logic. These are the kinds of people who’ve deluded themselves into thinking they have all the answers. To argue with them would have been ineffectual and illogical.
I’m not saying that the administration’s bet for the presidency is vile and corrupt beyond recognition. While I could not vouch a hundred percent about his morality, I think he’s not so bad as his predecessor. And compared to all the other candidates, he’s the MOST qualified (excluding, I think, the guy from Ateneo, not because of his alma mater but because of his prior actions). He doesn’t just spew concepts/ideas of what good governance entails. He has achievements that will speak well of him and his plans for this country. He’s shown his ability at crisis management. He knows what he’s talking about. I can rest assured knowing that if he wins, he’s the one who will make the decisions. I know that when I vote for him, I’m not voting for/in the memory of his (deceased) parents.
And that’s another reason why I’m not going to vote for the apparent people’s favorite – the people’s choice, as it were. This guy is just a sorry excuse for his parents. He knows he’s getting by through name dropping — my mother this and my father that. He has done nothing – not a thing – that he can be proud of, except to be born to well-known parents.
I’m not campaigning for anyone (although I know you know I know who I’ll be voting for). But what I am advocating is using our brains to determine who the best person for the job is. Let’s all think about who can do what, not just who’s related to who.
YOU ARE WHO YOU VOTE FOR.
He said/She said