“Our democracy is dying, and the polity remains as feudal as ever”
IN A recent encounter with the governor of a northern province, I learned the incumbents have no real opponents for the six congressional districts, and out of his 36 municipalities and cities the incumbents in 28 constituencies have virtually no opponents for the forthcoming May elections.
“Wala nang gustong lumaban, kasi masyadong magastos,” he said. Besides, he confided, “people no longer seem to care about politics and elections. They are so concerned about subsistence, about survival in these difficult economic times.”
“And they see no hope in changing leaders?” Pare-pareho lang, walang pagbabago?” I asked.
“Ganun na nga, maging sa local, maging sa nasyonal. Kaya nga namamayagpag ang mga entertainers na senador. Para bang, wala naman kayong mga silbi, iboto na lang naming itong mga artista, ina-aliw kami,” he rued, adding, “it’s a form of protest because of despair.”
It’s a classic case of what Jean Baptiste Alphonse Karr remarked about life: “Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose” (The more things change, the more they remain the same”).
Our democracy is dying, and the polity remains as feudal as ever.
The economy is controlled by a few oligarchs who have taken advantage of the regulatory power of the State and captured this for more and more profits.
Dynasties rule, with several generations of “elected” leaders coming from the same family.
Taking a look at the pages of our political history, one comes across the then famous if presumptuous lyrics of the campaign jingle written by Raul Manglapus for Ramon Magsaysay in the 1953 elections.
“Our democracy will die, kung wala si Magsaysay,” went the refrain which I googled.
But in those days, we had real electoral battles, between the Nacionalista and Liberal parties. Magsaysay was a Liberal congressman drafted by Pres. Elipidio Quirino into his Cabinet as defense secretary, and transferred to the NP to become his patron’s opponent.
Quirino pursued an independent foreign policy, reduced American bases in the country for which reasons the CIA hated him, and they actively participated in ensuring his defeat.
Until Ferdinand Marcos became a dictator in 1972, we had a two-party system where real contests from president to senators to all local positions were contested, without excluding independents and third or fourth parties.
In short, people had a choice, courtesy of the two main parties, regardless of non-existent ideological difference. The two parties presented senatorial candidates whose qualifications were excellent, mostly lawyers. They strived to have all ethno-linguistic groups represented in their slate: Tagalog, Ilocano, Pampango, Bisaya, Ilonggo, Waray, Christian Mindanao, Muslim Mindanao.
Look at our Senate these days. Almost half are from Metro Manila.
Even candidates for local positions or district congressmen were generally highly qualified, having gone through party conventions or other competitive means of winnowing chaff from grain.
These days, in so many cities, provinces and municipalities, there are no choices. Incumbents, because of entrenched power and oodles of money, rule without competition.
Otherwise good and qualified citizens prefer not to contest the incumbents in electoral combat because they do not have the resources that our debased political system has engendered, even institutionalized, as the ticket to electoral victory.
While there are exceptions to the rule of money and the feudal system, but they are as rare as the Philippine eagle.
Take the choices for senator in May 2025. There are a few re-electionists who have shown competence during their first stint. There are come-backing senators who have shown their worth in previous Congresses. But even they are challenged by the unworthy and the incorrigibly corrupt.
There are some independents, aligned with a confused opposition, who deserve a chance at the Senate, but with a paucity of resources and yet little awareness, their chances are nil.
So come May 2025, the electorate will likely send in more clowns to the Senate, more dynasts to the House of Representatives, the provincial and city governments.
Worse, voters will be bought, either by dole-outs of the Ayuda Republic as has been going on for years now and further provided in the corrupt 2025 budget, or through outright cash on election day or in tranches before then.
The dynasts have perfected the distribution method for such dole-outs and vote buying, and perpetually keep the captive voters poor so they get hooked on the payola, easy to buy.
Can we call this democracy, where real choice is absent, where ayuda and vote-buying condemns the electorate to being like slaves to a feudal lord?
It’s the system, stupid, and that is killing our “democracy.”