Tale of two legislatures

Over the past two weeks, I have seen turmoil involving legislatures in two countries. While in London, I have seen how some indiscretions by Members of Parliament from both major parties have so incensed the nation that some MPs didn’t find it safe nor wise to be seen in public. Stung by the public rebuke, some have decided not to seek re-election. Hindi sila kapal muks! Back home in Manila, I came upon a Congress, or at least one house of it, voting for a resolution to violate the Constitution or at least, the intent of its framers.

 What seems lacking thus far in Manila is citizen outrage. Sure there may have been some public outcries and even threats of massive protests if the House insists on holding a constitutional assembly or con ass all by itself, without the Senate. But there is not enough outcry from people other than politicians with axes to grind.

There may be surveys that express public opposition to the administration party’s plot to violate the Constitution to enable some people to  perpetuate themselves in power. But you don’t feel the sense of outrage that killed a similar attempt during the waning months of FVR’s term. Yet, FVR seems to me worthier of term extension than the current tenant of Malacañang.

From what I have seen in London, citizen outrage is what makes democracy vibrant enough to protect the people against the abuses of their elected leaders. Legislatures in any representative democracy should function as the voice of the people. Yet, even in mature democracies like that of the United Kingdom, Members of Parliament are prone to the temptations of office to abuse their privileges.

Thus, we found out that many MPs, including those in senior Cabinet positions, abused their privileges to reimburse expenses from the National Treasury. There were those MPs who outright did fraudulent reimbursements for expenses they did not incur. There were those who may perhaps rightfully claim they were entitled to their reimbursements but in the light of today’s economic hardships, may seem out of place.

But in London, citizen outrage was instantaneous after a London newspaper, the Telegraph, published an investigative report on the MPs’ reimbursements. And the outrage was nationwide and significant enough to cause senior members of the Cabinet to resign and threaten the stability of the current government. The trust ratings of all public officials are probably at its lowest in recent times.

Here in Manila, the citizenry had become immune to the scandalous passage of that House con ass resolution through a kind of slow boil over the last few years. Perhaps local media have driven home the message that members of Congress, specially the House, are such scoundrels that nothing decent can be expected of them… and that’s in all probability true. But the citizens continue to elect such misfits to represent them. Maybe because we voted for them, we are just getting the government we deserve.

But I still think we deserve better. There should be enough people around who also believe we deserve better. But there are also a good number of people who have given up on the country and have voted with their feet. I have spoken to a number of overseas Pinoys during the course of my journeys over the past month and while everyone seems to have a deep love of country, there is also the hopelessness about our country’s current condition.

“Masyadong magulo sa ‘pinas” is the common remark of OFWs I have talked to. And because of it, our OFWs have decided to focus their concern to something more limited… their families. Many have been working abroad for a decade or so and intend to work abroad another decade more. But because they have been exposed to foreign norms or standards of governance, they know things are not right back home.

They asked what they could expect for the future of our country. That always leaves me speechless because I do not want them to have false hopes while at the same time, I do not want them to lose hope on our country. The ones I talked to are the luckier ones, working in hotels and cruise ships. And while they are not too happy about being away from loved ones, they feel blessed by their relatively better paying jobs with better working conditions.

I guess their attitude towards the country today and its leadership is similar to that of many of us back home. As a defense mechanism, we have tuned out on the country and its politics and are sticking to concerns closer to family and home. The last time something like this happened, it took us over a decade to shake off the lethargy and fear brought on by a martial law regime. Today it seems like the spirit of EDSA 1 is only a memory… a historical milestone and nothing more.

But time should not blunt the importance of the EDSA spirit if we want our democracy to develop and thrive. It so happened that some of the countries I visited last month is celebrating the 20th anniversary of regaining their freedom. In fact, on Nov. 9, 2009, Berlin will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with a “Festival of Freedom.” The former Soviet controlled country of Estonia which I also visited, seem to be still ecstatic about being out of the Russian clutches and being a part of the European community. Even the Russians in St. Petersburg, if our travel guide is to be believed, seem happy Mr Gorbachev did what he did.

It feels strange to me that they are still in a celebrating mood while we have totally lost it. Yet, EDSA 1 started it all. People Power is a concept they are still emotional about. Yet, People Power was a concept EDSA 1 started and we are already cynical about.

I guess the difference lies in the quality of national leaders and of course, the people. It isn’t that we are less than they are except that perhaps we have been forced by circumstances to stop caring so soon after victory over the dictatorship. Only the faces changed, I guess. And while the Eastern Europeans are still giddy about their 20-year old democratic system, we managed to develop leaders that seem to be worse than the dictatorship that People Power threw to history’s dustbin.

The tale of two legislatures is really a tale of two peoples. The outraged Britons are demanding accountability from their leaders and I am sure they will get it. We may want the same accountability from our leaders but no longer have the passion to make them listen to us. Our leaders know how we feel and they don’t care because they know when push comes to shove, we will allow ourselves to be pushed and shoved.

Or better yet, in the midst of this condemnable attempt to trample upon our Constitution, we allow ourselves (including our Senate, unfortunately) to be entertained by tales of a sex video of a doctor who thinks he is a sex god with a license to thrill and up to no good.

Sex video

During an impromptu get together of some of my classmates from UP Prep 66 last Friday, someone cracked this joke which was apparently going around while I was gone.

Q: How did the doctor record his sexcapades?

A: With a hayden camera, of course!

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is bchanco@ gmail.com.

Incidentally, my daughter Trishy decided to make a blog out of my columns, something I had been talking about doing but never got around to. It is still work in progress but it can be accessed at http://web.me.com/misspatricia/Boo_Chanco/Blog/Blog.html