I have this crazy knack for attachments. People who I engage with, and whose relationship I nurture, gets me involved somehow. Not that they want to. It’s not their fault that I am wired this way. But I tend to value them. Personally.
So that is why I do not like politics. It changes so many things. Relationships, foremost. Money, religion, and politics are anathema to a relationship. Friends, family and acquaintances get divided because of the side they take.
Well, it is normal, I guess. Because even at home, we bicker and take a stance. Yet since we are family, and we are raised to be forgiving and amiable, we easily bounce back to being siblings, or friends. It is different though when our beliefs are put to fore. And is further magnified, when pride sets in.
I have watched how two of my friends both kind both amiable, and both with a dream, are separated by ambition. Oh, don’t get me wrong. It is not bad to aspire. It only makes a sour taste when step on others to take you up the rung, or when your aspiration neglects the after effects of the climb. When the loser is not a sport or when the winner becomes a braggart or when the way to winning is contestable.
The recent election has revealed the extent to which some of the candidates were desperate to win. Rampant and blatant vote buying plagued certain parts of the country. It brings to mind the statement of a dear friend who told me to stop minding these things because it is a practice and not to be worried about. That since it is done by everyone, one must do it to win, if one wants to win.
Still I worry. I am anxious as to the message we are giving to your future leaders. Will this be the way we will be conducting ourselves in our exercise of our right of sovereignty? Am I just being idealistic when I continue to wish that we push our votes without any attached value except the value of good leadership platforms that we believe in?
Churches, families and even us in media have failed. We have failed immeasurably by not being able to convince even those close to us not to accept payment for their vote. People even chide about who gets how much, and about not being approached to receive any at all.
Oh yes, we all have our favorites. And we like our candidates because we believe in them. And some of us may even have gone so far as supporting their bet with financial help. This is to help that candidate provide for his or her campaign. To buy the gas, to pay for snacks and to rent whatever paraphernalia need to be used for the campaign or to pay for ads as we may have noticed. This is not a secret. And I admire those who believe in certain people and sacrifice to share some of their resources to help their bet. Because they believe in their candidate. Nothing more.
I recall when Brother Eddie Villanueva was running for office, the support he got where from his churchmates, and people who thought he would be a refreshing leader as his perspectives were spiritually sound. They mimeographed flyers, oh yes, it was still working then, the mimeo machine I mean. People volunteered to serve and provide snacks. They walked with him or lent their vehicles or whatever they could so the man could campaign. Well, he lost, but the process of his trying to win remains in my mind as a beautiful example of trying to win with sheer effort and a strong belief. Perhaps it was not God’s will.
Now, we have new leaders and I know that they are God-ordained. Yes, nothing happens that God does not allow. He has reasons far beyond our comprehension. For those who lost, I thank them because they did their best. Especially for incumbents whose hard work we cannot pass on as nothing. We witnessed them gruel and sacrifice to the teeth of their bones to make a dent in their service. The communities whose lives they have improved because of whatever program or intervention they have introduced, will not go wasted. Hopefully they have produced their own winners, among those who took their help and did well. Their work will never be forgotten.
To the new entrants, we need to pray for them. Our world is changing. Our people have evolved. This is a different plane we are on. Many challenges are still in the offing. And if we love our country, we need to give them all the support we can manage. This is where our exercise of sovereignty really begins.
God bless the Philippines!