Letter to the Editor — The politics of 'Sugbuhi'

Politics is the ability to mesmerize the voting public with all the means available to the politician. To the cynic our electoral process is like any gambling endeavor... winning is not the only thing, it's everything. That's why in our political arena you can seldom see a gracious loser. The increasing record of election protests in the Comelec in the aftermath of elections attest to this fact.

Why this obsession to pursue such a thankless job in an elective government post? It is no secret that political power no matter how lowly the position is attracts "the good, the bad and the ugly" aspirants. They seem to creep out of the woodwork on the eve of an election year. Power begets influence, influence begets money and money begets... Any speculation we have on how the money is dispensed with will surely hit the mark because in the past election years money had been widely spread. After all this begetting through the years a political clan is created. Political patronage and the concomitant largesse spread generously around ensure the tenure of the kingpin and his kin.

This scenario is too true in the countryside as well as in urban areas. It's the Filipino brand of how democracy works in our part of the world.

Now going to the "Sugbuhi" of Representative Clavel-Asas Martinez. This juggling of words is an obvious attempt to counter Governor Gwen Garcia's "Sugbuak". On the face of it the honorable Congresswoman's assurance that "her intentions are sincere and not to further her political career" is innocent enough which as politicians' promises go, however, come dime a dozen.

Many years ago our politicians said what they meant and meant what they said. Their word was their bond. Nowadays, sad to say, the rules of the game have changed. On hindsight it's not all together the politician's fault because he almost always run out of options to tell the truth (a claim more often than not resorted to when painted to a corner, so to speak). Marcos did not want to be a dictator. We the electorate pushed him to be one. We allowed him early on to place the yoke of martial law on our collective necks.

I'm not saying that the honorable representative from the North will renege on her promise. All I'm saying is that she will find herself subjected to intense pressure, which will ultimately break her resolve, as sure as there is night and day. It's way too easy to lean on the all too familiar catchphrase "in the interest of my constituents."

Madam, when you start thinking you're indispensable, in the long run you'll believe yourself.

Edgardo Dequito
Timpolok, Lapulapu City