EDITORIAL - Time to move from a shackling past

It is not true that President Arroyo is worse than the late dictator Marcos. It is just fashionable to say so because she is there. Besides, we are Filipino. It is not in our character to soil the memory of those who have passed on.

Not that our anger has turned inexplicably to reverence. But whenever people talk now about Marcos, it is as a matter of fact. Time and Christian charity have tempered the sharpness of our hate.

And that is why presidential contender Manny Villar came up with a coup of sorts when he took in Bongbong Marcos as part of his senatorial slate. Bongbong may be the son of a dictator, but he is also far more capable and intelligent than the clowns we now have in the Senate.

True, the entry of Bongbong resulted in the departure of leftists Satur Ocampo and Liza Maza from the Villar slate. But is that really a fair tradeoff? Bongbong would be a far greater asset to the Senate than Ocampo and Maza combined.

Besides, Bongbong has far greater chances of winning than Ocampo and Maza. Bongbong has solid bailiwicks in the Ilocos Region and Leyte. And Bongbong is “guwapo.” When he smiles, he can engage the youth who never knew Marcos. The same cannot be said of the dour Ocampo and Maza.

Contrary to the fears of many, Bongbong can help the candidacy of Villar. Half the population of the country is below 25, that age when the combination of looks and intelligence matter far more than litanies of betrayed freedoms of a time they can no longer connect.

This is not meant as an attempt at absolving anyone of anything. But a past that remains unresolved by the present has become too heavy a burden it is no longer practical and reasonable to continue carrying it without aim.

It is time to move on. A fresh start holds so much more promise. The challenge facing this nation is not to dwell on what could have been but in seizing what might be. Soon, President Arroyo will just be a footnote like Marcos, to be revisited, not forever sitting on our noses.

No doubt the elections of 2010 will be very crucial for the country. They have always been, of course, but too often we get caught up in our passions instead of our common sense. This time maybe we can be a little different. Vote for what you deserve or you get what you don't.