Exacerbation of family dynasties

In a true democracy, sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them. In a fake democracy, the government is controlled by a ruling class consisting of a few families and clans. They control public funds, and pass laws perpetuating an unjust system. This is the sad story of our country.

The Congress of the Philippines is mandated to prioritize passing laws that eliminate economic, social, and political inequality, and diminish cultural inequities. It’s understood that social and economic inequality calls for legislation that shall diffuse the concentration of acquisition, ownership, and use of property, including land. That’s why agrarian and urban reform is a high priority. Political dynasties are to be prohibited to diffuse concentration of political power. After 36 years from 1987, the Congress has continued to refuse heeding this mandate.

There are provinces and cities in the Philippines today whose governors, mayors, vice governors, vice mayors, congressmen, and lower officials are all related within the fourth degree either by consanguinity or affinity. Senators and congressmen willfully ignore the will of the Filipino people. They say there is nothing wrong with family dynasties because they are all elected by the people. They also retort that the objectors have all the right to run against them. They never apologize for directly defying the constitutional mandate.

No matter how they get elected, gold, goons, guns, vote-buying, electoral fraud, and terrorism, they never stop monopolizing political powers. They behave as if provinces and cities are their family corporations. Many of them do everything and anything to achieve their selfish agenda. To them, the end always justifies the means. But they are making our democracy a sham. Many of them are in politics in order to protect their business empires, to get a hold of public funds and control political appointments. They collaborate with big-time contractors and suppliers and siphon public funds into their private business holdings. The proliferation of family dynasties is a complete abrogation of all the tenets of democracy, where power resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.

The best evidence of the exacerbation of family dynasties is found in the Senate. Elder sister Pia and younger brother, Allan Peter are both senators, representing the small city of Taguig. The wife of Allan is city mayor and there was one time when brother Lino was congressman. Senators Cynthia and Mark, mom and son, come from Las Piñas. The daughter of Cynthia is congresswoman and her sister-in-law is city mayor. Her husband, Manny, was a former congressman, senator, and presidential candidate. Makati wanted to follow suit when former vice president Jojo Binay ran for senator when his daughter, Nancy, is a senator. His other daughter Abigail is city mayor, while his son Junjun once ran against his own sister.

Senators JV Ejercito, the good one, and Jinggoy Estrada are half-brothers from the smallest city in Metro Manila, San Juan, where their common dad, Erap rose from mayor to president. There was one time when BBM and Imee were both in the Senate. There was also a time when Dra. Lois Estrada and Jinggoy were sitting in the same Senate. This is too much and does not speak well of the maturity of our political institutions and political systems. This makes our democracy a virtual family corporation where only a few powerful, influential and wealthy families and clans are controlling public funds, appointments, and other political prerogatives.

These kinds of political incongruities do not happen in more politically mature, more decent, and more democratic governments. This kind of exacerbation of dynasties never happened in the USA, UK, France, Germany, or Japan. Our country never grows in political wisdom and the wealth and powers of the nation is being monopolized by a few families and clans. The people are nothing but pawns and usable tools of mocking the genuine principles of a true democracy.

The people do not have real power. Ours is not a genuine democracy. We are governed by a few families and clans. Our democracy is a farce and only the strong, the wealthy and the few elite have all the powers and the money. The rich get richer and the poor are made poorer. As long as we are ruled by family dynasties, this country will never progress and grow. Millions are leaving the country for good. There is no level playing field in the Philippines. Our nation is neither humane nor just.