A lawyer who was described as one of the campaign leaders of Davao City mayor-turned-presidential-aspirant Rodrigo Duterte, startled me with his revelation on television, the other day. He boisterously claimed that, soon after Mayor Duterte declared that he was seeking the presidency, some, nay, many political personalities have started lining up to join their camp. I got startled because when the tv newslady added the line "balimbing" to her report to mean, apparently that these politicians were poised to change parties, I realized that the system we are using in choosing our government officials is more anchored on convenience rather than on fundamental philosophies.
I can accede to the point that the lawyer-campaigner only wants to project a high percentage of his principal's winning. It is a good strategy to show that that the team of the Mindanao mayor, is so drastically altering the electoral playing field as if he is on the winning march. He must have read Sun Tzu, who, in his book "On War" wants a general to feign strength when his army is weak. His man, who is not yet a candidate, is attracting a huge following from among some big time players such that they are just ready to abandon their previous groups in favor of a yet unnamed party.
I am not disputing the lawyer-campaigner's claim not only because his declaration can be highly speculative if not perhaps, down right wishful thinking, but because, more importantly, it has to be taken as a reason for our present need to reinvent our electoral system. When he stated that some politicians are about to switch to their side, he is in fact saying that these personalities do not have political creed to advance. All they want to do is to hitch their proverbial wagon to a probable star. Never mind if this is itself a corruption of a saying.
In times past, we had only the Nacionalista and the Liberal Parties, not quite unlike the Democrats and the Republicans of the American scene. History tells us (kay di pa man ko voter niadto, he, he, he) that the Nacionalista had an ideology that was distinct from that of the Liberal. Each person, before becoming a party member, had to be indoctrinated. They chose their members.In 1969, the last election that they faced each other, each of them got the best talents in their lineups, from the presidency down to municipal councilor. Their respective directorates made sure that only the best mind and financially capable were included in their teams. There were no such unserviceable clowns as later senators named Lito Lapid and Bong Revilla.
Unfortunately, many thinkers believed that the two-party system was very exclusive and elitist. Progressive minds told us that it was less democratic because, excepting a few, the men and women who were competent and service-oriented but who had no connection to the party leadership did not have the chance at becoming candidates. They were left to be minor players.
The original concept of adopting a multi party system is to allow a wide base of political leaders. A multi party system, would afford them the chance to offer themselves to the electorate because they would no longer be circumscribed by high-strung party leaders of a two-party system nor pushed to the corners to serve minor offices.
Indeed, it became very convenient because along the process, political philosophies were not primary considerations. If there were initial discussions in assemblies of men about what vision should guide them, they got blurred. People, mostly the moneyed ones, just got together and proclaimed themselves available for elective positions. Many had the agenda of promoting personal, rather than social interest. And good heavens, they have started to dominate our political scene.
So, when a Mayor Duterte, who is perceived to generate wide interest among voters suddenly appears on the horizon, these politicians not being bound by fundamental political philosophies, can without any qualm, abandon their old groups and hitch their wagon to a new proverbial star. That is what really startles me - the total absence of definable government direction coupled with the predominance of personal convenience. Quo vadis!