Opinions

 

I’m a retired senior citizen of the Philippines, just one of your average middle-class Filipinas.

Last May 9, 2022, I, and millions of citizens, turned out to cast their votes in a hotly contested National Election for the next president and vice-president as well as senators, congressmen, down to governors, mayors and the local level.

Hotly contested because, for the post of president, the son of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos, Bongbong Marcos (BBM), was running against the incumbent Vice President, Leni Robredo (who narrowly bested him in the 2016 vice-presidential election).

Given the state of disinformation and fake news, rumors and factionalism during the campaign period, the most I did was to research the candidates’ background, biodata, work history, and achievements. I purposely stayed away from the brouhaha on mainstream and social media so as not to be sucked in.

As everyone knows, the tandem of BBM-Sara Duterte (daughter of President Duterte) running under the banner of the Uniteam won with an overwhelming 30M+ votes.

BBM has already received congratulatory messages from the US, China, and other heads of state, has already met with some ambassadors to explore partnerships, and has begun naming members of his cabinet, i.e. Sara Duterte as Secretary of Education.

While the winning senators, congressmen and other officials have already been officially proclaimed, Congress is currently reviewing and validating the Certificates of Canvass for president and vice president. As of this morning, May 25, 60% of COCs have been validated. Given the numbers and that the Leni-Kiko team has said they will not contest the outcome, BBM-Sara is projected to be officially proclaimed the next President and Vice President within the day, as soon as the rest of the COCs has been validated in Congress.

All this had pricked my curiosity. To make heads or tails, I decided to backtrack and look into how the candidates did their campaigns. I looked into the websites and social media of both BBM and Leni Robredo, checked out youtube videos, read some reports, and listened to some experts (mainly historians and political scientists)

I share a synthesis of how I, a regular citizen, view this election for the next Philippine President and Vice President.

Source: Wikimedia Commons.

The BBM-Sara Duterte campaign

  • The tandem, reported to be engineered by a past president, the scandal-ridden Gloria Arroyo, consolidated the votes from the North(where BBM comes from) and the South (Duterte’s bailiwick)
  • The narrative: The sins of the dictator, BBM’s father, need not be passed on to his son. Besides that, the Martial Law years were the Golden Era with solid infrastructure achievements, the opening of the Philippines to the world trade, and new industries. Life was good and peaceful during Martial Law.
  • Sara Duterte comes with her experience as the Mayor of Davao City and is the daughter of President Duterte whose administration continues to hold really high approval ratings.
  • The Uniteam campaign urged Filipinos to come together, leave the past behind and move forward with huge rallies and motorcades nationwide. The Marcos Loyalists were in force– people who served the elder Marcos and those from the home province, Ilocandia, who firmly believe that the Marcoses has done good for the province and the country. As did the Duterte fans, mainly from Mindanao.
  • To pave the way for BBM’s candidacy, there was a proliferation of blog posts, websites, and social media portraying BBM as just like you and me, as well as extolling his father’s achievements which were heavily discussed and contested. True? Or historical revisionism?
  • How solid is their mandate from the common people? The team gathered the support and endorsement of local political leaders across the country to marshal the votes of their constituents. Money was handed out during the rallies, as recounted to me by three who did receive an envelope; as such, there were allegations of rife vote-buying.

Source: Wikimedia Commons.

The Leni Robredo- Kiko Pangilinan Campaign

  • As Vice President, she was known to have quietly and tirelessly worked to address the needs of the people on the fringes of society.
  • Her campaign: “Gobyernong Tapat, Angat Buhay Lahat” (Honest Government, a Better Life for All), is based on her “Angat Buhay” program under the Office of the Vice President. The slogan was made to reflect the campaign’s platform of good governance and transparency.
  • Robredo’s campaign adopted the pink rose flower as its official symbol and her supporters became known as the Kakapinks.
  • Why did she lose? Initially reluctant to run, the Leni-Kiko candidacy, running as an independent, was said to have started a bit too late to gather momentum and lacking the political machinery needed to gather votes.
  • But the Pink Phenomenon snowballed in that her supporters lent their hands as volunteers, showing up in rallies in increasing numbers and freely helping out in campaign sorties, and house to house campaigns.
  • It’s been a while since ordinary citizens came out of their homes and daily lives in droves to participate in the politics of the moment and it is hoped that this volunteerism will continue even after.

 The election process

  • BBM’s candidacy was contested at the Commission on Elections level, citing that he was not eligible for not having paid his taxes in the past (as Governor of Ilocos Norte). This was dismissed as lacking in merit.
  • The petition to cancel his candidacy has been elevated to the Supreme Court and is still pending.
  • In the meantime, BBM is slated to be officially proclaimed, having received an overwhelming mandate.

The campaign, positive and negative

  • Rampant disinformation, lies and fake news surrounding the election made it difficult to discern the facts, leading to distrust and uncertainty, contributing to heated factionalism among sides.
  • Because of BBM’s candidacy, the issue of those Martial Law years under his family came to the fore. In response to the faction supporting BBM and the Marcos family who have been back in politics, historians, political scientists, and detainees came out to share stories, present facts and fact-based analyses about the Martial Law rule.
  • BBM and the Marcos family have never acknowledged or apologized for the atrocities that happened during the Marcos regime.
  • The majority of winning candidates come from the elite families of long-entrenched political dynasties.
  • Leni Robredo, a relative newcomer in Philippine politics, and her promise of transparent and honest governance must have struck a chord among those looking and hoping for a change. It is highly possible that the spirit of volunteerism and more active participation of citizens in politics will continue to serve as a check and balance mechanism so vital to the democratic process.

Quo Vadis?

A historic election is coming to an end The son of the late dictator who ruled the Philippines for 20 years, and the daughter of a populist President will very soon be officially proclaimed. 

 Taking the reins from a populist president with authoritarian tendencies, will he run the country the way his father did, someone who served as his model? Thereby weakenng further the democratic principles and ways of working that the Filipino people aspire to?

Or will he run a new administration that will surely and honestly respond to the needs of a whole country in these times of crisis and recession? Coming from a need to revindicate his family’s name, will he appoint not just his cronies, but honest and highly qualified persons to steer our country to a better future for all?

We shall see.

But now, more than ever, we need to be more vigilant. Maybe, now is not the time to just leave everything in the hands of the politicians.

Whoever they may be.