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| image from thebloggingjuan.blogspot.com |
It
has been two weeks since I flew to Iloilo so that I can exercise my right of
suffrage. I was too busy during the registration period last year that I was
not able to transfer to a voting precinct nearby. Besides, I have four
relatives and a friend running for local government positions and I would like
to add one vote -- my vote -- to each of them. I also wanted to support my
partylist and senatorial candidates. These points and my desire to visit my
aging parents who have been living on their own, without any house help, I
thought were good excuses to be a flying voter.
Taking the bus to Passi is always
relaxing. In this trip, I was on the lookout for the sunset. It didn’t show
itself that long because of the clouds but I was still able to feast on its
beautiful colors. Since the province has
vast farm lands, I also liked the smell of farm soil from rice paddies and the
sweet scent of the sugarcane plantations. It indeed brought in clean air from
my usually pollution-irritated lungs. It is dark as we near Passi and it also
began to drizzle. Closing my eyes, I enjoyed the feeling of cool air and bits
of rain shower touching my face. It is good to be home! Except for a brief
moment, I didn’t pay much attention that the trip home took much longer than
usual.
Monday, May 13, I cast my vote for
my favored candidates. Fifty percent of those I voted made it to both the
local and national positions. As I listened to and read people’s reaction to
the proclaimed winners, I made my own considerations:
- Personal
dealings is still more effective than virtual. Many people still vote
because a candidate did a specific personal act to them – a smile, a wave,
a handshake, a hug, a photo op can win you votes sometimes more than your
qualifications
- Utang na loob
has more influence than the integrity and honesty of the politico.
- There
is still a lot of work to be done in educating the voters so they choose
candidates according to principles and their conscience and not just
because of popularity or worse, because of their notoriety, or because
their amo told them so.
- In
politics, it is not enough to have the best qualifications, intention and
spirit of service. One needs to have enough machinery and the cunning to
fight for a post.
- Money
still talks. It is disheartening to note that corruption continues.
At the end of the day (senator elect
Nancy Binay’s favourite line. hehehe), the truth is, our newly elected leaders
will be running the country for the next 3 to 6 years. Thus, I hope and pray
that our leaders fulfill their promises. For the incoming provincial, district
and town officials of my palangga nga Iloilo and Passi, I just have three
requests:
- Please
work on the roads and bridges faster. The trip from Passi to Iloilo is
taking us forever because of the re-routing and the rough roads. Despite
at least 3 hours of lead time travelling, I still feared that I’d be
missing my plane back to Manila because of the roads and unfinished
bridge.
- Please
solve the problem with floods. I spent a good part of my short Christmas
trip last year cleaning our house because water now enters it when there
is flood. Think about the loss of property and the fear for our lives
every time it rains heavily. Don’t use the calamity to gain pogi points and gain utang na loob from your
constituents through the relief goods and funds that you will be
distributing.
- Those
first two requests, I know, are quite gargantuan. That is why, my third
request is that you cooperate and work together. Such huge projects need a
concerted effort from each one. Please don’t block or make it difficult to
carry out, noble projects initiated by another official simply because you
are coming from opposing parties or you didn’t get his or her support
during the elections. Enough of these nonsense and prove to us that you
deserve being in your position.
