Court Jesters

first electronically published on http://h3llbound.multiply.com/ last August 25, '07 2:47 AM


The Philippine political system is the biggest soap opera of the country.



The characters are as stereotypical, bland and prone to sensationalism as the biggest names on the boob tube. The “actors” quarrel on the most trivial of things, state the obvious and emote with such uninhibited insincerity for the masses to see.



For a television show, there is a climactic ending, from which a new show springs forth. Broadcasting companies hype these endings and inundate their advertising slots with teasers and cast interviews regarding the very eventful ending of their “groundbreaking” show.



For politics, it’s the election. The senatorial elections in this country is much akin to the congressional and senatorial elections in the United States in the sense that it ushers in the legislative body of the country, and the number of administration and opposition seats dictates the tempo of the subsequent presidential election. It has the biggest cast, all supporting actors jostling for attention before the people elect the superstar. In this year’s election, the main players were the congressional and senatorial candidates, their sheer number assuring the public of a dramatic, action-packed and scandal-ridden season ender.



This year’s election is a pristine example of just how life imitates art. Let us not talk about statistics, surveys and the technicalities of election law. Let us, for a moment, shun the questions surrounding the Mindanao votes and the issues on the eligibility of indicted candidates. Let us focus on the people who made this year’s election as “enthralling” as it was.



The cast:



Gregorio Honasan as Gringo: former guerilla with a penchant for staging coup d’etats; extremely soft-spoken in public. A recently captured fugitive.

Panfilo Lacson as Panfi: ex-super cop, allegedly responsible for a number of assassinations and rub outs, fierce and outspoken, speaks in hard, formal, straight-to-the-point English. Frustrated presidential candidate.

Antonio Trillanes as Tuning: Currently on trial for subversive actions connected to the Oakwood Mutiny. Eerily reminiscent of Gringo, walking the same path.

Prospero Pichay as VeggieBoy: Come from nowhere aspirant with a penchant for image-wrecking, shameless spending and over-the-top self promotion. Signature pechay fan will never be forgotten.

Richard Gomez as Goma: Former matinee idol who was formerly held some amount of respect as a dramatic actor. Formerly in a sane state of mind before being shunned by both administration and opposition parties.

Vicente Sotto as Tito: Washed-out comedy actor who reached his political ceiling. Enough said.

Cesar Montano as Buboy: Should have learned to read circumstances and the meaning of panakip-butas. Should have at least consulted long-time leading lady Maricel Soriano; she could have shrieked him to sanity.

Victor Wood as Huwaaat?: Old crooner who listens too much to drunk advice.

Luis Singson as Chavit: whistleblower Ilocos bigwig that moves like he wants another movie about his life produced. Can opt to be a stuntman or carnival ringmaster.



With these characters, what could have gone wrong? Everything. Because the road to a peaceful and organized election is a messy one, there is a need to reorganize the whole structure of the elections. From its candidates to the voting public, we all need to dig deep, think deeper and act faster. During the polls that preceded the elections, everyone was clairvoyant: the usual suspects were there that it seemed only the 10th-12th positions were contestable. The campaign period was a more telling tale: the song and dance number, coupled with celebrity performances were still there, silly campaign jingles, self-gratifying print ads and insipid television plugs that told of everything but the candidate’s political mettle and stand.



For a supposedly empowered nation, we simply fell for old tricks in shinier packages.



The challenge is to reconstruct, overhaul and think over the country’s attitude on elections. In a country with more soap operas than news programs, our doe-eyed fanaticism of public figures spills over to important decisions like the elections. Our proclivity for gossip means that we focus more on the scandals and issues surrounding the candidate rather than their accomplishments. How we are enamored by excellent speakers make us more prone to vote for sugar-tongued pretty-boys than those who are in the trenches, working hard and unnoticed.



We need to think.



Foundations. We have to shake them. Rattle the backward thinking and media-hypnotism of image and popularity-based assessment. Processes. We have to change them. Be more incisive so our political parties do not simply pick actors off TV screens and turn them into law-making puppets. Leniency. We have to rid them of it. Make the traditional politicians that their guns, goons and gold formula will no longer hold sway in the rural areas.



Foundations. It was a good sign that number one campaign spender Prospero Pichay did not win. It was indicative that somehow, we don’t fall as easily to blatant media blitzes, that we are not blinded by shiny vegetable-shaped fans and glossy poster. It was inspiring to see that the various, tasteless tactics of Chavit Singson did not work: finally we are done with electing regime cronies.



But…



It was disheartening to see that a leader of a mutinous group of junior officers won a seat. It is depressing that a fugitive of the law for a couple of months again became senator.



Processes. The roster of candidates mostly reflected a new breed of politicians: young, articulate and knowledgeable. The actors and old dynasties were no longer as evident as they were before; the credentials of the candidates go beyond Urian or FAMAS awards or number of times they were elected as Mayor-Senator-Presidential Candidate-Mayor.



But…



The administration clearly wanted to better their Mindanao ties with the Jamalul Kiram candidacy. It left a bad taste in the mouth that former staunch Joseph Estrada supporters Tito Sotto and Tessie Aquino Oreta joined the administration ticket, that Richard Gomez thought he was a viable candidate for the two parties, while the parties thought otherwise.



Leniency. Here, there is no but. While the media focused on national candidates, covering interviews, debates and campaign sorties. The rural communities of the country are still plagued by political families who buy votes, scare voters and spit at the progress the urban centers have made. Though there were fleeting reports on provincial election-related violence, the lumbering giant of town politics: where Mayor is saint and Governor is god, still remains.



The 2007 elections was a study in transition. While we take steps towards a peaceful and effective election process, we still carry with us some of the malignant tumors we have carried for so long. While the young strive to ignite change, with the aide of the old and the wise, the rotting inbred members of the old political guard linger and drag us down.



Unless we reevaluate ourselves and give more attention to the uneducated and more numerous, members of our society, then the political violence will not stop, the cheating and discord will continue, and we will continue to be stuck in the political quagmire we call the Republic of the Philippines.



Let us take the first few steps, and break into a sprint.





(this is my entry to the ACP3 Essay Writing Contest in FEU. It will not win...why? Because they want romanticism,not aggression.Hehehe)