HISTORY repeats itself like a broken record.
Before, it was conjugal dictatorship and cronies. Then, it was Kamag-anak, Inc. Now, we call it political dynasty. Really, there’s nothing new under the sun.
The Estradas had set a bad precedent when mother and son won simultaneous seats in the Senate. In the recent election, we saw senatoriables with kin already sitting in the Senate. That’s one the reasons why I did not vote for Alan Cayetano, Vic Magsaysay and Koko Pimentel (See my previous blog entry: http://inquirerbloggers.net/eleksyon2007/2007/05/16/why-i-did-not-vote-for-pichay-cayetano-et-al/).
In our country, we see fathers sitting as mayors with their children sitting as congressmen. In one city, four brothers ran for mayor, congressmen for both of its districts, and party-list representative. When the local official finishes his third term, he makes his wife run for the position. Then we also discover that some of the nominees of the party-lists are children of congressmen.
Why do we tolerate this? Before the election I went to Bicol. I asked a pedicab driver why he would vote for Dato Arroyo. He answered, “Siyempre anak siya ng pangulo. Eh di mas malakas sa taas.” (Of course, he is the son of the president. So he must be well-connected up there.) What if Dato loses this election? Does that mean the President will neglect that district in Bicol? That is why political dynasty is so unfair.
Now, these politicians claim that there’s no law against it. Granted, it may not be illegal. But it is immoral. Democracy is about equality. Where is equality in political dynasty? Is there equality when power is concentrated on just a few influential families? I heard Alan Cayetano say that kings pass on power to their sons. Mr. Cayetano, we are not under a monarchy. Well, at least in a monarchy, the king dies first before the prince takes over. Why not wait for your sister to step down before you run for senator? How can siblings (or father and son as in the case of the Pimentels) be a fair representative of the entire country? Where’s equality in that?
They claim that they are qualified. Fine. “Sila lang ba ang mga anak ng Diyos?” (Are they the only children of God?) Are they the only ones qualified? Plus, they are not just banking on their qualifications. They are taking advantage of name recall. That’s undue advantage. Did they focus solely on their qualifications in their campaign? Really now? Did the voters vote for them solely because they are qualified?
Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. claimed that political dynasty is not prohibited by the ten commandments. Well, Mr. Senator, it is. God said, “Thou shalt not steal.” Isn’t political dynasty stealing the opportunity to serve from others?
At least, Senator Panfilo Lacson had the moral courage not to allow one of his sons to run for a local elective position. He told his son not to run while he is a senator.
It seems to me that it’s all about power. I believe they just could not let go of power, that they just want to perpetuate themselves in power, that they lust for power so much that they want more of it. That’s why any anti-dynasty bill is doomed to failure even before it is put on paper.
May 18th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
Politics seen from the start of this 3rd republic had been a dynasty!
Our sovereign law under the 1997 constitution had prohibited this dynasty but there are many loopholes with this provision of our constitution.
As a result, political families are on the rise and ever expanding. The people have spoken through their ballots that this family must rule and so be it! What else can we do? Can you offer alternatives?
I’d be more than glad to hear from you.
May 18th, 2007 at 11:25 am
With voters closing their eyes on the Arroyo and Estrada dynasties, we see the process repeated in other political families all over the country even unto the next 20 years.
May 18th, 2007 at 10:01 am
The problem with the “success” of kamag-anak inc. lies with us, voters. If we stop voting the wives, sons/daughters, brothers and so of the incumbent they will never be in the position in the first place. The thing is, we always associate this with “political continuity” and not view it as “political theft.” The recent poll tabulation would show it.
May 18th, 2007 at 9:59 am
If you’ve read IPD and PCIJ’s “The Ties that Bind,” you will see that this is nothing new. The book documented the family, business and other interests of the 11th House of Representatives and showed that more than half of the House then represent a wider range of families, groups, social classes and political leanings. Even more than the previous two-post Marcos legislatures.
It had become a tradition. And the grip for power became even stronger and bloodier than it had in the past. Especially for families who relied too much on politics or a seat in public office for their businesses to run.
It is worthing noting though that the old political clans are better and less corrupt than newer political clans. Maybe because their is less national wealth to corrupt now than before and there are too many of them sharing the pie.
May 18th, 2007 at 9:32 am
President Arroyo must remove political dynasty and give the sincerest heart to fight against corruption in the philippines to have a good goverment. If not, filipinos are very pityful and no progress at all. it’s very shameful around the world that we cannot be independent. Democracy is slowly diminishing.