the complex issue here is how we can unite them all

[...] recent victory of US President Barack Obama has often been attributed to his use of Internet technology. But not many people realize that as [...]

not only that, when the civil society join hands in promoting a single candidate, even after the candidate is in position already, this group can monitor and influence to change our politics and to change the Philippines for the better. kudos! i join you Harvey in that call and hope.

kaya natin!

I wish you good luck. Hopefully this political personalities of your civil society like Pangilinan, Panlilio, Baraquel and whoever that you mentioned in your blog are honest and sincere till the very end. Im sick and tired of these ambitious political personalities or celebrities that are only after “pogi points” under the guise of movement toward change and reform. Some of these clowns also capitalize on circumstances they themselves created to make some noise and draw attention. Afterwhich, they will run for public office. Good example is Jun Lozada, Trillanes and Querubin. Since time immemorial, people like these are full of promises but in reality, they only want power, popularity and adorationfrom the ignorant “masa”. All politicians are the same. Add up the entertainment people that joined the bandwagon of promising politicians because they too are “full of promises”. I know someone in the senate who use to be an action star whos just sitting there like a decoration. They just want to enrich themselves, raise their arrogant siblings under the limelight of power and popularity in the Philippine society. They wanna call themselves “sosyal”. Partly to be blamed is the less educated masa whom these political celebrities are taking advantage of. Once they occupy the post theyre shooting for, arrogance and greed will follow. Obviously, they capitalize on the sins of Arroyo and company. The problem with these political personalities is that they act as if they are all genuine nationalist and patriots blaming the United Stes for all our troubles. But you can see them in political rallies wearing signature brands of clothes from the United states or Europe. Most of these senators and congressmen even drove around the city with Expeditions and F-150’s and other American cars. Not to mention their obvious eagerness to flaunt their credentials and education earned from Ivy league schools in the United States or Europe. I couldnt figure out if these people are genuine nationalist or hypocrites. We enjoy the luxury of always putting the blame on the United States for our sufferings and perceived persecution from the westerners but look which embassy has the longest line of wannabe immigrants or plain tourist who wants to secure visa. If thats so, why dont thse nationalist (once they get elected) we just cut off all diplomatic relations from the United States and everybody will be happy. I feel sorry for our country which is fast becoming land of hypocrites. One of the few people I admire in our society is Juan Flavier, Jovito Salong and Ka Roger of the NPA. Ka Roger especially. Although his ideals is different from the rest of us, he lives in a hut, in the mountains and eat root crops to prove his genuine principles and nationalistic ideals in his own way, unlike these clowns that you mentioned in your blog. Trust me, Lozada, Querubin, and maybe Willie Revillame will follow suit.

’sabi sa isang pahayagan dito o sa isinulat ng isang professor e dapat daw e isang “great reset”, ang ating itawag, sa mga nagaganap ngayon sa ekonomiya,e siguro kailangan e ganito rin nga ang ating maging kaisipan,habang nagaganap ang mga ito,…at sa pulitika rin dapat dahil malaki rin ang say ng mga namumuno sa mga kaganapan. ’samantalahin na dapat talaga ang pagbabago-o pagsasa-ayos o pagtatama ng mga dapat itama.’
at maganda nga na ang mga tao ngayon at mga NGO e tutuong nakiki-alam na lalo patungo roon. Kasama sa sinabi niya,e parang yung advocacy ng ilan ‘ ayusin ang kita ng mga maliliit na workers,work conditions,at bayaan silang sumaya o lumigaya,…para lalong ganahang magsikap at tumulong sa pag-unlad ng bayan,…’kung paano?, e alam ko marami na ang gumagawa at syempre kailangan pa ang ibang pagkilos tungo dito.’

Kami e me ginagawa rin…”AHUNan sa PINgAS”. medyo kaiba pero yun din yun… at KRUS ang lakas. me dasal at kasiyahan.

i don’t think we can aptly call it “civil society’s revenge”, harvey. “revenge” is usually used for something that has benn down and is now fighting back and i don’t think “civil society” has taken such a beating to say it has been defeated to begin with.

One thing we should be united about is to discard this trapos including the very trapo of them all, as can be gleaned from his statements early on even during his senatorial bout, chiz escudero, i should know, in choosing our candidate…the same goes to the choice of the Vice president and all the other positions.

Capture the imagination. That is the key. No revenge can happen unless civil society capture the imagination of Juan dela Cruz.

Good intentions will never be enough. To target the students and first time voters is ok but will never be enough. Pa concert concert, pa sympo symposium, pa cara caravans are ok but will never be enough.

Everyday we are bombarded by ads of Roxas, Villar and Binay. These are all attempts to capture the imagination of Juan dea Cruz. I hope and pray that they all fail. We need not match their billion to do an Obama. We just have to be creative and imaginative. But unfortunately, civil society is still stuck with the old ways.

There is a huge dam of Filipinos worldwide awaiting for the right trigger to burst itself and inundate all the trapos. But obviously, even civil society can’t find the right combination. Civil society’s dilemna is that after they ousted Erap, they cannot undo what they have done.

Take a cue from the Akomismo campagn. When this campaign made the news, the first thing that people asked was who’s behind the campaign. The good intention didn’t even get noticed. Sayang.

So will there be revenge? I doubt it unless civil society changes its tactic, unless they are able to capture Juan dela Cruz’s imagination.

Civil society’s revenge? Revenge for what? As long as the elected public officials possess the arrogance, greed, and crab mentality of most Philippine politicians, there’s no such thing as civil society’s revenge. Philippine politicians will run the government no less than the previous and the current administrations did, and has been doing respectively. Partly to be blamed is the kind of media that we have. Our irresponsible and celebrity oriented media (with a propensity for self-pity) makes matters worst instead of helping the country recover and rebuild. Let alone that the aforementioned Filipino negative traits will never go away until you can figure out how millions of Filipinos will metamorphosed into a more effective and politically matured voters. When do you think they will act and think the same way as genuine nationalist and reformist do at the same time? I am not telling you that I gave up all my hope but Im wishing you good luck!

Hi Harvey,

thank you for the information on conjunctural spectrum of civil society formation;

you are also correct that what is most necessary as well is the ground organizing; as much as that social change shall be necessary at the level of local communities and government bureaucracy;

but unification efforts are so much at the national level and less at the localities; which remind us that alternative society should be palatable through alternative centers of powers at the ground communities. and inspite of the commendable civil society efforts, the party formation is wanting in the effort; and that we could not even field candidates out of a real party in order to ensure that civil society is excluded from cooptation of politics; that is however pro-people our/the civil society endorsed candidates;

thank you for the intended reflections and unintended truths!

– ose

It’s definitely true, all this civic org that are coming out is just but the result of how Filipinos are truly fed up with long history of corruption and injustice.Let us just continue to do our Acts Together, for our common good.

I agree 100% with this quote: “One of the political analysts said civil society does not know how politics in the country work thus they are unable to help the candidates they support.”

Remember, it was the resignation of Sec. Dinky “If we hold on together” Soliman and nine other cabinet secretaries that led to the deterioration of governance of the Arroyo administration. After they all resigned, the President stopped appointing “civil society” types to her cabinet and instead appointed mainly loyalists. And then they of course later complain about how bad the government has become. Kaninong kasalan ba yon, bossing???

trully election, in all its democratic ideals is one way for people to express their choice and maybe get back to the people who never really came true to their posts, much less their promises. nevertheless who is there to choose? if there is no good line up of real names, of true candidates then this election is just another hogwash. in the end we are just changing dogs with different fleas. election is one thing. but having good candidates is prime.

pulitiko at mga empleyado o yung sabi e mga teknokrat sa pamahalaan at baka nga rin lahat ng sektor at pati tayo,ako…sabay-sabay dapat na mausisa…na rin.

I believe that there three (3) leaders GOV. Panlillio, GOV. Padaca, Mayor Robredo are honest leaders and there are the type of leaders we should put our trust on. Im from bicol, not from Naga though where Jess Robredo is Mayor. But ive heard so many things about him. When i was in Naga ones i saw the guy driving by himself without anybody with him. Isa lang po ibig sabihin nito. Wala syang kinakatakutan na tao kasi alam nya sa sarili nyang wala syang ginagawang masama.

They are the one’s willing to do everything for their country but has less future in politics because they cant afford to stay in power. Mayor Robredo is groomed and should be the next Governor of Camarines Sur but Villafuerte has the money, I mean Villafuerte has the peoples money so i dont think Robredo will take his chances of running against his Chinese Cousins.

WHO IS NICANOR PERLAS? lETS FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HIM. hE COULD BE THE PRESIDENT WE NEED!!!