ON ELECTION FAILURE

By Wilhelmina S. Orozco What does a failure of elections mean? Why does election fail? Who can make an election fail? How is this accomplished? What are the consequences of such a failure? Who could be the culprits – willing or unwilling? We are now at the threshold of designing our future with a new (hopefully) set of leaders who will steer this country to an ethical era – walang nanglalamang, walang nalalamangan, walang naaapi at walang mang-aapi. Sounds very simple doesn’t it? Yet so many dreams have been dashed and many lives have been claimed in the name of elections. Many people and groups have clashed over that desire to take over the reins of power, whether low or high. People in high positions have resorted to hooks and crooks to stick to power or to be able to insure the continuity of their influence showing how vulnerable our institutions are to manipulation. Yet despite all these, we, as a people now cling to that idea that we still could make our democracy work, that many people would still support us, and that the forces thwarting the people’s will would not work. Is this a dream or a nightmare, what we are going through? Are we really shaping our future when the whole machinery of the government is being oiled to insure that the transfer of power will not be so complete as to bring our country to a concretely different situation than what we have now? Usually, when I ride the jeepneys, young boys come up and wipe our shoes. I never bothered to give money to them as I viewed it highly undignified to let them grow up thinking that by fooling the passengers, making the rags swiftly skim over our shoes and sandals, then we would part easily with our hard-earned cash. But yesterday was different. An older boy came up, who looked bedraggled. The immediate scene that came to my mind was his whole family waiting for him to deliver them food. The scene looked very pathetic – all the passengers seemed to have the means, a job or a business – especially when he sat on the floor after doing the “wipe” and extended his hand for alms. Instead of cash, I gave him that fresh bag of vegetarian chicharon which I was supposed to eat for dinner. He received it and then continued begging. The proliferation of beggars in the streets looks acute. Children, boys and girls from Mindanao, with their cans turned drums, also get into jeeps to beg. The drummer stays by the “estribo” singing his native song while the other one begs every passenger for a coin or two. I have not seen such a huge horde of beggars – by syndicates or no syndicates – suddenly descend in Manila. Meanwhile, I know that underneath some bridge or other, a family could be huddled together trying to survive a little day by day. Yet we see that everyday, government offices stay air-conditioned, full of office supplies, the employees getting their salaries every 15th and 30th of the month, and their bosses riding flashy vehicles with representational expenses, apart from their fat salaries, to enjoy. I don’t have to go through a treatise on how the economy is going bad. I just know that the oil prices are reaching the 50th mark, or has it? – that the prices of basic commodities are going up and that it is really getting harder and harder to deal with hunger and thirst, and that, THAT OUR RELATIVES HAVE TO WORK ABROAD TO SUPPORT THEIR FAMILIES HERE IN THE COUNTRY. This means that the country is no longer supportive of its citizens, that the resources of the country are being enjoyed by some other groups, and that only they could really stay here without fear of getting hungry, thirsty, and without having to worry about where to live, primarily. Hence this idea of a failure of elections is really a nightmare. Yesterday, a member of a political group mentioned that in Laguna, computer programmers are being briefed on how to “hack” and that some high officials are visiting the place. Is this true or false? Are we being deluded to believe here in MetroManila that the elections could go on as planned yet secretly, some forces are already preparing to subvert the results? Thus, the greater task of everyone, including those campaigning to win, must start flexing their muscles to know who are mastering and where these shenanigans are occurring and to stop and expose them altogether. It is still early to do so. And in case it would still happen, by now we should already be contacting the international community to watch the elections nationwide, to help us insure that clean, legal and honest transitions of power can be effected reflecting the people’s choices for leaders. Yet, the Comelec, that election agency, seems to be in the know that some groups are really manipulating the processes in the country but is helpless in controlling it, or maybe some are secretly working for them. But the non-recognition of candidates for national positions, the rejection of political parties without a clear basis, are signs that its functions are now being rode roughshod to prevent vocal groups to exercise their power to be voted upon and to have a voice in the running of the government. We should not allow any Honduran or Iranian experience to be replicated in our country. That is too horrendous. If we were able to insure that almost bloodless dissolution of the dictatorship, removing the family that sought a dynastic rule – although in terms of laws we have failed – in the eighties, then we should maintain our will, we need to to be creative and dynamic more than ever in insuring that our lives are in our hands and that we can and should have that power to choose our leaders still. We no longer have the Cory magic, and hopefully she is still watching over us. But she still has believers in the land, , citizens here and abroad, including her own son, who are willing to go through the same sacrifices just so we could make aright all forms of governance in our country. Give us strength of body, mind and soul, and let thy will be done, o Lord.