| Photo by Glenn Joseph Villarama on Unsplash
Just the perfect timing to find inspiration – from ourselves. After all, there are only 15 million voters whom I called the designated survivors of Comelec, and it is only us 15 million who need to draw strength. There are 31 million more voters who are the selected winners of Comelec. They need no more reward; they got theirs early. Many were paid as Filipinos everywhere compared notes on how much they received to vote on May 9, 2022. They believed in promises, too, and to the regret of most, they still hold on to them.
And so it begins – the movie, I mean. It reminds us that we were once heroes, braved the odds, and stood for what we believed in – responsibility, accountability, and bayanihan. More than that, we are being asked if we still believe in the same virtues and values and try to live our lives guided by the same. Well, the packed movie houses are the answer. Because who would change their minds anyway? Leni was the symbol, but responsibility (ambag), accountability (resibo), and bayanihan (abonado) were the causes.
It was not as though the 15 million also did not believe in promises. They believed in Leni, but Leni was not just a promise. She was real. She was performing her duties as Vice President with dignity, even if she was treated in an undignified manner. The promise she gave still appeals more strongly than before. She promised that our lives would be better, Angat Buhay, if we helped one another, stayed with the truth, and loved radically instead of lying and stealing wantonly.
And so it begins – the unraveling of false promises. The Comelec’s 31 million did not listen to the purity of their hearts or the nobility of their souls. They are finding out today just how deaf and dumb they were – blinded by disinformation, sent running in circles by trolls on payrolls. They forgot the past, skipped lessons, and now pay the price. A local term in the vernacular has been popularized; it capsulizes what happened so succinctly – budol.
I am not scornful when I point out the painful truth of being deaf and dumb. Neither am I being partisan. Take Leni out of the equation, and I still believe in the same primary values of truth, responsibility, accountability, and bayanihan. Ask the 15 million if they still believe in the same things they campaigned and voted for. Losing the Comelec count gave me deep disappointment, not regret. Their values remain as important to them today as they were two years ago.
EDSA People Power in 1986 was not a promise, either. It was the culmination of a painful process in which Filipinos experienced the loss of freedom so a sitting president could become a dictator. The reward was instant the moment Ferdinand Marcos fled from Malacañang. Because it was the people who rebelled, they exacted their reward immediately. They rebelled from their disgust, from their frustration, for their freedom. That was why euphoria filled the land, not because Cory arranged it, but because the people could not contain their joy.
“September is here, and the festive season begins for Filipinos inspired by Christmas and Joe Mari Chan. We might be lulled into thinking we can escape a Christmas bubble.”
And so it begins – the unraveling of a false unity. The Uniteam brand was precisely that – a brand. However, it is only natural to unravel today because it was hollow initially. To understand just how flimsy this unity was, it is now disintegrating on its own. It did not need an outside force; it did not need the 15 million to go ballistic. The Uniteam was composed of pieces of wood infested with termites; it is now collapsing from its own inner rot.
When power and money are the primary motivations for unity, it can never last. The nature of greed is such that it always craves more – and positions of power, authority, and wealth are impossible to share for long. In less than two years, those who had less desired more, while those who had more had no intention of sharing; instead, they amassed even more.
Still, the angry dissolution of partnerships will cause disruption, if not destruction. I hope many of us have observed the drama since confidential funds became a sensitive issue among partners in late 2023, with tensions escalating. A minor mistake in flashpoints like Davao City can bring violence into play.
I wish that only the 31 million voters registered with Comelec would bear the consequences of social and political unrest. However, in life and society, everything is interconnected. The decision made by the 31 million, as reported by Comelec, has repercussions for the additional 15 million designated survivors as well—meaning it affects all of us.
September is here, and the festive season begins for Filipinos inspired by Christmas and Joe Mari Chan. We might be lulled into thinking we can escape a Christmas bubble. Every year, when we avoid confronting the true state of our affairs, we only make things worse for the following year. Let Christmas soothe our fears and let the festive spirit enter our insecurities. But let us not be blind, deaf, or dumb. We have had too much of that.
There is only one path forward: working diligently in the right direction. It is not the government’s ayuda that will increase our capacity and security; it is only what you and I can do, learn, and produce that will add more food to our tables and more income to our savings.
I know our problems will never be solved quickly; we have been wrong too long, and our mistakes have become habitual. However, perhaps the young people watching And So It Begins can show us the way because only they have the energy and idealism to lead us forward.
