By: Rodrigo S. Victoria
Naval, Biliran – Endorsements which come in many kinds, forms and types for local and national candidates sprouted like mushrooms all over the archipelago as election fever starts to heat up.
Every candidate wants to catch public attention by creating the best image and presenting the most saleable propaganda to the public in their infomercials in print, broadcast and television including their almost daily interpersonal interactions with people in all walks of life.
In all these political wheeling and dealing, candidates usually make pronouncements which always bear the “I can do this and that or I will do this and that” messages.
The employment of the usual motherhood statements like alleviating poverty and putting an end to corruption, reducing illiteracy and improving the educational system, improving the delivery of social services and providing jobs and raising the quality of life of the people and many other alluring premises or enticing promises in mind are already a template or a trademark of almost all candidates everytime he face the Filipino electorates.
That is why majority of the political aspirants for the 2010 local and national elections have considered themselves savior of the depressed and the defender of the oppressed, the messiah of good fortune of the less fortunate, the messenger of good news of the downtrodden and the heaven sent figure of the underprivileged members of the society.
However, we cannot blame our country’s politicians who throw their political hat in the 2010 local and national elections on the kind of image they portray in public, whether they are genuine, candid and true or maybe just an exaggeration of their real self or maybe just pretending to be a good Samaritan or it might be that the personality they portray is a product of a highly creative and imaginative Public Relations (PR) firm they hired to do some major personality cosmetics.
With all these things now happening, we cannot make an excuse for some people to believe in the good and best image they personify before the eyes of the public. Much more to their avid supporters and devoted followers who at all times always swallow hook, line and sinker on whatever messages they impart.
Publicity stunt, how truthful and candidly presented it may be by some and how tricky and deceptive it may be employed by others in capturing the hearts and minds of the people and in getting the precious vote of each and every Filipino voter is one legally acceptable based on existing political jurisprudence.
Nevertheless, whatever effects it may bring to the Filipino electorates in choosing their candidates and in the outcome of the 2010 local and national elections, we should always bear in mind that the kind of community or society we dream, though it may not be the best kind but at least a good and a better one, greatly depends on the kind of leaders we chose to run and manage the affairs of government.
We should be more discerning and be more objective in selecting our future leaders. No one can be blamed for the failure of leadership in our community and in country as a whole except ourselves who might put to waste our right of suffrage vested to every eligible Filipino citizen.
We cannot afford to be run like hell by our future elected leaders who without fear will take advantage of their position to the detriment of the welfare of the majority. More that we cannot afford this time just to be a bystander for the clarion call to be vigilant in the exercise of our right to vote, and more importantly in electing the right candidates for the positions at stake.
Well, anyway the choice is yours to make, my friend.
