With the Presidential elections just around the corner, everyone seems to have made up their mind who to vote. I have declared my choice of Mar Roxas as President and I am a known supporter of Leni Robredo since the beginning so my choice is clear.
But there are still undecideds among our midst that I try to campaign (convince) with my choice. Not that I want to impose my choice on them but that I want them to also go through the same process of rationalization I did for their choice.
The same rationalization process I push with those who’ve made up their mind also.
I simply begin by asking the innocent question of Why him (or her)? and follow up the answers with supplementary questions.
While some have been accommodating in answering my thought provoking questions even if it leads them to dead ends they can’t answer, others simply gave up at the first instance. But the saddest – and for me the worst answer I’ve received – is a declaration of hopelessness for the country.
I was dismayed when I heard that even with the elections coming up, nothing changes. It’s all just the same. The powerful stay in power, the rich becomes richer, the poor gets poorer, etc. Better go to another country. There’s no hope for change here.
I cringe at the lack of ownership. The lack of nationalistic spirit. We may all agree to disagree on our choice for president but to claim that whatever happens, whoever we vote for, nothing will change is tantamount to saying our democracy has failed us.
This lack of hope will be the downfall of our nation for we have resigned ourselves to the perceived lie that nothing can be done about the woes of our country.
But there is hope. Change is already happening. Let us not be blind to it. Let us not wash our hands of it. Change is happening – and we are part of that change.
True. Sadly, I’m one of them. I have lost all hope with our nation. The only thing running on my mind right now (as an OFW) is how I can make my family survive amidst this hopelessness. I’m scared to think how to bring up a family at this time, just imagine how will high school and college cost in the future. I’ve been seriously thinking of migrating to another country (Canada maybe? – because of the free healthcare). You have to admit, Filipinos have a bad habit blaming others for the misery – we blamed the Spaniards during the occupation, we blamed the Americans, the Japanese, the Chinese, the previous administration, etc. Remember 2010? The time all people are clamoring for Noynoy. That will happen again. Whoever wins the election will be the hero of today’s eyes but will become the enemy at the end of term.