Anong mga turo ang makukuha natin mula sa mga disiplina ng SokSay
(Agham Panlipunan) ang palagay mong makatutulong sa ating tugunan
ang tingin mong mahalagang isyu ng lipunan?
Looking back at the four characteristics of what makes Philippines a state is the presence of the
Filipino populace, having a strategic territory which is archipelagic in nature, bounded by laws as
enacted by the government and exercises sovereignty. The Philippines is a republic, having a
presidential form of government wherein the power is divided among three branches namely
executive, legislative and judicial with the 1987 Constitution as the legal framework having the
objective of acting in the best interest of the citizens by sustaining the basic needs of its
constituents and maintaining the status quo. It is for this reason that there is a need for a leader to
govern the Republic of the Philippines using democratic ways and one of which is the election.
According to Article 7, Section 4, the president together with the vice president has a term of six
years.
Just a few weeks away will be the end of Rodrigo Dutuerte’s administration, comes May 9,
2022, voters will go to respective poll places to cast votes as mandated by Article 5 in the 1987
Constitution known as the Right of Suffrage. Tracing back to the history of elections in the
Philippines dubbed as a circus, a festival and an entertainment galore rolled into one. Several
distinctive features became attractive to the populace. First is the number of political parties with
respective rosters of candidates, from the first official election in 1907, there have been only two
political parties; the nacionalista and the progresista up to the Macapagal administration, there
have been change of names in between but then multi-party system had started during the
Marcos’ administration up to the present.
Second feature is the number of candidates for one position, during pre-Marcos’ times, the
maximum number of aspirants for presidential position was only 2, seldom it reaches 3 but now
we have ten candidates for president alone, nine for vice-president, sixty four are senatorial
aspirants for twelve slots and one hundred seventy seven party list groups vying for 63 slots.
Third feature is the budget allocation of candidates all throughout the campaign period. How
will the losers deal with financial woes? On the side of the victors, how will they recoup their
expenses? By being involved with graft and corruption during their tenure, by creating positions
for their supporters as part of utang na loob? Will they still be concerned with the nature of
public service?
Will the outcome of this election help us bounce back from the economic unrest brought about
by the COVID-19 pandemic and the on-going war between Russia and Ukraine?
The May 9 election will not be different from previous elections because as have been described,
it is one entertainment event to remember after every six years. It will still fall under patronage
politics where candidates will use black propaganda, smear campaign , fake surveys and vote
buying to eliminate competitors. It will still be candidate-centric with no fixed platforms but full
of broken promises. Since the start of the filing of candidacy; alliances, nepotism and personal
affiliations have occurred. These practices continued to evolve through the years with little or no
changes at all. People are motivated to vote because of the monetary benefits which can sustain
their survival for a period of time, without thinking of what could be the effects after election.
The attitude of being resilient among Filipinos had become a daily practice even if survival
becomes more difficult with each passing day. Being adaptable to changes had been one
strength of Filipino culture. Despite the disparity in terms of social classes, still every dilemma
can be a challenge but not a white flag to be raised. Eliminating patronage politics and nepotism
can be hard tasks, because it is what is the system at present but definitely not permanent.
The struggle for a clean and honest elections continues but we have to consider the backbone of
the society which is the family, it will be the sanctuary for comfort that we will remain hopeful
for; that the consciousness where integrity and honesty abounds will prevail. We will be the
voices of the future generations who will advocate changes, it will be one tiring journey to trek
on , everything will be done gradually and eventually realizing that patronage politics will no
longer be the concern of every candidate but rather genuine public service to promote sustainable
development goals for generations to come.
The teachings from the different Social Science disciplines will help each one of us be more
critical of the changes in our society though beset with political, economic and social problems,
the ideas, theories, applications, interpretations and perspectives will help us understand our
roles in the society and how we can help promote changes along the way. It will not just be a
dream but rather everything will be real through being advocates of change, of helping raise
awareness through education and information campaigns, of continuously seeking help and
inspiration from our families and teachers as we become more critical and analytical with what
we watch, hear and read especially on social media. We will be more vigilant with our actions by
showing the values of kindness, understanding and compassion towards our fellowmen. But most
of all, we will always be guided by our benevolent God that we can surpass every challenge
graciously in accordance with His plan.