Democracy Is Bad?

There is talk, once in a while,  that the qualifications of our candidates for public office leave much to be desired. Social media commentators point out that most  employers require basic education and skills for even the lowliest of jobs, be it that of a carpenter, plumber or household help.

But as for public offices, even for the Presidency of the land, the only qualification aside from Filipino citizenship are residency, at least 40 years old, and are able to read and write. The level of our public servants have been exemplary before, specially the decades after the Second World War, when we recall the likes of Arturo Tolentino, Anbrosio Padilla, Lorenzo Tañada, Ninoy Aquino, Ferdinand Marcos, Sr. as examples.

The present quality of our elected leaders is attributed by armchair analysts to the lack of specific legal  standards and academic credentials legally demanded of our candidates to public service. I dare say that  we should not feel bad about our present predicament. Because it is all our fault as the electorate. If we raise our standards before we vote, we automatically assure the natio  of a better set of keaders. It’s as simple as that. So, all is not hopeless. Elections come regularly often enough in these isles, something like every three years.

The only drawback I can sense is that Filipinos are an emotional people. They like who they like, regardless of whether their choice is good or bad for the country. Parang isang dalagang may nagustuhan ng mahalin, maski ano ang payo ng mga magulang niya na walang magandang haharapin sa pagpili ng dalaga laban sa kagustuhan ng mga magulang at katwiran. That is our tragedy. We cannot distinguish between a Lee Kuan Yew and an ignorant popular guy.