Why Politics is Always the Same

On May 9, 2022, the Filipino people will go to the polls once again to elect a leader for the next six years. Every time politics becomes the focal point of public opinion in the archipelago, a lot of people are quick to point out the many, many qualities that are needed for a leader, but, sadly, politics remains the same. Why?

To answer this question, we have to understand the political dynamics that is present within the electorate. It is very important to know how public affairs influence thinking and how government is viewed by the voters, whose needs are neglected, where poverty is prevalent, and that lack of knowledge of the state affairs constitute ignorance to a great extent.

Politics begin with the declaration of candidacies, where the people who wants to lead the country express interest in the matter. A closer inspection of the candidates will reveal where the quality of politics is going for the next presidential term. The president can only come from these declared candidates, and a choice must be made from them, and nothing more.

As long as the people's choices are restrained to the same group of people, change becomes elusive and a near impossibility. Running for public office is very expensive, and the remuneration is not very competitive, which leaves a deep void that scares away potential leaders from seeking an ideology needed for change.

Propaganda in elections follow the declared candidates, whose track records are seldom scrutinized, because the electorate are not busy looking at the portfolio of achievements of their candidates, but blinded by their basic needs. Politics in this condition becomes manipulative. Social services are supposed to be addressed through time by a responsible governance, but still nothing has changed.

A hungry stomach knows no other choice, knows no principles, and no boundaries. What is important is to bring food to the table, and this is exploited by the system. Political dynamics becomes a system through time, and systemic symptoms are harder to address, and difficult to defy.

Hunger and ignorance are a deadly combination, the necessary ingredients to the manipulation of the poor. The way communities are mobilized religiously point to a problem that can be linked to a lack of resolve resulting to the way the educational system fails to teach future leaders, and the electorate who put them to power.

To break the chains of this systemic curse, a revolution is necessary. Not a bloody revolution, but a revolution against a politics that never changes. It is time to overthrow the politics that never works, and start creating a government that is focused and well-informed in development studies.

Let's kick them all out.

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