The detention and possible trial of past president Rodrigo Duterte before the International Criminal Court (ICC) has greatly polarized the Filipinos not only in the Philippines but also in other countries where Filipinos are found, chiefly among overseas Filipino workers.
In Barcelona, many “kabayans” have openly expressed their support for Duterte by staging prayer rallies in some public places, the last of which was held this week at the Arc de Triomphe. Some OFWs held separate public demonstrations for and against Duterte in Geneva at the Palace of Nations (UN), as well as before The Hague, Netherlands where the ICC is situated.
In France and other countries in Europe and in Asia, and in some states in the US, public demonstrations were held, all of which indicate how divided the Filipinos are on the Duterte issues (including VP Sara’s impeachment). It is not even remotely possible that Duterte followers in Visayas and Mindanao would move for a secession from the republic.
In their zealous attempt to sustain their respective arguments for Duterte, the protagonists would even sound like experts of the law, many of whom would just be mouthing the opinions of Duterte’s lawyers (or the government’s, in the case of antagonists).
This reminds me of the time when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 pandemic, when people would be sounding like medical experts in arguing for or against the use of vaccines for immunization.
Or take the case of the war in Ukraine that Russia initiated and which triggered arguments between late blooming “historians” that took opposite sides on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Or when the 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck last week in Myanmar and in Bangkok, where people “expertly” discussed and argued like seismologists on how an earthquake of that magnitude would travel for more than a thousand kilometers with the same magnitude.
Of course, many get reelected because they buy the loyalty and reverence of their voters who thus become accomplices to their corruption
With the floodgates of information now wide open to even accommodate “fake news”, people are now well informed or misinformed and even ill-informed of not only domestic issues but also of global concerns.
With the ongoing midterm elections campaign, we can already see how the expansion of communications impacts the debates and strategies of candidates, specially on how they stand on issues of governance, personal qualifications and ethics (if there is still room for morality and “delicadeza” in this game where “goons, guns, and gold” still make the difference).
There will surely be a lot of heat in the debates as the campaign progresses, perhaps after the holy week. Already, mudslinging has started on the issues of corruption, anti-dynasty, incompetence, to name a few.
Every election time, the cry for good governance rings out loudly, and even those overstaying officials who made it their lifetime career and questionably made millions would shamelessly invoke that they are the epitome of integrity and honesty. Of course, many get reelected because they buy the loyalty and reverence of their voters who thus become accomplices to their corruption because they turn a blind eye to the nakedness of the truth that their candidates are immoral.
Much worse are those who are religious and pious church-goers who go to confession but remain unrepentant of their sins, thinking that God would absolve them from their transgressions with the expediency of the sacrament, forgetting that unrepentant sinners are doomed forever.
The people, especially the electorate, are aware that it is only through good governance that our nation can progress and the rewards and benefits are felt by the masses alleviating them from poverty and misery.
But the cycle of corrupt officials being elected and recycled by a corrupted electorate continues to blossom like flowers in springtime—the fragrance and radiant color of money are easily picked from the garden.
When will we ever learn?
