THE FINAL days leading to the elections were exhilarating. The election bug has infected almost everyone, except the cynics I suppose, that social media was filled with political posts of various angles, slants, ad infinitum!
The posts were all about candidates, advocacy platforms, attacks, support, and what have you. Name it, you have it! Candidates were discussed during mealtimes and during break times. Sometimes candidates were mercilessly criticized; other times empathized with; and still at other times, praised. Many personal stories were revealed in the course of these discussions. I guess that’s the most poignant part.
Then suddenly, everything halted because the nation had to celebrate Mother’s Day – a day before midterm elections! What timing, huh! Our attention was riveted by all the posts about Mothers – their virtues and value, inundating social media again! What is life without social media these days!
Not only that. We get Mother’s Day messages on Messenger 24 hours straight that admittedly, I was no longer able to catch up!
Then as swiftly as it came, it had to end abruptly on Monday, as the nation trooped to the polling stations, to vote for their chosen candidates.
Presently, the post-election reactions are varied. Some are utterly disappointed for the defeat of their candidates like my cousin Irene Sheila Lungay while others are jubilant for the victory of theirs.
Others are happy because candidates they abhor lost, giving them a high degree of satisfaction, while some others are cringing in frustration because the candidates they detest, won. People indeed have different motivations, loyalties, and levels of satisfaction. Even then, the elections are a good exercise of human emotions. People are attuned to their humanity, so to speak.
I am sure you can relate because you, too, have your share of disgust, contentment, or cynicism. You have your story to tell, like everybody else. As for me, I was disappointed for a day. Then I moved on. Life must go on.
What now? Well, for starters, accountability. We demand accountability from our elected officials. Yes, demand. We do not request nor appeal. We demand. We remind them all the time that public office is a public trust. We call a spade a spade, if the situation warrants it, and hopefully we have the balls to say it. I will not even delve into virtues and values, for after all, a lot of shady characters are back in public office, yes public office! It must be really good for redemption, huh!
I can’t end this column without mentioning the brouhaha of the elections for governor in Bohol, my home province. The elections were tight and rightly so. My bet was former Cabinet Secretary Jun Evasco who campaigned on the platform of clean elections and good governance.
I like this guy. He’s made of clean stuff. He is principled. He may not have won the elections but he clearly obtained the moral victory. I like that, too! There’s hope for clean elections in Bohol and Evasco brought it back. Now, we ought to sustain that for the next three years if only to show the world that Bohol has had enough of money politics and dynastic politics.
Truth be told, I was almost losing hope for my home province but with Evasco’s moral high ground, suddenly I found a spark of hope and I am holding on tight. I will not let go. Hope springs eternal.
To end, let me quote my high school classmate, Alma Fe Cuñado, who has this to say about candidate Jun Evasco: He (Evasco) didn’t give money (translation: he did not buy votes) prior elections and stood by the advocacy of the Catholic Church for a clean, honest, accurate, meaningful, and peaceful elections. That alone fully armed him with the moral ascendancy to govern the Boholanos – that is on top of his virtuous qualifications.
There you go! Moral high ground. The man stands firmly on that! Let’s march on to good governance!
***
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Corruption is the enemy of development, and of good governance. It must be got rid of. Both the government and the people at large must come together to achieve this national objective. – Pratibha Patil
***
For comments, you may reach the writer at belca.87@gmail.com/PN
