(This post is a response to an article written by Conrado de Quiros entitled Interesting times in the Philippine Daily Inquirer dated January 20, 2010.)
The question of cheating in a fully automated elections is not as unimaginable as in the manual elections. Especially for Filipinos, the extent of discovery is merely the extent of one’s imagination. Coming up with results far different from the actual votes is a piece of cake with a number of computer-literate individuals in power and for hire.
It could not be the malfunctioning of machines that the people should be afraid of but rather the machines working perfectly leading the public to think that this time things will be different, this time Filipinos can get the elections right.
Machines are but machines no matter how brilliant they could be because still, it couldn’t perfect its operation without it being manhandled. Even with automation, cheating can exist and it will only be harder to prove.
The next question to answer after nailing this possible flaw in May 2010 is whether another EDSA is to be expected if the surveys’ champ Noynoy Aquino loses and claims cheated. Filipinos are indeed smart and more active in social issues than most people are willing to believe. I don’t believe however that the past EDSA revolutions could stand proof to it. The first one maybe but the thriving of the people power culture has ultimately become more of a habit than a necessity. It seems to have been abused, a last resort when there doesn’t seem to be any way out anymore.
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Is that all we can do?
Vote for a president and when something goes wrong, oust and vote again? If Noynoy Aquino ignites a People Power to reclaim what he lost if he doesn’t win as president claiming being cheated because surveys say he is at the top of the list, would we be serving justice or again tolerating a spoiled brat? How assured are we anyway that politics is not powerful enough to fight against his idealism and good name?
I have lost faith in politicians and empty words because words will always just be so easy to say. No matter who we put in power, corruption will exist. We cannot rely on an unjust system, only on ourselves.
Mind our own lives, exercise our rights, take up our own responsibilities and just live right.
As for Noynoy, if he does lose and claim to have been cheated, he can choose to spend his money, time and energy fighting for that seat he lost, a fight that would probably be futile against this slowpoke of a justice system or continue to do what he can to keep his promises and make this nation better for the people he comes across.
It’s not like there’s nothing he can do if he is not president. It would become a mockery of the value this country gave to the fight of his mom in 1986 if he merely uses it to ensure that he gets the seat he is vying for.
The presidency has added benefits but it would not and should not be the one to define him as a servant leader. Everyone can be servant leaders, we don’t need titles or recognition worldwide.
All we need is the heart which is lacking in the government. Given that, we, ordinary people, already have an advantage if we want to make our community better and then transform the world.
(Some insights formed from http://www.noynoy.ph/blog/2010/01/10/people-powered/)
