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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Disenchanted with Democracy By Antonio C. Abaya May 8, 2002 A majority of Filipinos, especially those in the better informed National Capital Region, are disenchanted with the way democracy works in the Philippines, according to a nationwide survey conducted last November by a group led by Jose V. Abueva, a former president of the University of the Philippines and member of the constitutional convention which drafted the 1987 Constitution, who released the results in article that appeared in the May 3, 2002 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. (See Filipinos disenchanted with democracy, UP survey shows). According to Abueva, in reply to the statement, �on the whole, I am satisfied with the way democracy works in our country,� 42 percent of the 1,200 respondents disagreed and 34 percent agreed, In the more politically conscious and informed National Capital Region, 57 percent disagreed and only 25 percent agreed. To the statement �I am proud of the system of government of the Philippines,� 43 percent nationwide disagreed and 32 percent agreed. In the NCR, almost 60 percent disagreed and only 21 percent agreed. I am rather puzzled by this particular entry as one does not usually ponder if one is proud of the system of government in one�s country, but one could conceivably have asked the respondents if they were proud of their government or their country. I can safely answer that in my household of five tax-paying adults, none of us is proud of our government or our country. And I qualify that statement with the rider that �our government� does not refer to the incumbent but to all governments preceding it, as well as to the politicians, in and out of power, who have made such a mess of this unfortunate country, thus robbing us of any sense of pride in it as well. ***** At least, according to the survey, 72 percent of respondents still believe that democracy �is still the best political system in all circumstances.� But 72 percent also agree on the possibility that �Filipinos will completely lose faith in peaceful means of promoting democracy.� One recalls the words of Winston Churchill: �Democracy is the worst political system, until you consider the alternatives!� Or words to that effect. I do not know if the Abueva survey delved deeper into the attitudes of Filipinos regarding democracy in general, and our own brand of democracy in particular. I must emphasize that not all democracies are created equal. The communists claim that their system is democratic even though there are no open elections (�Divisive!� huffed Fidel Castro), no free press, no political opposition and, before glasnost and perestroika, no private enterprises. The Singaporeans and the Malaysians also claim their systems are democratic even though their press is controlled, their political opposition is muffled, and the ISA hangs like a sword over the heads of communists and pro-communists. To the common lament (including those from Lee Kwan Yew) that the Philippines suffers from too much democracy, pro-communist columnist Conrado de Quiros usually replies that our problem is not too much democracy, but not enough of it. Does this mean that instead of the daily diarrhea raining down on the government (no matter who is president) from columnists like him, he wants double that dosage? Or instead of five strikes a month by the communist-led KMU, he wants ten? Could Lee Kwan Yew or Dr. Mahathir Mohamad have built their prosperous and successful societies if they had allowed columnists like Quiros and labor unions like the KMU to pollute their air? ***** The Abueva survey, based on the skimpy information in the Inquirer article, did not ask the 1,200 respondents what specifically they were unhappy about in the way democracy is working in the Philippines. Was it too much politics, or not enough of it? Too much pork barrel, or not enough of it? Corruption? Crime and lawlessness? Not enough jobs? Too many labor strikes, or not enough of it? Nepotism? Cronyism? High prices and low wages? Corrupt policemen, corrupt judges, corrupt journalists, corrupt businessmen�do we have too many of them or not enough? Are our elections too expensive, or not expensive enough? And what kind of government do Filipinos want to see in power? A communist government? Or social democratic? Or right-wing military junta? Or laissez-faire capitalist? As this would probably be too cerebral for most Filipinos to consider, bring it down to personalities. Which present or recent past world leaders do Filipinos admire the most? Mao Zedung? Lee Kwan Yew? George W. Bush? Tony Blair? Jacques Chirac? Mohamad Mahathir? Osama bin Laden? Kim Jong Il? Saddam Hussein? Bill Clinton? Yasser Arafat? Megawati Sukarnoputri? Pervez Musharaf? Mullah Mohammad Omar? Ariel Sharon? Fidel Castro? Ho Chi Minh? Thaksin What�s-his-name? I suspect it would be Lee Kwan Yew by a mile, as it was in such a survey about eleven or twelve years ago, when he got more than 80 percent of the votes. Would Filipinos accept a Lew Kwan Yew � duly elected but strong-willed and incorruptible � and the law and order, the cleanliness (physical and moral), the good governance and the prosperity that are implied, with a corresponding diminution of civil and political rights? Perhaps it is time to do such a survey. Watch out for it in www.tapatt.org. ***** This article appears in the May 20 issue of the Philippine Weekly Graphic magazine. |
| OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to �Disenchanted with Democracy� June 4, 2002 Hi Tony. Just want to let you know, I forwarded your article to Pepe Abueva, who happens to be one of the board members of SWS. By the way, why don�t you visit our Survey Data Library sometime; we�re open to public research. Regards .Mahar Mangahas. No email address given. MY REPLY. Thank you for forwarding the article to Pepe, and for your kind invitation to visit your research library. Will take you up on it one of these days. ***** Dear Tony. You hit it right on the nose! And I agree with you whether we Filipinos will accept a Filipino in (Lee Kwan Yew�s) mold. Just wanted you to know that I am a consistent follower of your column. Best regards. Josie Lichauco. No email address given. ***** Good article. To paraphrase someone�s saying: �The best form of government is monarchy, with me as king!� I am about to finish reading Lee Kwan Yew�s book and I suppose he, being semi-retired, could be tapped to run our country! Cory could have made our country great but she failed miserably. As Corysta friends used to say: Marcos had the opportunity and had got off to a running start with martial law, but backsliding caught up with him. I, however, maintained that Cory had the opportunity a thousand times more than Marcos: she could have told the Filipinos to jump into the Pasig and they would have, right after her takeover. She could have demonstrated austerity (like LKY did at the start) and asked people to sacrifice for a while, stop strikes, etc., but she muffed it. She protected her landholdings instead. And she enjoyed the pomp and circumstance! We need a young, great incorruptible leader who will first clean up the government, jail offenders and subversives, etc. The alternative is that we declare war against Japan or Taiwan and lose, a la �Mouse that Roared� and be disciplined. Or organize a Fourth Force of retired and retirable men like yourself and myself, and go for clean government, ready to die for this cause: we can�t get out of life alive anyway, and we have only 30 to 40 years to go! Best regards. Rudy. Dr. Rodolfo M. Villarica. No email address given. MY REPLY. In all fairness to Cory, she did not want the job. She was pushed into it kicking and screaming, and protesting that she did not know how to be president. How right she turned out to be. I am more inclined to blame the people around her, who certainly knew �how to be president� but couldn�t get their act together. Through her, they tried to slap together a government that would please everyone but ended up pleasing no one. ***** One suspects that Filipinos do not know the right thing from the wrong. Or if they do, they are too morally weak to do the right thing. Corruption, as you mentioned, is what ails the country. Even getting the right system of government is predicated on the sincerity and goodness of the Filipino. And after having gotten the right system, only more goodness and sincerity could make the Filipinos make it work. There is too much insincerity. You mentioned Quiros. If you knew him personally and had personal dealings with him, you would find him insincere. He wields a mighty pen, but all that is negated by his insincerity. Gras Reyes. [email protected]. ***** OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |