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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Kapatiran and Pagbabago By Antonio C. Abaya August 29, 2002 At least, some indefatigable and doggedly optimistic Filipinos still find a light at the end of the tunnel, even if 19% of their countrymen think this country is hopeless and would rather move to another country if they could, even if no less than billionaire taipan Lucio Tan believes it would take Filipinos at least one hundred more years to find a true leader, and even if 69% of Gene Orejana�s Online TV viewers say the Filipino is not worth dying for. Within a day of each other, two groups of civic-minded Filipinos announced the formation of �political movements� that claim to fill an aching void in the Philippine political arena and will no doubt attempt to make their presence felt in the elections of 2004. On August 19, a group calling itself Kapatiran ng Pangkalahatang Kabutihan or Kapatiran for short, was launched in the Club Filipino. In its question-and-answer booklet Kapatiran identifies itself as a political movement composed of �God-fearing citizens of the Philippines�committed to work for the common good for the benefit of the Filipino people regardless of race, color, status or religion, and to translate into reality a government of the people, by the people and for the people�� Kapatiran is unabashedly Roman Catholic in its orientation, drawing heavily on the social teachings of the Church and quoting appropriate passages from the New Testament and parish documents to articulate its vision of the kind of society that we should grow into. However, it does have purely secular policy objectives, aside from seeking �first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness,� such as �to enforce the liquidation of cash advances to public officials within the fiscal year that they (the advances) were received;� �to disallow elected as well as appointed public officials from writing regular columns, from acting in movies and television shows, from acting as commentators or anchor persons on radio and television;� �to pass and approve a stringent gun control law�;� �to abolish the death penalty;� �to abolish PAGCOR and all forms of gambling;� � to enforce the constitutional ban against relatives of incumbent public officials up to the third degree from seeking public office simultaneously or succeeding the former;� etc. Prospective Kapatiran members are expected to �lead exemplary lives; prepared to suffer personal inconvenience for the common good; read and study the Social Teachings of the Church; organize, independently or in collaboration with parishes, seminars/teach-ins on the Catholic Church�s Social Teachings; teach by way of personal example good manners and right conduct,� among other things. Kapatiran is lead by Gunless Society advocate Nandy Pacheco as chairman, and Lawyer and Special Counsel to the PCGG Mario Ongkiko as president. The other founding members, however, are not well known outside Church lay circles. ***** Pagbabago, which announced its presence through a statement on the Internet on August 20, has a more high-profile charter-membership: Columnists Jarius Bondoc and Rina Jimenez David, Environmentalist Nicky Perlas, former NEDA Director Cielito Habito, Senator Francis Pangilinan, Pop Singer Jim Paredes, and Business Executive Alan Ortiz easily stand out in the list of 21 founding members. As its name implies, Pagbabago bats for �renewal, rebirth, regeneration� and �commits itself to a new revolution waged not with arms, but with ideas, values and principles, backed by individual and collective action; with the power of an awakened, organized, vigilant citizenry in our homes, schools, communities, workplaces and professions�..� Pagbabago plans to wage this new revolution through a set of core principles, among which are Love of Country, Poverty Eradication, Global Cooperation, Economy of Solidarity, Good Democratic Governance, Cultural Freedom, Creativity and Vibrancy, Ecological Soundness, Human Development and Servant Leadership, and Spirituality. For more details on these core principles, contact [email protected]. ***** My critique of Kapatiran and Pagbabago and other well-intentioned burgis groupings is that they cannot compete with communist and pro-communist parties like Bayan Muna and Akbayan in ideological cohesion, commitment to a burning cause, and the capability to gather warm bodies to confront their explicitly identified enemies. If Pangilinan were to use Pagbabago to campaign for a higher office, the warm bodies he can gather will be there to squeal and giggle over the presence of his wife, not to get fired up by Pagbabago�s core principles. Of such stuff is a revolution not made. Kapatiran is too Catholic for its own good. The Philippine electorate, especially in these days of media accessibility for practically everyone, is secular in orientation and does not take too kindly to candidates or parties who/that are unabashedly sectarian, as my friend Nandy Pacheco should have learned from his 1998 experience as vice-presidential candidate of a very Catholic (and short-lived) political party. Besides, being too attached to the Social Teachings of the Church would automatically alienate Kapatiran from many, even most, of the Catholic middle and upper classes who disagree emphatically with the social teachings of the Church on such issues as divorce and birth control. It also pays to recall that in his first bid for the Senate, birth-control advocate Juan Flavier was pilloried by the Catholic bishops from practically every pulpit in the land, yet he came out a very respectable sixth-placer (out of 12) in the final tally. In the ultimate analysis, the success or failure of any political party in the Philippines, which has a very personalistic political culture, depends on the person who will carry that party�s banner into the fray. That person must not only embody his/her party�s core principles, he/she must also articulate those principles in terms meaningful to the daily lives of even the poorest of the poor. Can Kapatiran or Pagbabago supply that person? ***** Kapatiran and Pagbabago must also come to grips with the nuts and bolts of managing the change or changes that they claim to espouse. Are they in favor of a shift to the parliamentary system; why or why not? Are they in favor of the abolition of the Senate; why or why not? How do they propose to dismantle the political dynasties? How do they propose to monitor and control campaign spending, which is the biggest single cause of corruption among elected officials and their appointed assignees? How do they propose to strengthen the Comelec, which is a toothless, spineless and brainless wonder totally impotent against electoral fraud? Are they in favor of an electronic national ID card; why or why not? Kapatiran and Pagbabago must also define their economic agenda. Are they in favor of globalization and free trade; why or why not? Where do they propose to generate GDP growth, given that the Philippines missed the export bus? How do they propose to solve the budget deficit and the low tax collection? Are they in favor of more direct taxes; why or why not? And Kapatiran and Pagbabago must confront social issues squarely and unequivocably. Are they in favor of a population control program; why or why not? How do they propose to deal with the Catholic Church�s inflexible opposition to artificial methods of birth control? How do they propose to deal with media and showbiz, both of which have trivialized our politics and idiotized the masa? Finally, how do they propose to deal with the communist movement, which has infiltrated and politicized practically every sector of Philippine society to a point where, though unable to grab state power, they can make it well nigh impossible for any leader to govern effectively? Does Kapatiran or Pagbabago have a �better idea� with which to confront the �idea� of Communism, which is attracting more and more adherents among the young and the poor who are despairing of their future? ***** The bulk of this article appears in the September 16, 2002 issue of the Philippine Weekly Graphic. . |
| OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to �Kapatiran and Pagbabago� I WISH all these ideological dreamers all the best in their efforts. In fact, I would support them myself. But to whom do they want to sell all these wonderful, politically mature things they advocate? To the idiots who voted for Erap or are going to vote for FPJ? Good luck! Computer says they will make less than 5% of the votes, but I�ll be happy if proven wrong. Peter J. Ritter, Manila. [email protected] September 24, 2002 YOUR COMMENTS on Kapatiran and Pagbabago are very apt. Indeed, what is the solution? The more I try to think of a solution within the warped democratic concepts and damaged cultural background and dysfunctional mind frame that the majority of Filipinos are entrapped in, the more I can�t find any, except through the barrel of a gun that is held by a Lee Kwan Yew, a Mahathir, or someone similar. And that gun must be held and used continuously for at least two generations to ensure continuity of the many reforms that must be actualized and bred into the daily lives and psyche of the people, those in the mainstream and the young who are to succeed. Nonoy Yulo, Alabang Hills, Muntinlupa. [email protected] September 25, 2002 JUST GIVE Nandy and his friends an A for effort. Of course, good intentions pave the way to��. Nandy still believes the Catholic Church is a potent force. The only problem is that it cannot openly come out in the political arena. If only Nandy can get the Catholic Church to officially endorse his candidates, then the Church�s strength can be tested. But success is not for the organization�s objectives. His personal success is already made. He will go down in history as the man who did these and that with the best of intentions. Too bad, he was ahead of his times, his biographers will say. He was a Don Quixote in Philippine Politics. Gras Reyes. [email protected] September 25, 2002 THOSE GROUPS and activities are �feel good� exercises, meaning that participants derive more satisfaction from them than does society. The chances of them having any real or practical beneficial effect are next to zero. It�s like religion and prayer � well-meaning but futile. Thousands of years of preaching and praying has changed the human race not one iota. In fact, a good case can be made that religion makes us worse because it adds fanaticism to our other sins. We are all still a bunch of egotistical bastards. Robert Hanan, Queensland, Australia. [email protected] September 26, 2002 I AM FORWARDING your articles to a friend. I think he is interested in Pagbabago even as a member. Grace M. Buencamino. No email address given. September 26, 2002 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |